Litsy

For all the Margaret Laurence fans, The Stone Angel is featured on the most recent episode of Backlisted. Highly recommend! @vivastory @batsy @LeahBergen @BarbaraBB #manawakans https://www.backlisted.fm/episodes/203-margaret-laurence-the-stone-angel

batsy Nice! Thanks for letting us know. 10mo

Ruthiella Agree, it was a great episode and I was so happy to actually have read the book this time. 10mo

BarbaraBB Oow, thanks for letting us know! 10mo

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merelybookish @Ruthiella Yes! Because they are so thorough I tend to only listen to episodes about books I've already read. 10mo

merelybookish @batsy @BarbaraBB My pleasure! 😊 10mo

LeahBergen Yes, I spotted that and have been saving it for a nice relaxing listen! 👏 10mo

vivastory Wonderful! Thanks for the heads up 💙 10mo

batsy This is the one I haven't read yet, sadly. I'm reminded now to get to it because I have a Backlisted episode waiting for me 🙂 10mo

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merelybookish

The Diviners | Margaret Laurence

Another Canadian classic. Loved it when I read it in university and still loved it when I re-read it last year with fellow #manawakans. Laurence's bildungsroman about becoming an artist is a complex weaving together of the past and the present.
#alphabetgame #letterd @Alwaysbeenaloverofbooks

Alwaysbeenaloverofbooks On my shelf!! 2y

LeahBergen 👏👏 2y

batsy I completely forgot about this. Great choice. 2y

vivastory Fantastic choice! 2y

merelybookish @LeahBergen @batsy @vivastory Glad you all agree! 🤗 2y

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Billypar

The Radiance of the King | Laye Camara, James Kirkup

Final NYRB Bonus Question!
We've read so many great novels during this book club - do you have a favorite? Or a top 3-5?

Billypar @arubabookwoman @BarbaraBB @batsy @catebutler @daena @DrexEdit @emilyhaldi @GatheringBooks @LeahBergen @Leftcoastzen @Liz_M @Megabooks @merelybookish @mklong @quietjenn @readordierachel @Sapphire @sarahbarnes @sprainedbrain @Vansa @vivastory @youneverarrived 2y

Billypar (Image by artist Ismael Hipolito Djata) 2y

vivastory My top 5: Cassandra at the Wedding, Lonely Passion of Judith Hearne, The Go-Between, The Vet's Daughter, Katalin Street. (Hon. mention to During the Reign of Queen of Persia for the impromptu read through of Margaret Laurence w/ the #manawakans ) 2y

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LeahBergen My top 5 (which I whittled down from 12!): The Lonely Passion of Judith Hearne, Cassandra at the Wedding, A Month in the Country, School for Love, and Good Behaviour. @vivastory 2y

LeahBergen My next top 5: The Go-Between, Black Wings Has My Angel, The Vet‘s Daughter, Lolly Willowes, and The Expendable Man. 🤣🤣 2y

LeahBergen @vivastory Yes! I‘m so thankful the Queen of Persia set us off on that Margaret Laurence buddy read. ❤️❤️ 2y

Liz_M Some of my favorite discussions were for The True Deceiver, Queen of Persia, Iza's Ballad and The Other 2y

vivastory @LeahBergen I'd def. put Good Behaviour, Expendable Man, Black Wings Has My Angel & Month in the Country in my next top 5 👏 👏 2y

vivastory @Liz_M The Other was one that I had read once before & I def enjoyed it more the second time around bc of the discussion 2y

merelybookish Well this is a tough question! I gave 5 ⭐ s to A Month in the Country, The Hearing Trumpet, Turtle Diary, A Game of Hide & Seek, Cassandra at the Wedding. But I have several others that I gave 4 ⭐ s to that could also qualify as faves. I really appreciate how this book club introduced me to writers I want to read more of (Taylor, Compton-Burnett, Comyns, Hardwick, Keane, etc.) 2y

merelybookish Thank you Scott for this experience! And my apologies for pooping out on the last book. @vivastory @Billypar 2y

merelybookish Nicely done @LeahBergen 😆 2y

vivastory @merelybookish Like I said, if you ever see this one in the wild def grab it. I think you'd find it interesting. I def plan on reading further works by authors that this group introduced me to. 2y

Liz_M @vivastory Thank you so much for organizing the best bookclub on Litsy! I will miss it even though I often missed the discussions. I read this months selection a few years ago and am traveling today. So sad to not be able to participate fully, @Billypar 2y

BarbaraBB I already made a collage of my top 5 that I‘ll post now to inspire all who haven‘t read the gems we read with this bookclub! Will tag you all. Thanks Vinny for the thoughtful questions re our final book! 🤍 2y

BarbaraBB @LeahBergen 🤣❤️ 2y

GatheringBooks Great Q! In 2019, there were books I couldn‘t read along with you all because of our #WomenReadWomen2019 reading theme. But my faves are still by female authors: Iza‘s Ballad, Katalin Street, The True Deceiver, Free Day, and In The Freud Archives. 2y

GatheringBooks Thank you, everyone, for making this so memorable and so much fun! Loved our discussions! Thank you to @vivastory most of all for bringing all these readers from across the globe together every month. 2y

quietjenn I only participated in Round 2, so all my picks are from the last year and a half - During the Reign of the Queen of Persia, Lolly Willowes, The Go-Between, The Vet's Daughter, & Good Behaviour. My list could easily be longer! I so appreciated the discussion of all the books, even ones I didn't love (or totally understand). I'm planning to still try to read at least one NYRB book a month, & will probably start with some of the Round 1 favorites! 2y

Billypar @vivastory @GatheringBooks @BarbaraBB @Liz_M @merelybookish @LeahBergen This was a tough call, but here goes: 1. The True Deceiver 2. The Dud Avocado 3. Katalin Street 4. Lolly Willowes 5. Hons and Rebels. 2y

Billypar Cassandra at the Wedding was before I joined, but it sounds like I really need to prioritize that one! 2y

vivastory @GatheringBooks Great choices! Nearly all of my choices were by female authors. Thank you for your thoughtful contributions each month! 2y

vivastory @quietjenn Terrific choices! In case I haven't mentioned this I have a bookshelf on my GR account of all of the selections we read since the beginning:
https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/53745996-scott?ref=nav_mybooks&shelf=nyrbb... 2y

vivastory @Billypar Thanks for co-hosting this month! Those are wonderful selections. I rec Hons 7 Rebels to someone a couple of months ago & they loved it! I really need to read more work by Jessica Mitford. 2y

quietjenn @vivastory thanks for sharing the bookshelf! 2y

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batsy

The Diviners | Margaret Laurence

pick

I'm the slowest poke that ever poked for this group read but it felt like the book set the pace for me & I had to follow! I first read this as an undergrad in Winnipeg & appreciated it a lot, but reading it now made me understand just how ambitious & wide-ranging it is on the subjects of motherhood, writing, sexuality, & how narratives are constructed both for the individual & a society. Thanks #manawakans for this Laurence deep dive. I loved it.

batsy @BarbaraBB @LeahBergen @merelybookish @vivastory 3y

merelybookish Beautifully said! This book is ambitious and so much of it feels contemporary like her representation of colonialism and her frank portrayal of women's sexuality. 3y

LeahBergen Ahh, lovely review. I‘ve often wondered why The Stone Angel has been required reading in some Canadian high schools; I know I wouldn‘t have appreciated her writing and ideas nearly as much then as I have now (coming to her first as an ‘older‘ woman 😆). 3y

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Suet624 Hahaha. The slowest poke that ever poked. 3y

BiblioLitten I love your review! Stacked! 3y

JennF13 I read this many years ago as a kid in high school, such a great read! 3y

batsy @Suet624 😆 3y

batsy @BiblioLitten I think you'll enjoy making your way through the whole Manawakan sequence! I joined the group a bit later so missed The Stone Angel which I hope to read early next year 😊 3y

batsy @JennF13 It's so rich and layered! 3y

batsy @merelybookish @LeahBergen Thank you, both! Reading and Romeo and Juliet with the Shakespeare group recently convinced me that most high school / early uni reading should be revisited in our later (wiser) years 😁 3y

JennF13 @batsy It‘s beautifully written, easy to read but with a complicated story too. The kind of book you think about long after you read the last page. 3y

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LeahBergen

The Diviners | Margaret Laurence

pick

And we‘ve finished the Manawakan Cycle. ?

Thank you, #Manawakans, for finally inspiring me to read them all and what a moving conclusion to this deftly interwoven series! I loved the central notion that Morag‘s story is also the story of Canada in so many ways, especially the complicated relationships between the British settlers and the Métis of the prairie provinces.

Just brilliant.

merelybookish, batsy, vivastory, BarbaraBB

LeahBergen Didn‘t you love how the series came full circle with Hagar‘s son, John Shipley, being the one who swapped the knife with Lazarus?? Gah! @vivastory @merelybookish @batsy 3y

vivastory Yes! That was so well done. Another parallel I noticed was the stone angel in the cemetery in book 1 & the unmarked pine crosses in the hills in book 5. 3y

merelybookish Lovely review! I hadnt made the connection to it as Canada's story, but of course, you're right. I did feel the treatment of Metis was more sensitive than I might have expected from a book written in 1970ish. She truly is one of Canada's greats! 🇨🇦❤️ And that is a lovely stack of books! 3y

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merelybookish Ooh good one @vivastory! 3y

vivastory I agree with @merelybookish I definitely want to replace my copies with some that are more aesthetically pleasing like yours. 3y

LeahBergen @vivastory Oh, good point about the crosses. 👌 3y

LeahBergen @merelybookish I was surprised at the sensitivity of it, as well, especially the whole “interracial” 🙄 aspect of the story. 3y

LeahBergen @merelybookish @vivastory I should, as a “collector” 😉 hunt down the Canadian first editions but most of them have pretty awful covers. I‘ve also thought I should buy The Stone Angel to match the rest of these but I have a fondness for this copy in the photo (I read it in Manitoba one summer 😁). 3y

vivastory I have seen that edition of Stone Angel at used bookstores & have been tempted. My copy of Stone Angel isn't too bad, but the rest of the series especially the final 2 don't have the greatest covers 3y

LeahBergen @vivastory I must admit to kind of wanting a first of The Stone Angel … preferably signed. 😆 3y

BarbaraBB This really is Canada‘s story and she‘s a fantastic writer. I will read the final one soon! 3y

LeahBergen @BarbaraBB I think you‘ll like it as much as the others, whenever you get to it! 😘 3y

Cathythoughts Great review ❤️ 3y

batsy Lovely review ❤️ I like that it's also a story of Canada, as you say. I'm still not done because for some reason it's just been one of those week (or weeks 😂) but I hope to soon and then to get to Stone Angel soon after. 3y

LeahBergen @Cathythoughts 😘😘 3y

LeahBergen @batsy This one took me a while to read, too, even though I heartily enjoyed it. 🤷🏻‍♀️ 3y

BiblioLitten I want to read these books 💕 3y

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merelybookish

The Diviners | Margaret Laurence

pick

This book meant a lot to me when I first read it and now it means more & means differently. In my 20s, it was Morag's development as a writer that stirred me. Now it's her search for ancestors.
Like @vivastory, my thoughts are all over the place, but I do feel like Christie Logan, diviner of the Nuisance Grounds, might be one of the most memorable characters in Canadian fiction!
Thank you #manawakans! I've loved re-reading Laurence with you!

merelybookish Photo is of my library copy. Someone wrote out the last paragraph and taped it in the back. 🤔 3y

merelybookish @LeahBergen @batsy @BarbaraBB 3y

vivastory Wonderful review! I hope to post mine in the next few days. I couldn't agree more re: Christie. He's the Canadian Falstaff. As memorable & as tragic. And Laurence gives him some of the best lines. 3y

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merelybookish @vivastory Not sure this so much a review as a gush-gush. 3y

Cathythoughts Great review… I find too books seem to bring different meanings at different times in life .. 👍🏻 3y

batsy Lovely review. This book kinda blew my mind when I read it as a wannabe writer undergrad in Winnipeg! I'm still halfway through now but like you mentioned there are deeper aspects that resonate this time. 3y

BarbaraBB Lovely review. I haven‘t started this one yet. But I will. The #manawakans definitely made me very happy to discover Laurence 🤍 3y

LeahBergen Great review! I‘m almost at the halfway point and loving the journey. 😊 3y

merelybookish @Cathythoughts Thanks Cathy! Yes, the main character is my age and so her feelings hit very differently now! 3y

merelybookish @batsy So many things made this book feel poignant ina new way. I also live beside a river now and watch it all the time like Morag. 3y

merelybookish @BarbaraBB When you get to it, we will all be happy to discuss it some more with you. 💚 3y

merelybookish @LeahBergen Yes! I found I read this one slower. And that was okay! 3y

BarbaraBB Thank you Margot 🤍🤍 3y

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