Category: Reading in Edmonton
Reading Roundup: April 2013 and Edmonton Reading Scene
Last month, I was feeling pretty smug about getting back on track with reading. I still am, actually, because I read FOUR books this month. But, I only blogged twice. I have so many ideas, abandoned drafts, and book reviews to catch up on. I’ve decided to focus on writing for the next little while. The timing is pretty great, because I’m hosting a Moby Dick readalong starting this month, which means weekly blog posts (gulp.)
It’s tough, because I can’t write from my phone, so I’m limited to when the kids are in bed. We’re trying to limit Ben’s computer time, so I have to set an example. I’ve been reading more by sneaking it in – that Kobo is in my purse at all times! – but it’s hard to carry the laptop everywhere. Maybe I need to take a “just a little bit everyday” approach like I did with reading. Wish me luck!
Books Read
I hate this cover more than anything in the book.
- Persuasion by Jane Austen. 3.5/5 stars, I have nothing bad to say about it, but it didn’t really get to me. Great heroine, though.
- Dirk Gently’s Holistic Detective Agency by Douglas Adams. 3/5 stars. This was my Classics Club Spin pick. I actually liked the second book in the series, The Long Dark Tea Time of the Soul, much more. The strength of the books is largely in the main character, and he was oddly absent for much of the first book.
- The Cat’s Table by Michael Ondaatje. 5/5 stars. Boom. Review (and rebuttal to The Book-a-Week Project’s review) coming soon.
- Everything is Perfect When You’re a Liar by Kelly Oxford. 3/5 stars. I was sort of dreading this, in case I hated it, but the worst thing I can say is that it was uneven. Also, it weirdly reminded me of Ian McEwan’s Atonement, for some really specific reasons, but even just in general, Briony was a little liar who wanted everything to be perfect, too. Must find time to elaborate!
Books Obtained
Um how do I obtain this adaptation, that apparently has Lady Mary AND Matthew from Downton?
- The Turn of the Screw by Henry James. So far, I’m not really into it. But it’s like 100 pages long, so I’ll stick it out.
- Frances and Bernard by Carlene Bauer. My first library book in ages! I’m really excited for this one. It’s an epistolary novel, which isn’t always my favourite. Also, “epistolary” reminds me of “episiotomy,” which is never a good association. But the reviews are strong, and I could probably use some mega romance before getting into the mega whale.
Books I Want to Read
I’m usually indifferent to “random portrait of a lady” book covers, but I love this one.
- Villette by Charlotte Bronte. I abandoned Villette after the first chapter, when I realized it’s a 600 pager and wasn’t sure I could finish before the Moby Dick readalong. That’s the thing with e-readers. There’s no weight, no flipping through pages, so a 100 page novella and a 600 page brick look and feel the same. Anyway, I will come back to Villette, because the first chapter was amazing.
- Bleeding Edge by Thomas Pynchon. Vineland was my favourite read on 2012, so it’s pretty sweet that he’s got a new one coming out so soon. The first page was released online and it’s a little strange… but that’s par for the course.
- The Rest is Silence by Scott Fotheringham. Rebecca Campbell mentioned this book in her Q&A. I read the premise (rogue bacteria destroys all the plastic in the world) and I’m already hooked! I don’t usually read dystopian or science fiction or however you want to classify this, but it sounds crazy.
Edmonton Reading Scene
- Readings, signings, live music, tasty beverages… Less than two weeks until NeWest Press Spring Spectacular. I reviewed two of the books being celebrated, Belinda’s Rings and The Paradise Engine, and I’m so excited to meet the authors. The Edmonton Book Bloggers will be there. Won’t you come, too? May 15th, 7pm, Roast Coffee House. Facebook event page.
- Speaking of the EBB crew… Edmonton Book Bloggers were in the news! Kristilyn did us all proud by telling our story in the Edmonton Journal.
- Thanks to the magic of Twitter, I found out about an annual literary event in Edmonton, the Henry Kreisel Memorial Lecture, that, much like the MacEwan Book of the Year, had me thinking “How am I only finding out about this NOW?” Each year, the U of A’s Canadian Literature Centre puts on this FREE event, bringing a prominent Canadian author in to speak. On April 16, Edi Edugyan, author of Half-Blood Blues, talked about “home” and how that word and that idea has informed her work. She covered German history, slavery, immigration, and Canadian identity in her hour-long lecture. Her memories of visiting her ancestoral home in Ghana for the first time really came alive for me. The strangeness of being an outsider who looks like an insider was as compelling as the anecdotes about their wild taxi driver were hilarious. I would love to read a story along those lines! Check out Winter Distractions for fellow Edmonton Book Blogger’s Kristilyn’s take on Esi’s lecture.
What’s Next on Reading in Bed
Moby Dick! The read-a-long starts on May 20th, so finish up whatever you’re reading and watch for the sign up post next week.
The Paradise Engine by Rebecca Campell
My rating: 4/5 stars
Release date: May 1, 2013
Publisher: NeWest Press
Thank you to NeWest Press for sending me an Advance Reader Copy in exchange for an honest review.
Synopsis:
While working to restore an historic theatre in a seedy part of the city, a graduate student named Anthea searches to find her best friend, lost to the rhetoric of an itinerant preacher and street mystic. Almost a century earlier, Liam, a tenth-rate tenor, visits the same theatre while eking out a career on the dying Vaudeville circuits of the day. In both eras, an apocalyptic strain of utopian mysticism threatens their existence: Anthea contends with a nascent New Age movement in the heart of the city while Liam encounters a radical theosophical commune in the deep country along the coast of British Columbia, who appear to be building … something.
The Paradise Engine unfolds across a colourful backdrop of labour organizers, immaculately-attired cultists, ambitious socialites, teenage lovers, basement offices and innumerable coffee shops.
If you like stories with a clear resolution, this book may frustrate you. This one’s all about the build up, with multiple perspectives weaving in and out and around each other and almost converging. That’s not a criticism; it’s what makes the book brilliant. The Paradise Engine takes place in a world with two possibilities: either everything in life is a coincidence, or nothing is. And both possibilities are terrifying. Continue reading
Reading Roundup: March 2013 and Moby Dick Read Along Preview!
I’ve struggled to keep up with reading since having kids. This month, I feel like I’ve finally hit my reading stride after four years of pregnancy and parenting. I’ve been held back by legitimate things, like exhaustion and postpartum depression, and self-inflicted things, like television and Twitter.
My epiphany (I almost wrote “a-ha moment” and now I hate myself) is that if I want to read, I need to read *instead* of watching TV, *instead* of scrolling through hundreds of tweets. I need to read not just before bed, but at lunch, and in the morning.
I read a challenging book this month, The Magic of Saida. And I read it fast. It felt great. I’m totally out of the loop with the #GoT and #WalkingDead overtaking my Twitter feed right now, but that’s okay with me. (I will move Heaven and Earth to watch Mad Men, though. We all have our vices.)
Books Read
- The Magic of Saida by M.G. Vassanji. 4.5/5 stars, review coming soon. Was nothing like I expected, terribly difficult to get into, but worth it.
- The Paradise Engine by Rebecca Campbell. 4/5 stars, review also coming soon! Deliciously moody and dark, just how I like it.
Books Obtained
- The Cat’s Table by Michael Ondaatje – signed copy!
- Moby Dick by Herman Melville – from Wee Book Inn
Books I Want to Read
- Oryx and Crake by Margaret Atwood. Peer pressure addition, though I’ve also recently been told I should save it for a rainy day in my next life time.
- The Dinner by Herman Koch. Lots of buzz on this one.
- The Girls by Lori Lansens. Recommendation from Brie at Eat Books. Conjoined twins coming of age story? Yeah, gonna read that!
- Bastard Out of Carolina by Dorothy Allison. Stumbled on this on Goodreads and it sounds brutal. Good brutal.
- Naive. Super by Erlend Loe When Kristilyn at Winter Distractions calls something her favourite book, I’m listening, cause she reads a whole lot of books!
What’s Next on Reading in Bed
- Catching up on reviews. First up is North and South by Elizabeth Gaskell. I’ve been putting this off, but it’s my first Classics Club read, and while I’m not a big fan of the book, I am a big fan of the main character. She’s got lady balls (not literally.)
- I’m reading Persuasion by Jane Austen, even though I should be reading Dirk Gently by Douglas Adams, as it was my Classics Club Spin pick. I’m loving it. It’s hitting a lot of notes that I wished North and South did.
Moby Dick Read Along Preview: May Long Weekend 2013
After much consultation (i.e. Googling and asking the Edmonton Book Bloggers) I have made a few decisions about this Read Along. Here’s what you need to know. A real post is coming soon.
- It’s all going to start on May Long Weekend (that would be May 24 for international readers. I see you, two Singaporeans who landed here today!)
- It will end on July 22nd. On the 23rd, I’m heading to the wilds of Cape Breton Island and plan to be reading something far trashier than Moby Dick.
- There will be a give away for a sweet Moby Dick T-shirt from Out of Print Clothing.
So go on, find yourself a copy. Start early if you’re worried about finishing on time, but really, it’s not going to be that formal.
Asides
- Michael Hingston didn’t like Belinda’s Rings as much as I did, but you should read his review because he makes some really good points. The only part of his review I strongly disagree with is describing the book as “amiable,” because that’s something I would say about a puppy or something. Kind of a burn! This is another excellent review.
- Speaking of Belinda, I’m super excited that I’ll get my copy signed on May 15 at NeWest Press Spring Spectacular! Four authors with new books coming out this year will be on hand, including Corinna Chong and Rebecca Campbell, and there will be live music too. I will definitely be out past my bedtime.
Michael Ondaatje Wins Macewan Book of the Year, Remains Sexy While Doing So
Via http://canlitissexy.tumblr.com which you should all visit immediately
Four words I never thought I’d Google, at least not together: “Michael Ondaatje Sexy Pics.” Book blogging makes you do strange things. Allow me to explain. Continue reading
CanLit Confessions
The cover is totally blah, too.
Tomorrow night I’m going to the MacEwan Book of the Year event featuring Michael Ondaatje. Not only will I be at an event with grown ups and out of the house after 7:00pm, I will also get to hear the iconic Canadian author read from his book The Cat’s Table and take home a signed copy. I hope it fares better than my last signed book (see the footprint incident.)
I have to tell you something, though. I’ve never read any of Ondaatje’s books. It gets worse: I started The English Patient but didn’t finish it. I am a book-finisher, so when I DNF, that’s pretty bad. I read the synopsis for The Cat’s Table and it sounds pretty far removed from The English Patient, so I want to give it a try. I’m still going to feel like a straight up poser at this event, though.
Here are a few more shameful CanLit Confessions. Please share yours!
1. I’ve only read two of Margaret Atwood’s books, and I only liked one of them (The Handmaid’s Tale, duh.) Surfacing was a little too out there for me, and her books are just not high on my list of priorities right now.
2. I hated Fifth Business by Robertson Davies. Yeah, I was forced to read it in high school, but I was also forced to read books that became favourites (CanLit classic The Stone Angel was one,) so I can’t use that excuse. I just read the plot summary over on Wikipedia and I think a reread is in order. I forgot about the “he wanted it so badly” part. That’s a killer line.
3. I hated The Apprenticeship of Duddy Kravitz by Mordechai Richler. I was forced to read this in high school too. In fact, I often get Fifth Business and Duddy mixed up, which is pretty silly, now that I’ve read the plot summaries of each. No desire to reread this one though.
4. Until recently, I’d never heard of M.G. Vassanji. I just finished his latest novel The Magic of Saida. It was difficult to get into, and challenging to read, and brilliant, just brilliant. The guy has won two Giller Prizes. Where the heck have I been?
5. I’ve only read one of Alice Munro’s books. Too Much Happiness was so utterly devastating that I’m kind of scared to read more, though I know that I must.
6. I don’t understand all the fuss about Ann-Marie MacDonald’s Fall on Your Knees. I should have loved it. I wish I had loved it. I did not.
7. I have no clue how to pronounce Ondaatje. I guess I’ll just call him Mike.
Writer’s Corner at Edmonton Public Library
Last Sunday I escaped the house and family (kids were napping, don’t pity my husband too much) to talk about blogs with other adults at a Writer’s Corner event. I love Riverbend Library, but usually I’m there wrangling a three year old while wearing a one year old, so sitting in my own chair with only my self to keep track of was BLISS.
Our host, Omar Mouallem, is the Writer in Residence for Edmonton Public Libraries. The panelists are two very successful bloggers, Sharon Yeo of Only Here for the Food and Dave Cournoyer of Daveberta. Neither of these blogs are in my regular rotation, but, I have a lot of respect for them. They are passionate and knowledgeable about their subjects, and they both just seem genuine. They don’t seem to be in it for the social media fame (such as it is in #yeg) or the ad revenue or to get a book deal (not that there is anything wrong with that!) but just really want to write and have an audience for their writing.
The audience of 20 included many familiar faces… most of them familiar from their Twitter avis. The discussion was about “finding your niche” in the blogosphere, but there were plenty of general tips. Here are my favourite pieces of advice:
- Blog post titles should be straightforward. Puns and wordplay don’t come across very well like they might in print. This makes me sad, because I love coming up with clever titles. I don’t always succeed, as this post proves, but a good title helps focus my thoughts and set a tone for the piece. But Dave is absolutely right. I see it in my own stats. Clever titles don’t draw people in. My most popular post to date is one of my Reading Roundups. Nothing fancy there. Which leads me to my next lesson…
- People love lists. Sharon posts a Food Notes list of updates and news every Monday. It helps her be consistent, and provides a valuable service for her readers. I see this on my blog too; it’s not my meandering essays on David Foster Wallace that are getting page views, it’s the Reading Roundup lists and the reviews. The basics.
- The crowd was quite divided on whether links should open in a new tab or replace the existing tab. Things almost got ugly. I think we reached a consensus on opening links in a new window.
- Blog rolls are old fashioned. Does anyone even call it a blog roll? I have a list of blogs and websites, but it’s not always that up to date. Dave admitted he hadn’t looked at his list in a while… or ever, since setting it up.
- Dave suggested using categories and tags to drive traffic to your posts, and that having the tags directly under the title makes it easy for the reader to see what your post is about. If love this one. I often get a little cheeky with my tags, and I can’t run the risk that someone doesn’t see my handiwork! Now if I can get WordPress to comply…
It was a great event. And did I mention it’s FREE? Writer’s Corner happens on the last Sunday of the month, and will be at Stanley A. Milner library from now on. The next one is about travel writing. One of you who actually travels should hit that up…
Reading Roundup: February 2013, with Bonus Literary Events!
I’m back at work and feel like I’m struggling to read my minimum ten pages per day, yet I still have updates! And on the 1st of the month, too! WHO AM I?
Books Read
-
I liked the mini series better. Blasphemy, I know!
North and South by Elizabeth Gaskell. 3/5 stars. This was my first official Classics Club selection, and I didn’t love it. There are only so many times I can read the word “languid” before it loses all meaning (and I like the word languid!) But I did appreciate the main character, who was thoroughly modern. Review to follow!
- Belinda’s Rings by Corrina Chong. 4/5 stars. Loved it. Completely original and completely familiar at the same time. The only book I can compare it to right now is White Oleander. I know some people didn’t like White Oleander, but I did, so that’s a compliment. Review and hopefully author Q&A to follow!
- The Magic of Saida by M.G. Vassanji. In progress. I’m struggling to get into this book. I’m not sure what’s holding me back. The writing is great and the story is compelling. Maybe I’m getting bogged down in details, as I am wholly unfamiliar with Tanzanian history and culture. I’m not giving up yet!
Books Obtained
None!
- But one is on its way. The kind people at MacEwan Book of the Year are sending me a copy of Sweetness in the Belly by Camilla Gibb. I know very little about it, but I love the title!
Books I Want to Read – adding to the To Be Read pile
- Frances and Bernard by Carlene Bauer. Book Riot says, “Buy It. Buy All The Copies You Can Find, and Use the Extras To Decorate Your Town With Amazing Prose.” And I say, okay then.
- Jonathan Strange & Mr Norell by Susanna Clarke. This was suggested to me when I was let down by The Night Circus.
- Bumped by Megan McCafferty. It’s YA, but I’m intrigued by the premise – in a society where adults have become infertile, teenage girls become surrogates in droves. Brought to my attention by this post at Book Riot (love that site!)
Bonus: #Yeg Literary Events
I’ve noticed an upswing in literary events in Edmonton. Here are just a few.
- Pecha Kucha Nig
ht 15 is at The Expo Centre on March 7, 2013. Jason Lee Norman will speak about the 40 Below Project (if you’re paying attention, you might remember I submitted a story. It was rejected, but the email was VERY nice,) and Caylie Gnyra from Little Cree Books will speak about “Language Ally.” And look at the gorgeous Night Circus inspired poster! - Rosina, the Midwife by Jessica Kluthe launches at Spinelli’s Bar Italia on March 23rd, 2013. I probably can’t make it, but I am really looking forward to this book! Check out the Facebook page for the event.
- The MacEwan Book of the Year for 2013 is The Cat’s Table by Michael Odaantje, and the author will appear on March 21st at MacEwan downtown campus. I’m buying my ticket tonight. For $22 I will get a copy of the book, get it signed, and hear Odaantje talk about it. What a deal! There is also a FREE panel discussion about the book on March 7th at 12:30pm. All the details are here.
- Check out the Metro Writers in Residence website for lots of writing-focused events. I attended a discussion about blogging this past Sunday. Not only was it free and super informative, but I met one of the Writers in Residence, Omar Mouallem, and blogger extraordinaire Shareen Ayoub – go check her out; I guarantee you’ve read nothing like it! Mini-review of the blogging session to follow!
And now, I have reading to catch up on. And sleep. Not necessarily in that order.
Meet the Edmonton Book Bloggers! Spotlight on Reading in Winter
Reading in Winter is having a month-long first blogiversary celebration! This week’s feature is a profile of Edmonton book bloggers, including yours truly. Today, I’ve turned the tables and asked Kristilyn the same questions she asked each of us. Here’s a look at one of Edmonton’s most prolific readers and bloggers. Enjoy!
Psst… Are you a book blogger in the Edmonton area? Head on over to Reading in Winter and get in touch with Kristilyn if you’d like to be added to the Edmonton Book Bloggers Directory!
Babies of Wackiness
Vineland by Thomas Pynchon is #176 in the 1,001 Books You Must Read Before You Die.
This isn’t a review of Vineland. I’m not ready for that yet. But I really want to talk about it, so I’ll begin with a shout out to Matt Bowes of This Nerding Life for bringing Vineland to #yegbookswap. I was one of the last to choose an adult book, and there wasn’t much left except for Pride and Prejudice (read it) and The Count of Monte Cristo (too long), and Vineland. I’d never heard of Vineland, and only had Matt’s reason for choosing it to go on. He wrote, “For some reason, I love ’60s burnouts. Hopefully you will too.”
Burnouts are just the beginning. There are also zombies, ninjas, and yuppie lumberjacks, to name a few. The narrative is layered with multiple flashbacks, flash-forwards, dream sequences, and narrators interrupting each other; and full of pop culture references both real and invented. It’s the kind of book you just want to devour. One night I informed my husband that he was in charge, walked to the park, and read for a solid hour, but apart from that, it was read in chunks of ten minutes here, and twenty minutes there. It was hard to keep the plot straight reading this way, so I looked for a reader’s guide, and found Babies of Wackiness.
Babies of Wackiness is not your typical SparksNotes-type reader’s guide. It was created in 1990 by Pynchon super-fans John Diebold and Michael Goodwin. They put the guide online in 1998 – and it shows. Old timers like me remember when most web pages looked like this.
Old school.
Babies of Wackiness was exactly what I needed: succinct chapter summaries and a list of important passages, with a brief and accessible discussion on the major themes. I was so happy to see that my favourite passage was mentioned. I’ll leave you with that passage while I think about what else I want to say about this incredible book. Stay tuned.
The first time I read this, it took my breath away. I had to put the book down.
So the big bad Ninjamobile swept along on the great Ventura, among Olympic visitors from everywhere who teemed all over the freeway system in midday densities till far into the night, shined-up, screaming black motorcades that could have carried any of the several office seekers, cruisers heading for treed and more gently roaring boulevards, huge double and triple trailer rigs that loved to find Volkswagons laboring up grades and go sashaying around them gracefully and at gnat’s-ass tolerances, plus flirters, deserters, wimps and pimps, speeding like bullets, grinning like chimps, above the heads of TV watchers, lovers under the overpasses, movies at malls letting out, bright gas-station oases in pure fluorescent spill, canopied beneath palm trees, soon wrapped, down the corridors of the surface streets, in nocturnal smog, the adobe air, the smell of distant fireworks, the spilled, the broken world.
And, just because, here are my own babies of wackiness:
Getting ready for a few home renos
- Something wacky was going on here
Keepin’ it Real. Magically Real.
Jason Lee Norman’s short story collection Americas was brought to my attention on Twitter. When I found out that Norman is a local author, I was inspired to write a post about reading local.
I really had to restrain myself from calling this post “Americas! Fuck Yeah!”
I read Americas right after a three-month slog through The Idiot, and didn’t know what to expect. I knew it was a collection of short stories, with one for each country in North, Central and South America. I didn’t expect to find magical realism. I associate magical realism with South American authors, and with epic novels that follow a family across generations. It was surprising to find it here, though the opening quote from Jorge Luis Borges should have been my first clue.
For those who didn’t study magical realism in school (thanks Mr. Jefferies of Grade 12 IB English), here’s the wikipedia definition:
…an aesthetic style or genre of fiction in which magical elements blend with the real world. The story explains these magical elements as real occurrences, presented in a straightforward manner that places the “real” and the “fantastic” in the same stream of thought.
Americas starts with Canada and works south. Canada was my favourite, because it was so familiar. Those “A Part of Our Heritage” commercials play a prominent part. I had vivid memories of sitting on my couch at home, watching The Simpsons after school. A nice, safe feeling.
From there, things get weird. Magically weird! By the time I got to Venezuela, I knew something was up. It starts with “In Venezuela, all the children are adopted from South Korea.” In my sleep deprived brain, I actually wondered for a moment if there was some adoption agreement between these countries. Each chapter begins this way; “In [country], [absurd statement].” There’s something really disarming about such a simple structure, and such short stories, taking on the magical realism genre. Chile’s story mixes real life (the Chilean miners who got stuck underground) with the fantastic (window washers stuck in the sky at the same time) and gets it just right.
The stories are really, really short. They’re more like scenes or maybe dream sequences. You will finish this book in one sitting.
Read this if you’re a fan of magical realism. Read this if you want to try magical realism, but are scared of long, translated-from-Spanish family sagas (I don’t blame you.) Four stars!
Further reading: Here are my favorite magical realism books from the 1,001 Books You Must Read Before You Die:
Maybe I didn’t like it because the cover is so ugly.
Love in the Time of Cholera, Gabriel Garcia Marquez. This is in my top five books EVER. I have read this multiple times, and will read it many more. It’s that good. See my post about it here.
100 Years of Solitude, Gabriel Garcia Marquez. I was forced to read this in grade 12. Everyone in this book has the same name, which is a challenge, but it’s worth it.
Like Water for Chocolate, Laura Esquivel. I read this last year in my bid to make it to 100 of the 1,001 books read. It was much quicker, easier, and less dense than the Marquez books, but still has that elusive magical quality.
The House if the Spirits, Isabel Allende. I think I read this for high school English. Mr. Jefferies was kind of into South American literature. This was my least favourite of the bunch, but upon reading the plot summary, I think I need to revisit it. Lots of pregnancy and child birth symbolism!
Reading in Bed 