Whitney Otto's How to Make an American Quilt was a story which immediately and powerfully appealed to me. As a narrative it was deliberately fragmented (like a quilt), and the idea of a mosaic of smaller pieces comprising a larger, complex whole translated brilliantly into film in the hands of
Susannah Cahalan knows how to tell a story. She started as a "copy kid" at the New York Post, sorting mail and making coffee, and when readers meet her on the page, she is a full-time writer there. Yet, the three story pitches she has just volleyed to her boss have
It recalls Sharon Butala's love of the prairie, reverence for the land. It brings to mind Lee Maracle's focus on relationships between women, love and friendship and sustenance. And it reminds me of Louise Erdrich's unflinching consideration of violence against women and the world. But Alanda Greene's Napi's
The cover of The Secret of the Village Fool displays Renné Benoit's gentle style of illustration and invites the reader into an inspiring and powerful tale. But it also shows the anxiety and uneasiness of Milek and Munio, two young boys in their village in Poland during WWII. Their neighbour, Anton,
“Number One, satire is not on. Critics love it, real people turn it off." That from the satirical novel Easy to Like*, which takes on Canadian media just as Linda Svendsen takes on Canadian politics in Sussex Drive. Of course, Edward Riche was satirizing the idea of satire
