Book News Vol. 10 No. 21

BOOK NEWS

Special Event

Louise Penny in Conversation with Hal Wake

Have you purchased your ticket for our special event with Louise Penny yet? Tickets are still available, but with less than two weeks left until the event, they won't be for long.

After you've bought your ticket—or, if you need a little more convincing first—enjoy this thrilling excerpt of the audiobook of The Nature of the Beast, read by actor Robert Bathurst here, https://soundcloud.com/macaudio-2/the-nature-of-the-beast-by-louise-penny-audiobook-excerpt. The Nature of the Beast will be for sale at the event and Penny will be available to sign your copy.

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

Poetry and Short Story Contest
The 17th Vancouver Writers Fest Poetry and Short Story Contest is now open! Entries will be accepted until October 25th, so get writing or start polishing up your best work. The contest is open to all writers, so this could be the perfect opportunity for you to get published for the first time, kick start your writing career or add to your already impressive resume. First place winners will receive $500 and be published in subTERRAIN Magazine. Details and to enter: http://writersfest.bc.ca/writingcontest

Know a young writer? Tell them about our writing contest for BC grades 8-12 students, http://writersfest.bc.ca/youthwritingcontest.

FESTIVALS

Sunshine Coast Festival of the Written Arts
Join Canada's longest running summer gathering of Canadian writers and readers, featuring Camilla Gibb, Alison Pick, Ian Weir, Michael Winter and others. August 13-16, 2015. Sechelt, BC. Information at writersfestival.ca.

Vancouver Queer Film Festival
The 27th Annual Vancouver Queer Film Festival runs Aug 13-23. For details on the full line-up and tickets, click here, http://queerfilmfestival.ca/tickets/.

AWARDS & LISTS

The Writers' Trust has announced the jury for its 2015 Hilary Weston Prize for Non-fiction. The prize's shortlist will be announced on September 16th.
http://www.quillandquire.com/awards/2015/08/10/writers-trust-announces-2015-hilary-weston-prize-for-non-fiction-jury/

Edmonton writer and artist Laurie MacFayden has won her second Goldie Award for her book of poetry, kissing keeps us afloat. The award is given by the Golden Crown Literary Society, which aims to "promote and honour lesbian literature."
http://www.quillandquire.com/awards/2015/08/07/laurie-macfayden-wins-second-goldie-award/

The finalists for the annual $10,000 Edna Staebler Award for Creative Non-fiction have been announced. Administered by Wilfred Laurier University, the award honours "fantastic works of the genre that include a particularly Canadian significance or setting and were published the year prior."
http://www.quillandquire.com/awards/2015/07/30/2015-edna-staebler-award-for-creative-non-fiction-shortlist-announced/

YOUNG READERS

Greg Neri has written a novel for middle-grade readers about the friendship between Harper Lee and Truman Capote. Called Tru & Nelle, it was inspired by a question the author asked himself: why has no one had written a book about their childhoods?
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/08/10/books/harper-lee-and-truman-capote-a-collaboration-in-mischief.html

NEWS & FEATURES

Every month, Quill & Quire visits "dingy watering holes, upscale cafés, and other haunts in search of the country's most beloved book-launch venues." This month, they've profiled Café Deux Soleils in Vancouver.
http://www.quillandquire.com/book-culture/2015/08/06/book-launch-venue-hop-cafe-deux-soleils-vancouver/

What Pet Should I Get, by Dr. Seuss, has become the "fastest-selling picture book in Random House Children's Book history." It sold 200,000 copies in its first week!
http://www.publishersweekly.com/pw/by-topic/childrens/childrens-book-news/article/67720-what-pet-should-i-get-sells-200k-in-first-week.html

The Toronto Public Library is placing a book vending machine at the Union Station. "The exact logistics have not been worked out yet, but there will be a number of perennial bestsellers available, in addition to DVD's. The library also has not ruled out the ability to borrow e-books directly from the machine."
http://goodereader.com/blog/digital-library-news/toronto-library-developing-book-vending-machine

Speaking of libraries, many college libraries are now going bookless. "The book-less library is simply the latest stage in a trend that has been building for over ten years now. As information becomes easier to access online, many categories of books have become redundant."
http://the-digital-reader.com/2015/08/05/why-college-libraries-are-going-bookless/

"Writing used to be a solitary profession. How did it become so interminably social?" Here's one writer's lament for the loss of an introverted life.
http://www.theatlantic.com/entertainment/archive/2015/08/an-introvert-writers-lament/400238/

Literary hoaxes have been around for a very long time. From Jonathan Swift's fake astrological forecasting to a licentious pamphlet about Ronald Reagan, here are the 10 best (according to The Guardian).
http://www.theguardian.com/books/2015/aug/05/top-10-literary-hoaxes-mark-blacklock

Could Pride and Prejudice's Mr. Darcy afford a stately home today? The "modern-day fortunes of Jane Austen's fictional heroes" have been calculated and the results are very revealing. Check them out here:
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/books/11063670/Could-Mr-Darcy-afford-a-stately-home-today.html

DH Lawrence fans are up in arms! "After weathering the storm over Lady Chatterley's Lover and the ensuing obscenity trial, you might have thought that the spirit of DH Lawrence might have been little troubled by a children's petting zoo. But you would be wrong."
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/petting-zoo-at-the-dh-lawrence-centre-angers-authors-admirers-10431867.html

Speaking of dead authors, new revelations about William Shakespeare have shed a whole new "light" on his work. 400 year-old pipes with cannabis residue were found in the Bard's garden!
http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/theatre-dance/features/william-shakespeare-high-cannabis-marijuana-stoned-plays-hamlet-macbeth-romeo-juliet-stratford-10446510.html

Summer's almost over, but it's not too late to take a literary road trip. The CBC has compiled a list of the best Canadian bookstores, from east to west. Check them out, here:
http://www.cbc.ca/books/2015/08/16-must-see-canadian-bookstores.html

BOOKS & WRITERS

Are you looking for some books to "move you, amuse you, bend your brain, and leave you craving more?" If so, you might enjoy this feature in Scout Magazine: four book recommendations and mini reviews (by the Writers Fest's own Clea Young, Arielle Spence and Cristina Melo!)
http://scoutmagazine.ca/2015/08/03/read-this-books-to-move-you-amuse-you-bend-your-brain-and-leave-you-craving-more/

Portland-based writer Patrick deWitt's new novel, Undermajordomo Minor is "a love story, an adventure story, a fable without a moral, and an ink-black comedy of manners" about a young man named Lucy. Here's an excerpt.
http://www.vancouversun.com/entertainment/books/Book+excerpt+Vancouver+author+Patrick+deWitt+tells/11279431/story.html

Ta-Nehisi Coates' book, Between the World and Me, has made him one of the most talked-about authors in recent weeks. In this interview with The New York Times, he discusses his favorite novelist, his reading habits, his fictional heroes and what's to come with his own writing.
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/08/16/books/review/ta-nehisi-coates-by-the-book.html

Fishbowl, by Bradley Somer, is a book that "tackles loneliness, love and death with wit and sensitivity." It's also part of two great traditions: stories about humans narrated by animals, and narratives "based around unexpected convergences of separate, proximate lives."
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/arts/books-and-media/book-reviews/review-bradley-somers-fishbowl-tackles-loneliness-love-and-death-with-wit-and-sensitivity/article25877607/

In his second novel, Armada, Ernest Cline takes his "love of ‘80s nostalgia to new heights." In this interview, Cline talks about "the lure of nostalgia" and the forthcoming Steven Spielberg adaptation of his debut novel.
http://www.vancouversun.com/entertainment/books/Author+Revenge+nerd/11274091/story.html

COMMUNITY EVENTS

SANDY SHREVE
Author reads from her 5th poetry collection, Waiting for the Albatross-found poems from a deck hand’s diary, 1936. Friday, August 14 at 7:30pm. Hillside Coffee and Tea, 1633 Hillside Ave ., Victoria. More information at planetearthpoetry.com.

RICHARD GOODFELLOW
Vancouver author signs his debut thriller novel, Collector of Secrets. Saturday, August 15 at 2:00pm. Chapters Metrotown, 4700 Kingsway, Burnaby.

ROBERT WIERSEMA
The author of Black Features will read from his book, answer questions and sign. Saturday, August 22 at 7:00pm. Book Warehouse Main Street, Vancouver. More information at 604-879-7737.

PLAY ON WORDS
The Greater Victoria Public Library (GVPL) Central Branch is hosting the 2nd annual two day celebration of literary arts in all its diverse forms. August 28 at 12:00pm. Central Courtyard, Greater Victoria Public Library. More information at gvpl.ca.

WORLD POETRY VANCOUVER
Presents Embracing Interconnectivity: Nature & the World. Hosts Wanda Kehewin and Elaine Woo. Features local writers Anita Aguirre-Nieveras, Christine Leclerc, Grace Woo, Isaac Yuen, Jonina Kirton, Joanne Arnott, Nasreen Pejvak, Synne Kune Loh and Rita Wong. September 5, 2015, 1-3 pm. Britannia Branch, VPL, 1661 Napier St., Vancouver, V5L 4X4.

TWISTED POETS LITERARY SALON
Features Russell Thornton & Elena Johnson + Open Mic. Thursday, September 10th, 7–9:30pm, at The Cottage Bistro, 4468 Main Street, Vancouver. Sign up for open mic at 7 pm. Suggested donation at the door: $5. Twisted Poets runs the 2nd Wednesday and the 4th Thursday of the month. More information at www.pandorascollective.com.

W. JAMES DICKINSON
Local author will read from his book Raptor Night. Friday, September 11 at 4:00pm, free. Salt Spring Island Public Library, Salt Spring Island. More information at saltspring.bc.libraries.coop.

DEAD POETS READING SERIES
Five poets/poetry-lovers/readers/writers bring to life the works of their favourite deceased poets. Each reader will give a brief presentation on the life and work of their chosen poet, followed by a poetry reading. Sunday, September 13 at 3:00pm. Central Branch, VPL, 350 W. Georgia St., Vancouver. More information at deadpoetslive.com.

Upcoming

THE HISTORY OF WOMEN IN THE RCMP
Historian and former RCMP officer, Bonnie Reilly Schmidt, launches her new book, Silenced: The Untold Story of the Fight for Equality in the RCMP. Tuesday, September 15 at 7:00pm. Book Warehouse on Main Street, 4118 Main ST. More information andrea@caitlin-press.com.

SPOKEN INK READING SERIES
Features poets Bren Simmers and Raoul Fernandes. Tuesday, September 15 at 8:00pm. La Fontana Caffe, 101-3701 East Hastings Street, Burnaby. More information at harbourpublishing.com.

KOOTENAY BOOKWEEKEND
The Kootenay Bookweekend will be hosting passionate page-tuners reading and discussing The Inconvenient Indian by Thomas King, Daughters of the Witching Hill by Mary Sharratt, Local Customs by Audrey Thomas and our guest author, Arno Kopecky's book The Oil Man and the Sea. September 18-20, 2015 in Nelson, BC. Registration forms and information at kootenaybookweekend.ca.

EUROPEAN BOOK CLUB
Presents My Brilliant Friend by Elena Ferrante. Moderated by Dr. Elisa Segnini. Saturday, September 19 at 3:00pm, free but register at eubookclub.vancouver@gmail.com. Kitsilano Branch, VPL. More information at alliancefrancaise.ca.

COMPLETELY MIXED UP
A display of creativity exploring what it means to be of mixed Asian-North American Heritage. Monday, September 21 at 7:00pm. Central Branch, VPL, 350 W. Georgia St., Vancouver. More information at vpl.ca.

WORD VANCOUVER
Featuring books and authors with free exhibits, performances, and hands-on activities for a wide range of ages and interests. September 23-27, 2015. Various locations. For complete details, visit wordvancouver.ca.

AUTHORS UNBOUND UNINTERRUPTED
An evening of entertainment and inspiration provided by six local People of the Page: Mauro Azzano, Margo Bates, Kempton Dexter, Pattry Emry, Ron Kearse and Lillja Valis. Monday, September 28 at 7:00pm. Central Branch, VPL, 350 W. Georgia St., Vancouver. More information at vpl.ca.