Books

Writing non-fiction’s a bitch – a truth not universally acknowledged.

– Will Aitken in This Writing Death

Theatre

Ars Poetica

by Anna Fuerstenberg

Comment

What an interestingly inviting read on this mind muddled morning. Thanks! Coffee, Please?

– comment by Parker

From the category archives:

NOTEBOOK

BOOKS

No Exit

Exit, by Nelly Arcan, trans. David Scott Hamilton, Anvil Press

by Marianne Ackerman
05.10.2011

If an author’s life bears any relation to her writing, then even more so her death. In the case of Nelly Arcan, it is impossible to read this outstanding Quebecoise novelist’s final work without being aware at every turn that she took her own life days after completing the manuscript.

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BOOKS

Anglo-Irish Montreal Revisited

The O'Briens, by Peter Behrens, Anansi

by Marianne Ackerman
21.09.2011

Peter Behrens is back in town this weekend to meet fans and read from his new novel, The O’Briens, at the Westmount Public Library. Set in California, Western Canada and (mostly) Montreal, it follows Joe O’Brien, great grandson of Fergus from The Law of Dreams, who, as a willful teenager, leads his siblings out of dire circumstances in Pontiac County, Que.

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NOTEBOOK

Yes Size Counts

Supporting CanLit

by Marianne Ackerman
14.03.2011

Should Canadian publishers be allowed to sell off equity in search of capital? Instinctively, those of us who remember the invention of CanLit will say “No Way.” John Barber’s piece in The Globe and Mail makes a strong argument to the contrary. The total book market in Canada is a $2.8-million a year business, some [...]

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NOTEBOOK

The Other Tremblay

A Montreal Event

by Marianne Ackerman
06.03.2011

The revival of Larry Tremblay’s 1995 bombshell, The Dragonfly of Chicoutimi, at Espace Go, has its fans and detractors. But once again, tout le monde en parle. Author some 18 books of essays, novels and plays, Tremblay grew up in Chicoutimi. His father cheered for the Chicago Black Hawks, which may well be the key [...]

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NOTEBOOK

Serious Bites

Paris Review

by Marianne Ackerman
28.02.2011

In case you think there is no future for serious content-driven publications in this slick, bite-sized era, take a look at what’s happening at the Paris Review. Mind you, according to the Sunday Times, the new 37-yr-old publisher’s main business strategy is based on his presence at many important parties. More power to Lorin Stein. [...]

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NOTEBOOK

Sexy béton, l’intégrale

by Marianne Ackerman
24.02.2011

Only three days left to catch the French version of Sexy Béton at Salle Fred-Barry, Porte Parole’s highly acclaimed docudrama about the collapse of the Concorde Viaduct. Here’s what VOIR had to say… FROM VOIR, 16 Feb 2011 Sexy béton est probablement l’objet théâtral le plus pertinent ces jours-ci sur les planches montréalaises. Annabel Soutar [...]

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NOTEBOOK

Two Writing Lives

The Writing Life: Dream or Delusion?

by Marianne Ackerman
21.02.2011

Douglas Coupland and Nicolas Dickner, literary soulmates? Not surprising and yet, surprising. The author of Nikolski and Tarmac (Apocalypse for Beginners in its English translation), is a big fan of the West Coast gen-x chronicler. So we found out Sunday night at Rover’s panel discussion, The Writing Life, Dream or Delusion? when Dickner spoke enthusiastically [...]

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