Thursday at THIN AIR…

Today is all about languages – English, French, Spanish, Low German and Shetlandic…

At The Nooner (Millennium Library, 12:15 – 12:45 p.m.), Scottish author Christine De Luca will read from her debut novel, And then forever. She’s travelled all the way from Scotland to be a part of THIN AIR 2011. Catch her at noon, and again this evening on the Mainstage.

The Afternoon Book Chat (McNally Robinson, 2:30 – 3:30 p.m.) will feature Di Brandt and David Homel, writers who discuss life and how to get the most from it.

During our Big Ideas session (Millennium Library, 4:30 – 5:30 p.m.), Myrl Coulter will discuss the heartbreak associated with giving her first child up for adoption. Though not specifically about languages, her memoir – The House with the Broken Two – is beautifully written, thoughtfully crafted, and an eye-opener about the difficulties of adoption.

In around the edges, campus readings by Glen Downie (Red River, 11:00 – noon) and Clark Blaise (UW, 4:00 – 5:15 pm), and in the Foyer des écrivains stream, a discussion about translation with local writer-translator Charles Leblanc and Haitian-Canadian novelist Dany Laferrière.

At the end of a full day of events, our Mainstage presentation will be filled with the rich sounds of all the different languages we’ve gathered together. Christine De Luca reads poems in English and Shetlandic. Di Brandt’s poems ring out in English, French, Low German, and Spanish. Francophone powerhouse Dany Laferrière teams up with his English translator David Homel.

For all the details, visit thinairwinnipeg.ca. And don’t forget to follow us on Twitter at @WPGTHINAIR, because we’ll be live-tweeting from most events!

The Sacred Feminine

On Sunday morning my mother took my two children to church. Too young for Sunday school, as a baby and a toddler there were mostly there to look cute and play. Raised in the church myself I love that they’re going to become familiar with the concept and eventually learn the religion of our mainstream culture.

Having left the church as a teen, I’m anxious about them becoming too wrapped up in the details of the Bible instead of harnessing the essence of God and growing spiritually.

I put the anxiety to rest knowing that at home and in life I will organically teach them about the Sacred Feminine that I have since come to feel connected to as my comforting Higher Power. (Plus it’s a few kid free hours, I’m not going to protest.)

While my children were at church with their Granny, I was sitting in the forest at Assiniboine Park with Kim Anderson’s book and my ThinAir note pad I was inspired to write, as I connected to the earth, the best place where I find the Sacred Feminine.

This is my church.
Cool breeze, grey skies.
Autumn leaves bed the floor of the river bank
Shafts of sunlight through the cloud cover then filter to my seat,
Amongst the dying fauna.
Small leaves rain down and the chill is on my neck
Welcome is the mud on my jeans and shoes,
Evidence of my encounter with Her.
The vibrant browns & greens of the summer’s shadow are perfect in their scattered chaos
I breathe in beauty
The flowing wall paper of the murky river
Moves past the thin trees
An optical feast for eyes accustomed to digital screens
The quiet soaking through my ears, who deserve the rest from the endless noise and demands.
Drawing this energy in  I already feel rejuvenated.
Mother Nature brings new life to the goddess within
Empowered I am ready for the week ahead.
Squirrels and chickadees sing praises for me
For my voice is flowing through ink in a pen.
This is my church.

I love the community Kim Anderson describes in her book Life Stages and Native Women Memory, Teachings and Story Medicine. The reverence to women as part of the Sacred Feminine, living off the land, connecting to nature, using plants and story to heal and teach and protect. Everyone in this culture has a purpose. Most fascinating to me was the philosophy of each person having a specific role based on their age and gender which I am so eager to read, in hopes that I can find pieces to apply to myself and my children as we age together.

Yesterday at the Millennium Library this scholar and author tells us of scared traditions surrounding milestones in a woman’s life and I hope that such rituals return to our young women someday. She told us of the way the family would seclude their daughters for their first moon time and subsequent menstruations, and explained how it was for the good of the community. I laughed a little inside, thinking of a friend who earlier that day that had confessed she was extra mean today and that PMS was indeed to blame, but that wasn’t the reason for isolation that Kim was talking about.

The young girls were left in solitude not out of shameful, unclean or mood swinging reasons, as we would assume. It was so the women and the community could harness the power that this event manifested. The power could be used for creating quilts or beading and sometimes used to heal, but productivity and shared benefit were the intention. I smiled again, thinking of how this friend directed her power through anger and used it in a beneficial way when directed at the right target.

Kim’s book asks in the forward, Who dreams of being an old woman? I do. I look forward to age and the wisdom it brings. I dream of having women and children of all ages to impart my wisdom too, to use stories of my life and the experiences of  my mother and her mother, my aunt, cousins and daughter to draw this wisdom from.

After her reading and Q & A, I asked Kim to sign my copy of her book and she signed it with thanks for my participation in sharing stories of the Sacred Feminine. I am so proud to have been a part of this event and the new path it's inspired in my life. Thank you Kim for your role in this.

-Leah Edmonds, Guest Blogger

Monday at THIN AIR…

It’s our first full-day of the festival and we hope that you’ll join us! Every weekday during festival week is jam-packed with a number of different events to choose from.

The Nooner (Millennium Library, 12:15 – 12:45 p.m.) is a quick and free literary hit that can be enjoyed over the lunch hour.

The Afternoon Books Chats (McNally Robinson, 2:30 – 3:30 p.m.) offer some stimulating company for your mid-afternoon coffee break zone. And yes… also free.

The Big Ideas series (Millennium Library, 4:30 – 5:30 p.m.) gives you something to chew on before you head home for dinner. And, you guessed it… free, free, free!

Each weekday also includes both rural and campus tours, and ends with a Mainstage presentation featuring a collection of the day’s presenters.

So who do you want to see today?
Manitoba Reads finalist Wayne Tefs presents his latest novel, Bandit, at The Nooner and teams up with Elizabeth Hay for the Afternoon Book Chat. Wayne and Elizabeth are joined by Lynn Coady, Margaret Macpherson and Robert J Sawyer on the first evening Mainstage show at MTYP.

You might also want to check in with Winnipeg writer, Dave Kattenburg. He’ll kick off the Big Ideas sessions with a discussion about Foxy Lady, the true story of how several free-spirited adventurers – including one Canadian – fell victim to the Khmer Rouge in 1978.

Dave Kattenburg - go see him!

For all the details, visit thinairwinnipeg.ca. And don’t forget to follow us on Twitter at @WPGTHINAIR, because we’ll be live-tweeting from most events!

A date with director Charlene Diehl

When did you start writing?
“I wrote some stories when I was a little kid, and a handful of poems when I was a late teen, but mostly I read and read and read. I actually fell in love with poetry when I was about 13. Even then, I loved the feel of mystery and potency in that kind of language.
Also, the musicality.

I didn't really start writing poems until I was partway through my Master's thesis on E.E. Cummings, when my advisor Dennis Cooley said, "Where are your poems? Nobody cares this much about poetry without having a drawerful at home!" In truth I didn't have a drawerful, but I continue to be grateful for that nudge.”

How did you decide what you wanted to write about?
“Oh man, I never really know what I'm going to write about! A lot of my writing these days is creative non-fiction -- mostly musings about writing, music and mothering. The pathways always surprise me, which is generally how I know if the pieces are working or not. The more planned they are, the deader they tend to be.

With larger projects, like poem suites, I'm often the last to figure out what I'm doing -- I watch them emerge rather than decide what I'm writing about. Usually I'm toying with an image or a writing challenge, but I'm also exploring something elusive -- one of those big meaning-of-life (or nature or love or power or death) questions.

Sometimes life hands you material too. When my baby died, I knew at some level that I would have to write about that experience. At first, that was a reporting-from-hell enterprise: with the lamentations collection, I was recovering my voice and my language, both of which had been shattered by that loss.

As I became stronger and healthier again, I began to realize that I could share my story with others as a way of extending some support to other bereaved people and those who care for them. My memoir, Out of Grief, Singing, was written over a long period, and I realized when I released it last year that I had also been extending a hand back to my own devastated self as well. Grief is one of the most human of experiences, yet in our culture it's also one that frightens people. If we all shy away from it, we don't have an opportunity to discover that grief can also generate great beauty & joy.”

Probably my favourite picture of Charlene...

How do you usually write? 
“Have you met me?! I'm not sure "usually" applies on any front, least of all writing!

These days, I mostly write to deadline – and there are many of them. I lean toward late-night writing flurries, partly because I love the late hours of the day, partly because my life quiets down enough then to follow those inner voices.

My most treasured writing times are when my poet self gets all revved up by an idea or an image. Then writing just takes over and fills up every available crack of time for several days in a row. Those visitations are absolutely unpredictable and (sadly) infrequent.”

What advice could you provide to someone attempting to publish his or her first piece?
“Read a lot. Write a lot. Seek out every opportunity to get mentored -- take classes and workshops, and meet regularly with other writers who are more accomplished than you are and who will speak truthfully.

Attend readings. Learn everything you can from the word zone around you. Really understand that you will always be a beginner because the art form will always be unfolding ahead of you far faster than you can master it. (Thank heavens!)

Write until you no longer care a whole lot about getting published -- the experience of writing has to be far more crucial to you than the experience of being published. (It's kind of like looking for a date: if you stop pushing for that desired outcome and really put your energy into becoming strong and happy and self-sustaining, you're going to be a lot more appealing...)

Practically speaking, be reasonable about your expectations. Submit your work to places which publish similar material. Prepare your submission carefully, mail it off, take a couple of days to feel jittery and excited, then get back to your desk and start making something else.”

If you could meet one writer, who would it be and why?
“Only one?! Yikes! I'm going to say William Blake. My first experience of being profoundly rewritten by someone's work happened when I was plowing through one of Blake's epic long poems. I think of that experience as the advent of adulthood for me --he literally changed the way I think.

Every now and then I revisit a shorter long poem, The Marriage of Heaven & Hell, to be inspired by his creative fire, but also to be reminded that powerful writing engages our personal, social, political, and spiritual selves. Blake was wildly eccentric -- he indulged in many curious behaviors, including regular conversations with angels. If he were alive now, I suspect he'd be highly medicated, but that intensity and drama animate his writing, allow us to feel the pulse across a couple of centuries. I admire the courage it requires to be so fully alive, than capture it in poems and images.”

Charlene Diehl is the associate editor of dig! magazine and the director of THIN AIR, Winnipeg’s annual literary festival. Her last book is a memoir, Out of Grief, Singing.

David Homel’s ‘Mid-Way’

Have you ever felt a desire to walk away from your life? To simply step away from job, family and responsibilities?

David Homel’s new novel – Midway – tells the story of Ben Allan, a middle-aged college instructor who has recently won an award for an essay he wrote about an obscure medical syndrome. Dromomania primarily affected men in nineteenth-century Europe. The dromomaniac would leave his home without warning, wander across the continent in an almost zombie-like state, and wake up weeks later with no idea where he was and how he got there.

In the novel, the essay and its content forces Allan into a midlife crisis. He entertains the possibility of an affair with a young communications officer named Carla as his relationship with his wife deteriorates. He wants desperately to reach out to his television-addicted teenage son Tony, but doesn’t know how. And he is constantly trying to maintain a connection with his rapidly aging father, Morris.

With nothing in his life working out quite like it should, it makes sense that Allan feels compelled to walk away from it all…

Throughout the novel, Allan is literally stuck “mid-way” between the world he wants to live in and the one he feels he’s required to be a part of. It is very much a coming-of-age story spanning three generations and countless lives. Anyone who reads Midway will be able to easily relate to the characters in one way or another, and the novel is written in such a way that it will grab your attention and hold it until the final page.

A pic of David Homel...

Homel was born in Chicago in 1952. He lived in both Europe and Toronto before making Montreal his home around 1980. Midway is his sixth novel. He has also written two children’s books, one of which was co-authored with his wife. Homel has translated several French works that resulted in two Governor General’s Literary Awards for translation. He isn’t only a writer, but a journalist, filmmaker and translator, and he is one of nearly 40 writers that will be featured at THIN AIR 2011.

Katherena Vermette – Winnipeg poet and THIN AIR staff member

In honour of our rapidly approaching festival, our blog is temporarily turning away from our writers and towards the people who make THIN AIR possible.

We would like to introduce Katherena Vermette, our Volunteer Coordinator and Marketing Assistant. When she’s not busy working at the office, this Winnipeg writer is busy with her own career as a poet. We asked her a few questions, and here is what she said…

When did you start writing? 
“I honestly don't remember. I started arbitrarily scribbling words into scribblers very young. I do remember writing a rhyming poem - that I could still recite to you today - when I was ten. I really liked the rhyming poetry during my tweens.

Then, I discovered T.S. Eliot and E.E. Cummings, and dove into an angst filled poetic youth with a pair of used army boots, a sticker covered journal, and a shroud of thick black hair to hide behind. Yes, I was THAT girl in high school.”

How did you decide what you wanted to write about? 
“I am completely self-absorbed so I have always written about ME, and all that I have seen and experienced. I was also subject to many shrinks throughout my childhood - THANKS MOM - so I got quite accustomed to talking, and in many cases writing, about my FEELINGS.

As I grew up, I started to look outside of my own skin more often (though some would argue not enough), and started writing about other people too. I love people. I am continuously fascinated with the CHARACTER of people. In my poetry, I think of myself as an observer, sometimes of myself, sometimes of others, and I write what I see. In my fiction, I take what I have seen and mix it up with stuff I create. The making up stuff is my favourite part.”

How do you usually write? 
“On an ideal day, I wake up inspired and get right to writing and coffee. On a typical day, I wake up late, get my kids off to school and get distracted by work stuff. The writing has to put up with a when-I-can sort of schedule.”

What advice could you provide to someone attempting to publish his or her first piece? 
“EDIT EDIT EDIT EDIT and then POLISH POLISH POLISH POLISH and then get someone else to read it, give you honest feedback, and do it all over again. It never "just happens" and anyone who told you it does is LYING to you. Writing for yourself is great, satisfying, cathartic, emotional. Writing for other people is a job.”

If you could meet one writer, who would it be and why? 
“Leonard Cohen… Because I'm a poet that's why.”

Katherena Vermette is a Metis writer of poetry and fiction. Her work has appeared in several literary magazines and compilations, including the upcoming Manitoapow – Aboriginal Literary History of Manitoba (Highwater Press 2012). Vermette was the 2010-2011 Blogger in Residence for thewriterscollective.org and recently begun graduate work in the prestigious Master of Fine Arts - Creative Writing program at the University of British Columbia. A member of the Aboriginal Writers Collective of Manitoba since 2004, Vermette lives, works and plays in Winnipeg, Manitoba.

Uncovering the secrets of ‘Foxy Lady’

A random Google search first introduced Winnipeg author Dave Kattenburg to Stuart Glass, a young B.C. adventurer killed by the Khmer Rouge on board his little yacht  -- Foxy Lady -- in 1978. 

“I thought – a Canadian had died… a Canadian yachtsman? That’s amazing,” said Kattenburg. “And all the stories were the same. There was just one tale about him. No information about who he was, or where he was from. Nothing…”

Kattenburg began researching Glass in an effort to uncover more information about the details surrounding the capture of Foxy Lady. Once he started, he couldn’t stop. 

“I was intrigued,” he said. “It’s as simple as that. I wondered how it was possible that there was nothing known about him, and I saw it as a challenge.”

The easiest part of Kattenburg’s research was locating Glass’ family in Canada. He obtained a great deal of information from them, but realized much more would be needed to write a book. 

Stuart Glass had met Englishwoman Susan Jessie Everard in 1972, the Glass family told Kattenburg, and she had been his best friend, partner and companion until 1977. It would be impossible to fill in the details of Glass’ life during that time without talking to Susan, and Kattenburg began a detailed quest to find the woman who would hold many of the answers.

He first found Susan’s sister, Margaret, an Anglican minister who agreed to put Kattenburg in contact with her younger sister. And then, finally, Susan called.

“I was so blown away when I found her,” Kattenburg said. “It was at that moment – when I heard her voice on the phone – that I realized this could actually become a book.”

A shot of Foxy Lady -- before disaster struck...

Talking to family and friends was only one part of Kattenburg’s research. In addition to flipping through phone directories and poking through archives, he visited Cambodia -- the home of Pol Pot and the feared Khmer Rouge regime -- twice. 

In Cambodia, over the course of nearly four years, between 1.7 and 2.2 million Cambodians were killed by the Khmer Rouge. Tuol Sleng -- a prison, torture house and death camp -- was responsible for at least 12,000 of those deaths. 

Included in these were New Zealander Kerry Hamill and Englishman John Dewhirst, Stuart Glass’ two mates on board Foxy Lady when she was captured in 1978. While Glass was killed aboard the yacht -- in a hail of Khmer Rouge gunfire -- Hamill and Dewhirst would suffer a worse fate. They were dragged off to Tuol Sleng prison (nicknamed S-21) in Phnom Penh, charged with being CIA spies, tortured for a few months and then killed.

Foxy Lady: Truth, Memory and the Death of Western Yachtsmen in Democratic Kampuchea tells the story of yachtsmen killed by the Khmer Rouge (there were nine in total), and chronicles the rise and fall of the brutal Democratic Kampuchean regime. The story also focuses on the Khmer Rouge’s chief executioner, S-21 chief Kaing Guek Eav, aka “Duch.”

For a complete synopsis of Foxy Lady, click here. 

When asked what advice he would give to anyone attempting to write a non-fiction novel, Kattenburg replied that it is important to be persistent, especially when writing a book that involves digging up undisclosed information.

A photo of author and journalist Dave Kattenburg...

“If you’re patient and tenacious enough, eventually things reveal themselves,” Kattenburg explained. “And, I think you have to be a little crazy too…”

Did you know?

Recently, a film titled Brother Number One has been released in Australia and New Zealand. It examines the Foxy Lady story from a completely different perspective. It chronicles the journey of Rob Hamill – brother of murdered Foxy Lady skipper Kerry Hamill – as he travels to Cambodia to retrace the steps taken by his brother during his last months alive.

If you would like to watch the trailer, or learn more about the film, click here. 

About the author…

Dave Kattenburg was born on Long Island in 1953. He holds bachelor and Ph.D. degrees in biology and health sciences, teaches university science courses and produces radio stories on global environment, development and social justice issues. Documentaries arising from his travels have appeared on CBC Radio, Radio Netherlands, Free Speech Radio and his own site www.greenplanetmonitor.net. David currently resides at the epicenter of North America, Winnipeg.

Thank you for your book sale support!

Our book sale was a huge success, and we want to thank each and every person who visited us at The Forks and purchased a book (or two, or three, or TEN) over the Labour Day weekend. It is because of people like you that we can do what we do every year, and we truly appreciate the support!

Our festival is only two weeks away, and now we're gearing up to finalize those last minute details. We'll see you soon at a THIN AIR 2011 venue near you, for what we know will be a fantastic 15th festival.

Our MEGA Book Sale is on now...

Today has already been a highly-productive first day at our book sale, and our event will be featured tonight on Global News at 6:00 p.m. Tune in and see what we've been up to, if you haven't been down to The Forks already.

There are still two days left and many more books to be sold!

The Manitoba Reads final four

The votes are in, the selections have been made, and the Winnipeg International Writers Festival, McNally Robinson Booksellers and CBC Manitoba Scene are proud to announce the four finalists of the first-ever Manitoba Reads.

Based on the popular Canada Reads model, voters chose between 16 books written by Manitoba authors. At the end of the voting period, four judges each selected one of the remaining eight titles as their top pick.

Now, they judges prepare to debate the books down to a single title on September 24 at the closing Mainstage show of THIN AIR 2011. The debate will then be broadcast the following morning on CBC’s Weekend Morning Show.

“This is so exciting,” said Charlene Diehl, director of THIN AIR. “The top four books truly represent the talented authors Manitoba has to offer. And, to make things even more exciting, two of the top four authors will be presenting at THIN AIR 2011!”

 Here is the breakdown of each judge and the title he or she has selected to debate:

Judge: Alison Gillmor

Title: Reading by Lightning by Joan Thomas

Judge: Vincent Ho

The Life of Helen Betty Osborne by David Alexander Robertson

Judge: Paul Jordan

Bandit by Wayne Tefs

Judge: Niigon Sinclair

Where Nests the Water Hen by Gabrielle Roy

For more information about Manitoba Reads, visit www.cbc.ca/manitoba/scene/books.

Elizabeth Hay’s ‘Alone in the Classroom’

Have you ever read a novel that moves you so much you can’t decide if you want to smile or cry?

Elizabeth Hay’s most recent novel – Alone in the Classroom – is a tender and honest tale that takes place across three generations. It highlights issues that most people can relate to, including love, hate and jealousy. More importantly, the novel teaches readers that the actions we take will always affect the next generation.

A lovely shot of Elizabeth Hay. Memorize the face, people. Memorize the face.

About the novel…

Beginning in a small prairie school in 1929, a young schoolteacher – Connie Flood – attempts to help a struggling student. Observing them and darkening their lives is the principal, Parley Burns, whose strange behaviour culminates in an attack so disturbing its repercussions continue to the present day.

Connie’s niece, Anne, tells the story. Impelled by curiosity about her dynamic, adventurous aunt and her more conventional mother, she revisits Connie’s past and her mother’s broken childhood. In the process, she unravels the enigma of Parley Burns and the mysterious (and unrelated) deaths of two young girls.

Alone in the Classroom is meant to be read slowly. It is filled with detailed and often poetic language that makes settings, seasons and characters come alive. Throughout the novel, there are also references to classic literature – such as Tess of the D’Ubervilles and Pride & Prejudice – which make it even easier to picture events and people the way Hay wanted them to be seen.

If Alone in the Classroom is your first experience with a novel by Hay, you won’t be disappointed. The plot is both realistic and elaborate, a format that keeps the reader interested until the final pages.

About the author…
Elizabeth Hay is a Canadian novelist and short story writer. She has been a nominee for the Governor General's Award twice – for Small Change in 1997 and for Garbo Laughs in 2003 – and won the Giller Prize for her 2007 novel Late Nights on Air. In 2002, she received the Marian Engel Award, presented by the Writers' Trust of Canada to an established female writer for her body of work — including novels, short fiction, and creative non-fiction.

Come to her presentation at THIN AIR 2011 and learn more about this famous author…

Marty Chan mixes fact and fable

I haven’t read a play in its entirety since high school, so I didn’t know what to expect when I picked up The Forbidden Phoenix by Marty Chan.

As I began reading, memories of the plays I had read in the past began to dance through my brain. Twelfth Night, A Midsummer’s Night Dream and Romeo & Juliet had been my favourites, and suddenly I remembered...

Reading a play is actually quite fun.

The Forbidden Phoenix tells the tale of Sun Wukong, a man desperate to feed both his son and the drought-ravaged city of Jung Guo. Instead of being granted assistance by the Dowager Empress – the ruler of the land – Wukong is banished to the west where he faced opposition, hardship and heartless creatures.

The play is an allegory that combines a Chinese children’s fable with the real-life tragedy of early Chinese immigrants who came to Canada to help build the railroad. Throughout The Forbidden Phoenix, readers will encounter numerous references to the struggles the builders faced, including the danger of blasting through the Rocky Mountains.

Marty Chan is no stranger to writing, and in addition to The Forbidden Phoenix he had published a number of plays and children’s novels. He has also been producer, writer, director and talent for both television and radio. (For a full list of Chan’s credentials – which are much too extensive to list – click here).

Overall, The Forbidden Phoenix is an entertaining and comical read with a powerful message the reader won’t soon forget. Chan has combined fact and fable together in a way that is both effective and powerful. The Forbidden Phoenix is definitely worth reading and I highly recommend it, whether you’re skeptical about reading plays or not.

If you would like to check out Chan’s person website, click here. You can also check him out on Facebook here. 

Haven't you heard of Guy?

It is impossible to make a list of important and influential Canadian writers without including the name Guy Vanderhaeghe. He has over 75,000 hits on Google, and has written many fantastic novels.

One of his novels – The Englishman’s Boy – was made into a five-part miniseries and aired on CBC. With a list of credentials like that, we’re very lucky to have him at THIN AIR 2011.

Vanderhaeghe’s newest novel – A Good Man – is yet another display of his immense talent. Here is what it’s about:

Wesley Case, a former soldier and son of a lumber baron, seems unable to find his destiny or escape history. Unresolved anger lingers following the American Civil War; conflict with aboriginal peoples creates tension between the US and Canada; and even Case’s newfound love for the beautiful widow, Ada Tarr, inflames the jealousy of a quiet, but deeply disturbed, Michael Dunne—part paid thug, part psychopath.

Case’s confession of love also forces a confession of another kind; the revelation of an incident in his military career that resulted in his split with his family, his finance, and the end of his life in the East. At the same time, simmering resentments, political and personal, explode in a spectacular confrontation between native peoples and the American government as well as a violent resolution of Dunne’s plan for revenge against Case as he ever more feverishly imagines himself a contender for Ada Tarr’s affections.

The novel concludes with a scene of pastoral harmony—a metaphor for a new order and the final passing of the lawless individualism of the old West.

A Good Man is a large novel, but don’t let its size dissuade you. It is an interesting and gripping page-turner that you won’t want to put down, and each new chapter introduces new characters, historic scenes and emotional turmoil that will keep you hooked until the very last pages. It’s worth spending time reading, and so are Vanderhaeghe’s other titles. 

Could the Internet take over the world?

Everyone knows that the Internet is a vast network of information. It connects people to each other, and is designed to make everything in our world easier and more accessible.

But, if the Internet were to be controlled by one person, place or thing, what would happen to the world as we know it?

In Robert J. Sawyer’s most recent novel – Wonder – an all-seeing, all-knowing program named Webmind has the ability to monitor, influence and interact with every aspect of the Internet simultaneously. Through Webmind’s Twitter account, email address, website and instant messaging systems – all of which he set up himself – he can literally control every single thing that is on the Internet.

A pretty scary concept when you really think about it…

Wonder is the final novel in a three-part series about Webmind. The creator of the program is a 16-year-old formerly blind girl named Caitlin. She desperately wants Webmind to continue to exist, even when the US Government makes it clear they will do anything possible to destroy her invention.

Look for this book and buy it. TRUST me, it's worth it!

At the heart of the novel is one, important question: Could the Internet take over the world if it becomes too powerful? It is a question that seems terrifying to consider, but one that becomes very real after reading Wonder.

Science fiction writer and futurist Robert J. Sawyer has been interviewed over 250 times on radio, over 250 times on television, and countless times in print. He lives in Mississauga, Ontario.

Yep, this guy is going to be awesome...

Sawyer is one of only seven writers in history — and the only Canadian — to win all three of the world's top Science Fiction awards for best novel of the year: the Hugo, the Nebula, and the John W. Campbell Memorial Award.

Follow Sawyer’s blog by clicking here, and don’t forget to follow him on both Twitter and Facebook. We’re proud to have him at THIN AIR 2011, and can’t wait to hear what we know will be an entertaining presentation!

THIN AIR streeter: Pam Stewart

When you first move to the neighbourhood, the grounds of the Winnipeg Legislature are as good as any place to spend a Sunday afternoon.

For her first time visiting the area, Pam Stewart brought a notebook, pen, camera, lunch and Half Asleep in Frog Pajamas by Tom Robbins from the library.

What is the book about?

"I just started reading it, and right now it is about a stock market crash."

What made you choose this book?

"The author was recommended to me by a few people."

Would you recommend it?

"Even though I am not far into it yet, I would simply because of the absurd language."

What is your favourite genre to read?

Searching for the right word to describe it, Pam said her favourite genre of literature would be the equivalent to drama. She thoroughly enjoys books written by women, especially when female authors write about human relationships.

A shot of Pam enjoying her book.

"I usually stick to female writers because I want to read something I can relate to,” she explained. “I wouldn't normally read a book written by a dude, but this book has a female lead."

Why do you love to read?

"It gives me ideas as a writer," said Pam, who writes short fiction and has studied creative writing.

A new THIN AIR streeter takes place right on the streets of Winnipeg every week. Next time, we could be walking up to YOU and asking questions about your book selections. Be ready!

- Laura Kunzelman

‘Irma Voth’ by Miriam Toews

For anyone who is a fan of Miriam Toews’ writing – and even for those who haven’t read her before – Irma Voth is a novel that is worth purchasing, reading and keeping on the bookshelf.

Set in Mexico in a small Mennonite community, 18-year-old Irma Voth has just married a Mexican boy despite protests from her family. Their union might have resulted in a happy ending, except a year later he leaves her alone and without an income.

Just when things seem impossible, a film crew arrives in Irma’s community. Suddenly finding herself immersed in a modern world that is both foreign and forbidden, Irma’s life completely changes.

Irma Voth is Miriam Toews sixth book, and it is filled with both emotion and humour that keeps the reader engaged and invested in the main characters. Toews was born and raised as a Mennonite in Steinbach, and her knowledge and experiences make Irma’s character very realistic.

Toews 2004 novel – A Complicated Kindness – was her breakthrough title. It spent over a year on the Canadian bestsellers list, and won the Governor General's Award for English Fiction.

The novel, about a teenage girl who longs to escape her small Russian Mennonite town and hang out with Lou Reed in the slums of New York City, was also nominated for the Giller Prize and was the winning title in the 2006 edition of Canada Reads.

THIN AIR 2011 is very proud to have Miriam Toews at the festival this year.

If you would like to follow her on Twitter, click here. 

THIN AIR streeter: Jennesa Dyck

I saw Jennesa Dyck swing dancing with a bunch of friends at the outdoor stage in the Exchange District at the Winnipeg Jazz Festival earlier this summer. I approached her, we began talking, and our topic of conversation often circled around both books and reading.

What are you currently reading?

“Right now I'm reading four books. Well, I've started four books, at least. I'm not sure that I can claim to be currently reading all of them – it seems that I don't have as much free time for reading as I would like.

I'm halfway through Jean M. Auel's latest addition to the 'Earth's Children' series - The Land of Painted Caves. I didn't even know it had come out (or that she was working on it), but I happened to see it in McNally Robinson one day and so I bought it. I already own the rest of the books in the series, and the second one - Valley of Horses - is very probably my favourite book.

Auel should, however, have quit after Plains of Passage – the fourth book – because the one after that isn't very good and this one is even worse. I love these characters, but now the story line seems so dull and forced. It's as though she has taken too much interest in the history of the area, which is certainly fascinating, but it has completely overshadowed any semblance of a serviceable plot line or any interest in character development. Perhaps that's why I haven't gotten any further.

I'm also reading Jared Diamond's Guns, Germs, and Steel, but I haven't yet made it past the prologue. This one came at the very strong recommendation of a friend. He swears it's brilliant, but I'm reserving judgment for a time when I've read more than twenty-two pages of it.

The last two are both by Joel Nickel: The Shadow in the Darkness and Ouroboros. I'm reading both of them not only out of interest in the stories but also because I was asked to edit them. So far, so good, but it's difficult to get into a story when you're watching for grammatical errors and taking time to write comments in the margins before jumping back in. I will once again reserve judgment until I've had a chance to read them all the way through (without having to edit as I go).”

What is your preferred genre? 

“I think that my favourite genre is probably fantasy (followed closely by historical fiction). This is most likely because I use reading as a means of escape from reality. I never read for pleasure during the school year (if I did, I'd never get any work done), so when I start reading in the summer I want it to be a relaxing experience.

I read when I want to wind down before bed, or when I want to spend an entire day just doing nothing – it's a way to turn my brain off and just enjoy existence without great effort.

With fantasy, I can just let the story take me away and let the characters do all of the work – it's effortless pleasure, and that's what I like best about it.”

A new THIN AIR streeter takes place right on the streets of Winnipeg every week. Next time, we could be walking up to YOU and asking questions about your book selections. Be ready!

- Joel Nickel