I had originally planned to use this month's Friday Favourite to focus on a Russian favourite. But when I realized it fell on Canada Day, it seemed far more fitting to focus on a modern Canadian classic. Joseph Boyden is one of the best Canadian writers currently in existence and his trilogy should be required… Continue reading Friday Favourite: Three Day Road by Joseph Boyden
If you are a Canadian reader of poetry chances are good that you know and admire Lorna Crozier. If you are everybody else in the world, you've probably never heard of her. Lorna Crozier is one of the best living poets today. She's written more than twenty books, mostly poetry. Her poems are lyrical and… Continue reading Poetry Monday: Lorna Crozier
This was a re-read for me but when I began sorting through boxes of my childhood books and came across my Lucy Maud Montgomery collection I felt nostalgic and delved into The Blue Castle once more. L.M. Montgomery is, of course, the author of Anne of Green Gables but she also wrote many other books… Continue reading Book Review: The Blue Castle by L.M. Montgomery
While Monkey Beach takes place in British Columbia, the same province in which I live, it really is worlds away. Set in the tiny Haisla community of Kitamaat, we follow Lisamarie Hill in the aftermath of her brother Jimmy's disappearance. The First Nations community (Edited to add: It was brought to my attention that "First… Continue reading Book Review: Monkey Beach by Eden Robinson
People love others not because they are lovable necessarily but because it takes such a weight off the heart. Having read one previous novel by Elizabeth Hay (Alone in the Classroom), I began to read her latest book expecting a decent read. I'm happy to report that Hay blew my expectations out of the water.… Continue reading Book Review: His Whole Life by Elizabeth Hay
I have to confess - I'm not a fan of Margaret Atwood's writing. I tell people this like I'm confessing a guilty secret. Something a little dirty; certainly not something a good Canadian feminist reader and writer should think. But there it is and it's the truth. Don't get me wrong, I fully appreciate that… Continue reading Book Review: The Heart Goes Last by Margaret Atwood
Reading a book that you end up not enjoying is disappointing enough but it feels extra disappointing when you're able to see the possibilities of how good that book could have been. The God of Small Things was that kind of read for me. The story follows twin brother and sister, Estha and Rahel, and… Continue reading Book Review: The God of Small Things by Arundhati Roy
I'm trying something new here and (at least for the next little while) will be devoting the first Friday of every month to sharing about one of my favourite books. I love talking about and reviewing new (to me) books, but I don't often get to talk about books I've read in the past and… Continue reading A Friday Favourite: In the Skin of a Lion by Michael Ondaatje
If you're familiar with Yann Martel's work (and you probably are, because he wrote Life of Pi), you know that he does things a little unusually. He writes books with taxidermied animals as the main characters (read my review of Beatrice & Virgil) and he leaves you wondering about the truth of that tiger in… Continue reading Book Review: The High Mountains of Portugal by Yann Martel
In the age old question of cats versus dogs, I definitely fall in the dog category. (This was true even before I developed a cat allergy.) I've spent my fair share of time around dogs in the past thirty years but I'm looking at them a little differently after reading Fifteen Dogs. In the vein… Continue reading Book Review: Fifteen Dogs by André Alexis
Karissa Reads Books 