Old-ish news, but I feel it's still worth posting about: Random House recently released the news that they will be including a new clause in contracts with children's authors. The clause states that if an author acts in a way which damages his or her reputation as someone suitable to be associated with children, the publisher has the right to renegotiate and advance, delay publication of the book, or break the contract altogether.
I find this information rather frightening, personally. Most children don't even think to associate a face with what they read - they rarely consider the possibility that a real person is behind it. And also, these authors do not owe anybody anything. So long as they have provided an entertaining and somewhat educational book for their readers, whose business is it how they spend their leisure time? (So long as their extracurricular activities are legal, that is).
Thoughts?
Tuesday, September 9, 2008
Man Booker 2008 Shortlist Announced
The shortlist has been released for one of the more prestigious book awards: The Man Booker Prize. Two first-time authors, Aravind Adiga and Steve Toltz, made this year's list over Salman Rushdie's latest, The Enchantress of Florence.
The 2008 shortlist is:
Aravind Adiga, The White Tiger (Atlantic)
Sebastian Barry, Secret Scripture (Faber and Faber)
Amitav Ghosh, Sea of Poppies (John Murray)
Linda Grant, The Clothes on Their Backs (Virago)
Philip Hensher, The Northern Clemency (Fourth Estate)
Steve Toltz, A Fraction of the Whole (Hamish Hamilton)
The winning author will be presented with the award and prize money at a ceremony the evening of October 14.
The 2008 shortlist is:
Aravind Adiga, The White Tiger (Atlantic)
Sebastian Barry, Secret Scripture (Faber and Faber)
Amitav Ghosh, Sea of Poppies (John Murray)
Linda Grant, The Clothes on Their Backs (Virago)
Philip Hensher, The Northern Clemency (Fourth Estate)
Steve Toltz, A Fraction of the Whole (Hamish Hamilton)
The winning author will be presented with the award and prize money at a ceremony the evening of October 14.
Friday, July 25, 2008
2008 ReLit Awards Announced
The ReLit committees have made their final decisions for this year's awards.
And the winners are....
Short Fiction: Long After Fathers by Roberta Rees (Coteau Books)
"Roberta Rees masterfully pulls the reader in from the opening page of Long After Fathers, her first collection of short fiction."
-Lynda Grace Philippsen, The Globe & Mail
Poetry: Soft Geography by Gillian Wigmore (Harbour Publishing)
"What a wonderful, fresh voice Gillian Wigmore brings to the page. These wise poems know the push and pull within family. They reveal the tender truths behind the rough edges of small-town life. Her voice resonates with authenticity, and whether she is writing about a near drowning or ice fishing, she is ultimately writing about the complications of love. These are poems you will not soon forget."
—Robert Hilles, Governor General’s Award-winner for Poetry
Novel: The Outlander by Gil Adamson (Anansi)
"The Outlander deserves to be read twice, first for the plot and the complex characters which make this a page turner of the highest order, and then a second time, slowly, to savor the marvel of Gil Adamson's writing. This novel is a true wonder."
-Ann Patchett
And the winners are....
Short Fiction: Long After Fathers by Roberta Rees (Coteau Books)
"Roberta Rees masterfully pulls the reader in from the opening page of Long After Fathers, her first collection of short fiction."
-Lynda Grace Philippsen, The Globe & Mail
Poetry: Soft Geography by Gillian Wigmore (Harbour Publishing)
"What a wonderful, fresh voice Gillian Wigmore brings to the page. These wise poems know the push and pull within family. They reveal the tender truths behind the rough edges of small-town life. Her voice resonates with authenticity, and whether she is writing about a near drowning or ice fishing, she is ultimately writing about the complications of love. These are poems you will not soon forget."
—Robert Hilles, Governor General’s Award-winner for Poetry
Novel: The Outlander by Gil Adamson (Anansi)
"The Outlander deserves to be read twice, first for the plot and the complex characters which make this a page turner of the highest order, and then a second time, slowly, to savor the marvel of Gil Adamson's writing. This novel is a true wonder."
-Ann Patchett
Sunday, July 20, 2008
Book Review: Love Is A Mix Tape
I love books, and I love music. When the two are combined, that love becomes so strong that it could probably take on the superhero trifecta of Batman, Superman and Spider-man and STILL win.
Rob Sheffield has done a phenomenal job of combining my two lifelong loves in his 2007 memoir, Love is a Mix Tape. The book takes the form of a novel, but each chapter is prefaced with the play list of a mix tape from his past, and the stories recounted in each chapter are the memories Rob has of making and listening to those tapes. He focuses largely on the transformative power of music: the idea that one song has the ability to transport a person to another time, another place, simply because of an inherent emotional connection. It's something that is difficult to explain, but something that (I hope) everyone has experienced.
The story that Rob tells with these play lists is one of a deep unconditional love - that which he felt (and still feels) for his first wife, Renée. In this book, Sheffield allows the world a glimpse into the world that, for a short time, he shared with Renée, a woman who he depicts as vibrant, energetic, and his musical soul mate. We are also allowed a glimpse into his world after Renée's sudden, unexpected death in 1997. Both worlds, though vastly different, were filled with music.
The following is the playlist that I think best suits this book:
1. Anything by the band Pavement.
Pavement was Renée's favorite band, and one of Rob's favorites, too. They were an underground New York band with a small but dedicated following in the 1990s. I recommend checking out "Carrot Rope" as your introduction to them.
2. "5 Years" by David Bowie
Rob recalls how he and Renée got completely wasted on their fifth anniversary and blasted this song on repeat, despite the fact that the meaning behind it is anything but celebratory. Renée did not make it to their sixth anniversary, which contributes tragic irony to the lyrics "Five years/That's all we got".
3. "Thirteen" by Big Star
Rob and Renée met in a bar in 1989. The bartender put on the album "Radio City" by Big Star, and they were the only two patrons in the whole joint who perked up, prompting their initial conversation about music. "Thirteen" was their common favorite song off the album.
4. "Heart-Shaped Box" by Nirvana
Rob admits to connecting more with Nirvana's In Utero more than their other, more popular albums, because In Utero was mostly about Kurt becoming a new husband, and the album was released around the same time that Rob got married, and he was facing many of the same dilemmas that Kurt sang about on the album.
5. "Mmmbop" by Hanson
Renée died on May 11, 1997, probably only weeks before this single hit the airwaves. Rob mentions a couple of times near the end of the book that there are songs he hears, even today, that he wishes he could share with her, because he knows that she would have loved them. This was one of those songs.
I urge you all to read this book, especially if you're a music lover. Rob Sheffield is an amazingly astute writer, and he paints a lovely picture of a girl who I definitely would have liked to have known.
Rob Sheffield has done a phenomenal job of combining my two lifelong loves in his 2007 memoir, Love is a Mix Tape. The book takes the form of a novel, but each chapter is prefaced with the play list of a mix tape from his past, and the stories recounted in each chapter are the memories Rob has of making and listening to those tapes. He focuses largely on the transformative power of music: the idea that one song has the ability to transport a person to another time, another place, simply because of an inherent emotional connection. It's something that is difficult to explain, but something that (I hope) everyone has experienced.
The story that Rob tells with these play lists is one of a deep unconditional love - that which he felt (and still feels) for his first wife, Renée. In this book, Sheffield allows the world a glimpse into the world that, for a short time, he shared with Renée, a woman who he depicts as vibrant, energetic, and his musical soul mate. We are also allowed a glimpse into his world after Renée's sudden, unexpected death in 1997. Both worlds, though vastly different, were filled with music.
The following is the playlist that I think best suits this book:
1. Anything by the band Pavement.
Pavement was Renée's favorite band, and one of Rob's favorites, too. They were an underground New York band with a small but dedicated following in the 1990s. I recommend checking out "Carrot Rope" as your introduction to them.
2. "5 Years" by David Bowie
Rob recalls how he and Renée got completely wasted on their fifth anniversary and blasted this song on repeat, despite the fact that the meaning behind it is anything but celebratory. Renée did not make it to their sixth anniversary, which contributes tragic irony to the lyrics "Five years/That's all we got".
3. "Thirteen" by Big Star
Rob and Renée met in a bar in 1989. The bartender put on the album "Radio City" by Big Star, and they were the only two patrons in the whole joint who perked up, prompting their initial conversation about music. "Thirteen" was their common favorite song off the album.
4. "Heart-Shaped Box" by Nirvana
Rob admits to connecting more with Nirvana's In Utero more than their other, more popular albums, because In Utero was mostly about Kurt becoming a new husband, and the album was released around the same time that Rob got married, and he was facing many of the same dilemmas that Kurt sang about on the album.
5. "Mmmbop" by Hanson
Renée died on May 11, 1997, probably only weeks before this single hit the airwaves. Rob mentions a couple of times near the end of the book that there are songs he hears, even today, that he wishes he could share with her, because he knows that she would have loved them. This was one of those songs.
I urge you all to read this book, especially if you're a music lover. Rob Sheffield is an amazingly astute writer, and he paints a lovely picture of a girl who I definitely would have liked to have known.
Details:
Love Is A Mix Tape: Life and Loss, One Song at a Time by Rob Sheffield
Publisher: Crown
ISBN: 978-1400083022
Wednesday, July 16, 2008
Saskatoon Author Makes Good In UK
Alice Kuipers, a resident of Saskatoon, recently won the British Redbridge Book Award for her teen book Life on the Refrigerator Door. The book is called a novel by the publisher, but it is not written in a typical novel format - rather, it is made up of post-it notes written between a mother and her daughter and stuck to their refrigerator for the other to read.
I have not yet read the book, but I look forward to doing so eventually. I have been excited about it since the 2007 Saskatchewan Book Awards in November, where it won the Best First Book Award.
Congratulations to Alice on this international achievement.
I'll be posting a book review before the weekend, so keep watching!
I have not yet read the book, but I look forward to doing so eventually. I have been excited about it since the 2007 Saskatchewan Book Awards in November, where it won the Best First Book Award.
Congratulations to Alice on this international achievement.
I'll be posting a book review before the weekend, so keep watching!
Saturday, July 5, 2008
ReLit Awards Committee Announces Shortlist
The shortlist for the 2008 ReLit Awards was announced on Friday. The awards will be presented at the Ottawa International Writers Festival in October.
SHORT FICTION
Up on the Roof, P.K. Page (Porcupine’s Quill)
Bix’s Trumpet, Dave Margoshes (NeWest)
Six Ways to Sunday, Christian McPherson (Nightwood)
Long After Fathers, Roberta Rees (Coteau)
Black Rabbit, Salvatore Difalco (Anvil)
Seven Openings of the Head, Liane Keightley (conundrum)
Long Story Short, Elyse Friedman (Anansi)
POETRY
I Cut My Finger, Stuart Ross (Anvil)
Soft Geography, Gillian Wigmore (Caitlin)
The Shovel, Colin Browne (Talonbooks)
All Things Said & Done, Marita Dachsel (Caitlin)
Two Hemispheres, Nadine McInnis (Brick)
AEthel, Donato Mancini (New Star)
Sitcom, David McGimpsey (Coach House)
NOVEL
The Outlander, Gil Adamson (Anansi)
Orphan Love, Nadia Bozak (Key Porter)
The Milk Chicken Bomb, Andrew Wedderburn (Coach House)
Big White Knuckles, Brian Tucker (Vagrant)
Crown Shyness, Curtis Gillespie (Brindle & Glass)
Soucouyant, David Chariandy (Arsenal Pulp)
The Reckoning of Boston Jim, Claire Mulligan (Brindle & Glass)
Tuesday, June 24, 2008
League of Canadian Poets Award Winners
This is a couple days overdue, but I'm sure you'll all forgive me that, right?
The League of Canadian Poets had their Poetry Fest and Conference this weekend in St. John's Newfoundland. On Saturday, they announced the winners of both the Gerald Lampert Memorial Award and the Pat Lowther Memorial Award. Alex Boyd took home the Lampert Award for his book Making Bones Walk (Luna Publications), and Anne Simpson won the Lowther Award for Quick (McClelland & Stewart).
The shortlists for both awards, along with judges comments on all the titles, can be found here.
The League of Canadian Poets had their Poetry Fest and Conference this weekend in St. John's Newfoundland. On Saturday, they announced the winners of both the Gerald Lampert Memorial Award and the Pat Lowther Memorial Award. Alex Boyd took home the Lampert Award for his book Making Bones Walk (Luna Publications), and Anne Simpson won the Lowther Award for Quick (McClelland & Stewart).
The shortlists for both awards, along with judges comments on all the titles, can be found here.
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