I've had this on my radar for a while, since it first came out and won so much acclaim. I love a good retelling of a classic story, whether from another character's perspective (Natalie Haynes is brilliant at this) or transposed into another era (Kingsolver's Demon Copperhead is a great example). The key with these examples is... Continue Reading →
The Stone Diaries, by Carol Shields. Pub 1993
Like so many favourite books from the distant past, this is one I hadn’t read since the first time, so didn’t remember much of the story (and in fact was confusing it in my memory with The Stone Angel). Like with A Prayer for Owen Meany, I decided to read it again to refresh the... Continue Reading →
Normal Rules Don’t Apply, by Kate Atkinson. Pub 2023
I’ve read a few Kate Atkinson novels before, and especially enjoyed Life After Life, a clever branched reality speculative fiction story, and so was expecting more of the same here in shorter versions. I was not overly disappointed, but I did find this collection to be uneven in quality. The eleven stories each stand on... Continue Reading →
Changing My Mind, by Julian Barnes. Pub 2025
Upon seeing this new volume by Barnes, I instantly ordered it, raced down the bookshop when it arrived, and made it my next read. I confess to being disappointed when I got it – it is so small – 57 small pages. But it’s Barnes, so it was, to me, essential reading, even if it... Continue Reading →
The Preservationist, by David Maine. Pub 2004
After recently finishing Not Wanted On the Voyage, I wanted to revisit another novel I have about the same story. I first read The Preservationist not long after it was published and enjoyed it enough to seek out David Maine’s other novels (the best of which is Fallen). My current version was recovered from a... Continue Reading →
Not Wanted on the Voyage, by Timothy Findlay. Pub 1984. Introduction by Paul Quarrington, Pub 2006
I recall first reading this in the mid- to late 80s, and it’s been a story that has stuck in my memory as provocative and well written. I don’t think I’ve reread it since then, despite having included it on my ever-changing favourites list for many years. Reading it now, I can see how and... Continue Reading →
The World According to Garp, by John Irving. Pub 1976
It was the summer of 1982. I was 15ish and, while waiting for the bus at the corner of Portage Avenue and Vaughan Street in Winnipeg, I saw the marquee of the theatre across the street advertising the film The World According to Garp. I think I had seen a trailer for the film earlier... Continue Reading →
My Name is Lucy Barton, by Elizabeth Strout. Pub 2021
My fellow bookclubber read and highly recommended this one, so I read it over the Thanksgiving weekend. Like previous Strout reads, this one was very good. Lucy Barton is an author and mother in New York. She grew up in poverty and with a disturbed family, and was able to break away from that by... Continue Reading →
The Colony of Unrequited Dreams, by Wayne Johnston. Pub 1998
I recall buying this book >10 years ago at a favourite used book shop in Victoria. I had previously read The Custodian of Paradise, and while I enjoyed it, I realized too late that it would have been enhanced by having read this book first. While I made a start on Colony back then, it drifted on to... Continue Reading →
Followed by the Lark, by Helen Humphreys. Pub 2024
To me, a hallmark of a good book is one that I get so caught up in that I finish it in a day. Helen Humphreys usually does that for me. In Followed by the Lark, Humphreys novelizes the life of naturalist and philosopher, Henry David Thoreau. Based on his many writings and extensive journal, Humphreys... Continue Reading →
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