4 amazing novels by Black Canadian Authors and the one I want to read next.

~ Lisa Helm ~ Leave a comment

I took this book (hardcover copy) to Japan with me on a school trip with students. It was so good I didn’t mind waiting for the slow pokes to get ready to board the bus to Kyoto. I was content to perch on my suitcase and read and read and read. It came out as a television miniseries a couple of years ago but I haven’t had a chance to watch it.

Loved loved LOVED this book. Science Fiction isn’t a genre I normally gravitate to but the premise of this novel was incredibly intriguing. Think “Westworld” but deeper, more profound and definitely more beautifully written.

This is a story about adventure and self-discovery. It has the potential to be a strong piece for literary study in High School. As I was reading I kept thinking “ooh I could discuss the use of symbolism here”, and “note the vivid imagery there”. Its themes are deep and meaningful and accessible to most people. 

Washington Black has been one of my favouite books of this year. It is academic without being intimidating and well worth a re-read in the future.

Sooooo good! Imagine the gods (Hermes and Apollo) giving dogs the gift (??) of human intelligence. The ability to understand human beings. Would they be happier than us? Or is it easier to be happy in ignorance. This one won the Giller Prize a few years back. READ IT! Profound and entertaining.

What I WANT to read (just ordered) is Daughters of Silence by Rebecca Fisseha. The Cover is absolutely beautiful and the premise sounds incredible.

The Big Giant Hand

~ Lisa Helm ~ Leave a comment

The older I get, the more difficult it is to sleep in on weekends. I can understand that when you’re really young, the world is a new and astonishing place and you’re little neurons, and dendrites cry out to be developed and elongated (or whatever neurons and dendrites do when they’re being used). As babies, we stood in our cribs and shook the sides with impatience calling out to whatever parental unit will come and release us from the confines of our bumper-padded cell.
So that we can crawl and smell and touch and taste every and any new thing.
Then we get older. And the world calls out for us to use it as our canvas or our stage. And there doesn’t seem like enough daylight hours to build the best fort ever built, or paint enough empty milk cartons with mud (or our own bodies for that matter) and a stick that serves as a painter’s brush.
And we live as though our life was made up a thousand summers to be lived and tweaked and lived again.
Then we get even older, and there doesn’t seem like we can sleep in long enough. No amount can be stockpiled high enough to give us the energy to get out from beneath the covers and bounce into the day unrestrained and unfettered by insecurities and boredom. We want it dark and quiet and tomb-like. A room that is a refuge. We are made hostile by the sound of the vacuum or the clanking of pots and pans and therefore strike out with venomous words to the unsuspecting parent whose task it is to probe and prod the mass of blankets and quilts to see what, or if life exists underneath.
To sleep perchance to dream, of boys and clothes and songs. Imaginings far more enchanting than the teenage existence that exists.
As an adult, I wrestle with feelings of guilt. What won’t be accomplished throughout the day if I stay for long in a state of inertia. It is guilt and anxiety that serve as motivating forces that compel then propel me up and out of bed. I wish for a big giant hand to pin me down. Nothing quite so heavy as to suffocate me or contribute to claustrophobia, but exerting just enough pressure to serve as an excuse not to leave the confines of my quilts. “Well I WOULD get up, but this giant hand is keeping me here. Guess I’ll just have to stay cocooned in my covers…now if I could just reach the novel I” m reading.” But I feel as though I’m running out of time. I have things to do, places to go, and people to see. It no longer feels as though there are endless summers before me.
This Saturday I’m going to try to stay in bed AT LEAST until 8:00 am. I’ll let you know how it goes.

Memory as Metaphor

~ Lisa Helm ~ Leave a comment

Memory is a funny thing.
Multi-metaphorical.


It’s like a tiny alligator. Lurking in shallow water leisurely swimming by moving its tail. You wade tentatively in life, feeling warmth and security. Going further out and away. When suddenly it grabs your ankle in its sharp pointy teeth reminding you it’s there. And then leaving little pointed pricks in your skin.
Prickly, pint points of blood. Distracting reminders.


Or it’s like a shroud that falls over you when you’re going about your business, in the middle of routine. And suddenly a smell or a taste or an image will act the trigger release of a safety catch. Letting drop a black and suffocating shroud. That settles on you for an hour, or a day, or sometimes a week.
Until you’re distracted by an occurrence or
a conversation or
a making-of another memory that will not take its place but rather act as a distraction. Strong enough to put shreds in that shroud.


At times it is like a Tuesday bruise on your knee on Thursday. Not as sore and tender to the touch as the day you received it, but now dark and purple and prominent when you lift your pant leg to view it. Only to cover it up again. Then have it glare at you in the face when you’re in the tub, knees popping up through the bubbles reminding you that you fell.
A small injustice or failure.


And every once in awhile it’s like a little spot of sunshine that moves about a room. You have to consciously see it. Move towards it. Plant yourself in it so that you can have it warm you. If even for a little while.
Like a cat.
Until it’s time to move on and out of the sunshine
and back into the momentum of life.
Only to experience new alligators, shrouds, bruises
and blessed patches of sunshine.

Sin Eater by Megan Campisi

~ Lisa Helm ~ Leave a comment

I went down the Google rabbit hole after I read this novel. I simply had to find out if there were, in fact, Sin Eaters that existed in history. And you know what? There was!

“ A Sin Eater is a person who consumes a ritual meal in order to spiritually take on the sins of a deceased person. The food was believed to absorb the sins of a recently dead person, thus absolving the soul of a person. Sin Eaters as a consequence carried the sins of all the people whose sins they had eaten” (Wikipedia)

I was curious about the title of this book,

and I found the cover striking,

and I found the premise intriguing.

Can you imagine being given the sentence of “ eating in order to absolve others of their sins”?

Specific food for a specific sin.

Dried Raisins for adultery.

Crows meat with plum for slander.

Black pudding for revenge.

I won’t list the gag-inducing foods for the more serious sins.


As a Sin Eater, not only would you be privy to the transgressions of the poor, you would also possess the darkest secrets of the royal court….information that would most surely put your life in jeopardy. And above all else, a Sin Eater only speaks to those with whom she hears confession. Our protagonist May is caught stealing food and thus is sentenced to the life of a Sin Eater, and although she is traumatized by her sentence she does see a wee bit of a silver lining….

at least she won’t die hungry

I really enjoyed this book. This was the kind of book you could start reading on a Saturday morning and be finished by the end of the day and be thoroughly entertained throughout it all.

“It Will Just Be Us” by Jo Kaplan

~ Lisa Helm ~ Leave a comment

It Will Just Be Us

By Jo Kaplan

Well, this book has all the trappings of a good gothic horror story: a creepy house, unsettled spirits, the ability to prophesize, and a madwoman (or is it mad women? You decide). 

Besides being creepy and downright unsettling, it also is a story about nature vs. nurture forcing us to ask ourselves “are we a product of our environment and learn evil, or are we born evil”?  This was a quick and easy read that left me with just the right amount of unsettledness to keep a light on at night. 

Thank you Netgalley for the ARC

The Heart and Other Monsters

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The Heart and Other Monsters by Rose Anderson

In this non-fiction piece, Rose Anderson writes of the death of her younger sister due to a drug overdose. Her sister’s death serves as the focus of this memoir, and around it, Anderson shares her own personal history. The memoir seems to serve as a means of healing for the author. It is a very heart wrenching read as we hear of Anderson’s struggle with dealing with her grief and her attempt to understand why her sister lived such a tragic life.

I read this book in one evening. It was impossible to put down. It is raw and real and very very heart wrenching but at times possessive of poetic language and imagery.

Read it.
It is amazing.

Thank you Netgalley and Bloomsbury for the free ARC

The Transaction

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“The Transaction”

By Guglielmo D’Izzia

This novel makes me want to visit Italy. This novel also makes me NOT want to visit Italy. There are numerous dichotomous images and events in this novel that leave the reader unsettled.

Our protagonist is a man by the name of De Angelis. De Angelis is tasked with visiting a small town in Sicily to broker a real estate deal. Sounds simple? Nope. Whatever could go wrong does. The trip itself is filled with catastrophe with everything from a broken down train where the passengers have to walk in the scorching heat to the nearest town, to being attacked by feral dogs. All of this happens BEFORE De Angelis meets up with the people who have hired him. Not that it matters because these people have been murdered by the mafia on their way to meeting him at the train station. Of course, this crime leads the authorities to suspect our protagonist’s arrival in their town.

On this journey, De Angelis meets with all sorts of people of questionable moral character. De Angelis often struggles with doing “what is right”.

Although at times this novel is humorous, especially in the way our protagonist views the events he experienced, I couldn’ help but feel a sense of dread while I was reading.

This isn’t a long read and it moves at a fast pace. If you like suspenseful and atmospheric novels you will enjoy this one.

Thank you Netgalley and Guernica Editions for this free copy in exchange for an honest review.

 

Flyaway

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Flyaway by Kathleen Jennings

publication date July 28 2020

Thank you Netgalley for the free ARC of Flyaway.

This is such a beautifully written book. The opening chapter vividly and poetically introduces us to the setting creating the atmosphere of a fairytale. For example “ Trees bled resin like rubies, sprouted goitrous nests, suspended cats-cradles of spiderwebs spinning disks of silk”…see, a fairytale.

Like all good fairy tales, Flyaway has a princess Bettina or “Tink” as she is referred to by those who know her best. For years Bettina has lived alone with her mother with her father and her two cruel brothers having disappeared years ago. Tink isn’t exactly sure how and when her father disappeared for that time in her history is rather fuzzy. And her mother doesn’t help her remember, in fact, her there is something odd about Bettina’s mother..she’s hiding something, some truth. 

Life has been going on rather uneventful for Betinna except for the fact she hs to paint over the word “Monsters” graffitied on the fence in their yard, or because most of the townsfolk treat her with disdain and mistrust. 

One day Betinna receives an envelope in the mail. Inside the envelope are old newspaper clippings with “Youths Run amok”, “Damage and Disturbance”, “Destruction of  Peace” which is unsettling enough but what makes the contents of this letter even more threatening is the ominously scrawled handwriting on it saying “You coward Tink”. 

Bettina knows it was one of her long lost brothers who has sent this letter so, with the help of two childhood friends, she goes in search of her brothers in order to finally find out the truth behind her father’s disappearance. 

Interspersed throughout the novel are chapters that are literally written in fairy tale form. These chapters are tale from her family’s past as well as the folklore of the community. 

This is a fairly short novel that packs a tonne of story, not in terms of plot, but rather in terms of theme and character. It deserves to be read slowly, especially the chapters written in fairy tale form. So that you can truly appreciate the style and languages used by the author. In fact, I am tempted to by this novel in hard copy so that I can share some of the beautifully poetic language with my students.  To me, toe story is written a bit like a puzzle with each chapter seeming like an individual piece on its own, but once put together displays an intriguing and elaborate picture.

 

The Night Swim

~ Lisa Helm ~ Leave a comment

The Night Swim by Megan Goldin
Thank you Netgalley and St. Martin’s Press for sending me a free advanced copy of The Night Swim.

This book turned out to be a good distraction during this time of quarantine. It was an easy read and didn’t require a lot of concentration…which is just the only type of book I seem to be able to read lately.
Rachel is reporter, researcher and host of the true-crime podcast “Guilty or Not Guilty” a show that “puts you in the jury box”. On her way to Neopolis, Rachel stops at a truck stop for something to eat. Upon returning to her car, she finds a note written by a young woman by the name of Hannah. In her letter, Hannah asks Rachel to help her find those responsible for her sister’s death. Coincidentally Hannah’s sister was killed in the same town as the rape trial Rachel is covering. Will Rachel be intrigued enough to take this on? Will Rachel have the time to cover two crimes?
Years ago Hannah tragically lost her sister in a “swimming accident”. Her body was found in the water under a pier. Hannah always knew her sister’s death wasn’t an accident and is now after all these years is ready to make those that are responsible pay. Hannah believes True Crime reporter and podcaster Rachel can help her find the killer(s).
Each chapter in this novel is written by alternating perspectives. There are chapters consist of letters written by Hannah that, over the course of the novel, slowly reveal clues about the night her sister was killed. There are Chapters written that follow Rachel’s actions and thoughts, and then there are chapters that are a transcript of Rachel’s podcast.
Besides being an engaging read, Goldin also takes the time to honestly deal with the topic of rape and stresses through the format of podcast transcripts the importance of following facts free of bias.
This was a quick read revolving around a timely topic. It would be a very suitable title for a book club and would offer in-depth discussion. I would also feel comfortable suggesting it as a title for high school students to read.

You can buy The Night Swim August 2020

Ella Minnow Pea

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Ella Minnow Pea by Mark Dunn

This is a charming little story about an imaginary town called Nollop. Nollop is named after Nevin Nollop the gentleman responsible for the phrase “The quick brown fox jumped over the lazy dog”. In fact, there is an impressive statue of Nevin in the middle of the town square upon which this phrase is immortalized.

One day the letter z falls from the statue of Nevin Nollop and the town’s High Council is thrown into a tizzy. Because the letter z no longer exists on the statue the High Council has banned the use of the letter in all writing and correspondence. Although banishment seems somewhat foolish, communication is not severely impeded because let’s face it,  the letter z is not often used in everyday communication. Unfortunately, the letter z isn’t the only letter that falls. Soon the letter y falls and therefore is banned as well. Next, the letter J. Soon all the letters fall from the statue except l, m, n, o, and p.

The entire story is made of up postal letters between various citizens of Nollop with most of the letters being sent and received by our main character Ella. We also meet Tassie, Father Amos, Gwennette, Nate and an assortment of other characters through letters they write and receive.

As the story progresses these letters become more and more creative (and phonetic) in getting their message across. I mean, how can do you successfully communicate using only 5 letters?

However, there is a way around this catastrophe,  the High Council has proclaimed that if a citizen can create another phrase like “the quick brown fox jumped over the lazy dog” that is a maximum length of 32 letters and using every letter of the alphabet they will reinstate the entire alphabet. 

Can the citizens develop such a phrase? Will they be able to 

What a great idea to use in the classroom! Give them a limited amount of letters and tell them they must somehow communicate a message. Or, have them try to write a sentence using every letter of the alphabet in as few letter combinations as possible. 

This is a charming little story that is a lot of fun to read. It also inspires a number of creative activities you can use in a classroom to inspire students to muck about with words.

 

Things in Jars

~ Lisa Helm ~ Leave a comment

Things in Jars by Jess Kidd

I read this novel in a day. And it wasn’t because it was practising social distancing and had nowhere to go and nothing to do (ok, maybe that was a smidge of the reason). But mostly it was the kind of novel where I had to put life on hold and just get it read.

Birdie Devine is our main character, and I wish to high heaven that we will see her again soon in another story. She is brash and quirky, brave and highly intelligent. Birdy is a private detective in Victorian England. She is also a “surgeon” that treats “boils, warts, and extractions”. Birdie has been hired by a Barron to find his daughter, Christabel. The Barron, however, doesn’t offer any clues as to what Christabel looks like or the circumstances surrounding the case, making it difficult for Birdie to solve the case. Why does the Barron only offer scant information? Because his daughter is beyond peculiar. The prologue itself explains how Christabel can trap you in a memory merely by looking you in the eye. She is also creepily described as looking both like “a church angel” and “a corpse among the living”.

There is also a second mystery Birdie has to solve, and this one is my favourite of the two. Birdie is haunted by a ghost. Maybe haunted isn’t the word, rather she is accompanied by a ghost, a boxer by the name of Ruby who helps her in her sleuthing. Ruby loves Birdie and tells her that she knows him but will not tell her how she knows him. Discovering this connection is a mystery she must solve on her own.

     Things in Jars was a perfect read at the perfect time. It transported me away from the anxiety of current events to a place filled with all sorts of wonderfully odd and interesting characters. It is a story that is funny, captivating and just a wee bit gruesome, a perfect combination if you ask me!

Washington Black

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Washington Black by Esi Edugan

(warning…just a wee bit of spoilers but there is SO MUCH MORE then what I’m about to tell you!)

The action of this novel takes us to drastically different locations all over the world: Barbados, Virginia, the Arctic, Nova Scotia, London, Amsterdam, Morocco. Our main character’s name is Washington Black. Washington is eleven years old and a slave living on a sugar plantation, ironically named “Faith”, in Barbados. Brutality and violence are a part of everyday life until one day he is summoned to the Great House to serve at the table of his Master Erasmus Wilde. There he meets Erasmus’s brother Christopher. Christopher (Titch) is a scientist, naturalist, inventor, adventurer and nothing like his brother. Titch is looking for a manservant and Washington seems to be exactly what he is looking for: smart, capable, and because of his size, able to fit into a “Cloud Cutter”. 

Because of certain violent events Titch and Washington are forced to leave the island, and the only way they can do so without getting caught is by using the cloud cutter.

From Barbados, the duo makes their way to Virginia and eventually to the Arctic. Soon Washington finds his way to Nova Scotia where he meets a man and his daughter who become pivotal in helping shape Washington’s life. All the while Washington is haunted by the bounty that has been placed on his head, and the threat of being caught by slave catchers.

This is a story about adventure and self-discovery. It has the potential to be a strong piece for literary study in High School. As I was reading I kept thinking “ooh I could discuss the use of symbolism here”, and “note the vivid imagery there”. Its themes are deep and meaningful and accessible to most people. 

Washington Black has been one of my favouite books of this year. It is academic without being intimidating and well worth a re-read in the future.

The Fact of A Body

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Audiobook the Fact of a Body

Written and Narrated by Alexandria Marzano Lisnevich

I run. My choice of listening when I run consists of a dog’s breakfast of musical choices (everything from monks singing Gregorian Chants to Heavy Metal) and audiobooks. A year ago I had a wonderful season of winter running where I listened to the entire Harry Potter series narrated by Jim Dale. It was a lovely season and so wonderful to revisit Hogwarts. The latest Audiobook I’ve listened to while pounding the pavement (and sometimes breaking snow drifts) is The Fact of A Body by Alexandria Marzano Lisnevich. This is a non-fiction tale of two crimes: one the murder of a young boy by Rickey Langely and the other story about the personal trauma of sexual abuse the author experienced at the hands of her grandfather. Now, this might sound like an awkward juxtaposition of narratives but it works and is impactful. This story is a mesmerizing yet a tough listen. My heart broke for both victims. However because Alexandria herself is recounting such a personal narrative, she brings with her emotion not only word choice but also in intonation. Alexandria’s voice is filled with such sadness and resignation and at times it was difficult for me to listen. And it undoubtedly took my mind off of accumulating those kilometers.

If you’re looking for an audiobook The Fact of a Body is one of the best I’ve listened to both in story and narration.