My latest booktube video features 6 Canadian, Australian & American books. There‘s a bonus clip at the end with footage from my seaplane journey home from the Vancouver Writers Fest. #queer #Victober #comics #audiobooks #poetry

https://youtu.be/6WiKs8r8twM

In my latest booktube episode, I report on 6 events at the Vancouver Writers Fest + talk about 2 audiobooks & 2 picture books that I read recently

https://youtu.be/ukKUqfGyqxo

#kidlit #WomenInTranslation #CanadianAuthor #Indigenous

A bonanza of women in translation & women in art, journalism, geology, engineering, boating + a gay memoir in verse in my latest booktube episode:
https://youtu.be/6nKnqVVch_E

#audiobooks #LGBTQ #translation #comics #CanadianAuthor #kidlit

Artist Julie Heffernan planned a short walk with her infant in the Appalachian Mountains over two decades ago. She got lost in her thoughts and lost her way, but emerged the next day with newfound clarity. This amazing autofictional graphic novel encompasses two days of her thinking about past, present and future. Breathtaking! #comics

Check out the perfect oval of her head, like an egg; her topknot like a brain, like she‘s thinking… the folds of her veil—like tendrils of rising smoke …like she‘s thinking so hard her head is hot.

Julie Heffernan‘s artwork in this graphic novel is ASTOUNDING!

If you‘re looking for something along the lines of Jon Klassen‘s picture books, try this dark & funny fable by Canadian artist Jess Hannigan. It‘s great for kids aged 3-8 anytime, but the black & fluorescent orange colour scheme, plus the spider, make this perfect for a spooky October read. #kidlit

One day, the newsboy had some SHOCKING news to deliver.

Skyscrapers, bridges, tunnels: how these are built is explained in clear, fascinating prose and illustrations. Ages 8-13. Roma Agrawal is a British South Asian structural engineer who has also covered this subject in a book for adults titled Built.

The Metropolitan Cathedral sits on top of an old Aztec pyramid and also the filled-in lake.
Over the past 150 years, [the central area of Mexico City] has sunk by more than the height of a three-story building.

I was drawn into this historical epic chiefly by the fact that the two central characters are queer & the author is trans nonbinary. Despite romantic love triangles not usually being to my taste, I enjoyed this novel, which is told from alternating pov. It‘s set mostly during WWII & there‘s a lot going on besides romantic attraction: gender identity; chosen family; societal expectations… and a touch of Celtic magic. #LGBTQ #CanadianAuthor

I love a good epigraph.

I love this middle grade Peter Pan retelling by Muscogee Creek author Cynthia Leitich Smith. It focuses on two stepsisters & addresses racism straightforwardly in the text. Wendy & Lily immediately speak up when Peter or the Lost boys use the word ‘Injun,‘ for example. On many occasions the omniscient narrator breaks the fourth wall & addresses readers directly—I like that too. A fun read with satisfying depth. #Indigenous #kidlit

Lily: I‘m Muscogee Creek from the Tulsa ‘burbs. I came for my brother and stepsister. Have you seen them? He‘s four, and she‘s annoying.

Marie is a young woman who loves horses and brings her idealism into the lives of carriage horses and their drivers in contemporary Old Montreal. A short, sharp novella that encompasses the criminal underworld and the dark side of gentrification. Translation from French by Sheila Fischman. #CanadianAuthor #WomenInTranslation

The return of the horse to Marie‘s life & the events of the past few days have stirred up memories, painful & ecstatic, against which she has begun to retaliate by the compulsive purchase of horse figurines—her favourite being a plastic Percheron. These past days Marie has travelled across the city & bought all the trinkets that have caught her eye, from antique dealers on rue Notre-Dame & from Dollarama.

I identified strongly with the young woman in this quiet debut novel: fearful of the world, socially awkward, walking the streets of Paris as a way to sort out her grief and feelings about her past. The ways we create memory, identity and our connections with others is the major focus. It‘s lovely.

I‘m trying to say that I‘ve tried to tell a story about her many times. But none have resembled my mother.

Stories have their own logic. For one thing, a story can only be told once it has an ending. For another, it builds, and then unravels. Each element of a story is essential; its time will come and it will ultimately mean something. In this way, stories are accountable, because they look you in the eye.

Simple text by Danielle Daniel conveys a reassuring message about interdependence. Gorgeous acrylic paintings by Matt James. This is a finalist for a Governor General‘s Award in Canada. 🇨🇦 #kidlit

“I‘m afraid,” said the leaf.
“You‘re not alone,” said the tree.
“I will fall,” said the bird.
“I will lift you,” said the wind.
“I‘m so thirsty,” said the skunk.
“Have a drink,” said the stream.

A hybrid queer fictional memoir / true history of North America—from creation of the universe to Canada‘s confederation in 1867—told from a Cree Indigenous worldview. Miss Chief is a supernatural, all-gender shapeshifter with a talent for lovemaking. The story is sexy, tongue-in-cheek, and eye-opening. The physical book is beautifully designed & full of Monkman‘s gorgeous artwork. The audiobook is read by Cree-speaker Gail Maurice. Both are 👌😍

I talk about 6 Canadian books & 1 Turkish book in this latest batch of recent reads on booktube
#LGBTQ #GGAwards 🇨🇦

https://youtu.be/lDadbbPxVog

Throughout this text, Cree words are printed in red (there‘s a glossary at the back) and there are references to the many notes in the appendix.

Our muscular bodies still entwined & radiating heat, I whispered to him that otôtêmihtowin* was not limited to human beings. “Do not take more than you need,” I said, kissing him tenderly. “Respect all creatures & also the land. Tell Your people.” He nodded, assuring me that he would, but I was not convinced he had understood, so I kept spreading the word in the way I knew best.

*respectful openness & acceptance of others; friendship, diplomacy

She inquired about my heels. I explained that my shoes were not like the shoes of human beings. They contained power, and to me felt like moccasins; besides, I liked the pink on the bottom, like the paw pads of my dear older brother Wîsahkêcâhk.

Shawn and I talked about some of the many GG award finalists (including the tagged novel):

https://youtu.be/IcC2susP_VA

You are invited to view my latest booktube video, in which I talk about recent Canadian books for adults & kids + accordion books, crafting & a tea festival

https://youtu.be/PaJpg4AxBt4

This is from my September stats in Storygraph. It‘s interesting to see how books are categorized by mood. Apparently I am drawn to reflective and emotional content, such as in the tagged novel.

I am impressed by this contemporary story about the aftermath of the residential school system. It‘s gentle, yet packs a powerful amount into 99 pages. Suitable for ages 10-14.
#Indigenous #CanadianAuthor #kidlit #middlegrade #YA

September 30: Books for Truth & Reconciliation + Art + Shakespeare + the Booker

https://youtu.be/HDGbdN3jVKw

#CanadianAuthors #Indigenous #kidlit

My very favourable review of Lolly Willowes is included in this video:

https://youtu.be/BdkdcsC2v6I

#QueerLit #Classics #CanadianAuthors #PrizeLists

I review 5 graphic novels about art that I read during a week on holiday in Stratford Ontario:
https://youtu.be/q9QloTIfiDg

Last night I enjoyed a lively performance of Cymbeline at the Stratford Festival in Ontario.

I really enjoyed this book about 17th-century Dutch art! The audiobook is read by the author, a British art critic & historian. I listened while following along in the print edition, which has many full-colour illustrations of the paintings described. Laura Cumming‘s father was also a painter & so there‘s a lovely memoir aspect also, and thoughtful remarks on what art contributes to our lives.

Is anyone ever sufficiently admonished by admonitory tales, or are such myths simply maps of inevitabilities?

-Paintings can take you anywhere, but they are also a land in themselves, a society, a place to be.

My latest on BookTube includes Art & Architecture in Victoria BC + 4 Recent Reads + a Corn Roast
https://youtu.be/opO5RXbFwsc

#CanadianAuthor #WomenInTranslation #Art #Audiobooks

You are invited to view my latest booktube episode about my weeklong fibre arts retreat plus five books I‘ve recently finished.
#FramedinSeptember #ArtReadathon #StrayaSeptember2 #Shaketember #LitsyCrafters

https://youtu.be/dtpAfK4XS4I

Interconnected short stories about pairs of siblings with surprising connections within & between each story. Dry humour, tragedy, & occasional fantastical elements. Set in a future North America, this novel focuses more on what ifs & cultural situations than in depth character development. I found the GG award winning translation by Lazer Lederhendler supremely satisfying. #CanadianAuthor

An island with too many bridges is no longer an island.

I talk about 9 books in my latest booktube episode. #ArtReadathon #Shaketember #PhenomenalWomen

https://youtu.be/-_9UMtXRxvk

A gripping, eye-opening memoir by feminist punk singer-songwriter Kathleen Hanna. She says: “Male violence didn‘t create me, it just made it harder to make my art, but I did it anyway.” And did she ever have to face a lot of male violence! I didn‘t listen to Bikini Kill or Le Tigre, but when Hanna talks about her musical influences like Joan Jett and Yaz, that brought me back to my youth. Audiobook performed by the author.

We were in our early 20s and still called each other girl. We were reading Carol Gilligan‘s book about how at age 11 some girls experience a moment of resistance in which they are brave and confident, but by the time they are 16 they are saying “I don‘t know” all the time. Selfishly, I just wanted to relive my own childhood, and win this time, which is why I started wearing Girl Scout uniforms with combat boots.

Maybe the struggle for language was the moment we were trapped in. Why were we always expected to answer ignorant questions with thoughtful articulate answers? Why were we always explaining ourselves? Maybe that was what third wave girls were about: speaking back to power with sounds that didn‘t always make sense.

20 Best Canadian Books of the 21st Century #CanLit #WomenInTranslation

https://youtu.be/5qra7JDeA00

Do you like knowing someone‘s TBR? If so, here‘s what I am planning to read in September for a new readathon about art called Framed!
#ArtReadathon #ShortySeptember #Shaketember #StrayaSeptember2

https://youtu.be/vQEow9OhMg4

A surprising collection of atmospheric queer stories that unsettled me yet kept me wanting more. Standouts include the title story, in which a woman has mushrooms growing out of her body, and The Changeling, which is from the viewpoint of a child who is certain her baby cousin was swapped by Fairies. #LGBTQ

“This is what fairies look like.”
I thought it made sense that fairies would be small things that crept on spindled legs sometimes instead of flying—that they would have narrow fragile bodies & be beautiful in a way that was neither human nor comforting, sharp at all their angles, and equipped with mandibles to sever the heads of their mates. Nothing magical is safe, nothing safe is magical. I knew that from reading fairytales.

The difference between a Shakespearean comedy and a Shakespearean tragedy is whether there‘s a marriage at the end. Here whatever has come before is answered with love, which means sex, which means children. Let‘s fuck and be plentiful. That‘s how you send death out of the room for a while.