Fiction Pick of the Week: Far Side of the Sky

Far Side of the Sky by Daniel Kalla 2011

Nominated for the OLA Evergreen Award, Far Side of the Sky is a novel which interweaves fact and fiction in a fast-paced, fascinating novel. Franz Adler, his daughter Hannah, and his sister-in-law Esther seek passage out of Austria following the Kristallnacht in Austria. Many countries have closed their borders to Jewish refugees, but secure passage is found on the Italian liner Conte Biancamano. China’s borders are still open so the family flees to Shanghai looking for a better life. Life in Shanghai is foreign and difficult for the family. It is here that they meet Sunny, a half-Asian nurse, and their lives become interwoven with hers. The novel is divided into 6 major parts and takes place between November 1938 and August 1942.

Far Side of the Sky is a beautifully written story of adversity, triumph, love, and the strength of the human spirit. Daniel Kalla has done a wonderful job describing this lesser known event in World War II history. This is a must read for those who enjoy a mix of historical, wartime, and romance fiction.

Evergreen Winner: Room

Congratulations to Emma Donoghue for winning the Evergreen Award for her brilliant novel Room!

See here for our staff review of this compelling story of a little boy and his mother who are held captive for years in an 11 X 11 room, the only world this child has ever known.

This book will stick with you, so if you would like to come out and chat about it with other readers, why not sign up for our BYOB (Bring Your Own Book) Club? This discussion of Room will be held on February 23rd, 2012. For more details, please phone 905-639-3611 Ext. 1320.

Fiction Pick of the Week: Dahanu Road

Dahanu Road by Anosh Irani

Set outside Bombay in the quiet coastal community of Dahanu, young Zairos Irani must decide whether or not to become involved with the daughter of one of his farm workers who has tragically died. Attracted by the beautiful but tragic Kusum, does Zairos have the courage and commitment to try to rescue her from a life of poverty and misery, or will he weaken before the barriers of class and ethnicity? And can any efforts of his possibly succeed enough to justify the price they both must pay?

As the story unfolds, Zairos learns from his embittered grandfather that he, too, faced this same decision sixty years in the past, and his choices led to tragic consequences for both the farm worker’s family and his own. A compelling story of the tension between hope and hopelessness, desire and fear.

Fiction Pick of the Week: Annabel

Annabel by Kathleen Winter

Annabel, a nominated title for the 2011 Ontario Library Association Evergreen award,is an edgy novel about a child who was born a hermaphrodite to a family in a small community in Labrador. The baby’s father, Treadway, wants the child to live his life as a male while his mother, Jacinta, feels that the baby is truly her daughter.

The child is brought to a surgeon who follows the wishes of the father.
The baby is christened Wayne. Wayne has a difficult life living in a male body that requires pharmaceutical interventions to mask his dual sexuality.
Wayne has one true school friend, Wally Michelin, who wants to pursue a career as a classical music singer. A tragic accident results in Wally’s vocal cords being injured. Wayne, on the other hand,is interested in bridges and architecture.

What I liked about the book is that both Wayne and Wally are able to achieve their life dreams regardless of the struggles that they have to endure. The novel has many well-developed characters and aptly portrays the struggles of Wayne, Treadway, Jacinta and Wally. Annabel was nominated for the Evergreen Award, the Governor General's Award and the Scotiabank Giller Prize.

Fiction Pick of the Week: Room

The Evergreen nominees were announced last week, so we thought we'd include a review of one of the selections...

Room by Emma Donoghue 2010

A five-year-old boy narrates this story and you are never outside his psyche as he tries to make sense of his surroundings. It is, at the centre, a love story between mother and son, imprisoned in a small room, the only world Jack has ever known. The horror that brought his mother there and held them both for years, seeps out through a child's innocent quest for knowledge.

It takes getting used to Jack's narration, but the author needs this tool to make this kidnapping story a true original. What impressed me most was that the young mother's character is so well developed; her entire psyche exposed through the scope of Jack's perception.

This is a one sitting read that is absolutely captivating (no pun intended!). The escape plan and its execution is pure suspense and terror. Jack and his mother have a lasting effect- you may not take your world for granted so quickly again.

Find the other nominees at this link:
Evergreen Nominees

Fiction Pick of the Week: Good to a Fault

Good to a fault by Marina Endicott 2008

What’s the liability when an insurance agent drives into another car? Middle-aged and unhappy, Clara Purdy faces this issue when she drives her vehicle into the car belonging to the Gage family. Two parents, three children and one grandmother climb out of the vehicle. No one seems to be seriously hurt but when they reach the hospital the mother, Lorraine, is found to have late stage lymphoma.
Clara takes on the family. She opens her doors and takes in the children and grandmother while the husband departs. Clara’s quiet nine-to-five life is transformed into a chaotic round of meals, cleaning and visits to the hospital. Where does the responsibility end – and does she want it to?

Fiction Pick of the Week: The Heart Specialist

The Heart Specialist by Claire Rothman 2009

Inspired by the life of Doctor Maude Elizabeth Seymour Abbott, The Heart Specialist is the story of a young girl didn’t like playing with dolls. Agnes would rather dissect a squirrel. After all, her father was a doctor, and therein lies the mystery; the tale of Agnes haunted by a father she had not seen since she was very young. This story is primarily set in Montreal, where Dr. Agnes White becomes the first female doctor in the city.

Fiction Pick of the Week: Come Thou Tortoise

Come Thou Tortoise by Jessica Grant 2009

Fast-paced, easy to read, and a little quirky, Jessica Grant’s Come, Thou Tortoise employs wonderfully witty wordplay while taking advantage of a uniquely Canadian setting. Where else would you find references to the political significance of orange, an appreciation of the value of Canadian Tire money and a lack of surprise at the operations of Air Canada? As Audrey (aptly nicknamed “Oddly”) Flowers returns to St. John’s to deal with a family tragedy, she tries to solve one mystery but winds up discovering another. Her pet tortoise, Winifred, also lends her voice and perspective to provide insight into the events that have shaped Audrey’s journey home.

Non-Fiction Pick of the Week: Apples to Oysters

Apples to Oysters: a foodlover's tour of Canadian farms by Margaret Webb 2008

A sign in my grocery store reads, “If you have eaten today, thank a farmer.” Margaret Webb travels to 11 special farms across Canada to show us exactly why we should be appreciative and supportive of those who persevere in their quest to bring quality products to our tables. Webb stays with each family participating in their work, preparing food, sharing recipes and chronicling their stories, most of which are shared in the intimacy of the family meal time. Their journeys are so captivating and inspiring that the reader must remember that this is non-fiction—these are real people, not characters, struggling to establish and maintain high standards in the face of competition from huge agri-businesses. Webb’s wonderful sense of humour in relating these stories is balanced by her poignant personal reflections about her own experiences growing up on a farm near Barrie, Ontario. Apples to Oysters not only underscores the real challenges facing Canadian farmers, but it also offers intriguing information on Canada’s natural history, geography and on what happens when political, commercial and academic organizations try to meddle with Mother Nature. The next time you visit a grocery store or restaurant you will find yourself asking, “At what cost do we produce cheap food?” Nominated for OLA’s 2009 Evergreen Award.

Fiction Pick of the Week: The Killing Circle

The Killing Circle by Andrew Pyper 2008

Widowed father of a young son, Patrick Rush has gradually sunk (often in a drunken stupor) from book reviewer at a national Canadian newspaper to watching endless tapes of mindless reality shows in his new position as TV critic. He decides to act on his old ambition to become a published author by joining a writing circle in his home of Toronto where everyone is advised to write what they know. Patrick is unable to come up with his own story but is inspired by that of another member of the group and eventually commits the crime most heinous to writers. While it is initially a thrill to finally be a celebrated author, Rush begins to realize that he is actually involved in a real-life thriller blurring the lines between fiction and reality. A suspenseful read with a shocking ending, made even more haunting by the familiarity of the Ontario locations in which the novel is set. Nominated for OLA’s 2009 Evergreen Award.

Non-Fiction Pick of the Week: Payback

Payback: Debt and the Shadow Side of Wealth by Margaret Atwood 2008

If bookmarks, leaves, stems of leaves, and bits of paper all mark pages that
a reader wants to return to when he/she is finished, then it must be a good book. If a book almost doubles its size with these markers, it surely must be a book to recommend. Since that was the case, I recommend Margaret Atwood’s
Payback: Debt and the shadow side of wealth Atwood’s timely topic of debt is all the more relevant with Wall Street’s demise,economic scandals and historic moves by the United States and countries of the world to avert a global Armageddon. Atwood says the balance of good and evil, debts and debtors, vengeance and forgiveness have more to do with our humanness than money. An example she uses throughout the chapters is that of the monkey studies which illustrate that when a pebble is used as a reward rather than a grape, monkey behaviour changes. They understand “it’s not fair”. From a child’s firm declaration to the Bible’s book of Deuteronomy, opera, poetry, literature of all kinds and a Jewish seder, Atwood demonstrates how debt and balance mean more than money. In the last chapter, Atwood quotes Charles Darwin when he said, “Wealth comes from nature. Without it, there wouldn’t be any economics”. Does that mean we are truly indebted to nature? How do we pay back our debt to bees?

Fiction Pick of the Week: The Cellist of Sarajevo

The Cellist of Sarajevo by Stephen Galloway 2008

A chilling read of the heartache of civil war and how it tears a city, Sarajevo, apart. Actual historical events related to the Siege of Sarajevo 1992-1996 are woven into this work of fiction by B.C. author Stephen Galloway. He writes about a cellist from the Sarajevo Symphony who, upon witnessing the mortar attack through his window that killed 22 residents queuing for bread during the height of the siege, vows to play Albinoni’s Adagio on his cello on the same spot that the killings occurred for 22 days - one day for each of the residents who were killed. Other characters such as Arrow, a female sniper charged to guard the cellist, Kenan, who has to dodge snipers to get water for his family, and Dragen, who works just to get a free meal, also contribute to this moving, harrowing description of war. Long-listed for the 2008 Giller Prize.

Monday's Pick!

Wind Tails by Anne DeGrace

DeGrace's captivating book is set over the course of one day in 1977 where we meet numerous characters whose journeys connect at Cass's Roadside Cafe, a remote stop in the Rocky mountains. DeGrace takes us into the back stories of each character and shows how they all touch and influence one another through their storytelling or their actions when they meet at the cafe. In many ways, this book is like a set of intertwining short stories, which is what gives it such appeal. I was engrossed by many of the main characters who are flawed and interesting, and enchanted by the stories which are based upon those Anne DeGrace has heard from friends, family and others she has met. A very enjoyable story by a promising Canadian author. This novel was short-listed for the 2008 OLA Evergreen Award.

Wednesday's Pick!

One of the few non-fiction nominees for the Evergreen Award celebrating excellence in Canadian literature is The Unfinished Canadian: the People We Are by Andrew Cohen. Cohen is the bestselling author of While Canada slept: how we lost our place in the world, which was a finalist for the Governor General’s Literary Award, and a Globe & Mail ‘notable book’. Both of these books critique the Canadian mentality, and what he sees as a lack of Canadian national identity. Throughout the book, he goes about comparing Canadians to people from other nations, implying that perhaps we simply don’t have the history, haven’t existed as a country long enough, to have the deeply ingrained traditions and cultural self-awareness of other nationalities. After an introduction in which he mentions many of the cultural stereotypes that people tend to believe, he divides the Canadian identity into categories. Cohen compares us to other nationalities to show us how others in the world view Canadians, but more importantly, how we view ourselves. Thought-provoking and full of debate, this is a book to be discussed with the politically-savvy as easily as with 'the average Joe.'

My Pick of the Week!

Dream Wheels by Richard Wagamese is a book with a strong, supportive, multigenerational family. Joe Willie Wolfchild needs just 8 seconds atop the meanest bull on the rodeo circuit to be crowned the World Champion Rodeo Rider. But Joe Willie is thrown. His right leg is broken and his shoulder joint is practically destroyed. So close to his heart’s desire, but at 25 his career is over. He is taken to his grandparent’s rodeo stock ranch. Joe Willy is sullen, angry and silent as his family wait for him to heal, physically and spiritually. He accepts their challenge of trying to repair the family's old, Ford V8. Claire, a black, single mother and her troubled teen-age son, Aiden, come to the Wolfchild ranch. Aiden and Joe Willie begin as antagonists, but learn to work together.
This is a novel of strong characters, picturesque settings and, native philosophy. spirituality and beliefs.

My Pick of the Week!

Burlington author Lawrence Hill blends historical detail with the powerful tale of a young African girl kidnapped in the mid 1700’s and sold into slavery in the United States, in The Book of Negroes. Compelling descriptions of the horrors of the journey to the coast, the dreadful conditions of the sea voyage and the hopelessness of slavery provide the background for the life story of Animata Diallo. Now an old woman nearing the end of her life, she has been brought to London to work with the abolitionists and chronicle the story of her life. From West Africa to South Carolina and New York City where she is hired to enter the names of all Negroes fleeing with the British to Nova Scotia for the promise of land and freedom, Animata perseveres in her quest for freedom, independence and meaning. The title’s Book of Negroes is a real historical document and sample excerpts inside the book covers offer a poignant insight into the drama of Animata’s fictional tale. Beautifully written, often difficult to read and consistently moving, this is a story that will stay with you long after you’ve put it down.

Read any good books lately, let me know!