Halfway into the calendar year, I ritually consider what I've read so far and what I've not yet picked up. For the past few years, I've straightened the stack at hand mid-year, and gotten reacquainted with any over-lingerers, but this year I've been a tidy reader. (Marge Piercy's Gone to
The image of wanting to put a child in a plastic baggie to preserve his freshness stuck under my skin instantly and irrevocably. So, you see, from her third novel, Cordelia Strube hooked me. Back in 1997. With Teaching Pigs to Sing. But just as that protected child would (if one actually attempted
It begins with a body. And with short chapters, told from a variety of perspectives, guaranteed to create strong pacing. Blown Red is the first in the Signy Shepherd mysteries ,and it introduces readers to the series' star, as well as some of the other key personnel working on the Line. One stop on
In which I discuss some of the skinny volumes, which have nestled into my bookbag (while longer works, like Marge Piercy's Gone to Soldiers and Elena Ferrante's My Brilliant Friend, were left at home. Vivek Shraya's God Loves Hair is illustrated by Juliana Neufeld, a full-page image introducing each of
Appearing as part of Toronto Harbourfront's IFOA Weekly, Annie Proulx read from Barkskins in the Fleck Dance Theatre on June 17, 2016. Scribner, 2016 She began reading on the first page of the novel, her tone even and measured, but filled with expression when appropriate, particularly in dialogue. She captured the accent of
