This book surprised me. Based on its cover, and its publisher (Cormorant Books), I was expecting a very literary novel, something with drawn out descriptions and hidden meanings, usually a bit slower in pace. Instead, I found a page-turner of a novel in The Good Son by Carolyn Huizinga Mills, something I raced to finish,…
Crosshairs by Catherine Hernandez is about a dystopian society in which people of colour, and LGTBQ2S folks are referred to as ‘Others’ and placed in concentration camps. But what readers may find even more shocking than this terrifying premise is the fact that it takes place in Toronto, Canada. Many will be stumped by this…
Have you ever had the experience of reading a book, looking at a piece of art, or even watching a movie and feeling like you are much ‘cooler/hip’ for having taken it in? After reading Happy Hour by Marlowe Granados, I feel as though I’m on the cutting edge of something, but I’m not cool…
One of my upcoming segments for radio is a focus on debut authors from independent presses in Canada, because the Simon and Schuster acquisition by Penguin Random House is a scary one for many Canadians. Although it won’t be all bad for the reader, it will certainly make things harder for booksellers and authors, so…
It seems like I’ve been reading a successful streak of female-centric historical fiction lately, so it comes as no surprise that the popular novel The Lost Apothecary by Sarah Penner was just as pleasing. Is it because I’m a woman that I like to read about other women in the past? I suspect it has…
I am a big believer in always having markers, crayons, and basic art supplies easily accessible to my kids at all times. For one thing, it makes it much easier to tell them to ‘play on their own’ when they have this kind of stuff handy, but more importantly learning to express oneself is an…
A few months ago I reviewed a book on this blog that raised the question; why read a book when you know it is going to be disturbing? Because I am a paid book critic, I consider it my duty to read all kind of stories, even when they don’t appeal to me. The breadth…
I’ve got another work of climate fiction for you; a genre based on some of our worst anxieties based on what the world may look like as we continue our climb into warmer temperatures. What’s different about Watershed by Doreen Vanderstoop is that it takes place right in my backyard of Southern Alberta. And while…
It seems strange to admit, but the cover of Infinite Country by Patricia Engel is the first thing that drew me into it, which is rare for me; I’m rarely swayed by the cover of a book, but I loved the metallic rainbow panels in between the detailed pencil sketches. These three animals, the condor,…
In case you’re wondering why I’ve been reading so many thrillers about the perils of parenting lately, my latest segment for radio is all about this topic, so don’t worry, I’m not experiencing any mid-life parenting crises! Nothing more than usual anyway. It does beg the question though, why are there so many books that…
Is there any greater pleasure than reading a book by your favourite author? Probably, but whenever a David Sedaris book is released, even one that’s only a selection of previously-released stories, I celebrate! He is my favourite author, and it’s my goal to one day see him read live. The Best of Me still held…
Do not let the drab cover of this book fool you; the pages are full of colourful, vibrant female characters with passion in their hearts, despite World War II raging on around them. Censorettes by Elizabeth Bales Frank is about a young group of British women who read and monitored postal correspondence for hidden Nazi…
