Easy reading
Lately I've been having trouble reading difficult books. It's likely a result of an annoying case of sciatica, two bruised ribs, the fact our apartment flooded and we're living in our landlord's attic,...
View ArticleNathalie Sarraute!
There are a lot of truly great moments in the Paris Review interviews, from V.S. Naipaul opening the conversation by demanding, "Let me know the range of what you are doing and how you are going to...
View ArticleThe Dirty Dozen, with Ryan Oakley
In Ryan Oakley's Technicolour Ultra Mall (EDGE Science Fiction and Fantasy Publishing), Toronto has descended into chaos, part of a world ruined by genetic pollution. The book follows Budgie, a...
View ArticleImaginary Friends
I see that the main character of Ryan Oakley's new book is named Budgie. It's a strange name for "a knife wielding, brass knuckled young man from the impoverished and brutal red section of Toronto’s...
View ArticleStephen Harper and the Guinness Book
I followed Yann Martel's project of sending Stephen Harper books with mild, occasional interest. I'm not sure what I thought of it. Or, more, I had conflicted thoughts about it. As a reading list, at...
View ArticleAt the Desk: Nataša Dragnić
For each book that sits on our shelves or rests in our hands, a writer has spent countless hours researching, organizing, writing and rewriting. In Open Book’s At The Desk series, writers tell us about...
View ArticleQuillcast Episode Ten: Tanis Rideout and the Lure of Everest
Quillcast is a podcast series from our partners at Quill & Quire. Quillcast features behind-the-scenes conversations with authors and publishing insiders. In this episode, Tanis Rideout talks about...
View ArticleThe Dirty Dozen, with Tanis Rideout
Tanis Rideout's first novel is this season's Above All Things (McClelland & Stewart), which tells the story of mountaineer George Mallory's obsession with climbing Everest, and the people he leaves...
View ArticleOn Writing, with Linda Holeman
Linda Holeman's newest novel is the meticulously researched The Lost Souls of Angelkov (Random House Canada), a story set in 1860s Russia.Linda talks to Open Book about her family connection to the...
View ArticleThe Proust Questionnaire, with Sophie B. Watson
Sophie B. Watson is the author of Cadillac Couches (Brindle & Glass), a road novel that covers half the country, indie rock and broken hearts.In her answers to the Proust Questionnaire, Sophie...
View ArticlePoison Shy
Brandon Galloway is a 29-year-old nobody, fumbling between dead-end jobs in a town full of drunks and prostitutes. When he lands a position with a pest control company and meets 21-year-old wild-child...
View ArticleOn Writing, with Susan Glickman
Susan Glickman has had a very busy year. The spring saw Susan publish both a collection of poetry and a book for children, and this fall brought her most recent offering, The Tale Teller (Cormorant...
View ArticleBlog Tour: Alice Hearts Welsh Zombies: Or how we learned to stop worrying and...
If you're looking for a zombie-filled read, then you'll want to check out Alice Hearts Welsh Zombies (The Workhorsery), a novel by Victoria Dunn (the nom de plume of writers Victoria Higgins &...
View ArticleWhen Keneally Was King
By Becky Toyne’Tis the season to reminisce; to reflect on the best, biggest and brightest moments in culture from the fading year. In January, we look forward, but in this December moment, we look...
View ArticleFirst Blush
I started writing a novel this weekend. Even typing that sentence is enough to make me feel both giddy and utterly terrified. I'd been nursing the idea for a while, at first just a word that gradually...
View ArticleOn Writing, with Kirsten Gundlack
Kirsten Gundlack's literary debut, Inheritance (Quattro Books) hinges on a harrowing decision. Helena, the narrator, was disfigured in a childhood accident. When her beautiful, beloved older sister...
View ArticleOn Writing, with Shashi Bhat
Debut author Shashi Bhat's The Family Took Shape (Cormorant Books) has been drawing praise since its publication in late spring. The National Post praised the modern family tale for its "strange and...
View ArticleOn Writing, with Jim Nason
Poet and fiction writer Jim Nason's newest book is the provocatively titled novel I Thought I Would Be Happy (Tightrope Books). From Mount Olympus to New York City, the story follows characters who...
View ArticleAt the Desk: Claire Mulligan
Claire Mulligan's latest novel The Dark (Random House Canada) tackles a subject that fascinated the likes of Harry Houdini, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle and Edvard Munch — spiritualism. The Dark tells the...
View ArticleThe WAR Series: Writers as Readers, with Lauren Carter
Debut novelist Lauren Carter is the author of Swarm (Brindle & Glass), set in the not-too-distant future. Previously published as a poet, Lauren is already drawing widespread praise for her prose....
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