Canada Reads Recap

Since I was horribly slow at reading Canada Reads books, I figured I would write a recap post that summarizes. I mean, Katy already filled you in on all of them- no point repeating entries. Right? Ya, I know, I am lazy.

So first book to be disqualified on Canada Reads was Doug Coupland's Generation X. No surprise there- it was not a good book. I am going to be honest; I made it about 20 pages in and then returned it to the library. There was just no connection for me to the characters. None at all. I like Hey Nostradamus! but Generation X was just not for me. After reading Katy’s blog about it, I did not regret returning it after only a few pages.

Next to get the boot was Fall on Your Knees. Alright, I didn’t make it through this one either. I mean, I just got bored. I was not in the mood. Ok, I should have tried harder with the Canada Read thing, but what can you do. I was pretty surprised it was the second book to go. I was the most popular book of the lot. It has received a lot of press and is quite popular. But alas, not even popularity can save you on Canada Reads.

To bring it to two, Good to a Fault was eliminated. That meant that my two favorite reads (i.e. the ones I made it all the way throug), The Jade Peony and Nikolski were the final two. I mean, it made sense to me, those were great books! Katy and I have both posted about The Jade Peony already and we both really enjoyed it. I have now read two Choy books on this journey and he really is a great writer. Top Two definitely deserved! As you all know (I assume if you are interested enough to read a blog on Can Lit, you may also follow Canada Reads), Nikolski won.

And Katy has posted on Nikolski already, but I haven’t, so I will just take a minute to describe my feelings on it. I really liked it for a few reasons. First, all the characters were intriguing. Often books that jump between different plot lines are not enjoyable to me. I tend to like one story more than the other so skip ahead and read those parts. With Nikolski, however, I was intrigued by all characters and as the connection between them was exposed, I enjoyed the novel even more. They weren’t forced connections or unrealistic, but simple stories that just passed by each other.

I was also a fan of the Canadian-ness of the book- it was subtle, but Dickner managed to work in a distinctly Canadian flavour to the story. Whether it was the setting of Montreal, or the details of family members roving across the country (from postal outlet to postal outlet) I felt a very strong Canadian connection, which is nice in a Quebecois book (definitely no separatism here!).

Nikolski had a wonderfully modern feel to it, without being weird (*cough* Copeland) and definitely deserved the nod from Canada Reads. I was excited it won. So now, go out and buy it!

So there is your Canada Reads conclusion from the blog. Katy and I both liked the same books and predicted the same winner. We must be twins and psychic.

Next up for me: A quick review of a “For Dummies” book and I am part way through Life of Pi

- Tory

And finally- Douglas Coupland

My last Canada Reads book for this year. I am pretty impressed that I got through them at such a good pace. Once the radio show starts, I will post my vote for winner and see how it measures up.

Douglas Coupland's Generation X doesn't actually take place in Canada, but it does mention Canada often enough to remind us where the author is really from. I have never read any Coupland, so his first novel seems like a good introduction, I was glad this one was chosen for Canada Reads.

The novels is about three 'Generation-Xers' who have taken up residence in a sun soaked resort town in California. The three, all at various stages of discontent with their lives, offer a humorous exploration of the issues facing the generation that was not the baby boomers. First, I have to admit I am not a member of Generation X, I fall into Generation Y (sometimes called Echo) and this might be why I found the characters in Coupland's novel so darn whiney. I wasn't able to relate to them at all: they were self-centered, irresponsible, shallow and incredibly frustrating. It made it hard for me to get into the novel.

The plot didn't have much to offer either, but I did enjoy Coupland's writing. He has a strong style, which mixed in the humorous bits well. I am going to take away from this a (hesitant) desire to try one of his other novels, which I have heard such good things about. Unfortunately, this one gets a thumbs down, just not my cup of tea.

-Katy

Douglas Coupland- Hey Nostradamus!

I first have to apologize. I am SO behind on my blogging. To be fair, I have been pretty busy, with getting married and all. That seems like a fair excuse. I think so anyway.

I have never read anything by Douglas Coupland and honestly, he comes off a bit too po-mo for me, but I thought, hey I have his book on my shelf, I should give it a shot. And I liked it. It was pretty good.

Hey Nostradamus! (2004) follows four characters, which are related to each other in various ways. It begins with a horrific high school shooting where the first narrator, Cheryl is killed. Cheryl was secretly married to Jason (the second narrator) and in many ways, the novel is about Jason, just from different points of view (the third narrator is Heather, Jason’s girlfriend later in life, then Reg, Jason’s father).

Because Katy has been blogging a lot about Canadian heroes in the cannon, I thought I would mention this point as well. The cannon does not always extend to current authors (with the exception of Atwood, Munroe, and maybe a few others) but I never think of Coupland as a member of that club. And as a hero, Jason certainly is not a member. Yet, he is very Canadian. One thing Coupland does is use pop culture to make his stories and characters seem like a real part of Canadian life. Jason isn’t a hero in the book, not by a long shot: he faces problems and situations many of which he does not deal with well. But what Coupland does do is create a character that is a “normal”, everyday Canadian.

From the artwork, newspaper articles, etc. I have read on Coupland, this seems to be his place in Canadiana. He is a born and raised Canadian who takes everyday things and writes them (or paints them, or whatever else) into his novels.

So maybe the days of the hero are gone in Can Lit, but instead we have a more real picture of what Canadians are like (and we are not all fur trappers or oilmen)

Next Up: Logogryph by Thomas Warton (which I have read, I just need to blog about- so it won't be a long wait, I promise)