Greetings from the Vodka Sea

Victoria non-fiction author Chris Gudgeon’s first book of short fiction contains stories so unique that it’s near impossible to draw them under one clean phrase. One thing is clear: these are not normal people Gudgeon ... Read More »

November 8, 2004 | Filed under: Fiction: Short

A Short History of Progress

By Ronald Wright

The Massey Lectures series has weighed in, once again, with a provocative and timely exploration of important ideas. Ronald Wright, one of this country’s intellectual treasures, brings his background in archaeology, history, and comparative culture ... Read More »

November 1, 2004 | Filed under: Criticism & Essays

★ Runaway

By Alice Munro

Alice Munro’s 11th collection is exactly what readers expect from this writer, quintessential Munro at top form. At the same time, every story in it is surprising, turning on unexpected, even inexplicable human actions.With each ... Read More »

November 1, 2004 | Filed under: Fiction: Short

Adultery

By Richard B. Wright

This novel could be charged with false advertising. The one-word title screams sex, and the cover art of a dark-haired beauty in a car, her head thrown back in passionate abandonment, redefines steamy. “That’s a ... Read More »

November 1, 2004 | Filed under: Fiction: Novels

With English Subtitles

By Carmine Starnino

The poems in Carmine Starnino’s third collection are bold and original, breathing fresh perspective into familiar subjects. Starnino crafts poems that not only push the form’s envelope but stuffs that envelope with imaginative ideas.Starnino’s language ... Read More »

November 1, 2004 | Filed under: Poetry

Hello, I’m Special: How Individuality Became the New Conformity

By Hal Niedzviecki

Looking around North America these days, it’s hard not to conclude that much of what was revered as independent culture is suffering from a major identity crisis. Publications that once thrived on “alternative” issues, for ... Read More »

November 1, 2004 | Filed under: Art, Music & Pop Culture

Sea of Dreams: Racing Alone Around the World in a Small Boa

By Adam Mayers

It is a brave author who plunges into literary journalism to pen a book about extreme events or sports. No matter how interesting the subject being covered, the author will be judged against the pantheon ... Read More »

November 1, 2004 | Filed under: Reference

Night Justice: The True Story of the Black Donnellys

By Peter Edwards

In the preface to Night Justice, Peter Edwards admits that although he grew up in “Donnelly country” in London, Ontario, all he knew about the notorious Irish-Canadian family was that they had been murdered by ... Read More »

November 1, 2004 | Filed under: History

The Great Big Book of Guys: Alphabetical Encounters with Men

By Erika Ritter

The central conceit of The Great Big Book of Guys is simple. In chapters with such titles as “Amigos,” “Bad Boys,” and “Codgers,” noted playwright and CBC broadcaster Erika Ritter uses each letter of the ... Read More »

November 1, 2004 | Filed under: Reference

The Ghosts of Medak Pocket: The Story of Canada’s Secret War

By Carol Off

In one day in September 1993, in the process of aggressively shoring up the crumbling UN peacekeeping mission in Croatia, Canadian soldiers killed as many as 27 Croat soldiers in a series of firefights. Letting ... Read More »