A quick jump into the world of non-fiction for me (well, not really quick, the book took me over two weeks to read). This fall, the Champlain Society released a new edition of David Thompson’s Travels. This is intended to be the first in a three volume set of David Thompson’s writings. Travels was originally written in the late 1840s and into the 1850s (there are a few versions; this one replicates the 1850 version). It was never published while Thompson was alive. Later Joseph Burr Tyrell (another famous explorer and discoverer of dinosaurs) edited Thompson’s work and published it through the Champlain Society in 1916. This new edition is edited by William Moreau and contains an excellent introduction (and very useful explanatory notes throughout the text).
For those not familiar with David Thompson, he was a cartographer and explorer in early Canada. Although born in London (1770), he left at the age of 14 to come to North America and never looked back. Thompson worked first with the Hudson’s Bay Company and later with the North West Company. He learned surveying only after an accident left him bed ridden. And survey he did- Thompson traveled vast amounts of land, becoming one of the earliest explorers to cross to the far side of the Rockies. Thompson was a contemporary of Samuel Hearne and Alexander Mackenzie, the former famously quipped that Thompson had surveyed in a short time what would have taken anyone else a lifetime to do.
Although, Thompson is known as the first European to travel the length of the Columbia River; his true legacy is in his maps. Thompson’s maps were used (largely unaccredited) into the twentieth century. His most impressive work, known as the Great Map (1814), spent many years hanging in the headquarters of the North West Company at Fort William. Having seen the Great Map in person (many times) it is impressive even today. First of all, it is massive (probably 12-15 feet long and 5 feet high) and secondly it is incredibly detailed and accurate- even 200 years on. I think Thompson is one of the most underrated ‘great men’ of Canadian history, so if you don’t know who he is head to Wikipedia ASAP.
Enough about Thompson, onto his book: Travels is definitely worth the read, particularly if you are interested in exploration or early Canadian history. It is a slow read and the writing can get a bit dense (he was a surveyor, not a writer after all). He devotes an enormous amount of detail to wildlife, geography, surveying, etc, but also provides many anecdotes about traveling in the New World and some acute observations on Native Canadian life and mythology. Thompson married Charlotte Small, a British-Cree woman, and always had an enormous respect for the people he encountered (note: his travels were in the late 18th and early 19th century, so obviously his bias was towards the ‘British way of life,’ but he remained much more respectful towards the land he was tromping through and the people he encountered than other explorers and fur traders).
If your interest in early Canadian history is fleeting, this might not be the best book for you. It takes some dedication to get through, especially if you have spent the last six months reading nothing but fiction, but the picture that Thompson paints of Canada is unbeatable.
Right now I am reading Don Gilmor’s novel Kanata, which has Thompson as a fictional character, so look forward to some compare and contrast.
-Katy
Wednesday, April 14, 2010
Tuesday, April 13, 2010
And one against Life of Pi
I thought I should respond to Tory’s post below, as she calls me out for disliking Life of Pi. Before I begin my defence, I have to say I read the novel years ago, shortly after it received the Booker. I was working at a bookstore at the time and I remember (what must have been) Christmas 2003 we only sold two books- Life of Pi and Paris 1919. For my part I tried my hardest to push for Paris 1919 (so if you haven’t read it, head to your local library NOW). That being said it has been over 7 years, so you will have to forgive me if I misplace some details. I should probably re-read it before passing too much judgement, but what fun would that be?
On with the show- Why didn’t I like Life of Pi? Well, in a way I did like it, at the beginning anyway. I was intrigued by the character of Pi, particularly his curiosity about religions; his unusual circumstances; his humour. And then he was on a life boat with talking animals. I have nothing wrong with this in theory; but in practice it just didn’t work. I felt as though I lost all the things I liked about Pi. As the days on the boat progressed and the tiger ate the other animals I felt less and less like I cared. I just didn’t buy into it. It wasn’t believable (not in the do I believe that this would happen in “real” life, but do I believe that in this fictional world, these characters that had been created for me would do this). The whole middle section seemed incongruous with the first part of the novel.
And then the ending, the twist (or not twist)- were they animals or humans? I didn’t mind this part, in a way I felt as though it tied into Pi’s wrestle with the various religions at the beginning. Pi started the novel by exploring truths and we finish the novel exploring the true story. But it was too late, I had lost interest and it wasn’t that surprising of a twist. As the whole story felt as if it was meant to be a fable or metaphor (not a bad thing) that Martel chose to lead us to such an obvious ‘what if’ bothered me. I have complained before about authors not letting me find my own way and Life of Pi fits into that complaint.
All in all, I felt like Martel had a great idea for novel and just didn’t execute it well. When it came out that the idea wasn’t really his (see Max and the Cats by Moacyr Scliar) I moved Life of Pi firmly into the not like category.
I have placed his new novel on hold at the library. I am 406th in line, but once it gets in I will try my best to be unbiased.
-Katy
On with the show- Why didn’t I like Life of Pi? Well, in a way I did like it, at the beginning anyway. I was intrigued by the character of Pi, particularly his curiosity about religions; his unusual circumstances; his humour. And then he was on a life boat with talking animals. I have nothing wrong with this in theory; but in practice it just didn’t work. I felt as though I lost all the things I liked about Pi. As the days on the boat progressed and the tiger ate the other animals I felt less and less like I cared. I just didn’t buy into it. It wasn’t believable (not in the do I believe that this would happen in “real” life, but do I believe that in this fictional world, these characters that had been created for me would do this). The whole middle section seemed incongruous with the first part of the novel.
And then the ending, the twist (or not twist)- were they animals or humans? I didn’t mind this part, in a way I felt as though it tied into Pi’s wrestle with the various religions at the beginning. Pi started the novel by exploring truths and we finish the novel exploring the true story. But it was too late, I had lost interest and it wasn’t that surprising of a twist. As the whole story felt as if it was meant to be a fable or metaphor (not a bad thing) that Martel chose to lead us to such an obvious ‘what if’ bothered me. I have complained before about authors not letting me find my own way and Life of Pi fits into that complaint.
All in all, I felt like Martel had a great idea for novel and just didn’t execute it well. When it came out that the idea wasn’t really his (see Max and the Cats by Moacyr Scliar) I moved Life of Pi firmly into the not like category.
I have placed his new novel on hold at the library. I am 406th in line, but once it gets in I will try my best to be unbiased.
-Katy
Thursday, April 8, 2010
The Life of Pi
Alright, I know I am years behind the times, but I just finished reading Life of Pi by Yann Martel. Really, the timing turned out well since his new book is scheduled to be released very soon. So think of this as a reminder. I didn’t read Life of Pi when it was very popular after it won the Booker Prize because my sister told me it wasn’t worth it.
“For as long as Stephen Harper is Prime Minister of Canada, I vow to send him every two weeks, mailed on a Monday, a book that has been known to expand stillness. That book will be inscribed and will be accompanied by a letter I will have written. I will faithfully report on every new book, every inscription, every letter, and any response I might get from the Prime Minister, on this website”
And so he goes- right now he is at 78 books. Only once has the Prime Minister replied. And by PM, I mean his assistant replied, not Mr. Harper. However, recently, Mr. Martel received a letter from President Obama! The letter says he read Life of Pi with his daughter and they loved it. Take that Katy. Even though you don’t like the book, Barack Obama does :)
Next up- another non-fiction, The 100 Mile Diet- I am a good chunk in already, so won’t be too far off.
Tory
Well she was wrong. I loved it.
The story is about a young boy, Piscine "Pi" Molitor Patel, who has grown up in Pondicherry India, but is moving to Canada. The novel is really in two parts- first, there is some background/character development in India with Pi, then the second part takes place on a lifeboat when the ship carrying Pi and his family (along with their zoo animals) overturns in the middle of the ocean and he ends up the sole survivor, besides a very large tiger named Richard Parker. There is a third part, much shorter, that ends the story with Pi telling the story of his time on the boat to investigators from the company that owned the boat that sunk.
I think I liked the book so much because of the way Pi is created. His character is so well developed through stories and anecdotes in the first part that when he finds himself alone on a boat with a tiger, it doesn’t seem so far-fetch that he is able to survive. In fact, the only part of the book I didn’t like was the end, when the investigators question the truth of his journey. I felt it unnecessary and undermined his story telling. I get that the end was important for closing the religious metaphor, but I still was not that fond of it.
Pi’s day-to-day life on the boat is so well described, so thoughtful. Martel is truly a great storyteller.
Now, a quick note about Martel. He also writes a blog- it is based around an idea he began a few years ago. Here is how he describes it:
The story is about a young boy, Piscine "Pi" Molitor Patel, who has grown up in Pondicherry India, but is moving to Canada. The novel is really in two parts- first, there is some background/character development in India with Pi, then the second part takes place on a lifeboat when the ship carrying Pi and his family (along with their zoo animals) overturns in the middle of the ocean and he ends up the sole survivor, besides a very large tiger named Richard Parker. There is a third part, much shorter, that ends the story with Pi telling the story of his time on the boat to investigators from the company that owned the boat that sunk.
I think I liked the book so much because of the way Pi is created. His character is so well developed through stories and anecdotes in the first part that when he finds himself alone on a boat with a tiger, it doesn’t seem so far-fetch that he is able to survive. In fact, the only part of the book I didn’t like was the end, when the investigators question the truth of his journey. I felt it unnecessary and undermined his story telling. I get that the end was important for closing the religious metaphor, but I still was not that fond of it.
Pi’s day-to-day life on the boat is so well described, so thoughtful. Martel is truly a great storyteller.
Now, a quick note about Martel. He also writes a blog- it is based around an idea he began a few years ago. Here is how he describes it:
“For as long as Stephen Harper is Prime Minister of Canada, I vow to send him every two weeks, mailed on a Monday, a book that has been known to expand stillness. That book will be inscribed and will be accompanied by a letter I will have written. I will faithfully report on every new book, every inscription, every letter, and any response I might get from the Prime Minister, on this website”
And so he goes- right now he is at 78 books. Only once has the Prime Minister replied. And by PM, I mean his assistant replied, not Mr. Harper. However, recently, Mr. Martel received a letter from President Obama! The letter says he read Life of Pi with his daughter and they loved it. Take that Katy. Even though you don’t like the book, Barack Obama does :)
Next up- another non-fiction, The 100 Mile Diet- I am a good chunk in already, so won’t be too far off.
Tory
Wednesday, March 24, 2010
A non-fiction detour
Ok, I know I have not been posting much and part of the reason is I have spent my reading time with books that do not really fit on this blog. But one kind of does so now it gets a post purely because I feel guilty.
So, in a desperate quest to feel more informed about my own finances, I took my dear sister’s advice and checked 76 Investing Tips for Canadian in Uncertain Economic Times out of the library. This book is a “For Dummies” book, recently published (as you can tell in the title) and covers all the basic of personal investing and finances.
This book was excellent for two reasons
1) It is Canadian. Many personal financial books are American and do not touch on important aspects of Canadian investments
2) It is really recent so has great information about current trends (TFSA anyone?)
I am going to admit, I know nothing about investing and financial stuff so this book was perfect for a solid basic introduction to everything from Life Insurance to TFSAs. A lot of stuff covered and makes me feel more confident to at least start planning for the future a little more.
So we can’t always read books that are fun and enjoyable, but if it has to be non-fiction and instructive, it might as well be as useful as this was.
Next, I am moving back to fiction and can lit. with Life of Pi. I am almost done, so the post shouldn’t be too far off.
-Tory
So, in a desperate quest to feel more informed about my own finances, I took my dear sister’s advice and checked 76 Investing Tips for Canadian in Uncertain Economic Times out of the library. This book is a “For Dummies” book, recently published (as you can tell in the title) and covers all the basic of personal investing and finances.
This book was excellent for two reasons
1) It is Canadian. Many personal financial books are American and do not touch on important aspects of Canadian investments
2) It is really recent so has great information about current trends (TFSA anyone?)
I am going to admit, I know nothing about investing and financial stuff so this book was perfect for a solid basic introduction to everything from Life Insurance to TFSAs. A lot of stuff covered and makes me feel more confident to at least start planning for the future a little more.
So we can’t always read books that are fun and enjoyable, but if it has to be non-fiction and instructive, it might as well be as useful as this was.
Next, I am moving back to fiction and can lit. with Life of Pi. I am almost done, so the post shouldn’t be too far off.
-Tory
Tuesday, March 23, 2010
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
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
Saturday, March 20, 2010
Redhill and Bemrose
Two quick ones-
I first came across Michael Redhill a few years ago at an archives conference of all places. He had come as a keynote speaker to discuss his new (at the time) book Consolation. The book, which includes links to some beautiful historic photographs from the city of Toronto archives, was a good read. I enjoyed it. Years passed, until last fall when I bought his first book Martin Sloane at a used book sale. Then the book sat on my shelf until a couple weeks ago when I finally picked it up. I am not sure why I waited so long, I liked his talk and I liked his book. The waiting was a bad move on my part- I loved Martin Sloane! Although not having the advantage of being archivally themed, I think I liked it even more than Consolation.
Martin Sloane is the story of a young student, Jolene, who encounters and embarks on an affair with a mysterious Irish-Canadian artist, Martin Sloane. Then one day he is gone, just walks off in the night. Jolene must cope with his departure, which she doesn't do very well. Then a glimpse of him from across the ocean and she is dragged back into his story. Good plot, good characters (although more than once I wanted to smack Jolene back into reality), good writing. For sure worth picking up.
John Bemrose I also discovered at a talk. I saw him speak with other Canadian male authors at IFOA 2009. I had heard of him before, but somehow he got lost in my pile of 'to-reads.' Although he didn't enthrall me at the reading, I noticed his book on my shelf and thought I would give it a go. Well, I should have left it on my shelf. Sorry, but Island Walkers, about a small town in Ontario that revolves around the local mill, gets a big 'MEH' from me. Just not great. Felt like a male version of Anne Marie MacDonald (see review from earlier). Oh well, they can't all be my favorite.
- Katy
Monday, March 1, 2010
The Black Robe
Brian Moore was Canadian for a while, albeit a short while. Born in Ireland, Moore moved to North America in 1948. He lasted about ten years in Canada, before heading south of the border to California. Despite this brief visit, Canada left an impression on Moore that comes out in his novel the Black Robe.
The Black Robe tells the story of a Jesuit priest who is sent to discover the fates of other missionaries. After some persuasion from Samuel de Champlain, a group of Algonquin agree to accompany Father Laforge and his young aide. Throughout their journey both the ‘whites’ and the ‘Indians’ are confronted with the numerous stereotypes that existed in the 17th Century New World (and some that still exist today). Moore paints a picture of early Canada that is at times terrifying- the landscape, the obstacles, enemies and even friends offer little comfort.
The novel, well novella really as it comes in around 200 pages, is wonderfully written. A forte of Moore’s is characterization. My sympathies switched every ten pages, leaving me feeling that everyone was right (and also that everyone was wrong).
Overall, it is a great period piece, something much different than other fiction I have read about this time period. But, there was something distinctly un-Canadian about it. I have no other Canadian books to compare it to; it was closer to other foreign fiction I have read, like a less quirky, less sprawling version of Peter Carey’s Oscar and Lucinda and even closer to Heart of Darkness, as the story winds its way towards the unknown. It felt less personal, less about family; which has become the most recurrent theme to date in my exploration of Canadian literature. Not that this is bad, the novel was a good read, it just re-affirms that to be (truly) Canadian you can’t be easily lured away by sunny California.
I have to stray away from Canada for book club, but will return shortly.
- Katy
The Black Robe tells the story of a Jesuit priest who is sent to discover the fates of other missionaries. After some persuasion from Samuel de Champlain, a group of Algonquin agree to accompany Father Laforge and his young aide. Throughout their journey both the ‘whites’ and the ‘Indians’ are confronted with the numerous stereotypes that existed in the 17th Century New World (and some that still exist today). Moore paints a picture of early Canada that is at times terrifying- the landscape, the obstacles, enemies and even friends offer little comfort.
The novel, well novella really as it comes in around 200 pages, is wonderfully written. A forte of Moore’s is characterization. My sympathies switched every ten pages, leaving me feeling that everyone was right (and also that everyone was wrong).
Overall, it is a great period piece, something much different than other fiction I have read about this time period. But, there was something distinctly un-Canadian about it. I have no other Canadian books to compare it to; it was closer to other foreign fiction I have read, like a less quirky, less sprawling version of Peter Carey’s Oscar and Lucinda and even closer to Heart of Darkness, as the story winds its way towards the unknown. It felt less personal, less about family; which has become the most recurrent theme to date in my exploration of Canadian literature. Not that this is bad, the novel was a good read, it just re-affirms that to be (truly) Canadian you can’t be easily lured away by sunny California.
I have to stray away from Canada for book club, but will return shortly.
- Katy
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