Book News Vol. 9 No. 2

BOOK NEWS

INCITE

Join us on March 19 for an evening with mystery and thriller writers! Deryn Collier (Open Secret), Craig Davidson aka Nick Cutter (The Troop), Andrew Pyper (The Demonologist), and Sean Slater (The Guilty). Details on this and other upcoming Incite events here, http://www.writersfest.bc.ca/events/incite.

SPECIAL EVENT

Miriam Toews and Steven Galloway
An evening with two acclaimed Canadian authors. Steven Galloway, the bestselling author of The Cellist of Sarajevo, is back with his brilliant new novel, The Confabulist. And Miriam Toews, the award-winning author of A Complicated Kindness, brings her irresistible voice and heart wrenching poignancy to her new novel All My Puny Sorrows. Click here for event details and to find out more about our special offer for bookclubs: http://www.writersfest.bc.ca/events/gallowaytoews.

AWARDS & LISTS

Thomas King has won the RBC Taylor prize, one of Canada's most storied awards for non-fiction, for The Inconvenient Indian: A Curious Account of Native People in North America. This is his second literary prize in less than a month.
http://www.quillandquire.com/blog/index.php/awards/thomas-king-gets-second-big-win-for-the-inconvenient-indian-with-rbc-taylor-prize

George Saunders has been awarded the inaugural Folio Prize for his "darkly playful" short story collection Tenth of December. The £40,000 prize was created by members of the books industry who felt frustrated by what they saw as the shortcomings of the Man Booker.
http://www.theguardian.com/books/2014/mar/10/george-saunders-tenth-of-december-first-winner-folio-prize

The $150,000 Windham Campbell book prizes are judged in confidence, and the awardees only learn of their lucrative honours as they are publicly announced. This year's batch of eight winners includes Vancouver's own John Vaillant.
http://www.theguardian.com/books/2014/mar/07/windham-campbell-books-prizes-150000

The Canadian Library Association has announced the finalists for their kids' book awards. The awards include prizes for children's books, illustration, and young adult works.
http://www.quillandquire.com/blog/index.php/awards/canadian-library-association-announces-kids-book-award-finalists/

Three Canadian women have made the longlist for the Baileys Women's Prize for Fiction, the U.K.'s only annual book award for fiction written by women. Margaret Atwood, Eleanor Catton and Claire Cameron made the cut.
http://www.quillandquire.com/blog/index.php/awards/claire-cameron-joins-atwood-catton-on-baileys-womens-prize-for-fiction-longlist/

Authors J.B. MacKinnon, Théodora Armstrong, and Ashley Little are among the latest nominees for the annual B.C. Book Prizes.
http://www.cbc.ca/news/arts/grant-lawrence-j-b-mackinnon-up-for-b-c-book-prizes-1.2569951

Afaa Michael Weaver is the recipient of the $100,000 Kingsley Tufts Poetry Award for his collection The Government of Nature.
http://www.latimes.com/books/jacketcopy/la-et-jc-kingsley-tufts-poetry-award-afaa-michael-weaver-20140311,0,6434393.story

YOUNG READERS

In celebration of the upcoming World Book Day, two much-loved children's authors have compiled advice for children on "how to conceive, plot and structure a page-turning story." Read Cressida Cowell and Charlie Higson's tips here:
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/books/10675446/Cressida-Cowell-Charlie-Higson-World-Book-Day-Storycraft-books-writing-creative-writing-storytelling.html

Florence Nightingale and Clara Barton are commonly recognized as the two great heroines of 19th century nursing. Now, two books aimed at children have emerged to tell their stories.
http://www.nytimes.com/2014/03/05/books/florence-nightingale-and-clara-and-davie.html

There are also three new young-adult novels that young people (and their parents) should pay attention to: The ACB with Honora Lee, by Kate de Goldi; Hollow City (The Second Novel of Miss Peregrine's Peculiar Children), by Ransom Riggs; and No One Else Can Have You, by Kathleen Hale.
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/arts/books-and-media/book-reviews/three-young-adult-novels-that-the-kids-should-know-about/article17378848/

NEWS & FEATURES

What happens when characters outlive their authors? The phenomenon has become more and more popular, thanks to novels like Wide Sargasso Sea and the BBC's Sherlock series.
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/arts/books-and-media/when-characters-outlive-their-authors-how-we-breathe-new-life-into-old-books/article17378520/

Why might a book end mid-sentence? In Kafka's case, it was because he died. For Gogol, it was a cliffhanger for a trilogy that never materialized. For David Foster Wallace, it may simply have been because he wanted to do the opposite of what was expected. Read more about 12 books that end mid-sentence, here:
http://blogs.publishersweekly.com/blogs/PWxyz/2014/03/04/12-books-that-end-mid-sentence/

If you're interested in how writing can affect society, you will be amused to discover this little nugget of whimsy: 'How the New York Times Resurrected the Monocle, Over and Over Again, for the Last 112 Years'.
http://nymag.com/daily/intelligencer/2014/03/history-new-york-times-monocle.html

This week's Guardian's poem of the week is 'The Nymph Complaining for the Death of Her Fawn' by Andrew Marvell. Check out the discussion here:
http://www.theguardian.com/books/booksblog/2014/mar/10/poem-of-the-week-andrew-marvell-nymph-fawn

Is the London Review of Books the best literary magazine in the world? It is certainly the "most successful–and controversial–literary publication in Europe. Just what is Mary-Kay Wilmers, its 75-year-old editor, getting so right?"
http://www.theguardian.com/books/2014/mar/09/london-review-books-lrb-best-magazines-world-mary-kay-wilmers

Software developer Spritz has created a new technology "that might change reading forever." Their new app promises readers the amazing speed-reading ability of 1,000 words per minute!
http://www.refinery29.com/2014/03/63838/spritz-speed-reading

BOOKS & WRITERS

J.P. Donleavy is alive and well and living in Ireland...contrary to popular belief! "Indeed, at 87, the author of the best-selling cult novel The Ginger Man merrily lives as a semi-reclusive gentleman farmer in shabby Grey Gardens-style splendor on his Irish estate. Meet America's pre-eminent literary bohemian."
http://tmagazine.blogs.nytimes.com/2014/03/07/j-p-donleavy-is-still-standing/

What makes an author feel "free"? According to Anna Hope, "I felt free when I realized I didn't have to be brilliant." Her first novel, Wake, has just been released.
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/arts/books-and-media/author-anna-hope-on-writing-i-felt-free-when-i-realized-i-didnt-have-to-be-brilliant/article17379003/

Under the Wide and Starry Sky, a new novel by Nancy Horan, is based on the premise that "marriage is a mystery, even to those who are in one. Magic when it's great, a nightmare when it's not."
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/arts/books-and-media/book-reviews/under-the-wide-and-starry-sky-author-explores-the-art-of-wedlock/article17171373/

Amidst the chaos of the current Ukrainian political crisis, one literary voice has stood out: that of Serhiy Zhadan, a counterculture writer, and the country's best-known poet. "Americans need to understand, in Eastern Europe, writers still have a huge influence on society."
http://www.newyorker.com/online/blogs/books/2014/03/the-abuse-of-ukraines-best-known-poet.html

"In 1915, a mother makes a sketch of her one-year-old daughter's hands. "Look what beautiful hands, one flat, with outstretched fingers, one with a clenched fist," she notes. The hands were to be key, as they belonged to Tove Jansson." Learn more about the author of the famous Moomin books, here:
http://www.newyorker.com/online/blogs/books/2014/03/tove-jansson-moomin-creator-biography-review.html

The New Yorker publishes a fiction podcast every month. March's episode features Jennifer Egan reading Mary Gaitskill's story 'The Other Place', "which explores the consciousness of a man who fantasizes about hurting women and worries that his son has inherited his obsession."
http://www.newyorker.com/online/blogs/books/2014/03/fiction-podcast-jennifer-egan-reads-mary-gaitskill.html

Kent Haruf's Benediction was recently nominated for the inaugural Folio prize. According to Ursula K. Le Guin, it is an "intimate portrayal of everyday lives" that "gets the story just right."
http://www.theguardian.com/books/2014/mar/05/benediction-review-small-town-kent-haruf-holt

Thanks to the success of the film 12 Years a Slave, many people have been revisiting the original Solomon Northup text and asking what it might tell us, especially in the context of other slave narratives. The Guardian delves into its history, here:
http://www.theguardian.com/books/2014/jan/10/12-years-slave-uncle-toms-cabin

Working in Delhi, Arundhati Roy has been described as a "not-so reluctant renegade." "I've always been slightly short with people who say, 'You haven't written anything again,' as if all the nonfiction I've written is not writing". She has recently returned to fiction.
http://www.nytimes.com/2014/03/09/magazine/arundhati-roy-the-not-so-reluctant-renegade.html

Jack Kerouac wrote The Haunted Life when he was 22. Then it disappeared, supposedly in a New York cab. Now it has resurfaced, and has just been published. Check out an extract, here:
http://www.theguardian.com/books/2014/mar/11/the-haunted-life-jack-kerouac-extract

COMMUNITY EVENTS

FINDING HOME
Storytelling by adults for adults, presented by newcomer storytellers and professional storyteller Philomena Jordan. Friday, March 14 at 7:00pm. Free but register at 604-299-8955. McGill branch, Burnaby Public Library, 4595 Albert St. More information at bpl.bc.ca.

POETIC JUSTICE
Featuring Ronica Prasad, Ariadne Sawyer, Sho Wiley and hosted by Lilija Valis. Sunday, March 16 at 3:00pm, free. Renaissance Bookstore, 43 Sixth St., New Westminster. More information at poeticjustice.ca.

AUTHORS NISH & NEALE
A reading of Pandora's Collective Outreach Society works pertaining to autobiographical material. Monday, March 17 at 7:00pm, free. Meeting room, level 3, Central Library, 350 W. Georgia St. More information at vpl.ca.

SPOKEN INK READING SERIES
Reading by poet Candice James, author of Exphrasticism-Painted Words. Tuesday March 18 at 8:00pm. La Fontana Caffee, 101-3701 East Hastings, Burnaby. More information at bwscafe@gmail.com.

UNDERBELLY
Jayson McDonald's tour-de-force performance and poetic virtuosity based on the myth and impact of Burroughs and The Beats. Underbelly runs at The Cultch from March 18-30, 2014 at 8pm in the Vancity Culture Lab, 1895 Venables Street. Tickets are from $31 and can be purchased by calling The Cultch box office at 604-251-1363 or online at http://tickets.thecultch.com/show_events_list.asp?shcode=323.

LUNCH POEMS @ SFU
Peter Culley and Maxine Gadd featured at March 19 "Lunch Poems at SFU". Presented by SFU Public Square, 12-1pm in SFU Harbour Centre's Teck Gallery (515 W Hastings St.). Free admission, no registration required. For more information visit www.sfu.ca/publicsquare/lunchpoems.

POST-PHOTOGRAPHY
Join photographer Evan Lee and novelist Healther Jessup for a conversation about Evan's work and influences, as well as beauty, strangeness, and what it's like to manipulate the flames of a forest fire. Wednesday, March 19 at 4:00pm, free. Student Engagement Centre, C Building, Langara. More information at langara.bc.ca/english-forum.

PLAY CHTHONICS: NEW CANADIAN READINGS
Readings by Natalie Simpson and Jonathan Ball. Wednesday, March 19 at 5:00pm. Piano Lounge, Green College, 6201 Cecil Green Park Road, UBC. More information at greencollege.ubc.ca.

POETRY READING
Lisa Robertson returns to Vancouver briefly and gives a reading of new work with her friend and fellow poet Cole Swensen, The Capilano Review's 2014 Writer-in-Residence. Wednesday, March 19 at 7:30pm. Cost: $5. Grand Luxe Hall, 303 8th Ave. E., Vancouver. More information at www.thecapilanoreview.ca/poetry-reading-lisa-robertson--cole-swensen/.

WOMEN AND WAR IN AFGHANISTAN
Ann Jones, author of Kabul in Winter and They Were Soldiers, discusses the prospects for women in Afghanistan. Thursday, March 20 at 5:00 pm. Allard Hall, 1822 East Mall, UBC. More information at www.greencollege.ubc.ca.

FIONA TINWEI LAM
An informal family-oriented reading for children and adults by author Fiona Tinwei Lam from her debut children's picture book, The Rainbow Rocket. Sunday, March 23 at 2:00pm, free. Renfrew Meeting room, Renfrew Branch, 2969 22nd Ave. E. More information at vpl.ca.

OPEN TEXT READING SERIES
Reading by Vancouver writer Alex Leslie, author of a short story collection, People Who Disappear. Monday, March 24 at 1:00pm. Lib321, Capilano University, 2055 Purcell Way, North Vancouver. More information at capilanocreativewriting.blogspot.ca.

A QUIET COMING OF LIGHT BOOK LAUNCH
Jude Neale will be launching her new book A Quiet Coming of Light with song and music. Book signing to follow. Teun Schut on guitar. Tuesday, March 25 at 7:00pm. Cottage Bistro, 4468 Main Street. Presented by Pandora's Collective and hosted by Bonnie Nish. More information: blnish@pandorascollective.com.

Upcoming

THE MAN WHO FILMED NESSIE
Angus Dinsdale's memoir discusses his unique childhood as the son of "The Man Who Filmed Nessie", experiencing his father's goal of tracking down the Loch Ness Monster. Wednesday, March 26 at 7:00pm. Welsh Hall West, West Vancouver Memorial Library. More information at 604-925-7403.

TWISTED POETS LITERARY SALON
Features Portland poet John Sibley Williams and Vancouver poet Linda King plus open mic. Thursday, March 27, 7-9:30pm, at The Cottage Bistro, 4468 Main Street, Vancouver. Suggested donation at the door: $5. Sign up for open mic at 7pm. More information at www.pandorascollective.com.

POETIC JUSTICE READING SERIES
Features Portland poet John Sibley Williams, Daniela Elza and Deborah L. Kelly plus open mic. Sunday, March 30, 3pm-5pm. The Heritage Grill (Back Room), 447 Columbia Street, New Westminster, free.

DOV ELBAUM
Author discusses his departure from Israel's ultra-Orthodox community and his work on cultivating a secular Jewish renaissance in his book Into the Fullness of the Void. Sunday, March 30 at 6:00pm. Tickets: $14/10. Jewish Community Centre, 950 41st Ave. W., Vancouver. More information at jewishbookfestival.ca.

F.G. BRESSANI LITERARY PRIZE
IL CENTRO Italian Cultural Centre is thrilled to announce the publication of the Rules & Regulations for the 2014 Edition of the F.G. Bressani Literary Prize. The literary prize honours and promotes the work of Canadian writers of Italian origin or Italian descent. Deadline: April 2, 2014. Complete details can be found here: http://italianculturalcentre.ca/blog/bressani-literary-prize/.

CHINESE CANADIAN AUTHORS' BOOK LAUNCH
This book launch features four new works in Chinese: William Haoquan Chan's Maplescapes: Selected Works of Chinese Canadian Prose, Shou-fang Hu-Moore's Who Is Calling My Name? Liang Zhaoyuan's Decoding Cao Xueqin's Crytograms, Tommy Tao and Ming Sun Poon's Book of Three Arts, and Wang Wenqin's Slow Heart Beat. Saturday, April 5 at 2:00pm, free. Alma VanDusen room, lower level, Central Library, 350 W. Georgia St. More information at vpl.ca.

GILLIAN WIGMORE
Author launches her debut novella, Grayling. Saturday, April 5 at 5:00pm, free. Railway Club, 579 Dunsmuir St., Vancouver. More information at mothertonguepublishing.com.

UNHOLY RITES
Mystery authors Kay Stewart and Chris Bullock present an illustrated talk about Unholy Rites, their latest novel. Tuesday, April 8 at 7:00pm, free. West Point Grey branch, 4480 10th Ave. W., Vancouver. More information at vpl.ca.

GENDER FAILURE
Ivan Coyote and Rae Spoon's show and book launch. Wednesday, April 9 at 8:00pm. The Rio Theatre, Vancouver, BC. More information at t.co/sRrG1UA9uF.

ICELAND WRITERS RETREAT
The Iceland Writers Retreat invites published and aspiring book writers (fiction and non-fiction) to participate in a series of workshops and panels led by a team of international writers from April 9-13, 2014 including Joseph Boyden. More information at www.IcelandWritersRetreat.com.

DIALOGUES IN CRITICAL INDIGENOUS STUDIES
Audra Simpson, Glen Coulthard and Chris Andersen will present on their upcoming books at the UBC Longhouse. Thursday, April 10 at 9:30am. First Nations Longhouse, 1985 West Mall, UBC. More information at www.ligi.ubc.ca.

NORTH SHORE WRITERS FESTIVAL
15th annual literary weekend. Featuring Vincent Lam, Douglas Gibson, Jen Sookfong Lee, Sandra Gulland and others. April 11 and 12, 2014. North Vancouver City Library, 120 14th St. W., North Vancouver. More information at northshorewritersfestival.com.