[Werking Title] Book Club Blog

Bio about Cultural Revolution in China - A Leaf in the Bitter Wind by Ting-Xing Ye

2010-01-14T13:27:00.003-05:00

I couldn't help but think of this book when we read Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress. In fact, I think it ruined my reading of the novel because I kept comparing it to this biography! It's a compelling story about a woman who grew up during the Cultural Revolution in China and experienced a similar dismal "re-education" as the narrator of the Little Chinese Seamstress. I definitely recommend it if you are interested in this very volatile and fascinating time.

Did she really learn from Balzac?

2010-01-14T13:07:00.006-05:00

These are the questions we should have used for our discussion! A lot better than that poor student's essay questions. We discussed some of these things when we met, including the irony of Luo's desire to "re-educate" the little seamstress when he himself is enduring forced re-education by the state.

http://www.litlovers.com/guide_balzac.html

One thing we didn't discuss was the end of the book and the seamstress's claim she learned from Balzac "that a woman's beauty is treasured beyond price." It's obvious that this novel was influenced by Balzac's writing but what does the seamstress mean by this comment? I like to think that she's a realist, not the romantic dreamer Luo and she's ready to leave the mountain once and for all. She's going to make her fortune however she can rather than leaving her fate to her father or Luo. Thoughts? Counter-arguments? This line left me somewhat stumped when I finished reading and perhaps that's why I was a little dissatisfied as well.

Discussion Questions for Ondaatje's In the Skin of a Lion

2009-10-29T16:14:00.005-04:00

For possibly the first time, we could not find discussion questions for a book club selection! I never thought Google would fail me but it happened.

So we decided to make our own questions! It was easy: through discussion of the book, we naturally had questions of our own. That and we've used enough of these sorts of prompts over the years that this felt like familiar territory.

I think the parts that we discussed the most and that intrigued us most were the historical elements Ondaatje encorporated into the narrative. It was fascinating to read about structures in Toronto, such as the Bloor Viaduct and the waterworks, and how they were built. We were all familiar with Ondaatje's literary style and found this book a more satisfying read than Divisadero, a past werking title pick.

And now what you've been waiting for: Discussion Questions! Scholars we are not but these are some topics we wondered and discussed ourselves.

1. Why does Patrick's father become a dynamiter? How does this influence Patrick's life?

2. Patrick watches Finnish loggers skating at night, observing them at play. How does this prelude his later interactions with other immigrant communities?

3. Why does Ondaatje include historical people, places and things in the novel? Ambrose Small and Rowland Harris are historical figures - does this influence the way the novel should be read or does it just ground the story in Toronto history?

4. What is the symbolic significance of Patrick becoming a "searcher"? How is he a searcher throughout his life? What is he searching for?

5. What is the nature of Clara & Alice's relationship?

6. Alice describes several distinct periods in her life. How does her art and career as an actress imitate her life or does her life imitate her art?

7. Patrick is a Canadian-born living and working amid several immigrant communities in Toronto. Describe how the novel illustrates the nature of community and belonging for Patrick and the new immigrants.

8. Throughout the novel there are detailed descriptions of miserable working conditions among the poor and working class and, by contrast, the extravagant lifestyle of the rich, including Harris' decision to use herringbone tiles at the waterworks. What political or social commentary does the novel make?

9. Patrick sets out to destroy public property after Alice dies. Were his actions triggered by grief or is he trying to make a grander social statement? Who does Patrick blame for his grief and how does he choose his targets for the vandalism?

10. Who owned the bag of dynamite Alice was carrying when she died?

11. Was Patrick's confrontation with Harris a dream/fantasy?

12. What does the novel say about obsessive love? How is Clara's relationship with Ambrose toxic? Why does the novel end with Patrick goes to Clara?

13. What is the significance of the title and prefacing quotation from The Epic of Gilgamesh?

Jung, Uncovered

2009-10-09T16:02:00.005-04:00

I came across this lengthy but intriguing article about C G Jung in New York Times Magazine. I thought I'd share because we had a lot to say about Jung as a fictional character when we read Timothy Findley's novel Pilgrim.

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/09/20/magazine/20jung-t.html?pagewanted=1&em

When we read Pilgrim, I knew little about Jung, particularly his personal life. His professional writing and work in psychoanalysis left me a little cold. However, his influence alone makes him interesting and Findley's fictional portrayal in Pilgrim made me wonder what this guy was really like.

This article describes the lengthy and contentious effort to get Jung's mysterious Red Book, published. What caught my attention was the bit about only a handful of people having read a highly sought out book that was stored in a Swiss bank account for decades. That had the book collector in me salivating...

The Red Book was a diary Jung kept during a period of personal crisis. He recorded his dreams, musings, hallucinations and questioned the stability of his mind, like any introspective analyst, I suppose. If I recall correctly, Findley incorporated the Red Book into his novel. It's been so long since we read the book I can't really remember!

Be sure to click on the "multimedia graphics" sidebar" for more pictures of the Red Book, including some incredible full-colour artwork. It looks like a medieval manuscript!

It appears you will be able to buy it at Indigo but with a price tag of $187.50, likely only the most die-hard Jungians will get a copy. Thank goodness for the library!

2009-03-29T13:17:00.000-04:00

see more Lolcats and funny pictures

LOLOLOL... I saw this and immediately thought of Maria.

Onto Book Three, Delightfully

2009-01-08T12:42:00.002-05:00

I'm actually gonna do it. I'm actually gonna get through all five Canada Reads books before the debates! Woo hoo!

I started with The Fat Woman Next Door Is Pregnant, by Michel Tremblay. This is the ultimate example of NOT judging a book by its cover. The front is stark white, with a cheesy circular cutout revealing a waving old woman with too much makeup on... kitchy! Even if the woman is the author's mother... still! However, I loooooved the book. I just found out that almost all of my family comes from Quebec, and although they were moved into southern Ontario by the time the second World War began (which is when this book is set), I still found it fascinating to learn about the slang used by the Quebecois, their thoughts on the Europeans, and the tight communities found in Montreal. The mythological component pushed the book beyond the "really really really good read" point, all the way to, "I'm going to recommend this to everyone I talk to!"

Next came Outlander, by Gil Adamson, which I chose as January's book club book. I must say, so far I'm very impressed by the Canada Reads selections. Outlander is a beautiful account of a half-mad woman running from her dead husband's brothers- and her husband is dead because she shot him with his rifle. Hooey! Well, the account is as beautiful as a story of that nature could be. I loved this book because it's set in the wilderness and tells how the widow survives- through her own actions, and her own dumb luck (or is it fate?) It's an adventure story, a love story, and a thriller all rolled into one. And it's awesome.

Now I'm reading The Book Of Negroes, by Lawrence Hill. I'm only a few pages in, so I can't really comment on it too much yet. But so far, I like it. As mentioned, I've been digging into my family's history lately, and I think my favourite ancestor is my great x 4 grandfather, Jean Baptiste Gignac. He was born in Quebec in 1746, which is right around the time when the protagonist in this story is born (except she was born in Bayo, in the Congo). Being able to relate on that level will make the book much more enjoyable for me, I think!

I Sound Like A Broken Record...

2008-12-09T15:19:00.005-05:00

Again, I have to admit to not posting much on this blog. Nothing really to admit to, since it's plainly obvious. Could it be that blogging was just a phase, a trend? Maybe for me. I hope I jump back on the wagon, though, since I do like the idea of blogging. It's just getting around to actually doing it that's a problem. There's a huge, seemingly unavoidable, expanse in my mind, between ideas and actions. Like those giant puddles on every street corner in Toronto, after a snowstorm followed by a rise in temperature followed by a rain shower (such weird weather we have). Meh!

Anyways- I'm posting today about Canada Reads! The books have been announced, and I've chosen one for our next book. The Outlander, by Gil Adamson. I read the summaries for each book, and this one seemed the most interesting to me. Plus, it shares a name with one of my all-time favourite books, Outlander by Diana Gabaldon. I don't think the books will share much else than that, though.

I'm hoping to get through all of the five chosen books for this year's Canada Reads debate. I've never been able to do it before- I've never even gotten close (probably because I haven't really tried). This year, though, will be different. Ha! Luckily, there are a couple lighter reads, mixed in with some of the daunting, heavier ones (literally, and subject-ively speaking).

Oh, if anyone is struggling to think of a gift for me, you can pick me up all five books at a discount from CBC... just thought I'd throw that out there! LOL!

If Only... IFOA... International Festival of Authors

2008-10-22T11:00:00.004-04:00

I say "if only..." because I know I won't end up going to any of these readings. And, of course, I think saying the acronym out loud is kinda funny. LOL. It's a great festival though, and I thought it would be worth a post on here...

The 29th Annual International Festival of Authors runs from October 22nd to November 1st, and features readings, interviews, lectures, round table discussions and book signings with the most popular Canadian and world literature writers. It all goes down at the Harbourfront Centre.

Some of the authors we've read in our book club will be making an appearance, like David Bergen, Joseph Boyden, Austin Clarke (our fave! lol), Paul Quarrington, and David Adams Richards. Other authors I'd like to see include Farley Mowat, Roddy Doyle, Rohinton Mistry, Nino Ricci, and M.G. Vassanji.

I'd actually be interested in going to see Farley Mowat on November 1st (it's $15). Anyone wanna join me?

The Booker Prize has been announced

2008-10-15T12:25:00.003-04:00

This is the text of the article on BBC News:

Aravind Adiga has won this year's Man Booker Prize with his debut novel The White Tiger.
The 33-year-old Indian-born writer was also the youngest author on the shortlist for the £50,000 prize. He wrote "the kind of book I'd like to read", he told the BBC. "I like books that have ideas in them and that move and entertain."

The chairman of the judges, former politician Michael Portillo, said: "In many ways it was the perfect novel." Adiga beat favourite Sebastian Barry to take the accolade as well as the other contenders, Amitav Ghosh, Steve Toltz, Linda Grant and Philip Hensher.

The White Tiger, a tale of two Indias, tells the story of Balram, the son of a rickshaw puller in the heartlands, one of the "faceless" poor left behind by the country's recent economic boom. It charts his journey from working in a teashop to entrepreneurial success.

"Making it to the shortlist on a first novel is sort of like winning and anything beyond that is quite a bonus," Adiga said. He said the book was set in today's India and "revolves around the great divide between those Indians who have made it and those who have not". "At the heart of the book it is something existential," he added. "It's a quest to break out of the circumstances you find yourself in - it's a quest for freedom."

'Perfect novel'

Announcing the winner at a ceremony in London, Mr Portillo said: "My criteria were 'Does it knock my socks off?' and this one did ... the others impressed me ... this one knocked my socks off." Mr Portillo said what set the book apart was its originality in showing "the dark side of India". He said: "The novel is in many ways perfect. It is quite difficult to find any structural flaws with it."

There were more than two contenders for the prize on the shortlist, but the winner was "absolutely not a compromise", Mr Portillo added. "There really was a decision. The judges were asked to express their satisfaction and they all did."

Adiga is the fourth first-time novelist to win the prize. Previous debut winners were Keri Hulme's The Bone People in 1985; Arundhati Roy in 1997 for God of Small Things; and Vernon God Little by DBC Pierre in 2003. Adiga is a former correspondent for Time magazine and has written for the Independent and the Sunday Times. The win means he can expect an upturn in sales and added recognition.

'Exciting winner'

According to Amazon.co.uk, the six books enjoyed average sales rises of 700% following the announcement of the shortlist last month. Booksellers Foyles said it was a "very exciting winner for bookshops" adding it could prove as popular as The Life of Pi, the Booker’s best-selling winner.

The five other shortlisted authors can also expect a rise in sales. Adiga, who had been given odds of 7/1 to win before the ceremony, dedicated the award to "the people of New Delhi". Irish writer Barry had been tipped to take the prize at 7/4 by bookmakers William Hill. The bookmakers' favourite has not won since Yann Martel in 2002.

Of the six authors in contention for this year's Man Booker, only Barry had ever been shortlisted in the past - in 2005 for A Long Long Way. Grant and Hensher had both previously been longlisted.

The award, which honours the best fiction written in English by an author from the UK, Ireland or the Commonwealth, was handed out at the Guildhall in London on Tuesday.

Review of Blasted, by Kate Story

2008-10-06T21:31:00.000-04:00

So I finished Blasted by Kate Story.

I think this book is a simple, classic example of Magic Realism, where weird or magical things happen in a "normal" setting. Ruby currently lives in Toronto, but spent her childhood in Newfoundland. The story goes from present-day Toronto to the St. John's of the early eighties or so. I cannot say much about the description of St. John's, but the current Toronto is described from the perspective of someone who lives there (I like this type of narrative, it's what got me hooked on British chick-lit, because it described London as I knew it).

In the beginning I was enjoying the setup and the descriptions of the places, though I thought that the language could have been funnier or lighter to describe some of the situations. As the story progresses, stranger and stranger things start to happen. I found these interesting in the beginning, but after a while I just got frustrated thinking "ok, I understand, get on with the story". As the story went on, the main character, Ruby, reminded me more and more of the brat girl in Elise Levine's Requests and Dedications, and I started to get annoyed.

The book is enjoyable and, as I say, I loved the description of the places. The magic realism elements were fun as well, and probably well-researched (this I have to assume, since I know nothing about Newfoundland mythology and superstitions). But I believe the situations were kept going for a bit too long. I just got annoyed by the book and by the main character. It could have ended 100 pages earlier, I believe.

New Look

2008-10-02T21:02:00.003-04:00

So, I decided to waste some time at work today, and I picked a new design for the site. The links on the old site were just really hard to read... and I couldn't figure out how to fix it. So, I started from scratch! It's cleaner, brighter, and there's a couple of new features... a slide show of all the pics on Flickr with the tag "[werking title]", and a literary quote of the day gadget. And oh, there's an Indigo search tool near the bottom, there. Fluff, really, but neat fluff!

I hope you guys like it. :)

Discussion Questions for Acsension

2008-08-27T14:31:00.004-04:00

Because I had trouble finding some discussion questions online and had to make some up, I figured I'd post them on here for anyone else looking! These were prompted from a couple reviews I read about the book. Here goes...

1. The strength of this novel is the author's ability to sustain tension. In a number of scenes on the high wire, the author has a remarkable ability to involve the reader in the action, although some of the descriptions of circus tricks are difficult to picture. Do you agree?

2. Galloway offers an excellent description of the horrendous 1945 big-top fire in Boise, Idaho, in which 112 people died, bringing the age of large tent circuses to an end. Did the facts seem to over shadow the story? Did the insertion of this factual event seem natural to the story?

3. The book is also riddled with gypsy tales that have the feel of genuine folk stories straight from the forests of Eastern Europe. Even though we meet the many people who have inhabited Salvo's world, including the extended Fisher-Fielding family, which is in constant struggle over control of the circus, it is his loneliness on the high wire that we feel most keenly. Do you agree? Do you feel the Rom tales help or hinder the flow of the story?

4. How their story is told is more notable than the story itself… do you agree? There should be some dramatic tension, but this is denied. Was this on purpose? It might be argued that by using familiar expressions and simple sentences Galloway is placing Ascension on the level of folklore, fitting his literary effort in with the novel's interspersed Romany tales. I wonder if Galloway’s other novels are similarly drab?

5. Many promising symbols and thematic threads—bears, fire, adoption and belonging—are introduced then left unexplored. Some make sense if you puzzle them out, but are emotionally unsatisfying. What do these symbols mean? When his characters die, we don't grieve. When they mourn, we don't mourn with them. What do you think Galloway could’ve done differently, to portray his character's emotions more engagingly?

And here's a link to a great interview I found with Galloway, from 2004:
http://www.abc.net.au/rn/arts/bwriting/stories/s1182874.htm
(you'll have to scroll down a bit to get to the Galloway part)

Comfort Food, by Kate Jacobs

2008-05-08T11:41:00.002-04:00

This is not a very book-cluby type of book, but I wanted to write about it anyway.

When I first heard of this book, I thought it was a cooking book, because of the title. But it is a novel, by the same author of The Friday Night Knitting Club. I didn't have a chance to read that book but some of my knitting friends said it was good, so I was glad to have the opportunity to read her next novel.

It is the story of Gus Simpson, the most famous cooking celebrity in the Food Channel. Gus is going through some changes in life and is forced to evaluate who she is and what she has done so far with her life, including her family and her professional life.

It is nice and agreeable read. Jacobs's style is best-selling type, easy to read and entertaining to follow. It has a lot of pop-cultural references and I wonder if she based any of her characters on real people, not that I would know who they are, but sometimes insiders recognize someone they know in this type of books.
The book has really good character development and an easy to follow story. It is in the chick-lit style but I believe it appeals to a wider demographic, from mothers and grandmothers to young women.
I have to confess that I developed a fondness for the characters and I even shed a couple of tears when I was reading their story. I read the whole book in less than a week and I kept looking forward to reading, I wanted to know what would happen to these people.

I recommend this book as an easy, agreeable read, again, not the book club type.
Also, although it talks a lot about food (and a lot about Spanish food, which I looooooove!!) it has no recipes.
Kate Jacobs has a website and a blog.

Keep Toronto Reading and Redhill's Consolation

2008-02-05T10:56:00.001-05:00

Hey guys! There are tonnes of book events happening this week, mostly to do with this year's Keep Toronto Reading Program, which continues until the end of the month. I'm gonna try my damndest to get to one of the Consolation events... I'd really like to go to the events focused on the history of Toronto. Anyway... here's a link to the events listing:

http://www.blogto.com/books_lit/2008/02/bookmark_this_february_5th_to_february_11th_2008

This Week's Literary Events...

2008-01-22T12:35:00.000-05:00

Summarized. Here's a link!

http://www.blogto.com/books_lit/2008/01/bookmark_this_january_22nd_28th_2008/

New Flickr Group

2008-01-19T14:15:00.000-05:00

I don't know why I didn't do this earlier!

I've created a group on Flickr for any photos taken at our meetings, or just any photos you'd like to share between us. Here's a link to the group:

http://www.flickr.com/groups/werkingtitle/

I've added photos from the weddings, Tequila Bookworm, WOTS, etc.

Hey You Guys!!!

2008-01-14T21:36:00.000-05:00

We're meeting tomorrow! At Rustico Pizza... mmm... Pizza. Which reminds me. I should review the book right now. And oh! Here's a link to this weeks book events:

Bookmark This! January 15th - 21st, 2008

It's Been A While

2008-01-07T19:38:00.000-05:00

Holy smokes! Has it ever! Well, I might as well start off with a link to this week's literary events...

Bookmark This! January 8th - 14th, 2008

I'm gonna make a true effort to keep this updated on a regular basis. We'll see how that works. LOL

Bookmark This! June 19 - 25th, 2007

2007-06-21T13:48:00.000-04:00

Check out what's happening this week...

http://www.blogto.com/books_lit/2007/06/bookmark_this_june_19_25th_2007/

Bookmark This! June 12 - 18th, 2007

2007-06-12T16:31:00.000-04:00

Literary events going on this week, listed over at blogTO:

http://www.blogto.com/books_lit/2007/06/bookmark_this_june_12_18th_2007/

The Two Best Quotes From Timequake So Far

2007-06-07T14:34:00.000-04:00

"At the time of their invention, books were devices as crassly practical for storing or transmitting language, albeit fabricated from scarcely modified substances found in forest and field and animals, as the latest Silicon Valley miracles. But by accident, not by cunning calculation, books, because of their weight and texture, and because of their sweetly token resistance to manipulation, involve our hands and eyes, and then our minds and souls, in a spiritual adventure I would be very sorry for my grandchildren not to know about."

"They [colons] don't do anything, don't suggest anything. They are transvestite hermaphrodites."

LOLOLOL... only Vonnegut could write these two sentences in one book, four pages apart.

Madness, I Say!

2007-06-02T11:12:00.000-04:00

Take a look at this:
http://www.cnn.com/2007/US/05/28/book.burning.ap/index.html

A book store owner in Missouri is burning his unwanted books!

Tom Wayne, with the eloquence of an American book store owner, explains himself:
"After slogging through the tens of thousands of books we've slogged through and to accumulate that many and to have people turn you away when you take them somewhere, it's just kind of a knee-jerk reaction," he said. "And it's a good excuse for fun."

Yep. That's what I do for fun... burn some books. I find it extremely hard to believe he couldn't find anywhere to donate these books. What a waste. Not to mention the smoke being released into the atmosphere probably isn't good for the neighbours.

More Events for Literary Types

2007-05-29T15:36:00.000-04:00

Here are my picks for this week's bookworm social calendar:

http://www.blogto.com/books_lit/2007/05/bookmark_this_may_29_june_4th_2007/

Enjoy!

Lit Events Posting

2007-05-25T11:44:00.000-04:00

As you all know, I'm going to be doing a literary events posting each week for blogTO. To make it easy for us, I'll try and remember to post a link to it on here! This blog needs a bit of excitement, don't you think? Links = excitement. Yes, indeedy.

Here's the first one:
http://www.blogto.com/books_lit/2007/05/bookmark_this_may_2329_2007/
.

Baricco's Silk Made Into Movie...

2007-04-28T21:46:00.000-04:00

As if! We were just talking about this, and I saw a preview for it on a DVD... Crazy!

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0494834/

Kurt Vonnegut Dead at 84

2007-04-14T12:34:00.000-04:00

Vonnegut, one of my all time favourite authors, passed away on Wednesday in his Manhattan home. I went to visit his website, and this is all there was. It's the saddest thing ever. He'll be missed.

Kurt Vonnegut, Jr.
1922 - 2007

There's a excellent opinion piece written by New York Times columnist Verlyn Klinkenborg; in it he says:

"He is not only entertaining, he is electrocuting. You read him with enormous pleasure because he makes your hair stand on end. He says not only what no one is saying, but also what — as a mild young person — you know it is forbidden to say. No one nourishes the skepticism of the young like Vonnegut. In his world, decency is likelier to be rooted in skepticism than it is in the ardor of faith."

Generation X at Jason George

2007-03-25T21:37:00.000-04:00

Here are the photos I took at the bar... they're not so good- it was really kinda dark in there- I should've used a flash! Ah well... sometimes they're interesting this way:

The Winner...

2007-03-06T14:15:00.000-05:00

... of this year's Canada Reads competition is Lullabies for Little Criminals by Heather O'Neill. Congrats to John K. Samson of the Weakerthans for arguing that Lullabies is THE book Canadians should be reading! I have a feeling this will be my next pick!

Dukes Up

2007-02-27T18:47:00.000-05:00

This year's Canada Reads competition is under way, and it should be a good debate. Each of the panelists has won a previous year's challenge, so the strategies are complex and the arguments quick. Here's a run down:

- Stephen Page (Barenaked Ladies) :
- Denise Bombardier (French author) : Children of My Heart (Ces enfants de ma vie) by Gabrielle Roy
- Jim Cuddy (Blue Rodeo) : Stanley Park by Timothy Taylor

I haven't read any of these books (I've got to remember next year to check which books are selected, before the actual debate)! But the discussions are interesting nonetheless, and there are now five new books (well, actually only three) on my "to read" list. So far, I'm not too interested in The Song of Kahunsha or Children of my Heart. I bet they're good though. And you can bet one of these will be my next book club pick, when it's my turn to pick again!

Don't forget to listen to Canada Reads everyday this week on the CBC at 11:30am and 7:30pm. If you miss it, you can always read the transcripts or download the discussion here:

Austin Clarke Makes Me Laugh

2007-02-21T14:54:00.000-05:00

For many reasons, but most recently, because of this:

http://www.quillandquire.com/blog/index.php/2007/02/19/austin-clarke-meets-malcolm-x/

My favourite is where they say, "Clarke apparently interviewed Malcolm X again, years later and shortly before his assassination, but forgot to turn on the tape recorder." LOLOLOL

The Order of Canada

2007-02-21T11:32:00.000-05:00

The Order of Canada was given last night. Two of the authors we have read on Book Club received The Order:
Frances Itani (Deafening, January 2006)
Barbara Gowdy (The Romantic, March 2004)
Congratulations to these two beloved authors!

It's Settled

2007-02-15T14:08:00.000-05:00

We're meeting at Maria's next Monday (the 19th), at 6:30pm.

We're eating pizza.

We're watching The Big Sleep with Humphrey Bogart and Lauren Bacall.

Got Some Time On Your Hands??

2007-01-30T12:26:00.000-05:00

I would LOVE to volunteer to be on the Toronto Book Awards Jury, but there's absolutely NO WAY I could read all 80-100 submissions in 3-4 months! That's 80-100 novels! Sheesh!

Anyways- if you're unlike me and have the time and motivation to volunteer, here's a link to the info!
http://www.workinculture.ca/apps/index.cfm?fuseaction=job.showDetails&jobid=19936&termid=

The Big Sleep

2007-01-16T15:58:00.000-05:00

After our book club session at the Flatiron and Firkin, Gabriella has picked The Big Sleep by Raymond Chandler for our February meeting.

2007-01-04T13:38:00.000-05:00

Julia has just announced that she's moving on from book club. Julia, we are going to miss you so much, I will forever remember those early sessions when only you and I were part of book club.
We love you, Julia!

The Time Traveler's Wife at Tequila Bookworm

2006-11-23T13:37:00.000-05:00

cross post from Blurty Blurt Blurt...

We had our monthly book club meeting last night, and we went to Tequila Bookworm. What a great place for a book club! We sat at the back, in the comfy cozy couches, and had a really good-looking waiter serving us. Always a bonus!

The food was a little disappointing, but I knew this going in (I'd read a couple reviews)... my bagel was burnt, but the cream cheese on my bagel was full of chunks of roasted garlic, which made up for the "Cajun-style" bagel. The cafe mocha was yummy, but looked like it was just coffee with some hot chocolate powder mixed in. Prices were pretty steep; my "cafe mocha" was over $3, and the bagel was also over $3. Alas, the price (literally) we pay to hang out at a really cool café on Queen Street West.

The discussion of the book was really in-depth; a roller coaster ride of opinions. The Time Traveler's Wife makes you think hard. While you're reading it, and once your finished. The book is about a man named Henry who has a genetic disease, which causes him to uncontrollably blip out of time and space, traveling back or forward in his life. But like I said last night, I wouldn't say this book is about a guy who time travels. It's a love story, about the struggles Henry and his wife Clare go through, caused by Henry's tendency to disappear every now and again, as well as the tough times any married couple would experience.

The big question of the evening was whether or not this book should be classified as Science Fiction. Technically, the book is about something that is not humanly possible (as far as we know). But because the book is written with such a realistic tone, I don't think it counts as Sci-Fi. It certainly doesn't look like a Sci-Fi book! Nestor said he really didn't like the cover, so we hopped online (thanks to the free wireless at Tequila Bookworm- god I love my new laptop), to see some of the other covers out there for this book. Here's what we found:

But the best image we found was this one by Jess the Fink on MySpace. I'm guessing she read the book, got inspired, and then drew this really cool illustration... Awesome, eh?

Another good question the book addresses is the age-old argument... Are our lives pre-destined, and therefore we have no control over the paths we take? Or do we have a certain amount of free will, and are able to change the route of our lives through the decisions we make? In the book, Henry is unable to change the outcome of anyone's life, even though he can travel back to integral moments over and over again (eg: he watches his mother die in a car crash numerous times). I think we concluded that it depends on your own faith/belief/spirituality. (Isn't that just always the answer- "it depends"?)

All in all, we rated this book 5 out of 5. I personally think it's the best book we've read in book club... even better than Three Day Road (which I picked last spring)!

We also took lots of photos while we were there... here's a link to the set on Flickr:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/ravenswift/sets/72157594388000551/

Started the Book....

2006-11-08T14:42:00.000-05:00

... And I'm LOVING it. I'm so glad we're reading this book... it's amazing! And I'm only on page 127!

For some reason, I'm really equating this book with that new show Hereos (which is also awesome, you should watch it). AND, the premise is kinda similar to that movie The Lake House, with Sandra Bullock and Keanu Reeves in it.

Time travel. It's hard to wrap my head around. Do you think one day it'll be possible?!?

OMG GUYS!

2006-10-23T23:35:00.000-04:00

ok so i'm almost done the book and some things are starting to make sense about the books style and length. it........... is ........... all........... intentional!

i'll tell u more about it later ;-)

Love, time, cholera

2006-10-15T19:45:00.000-04:00

love, time, cholera
Originally uploaded by kurmidt.

October 2006, Love in the Time of Cholera. At Hemingway's for book club.

Henry's to Hemingway's

2006-10-12T13:00:00.000-04:00

Henry's is where I work, and Hemingway's is where we met last night to talk about Love in the Time of Cholera. I just like the way it sounds. Henry's to Hemingway's. Like a song!

The discussion went well, I think, and everyone had fun answering the quiz questions I had printed out. Some of them were too easy, and some of them were a bit ambiguous- but I didn't have the answer sheet, so it didn't really matter! I think my favourite question was...

The song Florentino writes and plays for Fermina is called:
(A) Crowned Goddess
(B) Rockabye, Sweet Fermina
(C) Like A Virgin
(D) Share Your Love With Me

Haha... Like a Virgin... There were many instances of weird, quirky, and dare I say, illegal sexual encounters in this book, but since it was set around 1900, I don't think it really mattered. I was grossed out by the affair between the protagonist and his teenage lover, but I understand the value of the relationship within the story. The old people sex scene was a little unnerving, but funny at the same time. LOL

My personal opinion on this book? I think it could've been much shorter. And at time, it felt like a chore for me to read. I'm not sure if this had to do with the fact that it was translated from Spanish, or if it's because it written in a very classical language (as opposed to pop lit, or something closer to a soap opera, although the premise of the story would've fit nicely into say, The Young and the Restless). I know that the book was supposed to be humourous in places, too, but only a couple of times did I actually laugh out loud.

The story was interesting, though, the themes (suffering from love/cholera, and the fear of death) were relevant, and the characters were developed nicely. Nestor pointed out that he liked the way the author would time travel, to inform the reader of the character's past. Sometimes I found this a bit confusing, but I was thankful for it. I also found the names of the characters a bit confusing (see my previous post).

Ultimately, I think we all enjoyed the book. It was also great to see Daniella (our newest member), and her seeing eye dog Roger, who was super cute (especially when he licked Julia's knee)! John didn't make it out (even though he was the one who chose the book), because he was sick. Feel better John!!

Next book- The Time Traveler's Wife, by Audrey Niffenegger. Nestor's pick. Meeting date: November 22. Venue TBA.

Derrrrrrrrrrrrrrr

2006-09-20T10:38:00.000-04:00

I don't know if it's just cause I'm an idiot, or because it's been so long since I've read anything that wouldn't be considered "pop lit"... but this Love in the Time of Cholera book is really making me rack my brain.

All the names sounds the same, and some people even have the same name! Or perhaps the name "Fermina" is an honorific, like Mister or Madame. And the book would be a heck of a lot shorter if the author truncated the names slightly. Instead of typing out Florentina Ariza 5000 times, he could've just called him Flor!

I'm also baffled about the geographical location. From what I understand, the book takes place in the Dominican Republic? But the treasure that Flor looks for just before Fermina returns from her fathers exile is located in the Sotavento Archipelago, which is off the coast of Africa!

It is turning out to be a good story, though. I am glad that we pushed back the date of the meeting (Oct. 11), which will definitely allow me enough time to finish the book.

Away from Home

2006-08-22T12:47:00.000-04:00

Last night was our first meeting in a public place in a while (since the book club became known as "The Book Club", instead of"The Indigo Book Club", where we met in the book store). I think it went well! We met at The Victory Cafe, in Mirvish Village. What a great place. I enjoyed the food, and the service was good (even though the bartender kept saying, "Very good...").

All in all, we thought the book was fair. I liked it the most out of the four of us, I think. Then probably Maria (who choose the book). Then it's probably a tie between Julia and Gab, who both liked the language used in the book and the way the author wrote it (first person, told directly to the reader with lots of personal pronouns- I's and you's and us's), but didn't really think the premise of the story was all that interesting. Gab kept waiting for some kind of rebellion by the characters. I'd have to agree, the book did lack emotion and a serious climax. I said maybe the author's intention was to keep things fairly sterile, since it is a book about clones, and one of the themes was the question of morality in scientific progress and the spirituality (if any) of a cloned human.

Other themes included the value of friendship, the teenager's struggle to be accepted by their peers, and the importance of art and creativity in a child's development.

We discussed the book almost the entire time (which is rare for us), besides the odd Star Wars debate and of course, talk of my brithday! LOL... Julia had printed out some discussion questions from bookclubs.ca, and we used those as a guide.

I think this was my favourite book club meeting in a while... besides the one I planned at my house, that is! It's the new guy's turn to pick a book this month, so I'm not sure what we're reading next. Hopefully something good! I have no doubts, since he also works at Indigo!

The Ingenue

2006-08-12T20:57:00.000-04:00

Oops! I accidentally posted here instead of on my blog. Now I erased the post. Sorry!

Finished!

2006-08-11T14:22:00.000-04:00

I finished Never Let Me Go last night before I went to bed. Veeeeeeeeery interesting! But very good... I thoroughly enjoyed it (with only a couple of irks). I thought about the characters like they were my friends, and said to myself on more than one occasion, "I wonder how Kathy, Ruth and Tommy are doing?" LOL

Maria- you just picked this book cause there's so much talk about sex in it!!!

I know the meeting's not for a couple of weeks, but where are we meeting??

Subway reading

2006-08-03T09:37:00.000-04:00

On my way to work this morning I was reading Never Let Me Go, and there was a cute boy (believe me, he was a boy, like 19) and when he got up he said something to me, I didn't quite understand because it caught me by surprise (and because I really don't speak any English). Anyway, he was reading the same book. It was funny.

New Pick...

2006-07-26T12:15:00.000-04:00

Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro... chosen by Maria. The meeting will be at her place (again! it seems like we've been meeting there alot lately!)... on Monday the 21st, if that's cool with everybody.

The next day is my berfday!

The Long Walk, by Richard Bachman

2006-07-19T00:53:00.000-04:00

Pfffffrrrrt!

Finished the book

2006-07-18T09:28:00.000-04:00

I finished The Long Walk last night. I.did.not.get.it.
I hope book club can help me tonight to figure out the "meaning" of the book.
Yep, I'm THAT thick!

The Meeting is Tomorrow...

2006-07-17T13:35:00.000-04:00

... and I'm only on page 131!!! Jesus. I though this story was WAY shorter... ah well- I'll just be reading 'til the wee hours tonight... Nobody call me or message me! I'll be busy!!!

New Pick!

2006-06-27T15:30:00.000-04:00

The Long Walk, by Richard Bachman, AKA Stephen King.

This is a GOOD story. I read it years and years ago (like, 15!!) and I still remember it.

Classic, intelligent, scary = Richard Bachman.

As opposed to some of King's more recent work.

Meeting up for a good ole' fashioned BBQ at Julia's on July 18th.

I can't wait!

Casino Royale, January 2006

2006-06-26T21:04:00.000-04:00

Casino Royale by Ian Fleming

River of the Borderline Retarded and YouTube.com

2006-06-23T11:11:00.000-04:00

We had our June book club meeting last night, the book in question being River of the Brokenhearted, by David Adams Richards. We didn't really discuss the book too much, but we had some awesome movie theatre inspired snacks and some fun up on Maria's roof-top patio.

We always try to eat food related to the book somehow, but it was difficult with this one. The only food I remember being mentioned was pie and fries. So Gab made a lemon meringue pie and Julia picked up some frites from the chipwagon in front of City Hall (MMMmmmm). Maria made popcorn, and I decided to bring some nachos and cheese, like the kind you get at the theatre today. Nestor was a poohead and didn't bring anything... The book was about a Maritime family troubled by alcoholism; needless to say, we had the booze bit down pat. We were drinking martinis and gin and juice.

We hashed out the novel for a couple hours, and then attention wandered to Maria's computer, and youtube.com. That site is DANGEROUSLY ADDICTIVE. Here are some links to our favourite clips:

The Ten Things I Hate About Commandments (discovered by Julia)
The Shining Re-Cut (brought to us by Nestor)
Ah, Bibliotheque (a favourite of Maria's)
VW GTi MkV Unpimp My Ride I (Gab's pick)
Funny DUI (shown to me by a co-worker today)

TOO FUNNY!!

Anyways- here are a couple other pics, taken on Maria's rooftop.

The next book club session has been postponed

2006-06-12T12:31:00.000-04:00

It has changed to Wednesday June 21 at my place. We'll think of food and goodies to eat. I will be making fresh popcorn with my popcorn popper.

Welcome!!!

2006-05-25T12:49:00.000-04:00

To our newest member Daniella, who will be joining us in August? September? All the way from Mexico City!!! Arrrrriba!!! (I have no idea if that's how you spell that)

I also added the bookclubs.ca link to the side bar here... it IS a great resource- I've used it on a couple occasions!

June's Book Club Pick...

2006-05-18T11:40:00.000-04:00

River of the Brokenhearted by David Adams Richards, chosen by Gabriella!

I can't wait for the popcorn and the fish... or the popcorn ON the fish???

Date and place TBD.

For Posterity's Sake...

2006-05-16T14:43:00.019-04:00

The Books of Book Club (initials of the member it was chosen by in parentheses)... with our meeting place (in downtown Toronto):

11/03… A Student of Weather by Elizabeth Hay (indigo)
12/03… The Secret History by Donna Tartt (i)
01/04… Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier (i)
02/04… The Secret Life of Bees by Sue Monk Kidd (i)
03/04… The Romantic by Barbara Gowdy (i)
04/04… Forty Words for Sorrow by Giles Blunt (i)
05/04… Oryx and Crake by Margaret Atwood (jm)
06/04… Atonement by Ian McEwan (md)
07/04… Angry Housewives Eating Bon Bons by Lorna Landvik (i)
08/04… Life of Pi by Yann Martel (a?)
09/04… Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time by Mark Haddon (a?)
10/04… Clara Callan by Richard B. Wright (md)
11/04… Blindness by José Saramago (i)
12/04… She’s Come Undone by Wally Lamb (md)
01/05… The Question by Austin Clarke (md)
02/05… Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen (md)
03/05… Fluke by Christopher Moore (jm)
04/05… Murder Room by P.D. James (md)
05/05… Perfume- The Story of a Murderer by Patrick Suskind (nq)
06/05… Requests and Dedications by Elise Levine (jm)
07/05… Silk by Alessandro Baricco (md)
08/05… One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest by Ken Kesey (md)
09/05… Girlfriend in a Coma by Douglas Coupland (kg)
10/05… To Kill a Mocking Bird by Harper Lee (jm)... at Julia's grandma's house
11/05… Haunted by Chuck Palahniuk (md)... at Maria's place
12/05… Alligator by Lisa Moore (kg)... at Kari's place
01/06… Deafening by Frances Itani (ec)... at Maria's place
02/06… Casino Royale by Ian Fleming (jm)... at Julia's place
03/06… Cannery Row by John Steinbeck (md)... Maria's place
04/06… Breakfast at Tiffany’s by Truman Capote (nq)... at Nestor's place
05/06… Three Day Road by Joseph Boyden (kg)... at Kari's place
06/06... River of the Brokenhearted by David Adams Richards (gp)... Maria's place
07/06... The Long Walk by Richard Bachman (Stephen King) (jm)... in Julia's backyard
08/06... Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro (md)... at Victory Cafe
09/06... Love in the Time of Cholera by Gabriel García Márquez (jm)... Hemingway's
10/06... Time Traveler's Wife by Audrey Niffenegger (nq)... at Tequila Bookworm
11-12/06... The Time In Between by David Bergen (kg).. at ???
02/07... The Big Sleep by Raymond Chandler (gp)... in Maria's media room
03/07... Generation X by Douglas Coupland (dg)... at Jason George
04/07... Frankenstein by Mary Shelley (md)... at Bedford Academy
05-6/07... Timequake by Kurt Vonnegut (kg)... at Fionn MacCool's on the Esplanade
07/07... The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini (gp)... at the Flatiron and Firkin
08/07... Stardust by Nail Gaimen (jam)... at Scotia Bank Theatre
09/07... Consolation by Michael Redhill (dg)... at the Flatiron and Firkin
10/07... The Road by Cormac McCarthy (md)... at The Irish Embassy
11/07... Late Nights On Air by Elizabeth Hay (kg)... at Rustica Pizza
01/08... From The Fifteenth District by Mavis Gallant (gp)... at C'est What
02-3-4/08... Pilgrim by Timothy Findlay (jam)... at the Charlotte Room
05/08... Turtle Valley by Gail Anderson-Dargatz (md)... at Maria's place
06/08... The Spirit Cabinet by Paul Quarrington (kg)... at Magic Oven
07/08... Ascension by Steven Galloway (gp)... at Fran's Restaurant
09/08... The Thirteenth Tale by Diane Setterfield (jam)... at Pogue Mahones
10/08... Divisadero by Michael Ondaatje (md)... at the Flatiron and Firkin
11-12/08... The Outlander by Gil Adamson (kg)... at Cluck, Grunt and Low
02/09... The Killing Circle by Andrew Pyper (gp)... at the Flatiron and Firkin
04/09... A Thousand Splendid Suns by Khaled Hosseini (jam)...
06/09... The Book Of Negroes by Lawrence Hill (md)... at Big Daddy's Crab Shack
07/09...The Elegance of the Hedgehog by Muriel Barbery (gp)...at Sushi Time
09/09...Girl in Hyacinth Blue by Susan Vreeland (jam)...at The Bier Markt
10/09...The Skin of a Lion by Michael Ondaatje (md)...at Pizza Rustica
12/09...The White Tiger by Aravind Adiga (gp)...at Aroma Indian Restaurant
01/10...Balzac & the Little Chinese Seamstress by Dai Sijie (jam)...at Red Lobster

Menu for Wednesday

2006-05-15T19:14:00.000-04:00

I'm making Three Sister Soup and some bannock (bread).
Maria's bringing Canadian wild rice.

What's everyone else bringing? We need some rum, that's for sure.

Another Book Discussion Blog

2006-05-15T15:44:00.000-04:00

http://bookmineset.blogspot.com/

This guy's in Newfoundland, and he's pretty funny. He read Three Day Road in February, and his thoughts are interesting.

I only wish I had the time to review books as in depth as he's able to.

Seeing

2006-05-09T15:54:00.000-04:00

I was hanging out in the bookstore and was glad to see that Blindness by Jose Saramago has a sequel, Seeing. About democracy and voting. Apparently the same woman who kept her vision is the new leader in the country.
I'm not sure if I'm looking forward to reading it, since I was pretty horrified with the first one. It was a pretty good book, nonetheless.

Joseph Boyden and Douglas Coupland

2006-05-05T13:14:00.000-04:00

The writer of our current book club pick, Joseph Boyden, is taking part in a TINARS event, on Tuesday May 9th at the Gladstone. Him and his wife (Amanda Boyden, also a writer) will be interviewed by Quill and Quire editor James Grainger. There's ALSO a magician performing. It's free, and relevant, so I'm gonna try my damndest to make it. Who can resist a good ole' magic show!?!?!?

Coupland will be at the U of T Faculty of Music Building promoting his newest release, jPod, on May 23rd. I might attend, if I get off my ass and order a ticket before they're all sold out. More info HERE.

Da Vinci Code

2006-04-27T15:06:00.000-04:00

I am reading the Da Vinci code and as soon as I'm done will post a review here. The main reason I decided to finally read it is because it came out on massmarket paperback, so it's not heavy to carry around.
Also, I will soon write my rant about the Latin-Latino issue. No, really. I'll write it soon, I promise.

And the winner is...

2006-04-22T13:15:00.000-04:00

Not that I remembered to actually listen to the Canada Reads debate on CBC Radio...

Musician John K. Samson was the winner of this year's debate, defending Miriam Toews' A Complicated Kindness. I really wish that I'd remembered to listen- I think the whole Canada Reads program is so cool. I'm such a book nerd- I know. Especially since I would've been able to consider the arguments more personally, seeing that we read Deafening a couple months ago (which I thought was excellent- good choice Erin- wherever you are!) Why didn't they broadcast it on television, like last year, I wonder? They need to make it as big a deal as like, Canadian Idol. Imagine that? It'd be cool if we could choose the books that were discussed. Books as popular as pop stars? LOL

I'd actually forgotten that Three Day Road was on the list for Canada Reads, also. I hope everyone enjoys it- I'm gonna start it soon, on this rainy Saturday.

Breakfast at... errr... dinner at Nestor and Tims!

2006-04-13T12:49:00.000-04:00

The book club meeting last night was really good- thanks to new member Gabriella, some phenomenal bean burgers by Tim and entertainment provided by Baby, the fat cat with the sweetest smushiest face in the world!

The menu included martinis (of which Holly Golightly and the narrator shared prior to 11am on the morning of her arrest), apples (eaten by Holly at the beginning of the story) with peanut butter (sent to Holly's brother Fred in the army), burgers (because Holly and Mr. O'Shaughnessy always met at Burger Heaven) with tabouleh (uh- just because it goes good with burgers- it did have tomatoes in it- so there's the connection- Sally Tomatos are my favourite!), with lemon meringue pie for dessert (I really don't remember the connection there... but it was yummy!)

The book discussion went well I think. The only discussion questions I could find were here, so I skimmed through and asked the tougher ones, to keep the conversation going. I think my favourite question was, "What language is spoken in Brazil?" That sparked a whole other discussion on the words "Latino" and "Latina", and whether or not Nestor (who is Chilean) and Maria (Mexican) could be classified as such. Maria was infuriated, of course, since these aren't even real words!! Maria's so cute when she gets angry- she uses the eff word like it's a fluffy knee-high moccasin (going out of style)!

All in all, another successful book club meeting. Next month's book is my pick- FINALLY! I chose Three Day Road by Joseph Boyden. I've been wanting to read this book for a while, and when I saw that it was out in paper back already, I figured I'd suggest it!

Union Station by Joe Fiorito

2006-04-10T13:28:00.000-04:00

One of the best books I've read that features Toronto is The Song Beneath the Ice, by Joe Fiorito. It is just amazing, I really recommend that everyone reads it. He always writes about Toronto and the way he explains the city, by how it sounds, is just amazing.
Now his most recent book, Union Station, is out. This time it's not a novel, but a collection of stories, again about Toronto. I am really looking forward to put my hands on this one.

Movie Night... Capote and Breakfast at Tiffany's

2006-04-07T11:26:00.000-04:00

Hiya!

I'm planning on renting Capote and Breakfast at Tiffany's this Saturday night, so I can be all knowledgable and whatnot for the meeting on Wednesday. If anyone wants to join me, come on over!!

Also, who's bringing what for dinner on Wednesday? Is there a grocery store within walking distance of your place, Nes?

I can't wait to see the fat cat. I should I say.... pudgy goodness?

This Is Not A Reading Series presents...

2006-04-05T12:05:00.000-04:00

April 20th -- Conservationist TIM FLANNERY in conversation with BOB McDONALD on the dangers of climate change @ OISE Auditorium... $5

April 26 -- Comics artists HARVEY PEKAR, JESSICA ABEL & MATT MADDEN with SPACE Producer MARK ASKWITH @ Innis Town Hall... $5

April 27 -- DR SHIRIN EBADI, 2003 Nobel Peace Prize Laureate, in conversation with TINA SREBOTNJAK @ OISE Auditorium... $5

Capote

2006-03-26T09:56:00.000-05:00

I finished Breakfast at Tiffany's and decided I wanted to watch Capote, so I rented it.
It is a good and interesting movie. Since I didn't know much about Truman Capote I looked him up on Wikipedia.
It was exciting to see that he was a childhood friend of Harper Lee's (and she is in the movie too), some people thought that he had ghost written To Kill a Mockingbird. The character of Dill was inspired on him.
I haven't seen the movie in a long time, but after reading the book I remembered that Breakfast at Tiffany's (the movie) was a bit different. First, Holly Golightly is supposed to be a blonde, and Audrey Hepburn is most certainly not. Well, apparently Capote was not amused with the character being toned down to appeal to the mass audiences for the movie.
Really interesting.

Tonight at the Gladstone Hotel Ballroom...

2006-03-21T10:47:00.000-05:00

Martha Baillie - The Shape I Gave You (Knopf Canada)

Author Martha Baillie launches her new novel with jazz by Lightstone, Katz & Quarrington, songs by vocalist Theo Heras accompanied by Cindy Fairbank, art exhibits by Colm MacCool & Vid Ingelevics, and an interview with Marc Glassman.

Gladstone Hotel Ballroom, 1214 Queen St W, TorontoTues, Mar 21, 7-10pm (doors 7pm), free

Join us as author Martha Baillie celebrates the publication of her new novel, The Shape I Gave You (Knopf Canada).

The Shape I Gave You (Knopf Canada) - The night before she leaves to give a recital in another city, Ulrike Huguenot, a young pianist, arrives at her Berlin apartment to find an unexpected and unwelcome letter. It is from Beatrice Mann, a Canadian sculptor, a friend of her father, Gustave, and also, Ulrike believes, his lover. What could this woman possibly have to say to her? And why now, seven years after her father’s death? “I am writing to you because my daughter has died,” begins Beatrice’s extraordinary letter of confession. Her only child, Ines, has been killed at the age of eighteen, and Beatrice has closed herself in her Toronto studio. Unable to speak openly with her grieving husband, Isaac, she turns to Ulrike, a young woman she barely knows. While Beatrice retells and possibly reshapes the past, Isaac sets out on a journey of his own. As Ulrike reads about Beatrice’s life and Gustave’s role in it, she reluctantly revisits the world of her own memories and starts to see her present in a different light. In The Shape I Gave You, acclaimed novelist and poet Martha Baillie explores the complex relationships between parents and children, men and women, to create a novel of spare elegance that gives piercing insight into the nature of confession and how we choose who to ask for absolution.

Martha Baillie was born in Toronto. Her poems have been widely published in journals such as Descant, Prairie Fire and the Antigonish Review. Her first novel, My Sister Esther, was published by Turnstone Press in 1995. Her second, Madame Balashovskaya’s Apartment, was published by Turnstone Press in 1999 and then published in Germany and Hungary. After stints in Edinburgh, Paris and Asia, Baillie returned to Toronto where she lives with her family.

Book City Spring Warehouse Sale

2006-03-17T15:36:00.000-05:00

Book City is having their spring warehouse sale at the Leaside Community Centre. It is located at the intersection of Millwood and Laird.

Hours are Friday March 17 from 10 til 8 and Saturday March 18 and Sunday March 19 from 10 til 6.

To be in a book.

2006-03-13T14:47:00.000-05:00

"To be in a book. To slip into the crease where two pages meet. To live in the place where your eyes alight upon the words to ignite a world of smoke and peril, colour and serene delight. That is a journey no one can end with the change of a channel. Enduring magic."

-- from The Way the Crow Flies, by Anne-Marie MacDonald

Essential Toronto Reading...

2006-03-13T13:01:00.000-05:00

I found this on Torontoist...

http://readingt.readingcities.com/index.php

It's a list of books based in Toronto. I figured I'd post this, since I know we all love to read books where we recognize the setting. Oh, and BTW- an Austen Clarke book is on there, just to warn you! I thought of commenting, and bad mouthing Clarke for pompousness and banality, but I figure I'd hear it pretty good from Clarke supporters. Meh!

April's Book choice has been decided...

2006-03-09T11:34:00.000-05:00

The pick is Breakfast at Tiffany's by Truman Capote (unanimously I think!)

This will be cool; I had no idea B at T's was even written by Truman Capote, and with the Oscar buzz, it makes it even more exciting to be reading it (I know, I know, I'm such a loser!) It will be very interesting to read... I'm gonna try to see Capote before I pick up the book. Knowing a bit about the author always gives the book a bit more depth, I find. Of course, we could always just read about Capote on Wikipedia:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Truman_capote

We're meeting at Nestor's place... check your email for the address!

Oh, and thanks to Nes for the group email set up- it's a bit confusing, but I think it'll be helpful in the long run.

Cannery Row by John Steinbeck

2006-03-07T21:43:00.000-05:00

Beer
Originally uploaded by Maria in Toronto.

It was six o'clock and Kevin had the beer. Nestor opened the door for him.
This time, everyone had read the book. It was Cannery Row by John Steinbeck.

I chose the book because I have actually been to Monterey California, and when you go there they always tell you that that's where Steinbeck wrote Cannery Row, I had only read East of Eden and was curious about it.
We always try to have a dinner related to what people eat in the book. They drink lots of beer on Cannery Row and eat cheeseburgers and fried steak. It was a bit difficult to have that, so I made chicken nuggets and mashed potatoes.

We did drink beer, though.

We also ate some cake (they eat cake in the book) and drank even more beer.

This time we actually talked about the book and talked just a little bit about sex (unlike other times where the only thing we do is gossip, eat and drink).
Everyone liked the book. I was laughing out loud while reading it on the subway. It's about this group of people, who live in Monterey in between wars. One of them is a scientist. He is very well liked by all his neighbours and they decide to throw a party for him.
The book is surrounded by chapters that seem to be random, but in my opinion they are actually the chapters that make this book a classic. They are about people and about life. Even 60 years after the book has gone, the underlying meaning of it is still valid. It's about community, it's about human beings. It's about everyday living.

This Is Not A Reading Series... upcoming events.

2006-03-01T12:00:00.000-05:00

This Is Not A Reading Series tickets go on sale today... I wouldn't mind checking out Coupland! TINARS is put on by Pages Books & Magazines, the book shop on Queen Street West.

April 20 - Tim Flannery in conversation with Bob MacDonald - $5 (also available through www.theweathermakers.ca)
April 26 - Harvey Pekar, Jessica Abel and Matt Madden hosted by Mark Askwith - $5 (also available at The Beguiling, 601 Markham St)
April 27 - Dr Shirin Ebadi in conversation with Tina Srebotnjak - $5
May 23 - Douglas Coupland: jPod - $5

AND... Jonathan Ames (who is supposedly hilarious) is coming to town for a free event on March 7th at the Gladstone. I think I'm definitely going to try to check this out. It's free, and close to my place. And at the Gladstone! I love that place.

March Book Club... food and drink.

2006-02-28T13:22:00.000-05:00

So- from what I can gather...

Maria's providing Chicken Nuggets and Mashed Potatoes
Julia's bringing Beer.
Kari's making a Chocolate Cake.

Nestor and Erin, are you guys able to make it to the meeting? Maybe one of you can bring some veggies or a salad or something, and maybe a non-alcoholic drink. Or whatev!

Book for April

2006-02-27T09:29:00.000-05:00

It's Kurmidt's turn to choose a book for our April meeting. Since I'm almost done with Cannery Row (and believe me, I was laughing out loud this morning on the subway, people were looking at me like I was crazy, not that I'm not, but what do they know?) any ideas about the next book?

Photos...

2006-02-26T18:59:00.000-05:00

I finally posted the photos I have from February's meeting on Flickr. Some are funny... I took pictures while you were eating! LOL. Here's the link:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/ravenswift/sets/72057594070980683/

Deafening is on the Canada Reads 2006 list...

2006-02-25T19:34:00.000-05:00

... which is very cool, cause now I'll be able to mentally defend at least one of the books too! I think actually, I'm gonna try to read all of them, there's a couple there I was planning on picking up anyways. Maybe I'll pick one for my next book club pick!

http://www.cbc.ca/canadareads

Halfway through Cannery Row

2006-02-24T15:16:00.000-05:00

I started reading the book last weekend, I'm already halfway through. It's a quick and interesting read. Lots of things to discuss during our next meeting. It's also exciting that I've been in all the places mentioned until now.
There are also a couple of dishes mentioned that we could have as munchies for our meeting. And beer, or whiskey, or both!

Freedom to Read Week

2006-02-24T12:40:00.000-05:00

http://www.freedomtoread.ca/freedom_to_read_week/index.asp

Starts today, ends on March 4th. This week's primary motivation is to raise awareness in Canadians concerning censorship.

"Freedom to Read Week is an annual event that encourages Canadians to think about and reaffirm their commitment to INTELLECTUAL FREEDOM, which is guaranteed them under the Charter of Rights and Freedoms."

Tonight there's an event happening at the Toronto Public Reference Library, called Beyond Exile. It's spotlighting three writers who have been driven from their home countries. The evening will feature three journalists interviewing three exiled writers: Jian Ghomeshi with Reza Braheni from Iran, Christopher Waddell with Sheng Xue from China, and Haroon Siddiqui with Ameera Javeria from Pakistan. 7-9pm, Free (donations accepted).

Welcome...

2006-02-23T21:56:00.000-05:00

At long last, our book club blog has come to fruition. So, here's where we can post our book reviews, plus any comments, criticism, suggestions or tomatoes.