Book News Vol. 10 No. 15

BOOK NEWS

Special Event

Louise Penny in conversation with Hal Wake

Tickets are still on sale for our special event with Louise Penny, August 24th 2015. Louise will be discussing the 11th book in her Inspector Gamache series, The Nature of the Beast, with Hal Wake.

Set in the dark and mysterious village of Three Pines, Quebec, The Nature of the Beast follows Armand and Reine-Marie Gamache as they investigate the disappearance of a nine year old boy.

Want a sneak peek of the novel? An Excerpt from the thrilling first chapter is available online:
http://gamacheseries.com/the-nature-of-the-beast/excerpt/

Monday, August 24 at 7:30pm
Vancouver Playhouse
600 Hamilton Street
Details and to purchase tickets, https://www.writersfest.bc.ca/events/louise-penny.

AWARDS & LISTS

M.G. Vassanji has won the 2015 Molson Prize. The prize, administered by the Canadian Council for the Arts, recognizes "distinguished members of the arts and social-science communities in Canada for long-term contributions to their field."
http://www.quillandquire.com/awards/2015/06/29/m-g-vassanji-wins-2015-molson-prize/

The finalists for the 2015 Alberta Book Publishing Awards have been announced. The awards recognize excellence in book design, illustration, academic scholarship, fiction, non-fiction, poetry and more.
http://www.quillandquire.com/awards/2015/06/25/2015-alberta-book-publishing-awards-finalists-announced/

YOUNG READERS

Little Red Henry, by Linda Urban, is a "refreshing new picture book" in which a little boy finds independence, despite his hovering family. The goal of the book is clear: "A vision of a saner landscape of parenting, where imagined disasters don't lurk in every independent move a child makes and children are allowed to become competent actors in the physical world."
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/06/24/books/review/a-cure-for-hovering.html

NEWS & FEATURES

Dave Godfrey, writer and founder of House of Anansi press, has died. He was a pioneer in Canadian Literature, pursuing modernism, energized by "the idea of a vibrant, living national literature that could stand as a bulwark against the encroachment of American cultural hegemony."
http://www.quillandquire.com/authors/2015/06/25/modernism-has-come-to-canada-the-enduring-legacy-of-dave-godfrey/

Margaret Atwood has agreed to yet another new and very different project. She will be contributing cartoons to The Secret Loves of Geek Girls anthology.
http://www.theguardian.com/books/2015/jun/25/margaret-atwood-writes-cartoon-strip-for-geek-girl-anthology

A library in Charleston, South Carolina, has been renamed in honour of one of this past month's church shooting victims. Known as "a librarian's librarian," Cynthia Graham Hurd (after whom the library was named) also happened to be the manager of that particular branch.
http://www.theguardian.com/books/2015/jun/26/charleston-library-renamed-in-honour-of-shooting-victim

It was George Orwell's birthday last week. To celebrate, the CBC has gathered a collection of features that "further explore Orwell's work and why it continues to be relevant today."
http://www.cbc.ca/books/2015/01/george-orwell-a-tribute.html

Is there an overabundance of memoirs? "Europeans don't buy memoirs," Kate Gale was told on her first trip to Frankfurt. She asked why, and got "a series of answers none of which added up. 'We're narcissists too,' one French publisher told [her], 'Just not as much as Americans.'"
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/kate-gale/who-cares-about-your-life_b_7674386.html

How does one get "generation YouTube" reading books? "Publishers understandably want to cash-in on those with huge online followings, but they're missing a trick by ignoring book lovers in favour of gamers and fashionistas."
http://www.theguardian.com/media/commentisfree/2015/jun/29/youtube-blogging-books-publishing-zoella-pewdiepie-abookutopia-thebooktuber

BOOKS & WRITERS

Louis de Bernières' new book, Dust That Falls From Dreams, is his eighth novel. It was inspired by the story of his grandmother's first fiancé, who died of his wounds during the First World War. De Bernières is interviewed here:
http://www.theguardian.com/books/2015/jun/28/louis-de-bernieres-dust-that-falls-from-dreams-interview

Wimbledon has begun so here's a list of "smashing reads," a "celebration of tennis in literature!"
http://www.theguardian.com/books/booksblog/2015/jun/29/game-set-smashing-reads-for-wimbledon

Pride events are also ramping up from coast to coast. Here's the CBC's take on the best new books by LGBT authors.
http://www.cbc.ca/books/2015/06/celebrate-pride-this-summer-with-great-lgbt-reads.html

Set during one long hot summer in the 1970s, Tim Lott's "extremely likeable" The Last Summer of the Water Strider is both a coming-of-age story and "a snapshot of the end of an era." When a young man's mother unexpectedly dies, he's sent to live with his uncle, a hippie whose home is a riverboat.
http://www.theguardian.com/books/2015/jun/27/the-last-summer-of-the-water-strider-tim-lott-review-novel

Speaking of summer...has malaise set in yet? If you're bored, here are "25 great literary series to replace your TV habit this summer...instead of binge-watching something old on Netflix, why not binge-read a great book series?"
http://flavorwire.com/523165/25-great-literary-series-to-replace-your-tv-habit-this-summer

Mislaid/The Wallcreeper, by Nell Zink, is "prodigiously intelligent and odd." Nonetheless, "the originality of the US author's celebrated ornithological debut is also evident in her second, equally striking, novel."
http://www.theguardian.com/books/2015/jun/26/mislaid-the-wallcreeper-nell-zink-review-novels

In May, Vancouver's Anvil Press published the final book by Quebec author Nelly Arcan to be translated into English. Called Breakneck, it shows "why she's one of the best writers Canada has ever produced."
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/arts/books-and-media/book-reviews/review-nelly-arcans-breakneck-shows-why-shes-one-of-the-best-writers-canada-has-ever-produced/article25143354/

The Guardian newspaper's poem of the week is Song, by Tzu-Yeh. Translated by Arthur Waley, it's "a flirtatious fourth-century confession of a young woman's passion" that "is vivid, sharp and sensual."
http://www.theguardian.com/books/booksblog/2015/jun/29/poem-of-the-week-song-by-tzu-yeh-tr-arthur-waley

Annie Freud has finally "embraced the family name." After a lifetime of avoidance, she published her first collection of poetry in 2007, and now has written a third, called The Remains. She discusses her life, work and newfound familial acceptance, here:
http://www.theguardian.com/books/2015/jun/27/annie-freud-interview-why-ive-finally-embraced-the-family-name

COMMUNITY EVENTS

TWS READING SERIES
The Writer's Studio at SFU presents celebrated crime writer E.R. Brown, author of the Edgar nominated novel Almost Criminal. Also on the playbill, a diverse line-up of talented writers in all genres. Thursday, July 2 at 8:00pm. Cottage Bistro, 4470 Main Street, Vancouver.

TRACEY LINDBERG
Book launch of the author's new book, Birdie. Friday, July 3 at 7:00pm. Book Warehouse Main Street.

CHUNQING WANG
Author will talk about life in her ancestral village of Yibancun in Shanxi Province, China and read from her book, You May as Well Sing, Brother. Saturday, July 4 at 2pm. Brighouse branch, Richmond Public Library. More information and sign up at yourlibrary.ca.

VAN SLAM
Vancouver poetry house presents featured poet, Ayda. Monday, July 6 at 7:00pm. Cost: $6-$10 sliding scale. Cafe Deux Soleils, 2096 Commercial Drive, Vancouver.

A TASTE OF HAIDA GWAII
Susan Musgrave and Stephen Reid talk about their literary work and the lives that inspire it, and to promote Susan's upcoming cookbook, A Taste of Haida Gwaii. Monday, July 6 at 7:30pm, free. Floral & Hardy Edible Plants, 688 E. Hastings, Vancouver.

TWISTED POETS LITERARY SALON
Features Kevin Spenst and Jennifer Zlim plus open mic. Wednesday, July 8 at 7pm. The Cottage Bistro, 4468 Main Street, Vancouver. Sign up for open mic at 7 pm. Suggested donation at the door: $5. More information at
www.pandorascollective.com.

CHEVY STEVENS
Author presents her latest work, Those Girls. Wednesday, July 8 at 7:00pm. Central library, 350 W. Georgia St., Vancouver. More information at 604-331-3603.

MICHAEL KUSUGAK
Celebrate Nunavut Day with an inspiring, interactive storytelling session and discussion with Inuit storyteller and author Michael Kusugak. Thursday, July 9 at 5:30pm. Vancouver Maritime Museum. More information and to reserve tickets, http://vancouvermaritimemuseum.com/event/nunavut-day-perfect-story.

DEAD POETS READING SERIES
On Sunday July 12th from 3 to 5 p.m. in the Alice MacKay room of the VPL Central Branch, the Dead Poets Reading Series will present the following program: ee cumming read by DN Simmers, Lauris Edmond, read by Christine Hayvice, John Keats, read by Matthew Henley, Robert Lowell, read by Christopher Levenson and P.K. Page read by Ruth Daniell.
Admission is free and readings start on time. For further information visit www.deadpoetslive.com.

TWISTED POETS LITERARY SALON
Features Steve Noyes, Bren Simmers and Carmelo Militano plus open mic. Thursday, July 23 at 7:00pm. 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.

KATHERINE FAWCETT
Author reads from Little Washer of Sorrows. Saturday, July 25 at 2:00pm. Salt Spring Island Public Library, 129 Mc Phillips Ave., Salt Spring Island.

KARA STANLEY
Author reads from her acclaimed new memoir, "Fallen: A Trauma, A Marriage, and the Transformative Power of Music." Followed by live music by her husband, Simon Paradis, performing with Joe Stanton as roots duo Stanton Paradis. Tuesday, July 28 at 7:00pm. Central Branch, Greater Victoria Public Library. More information at gvpl.ca.