Tag Archives: Canadian

Flesh by David Szalay

Posted by Kate W in Fiction and tagged with , , , , , ,

What did I miss in David Szalay’s Booker Prize winning novel, Flesh?

I was engaged – the story moved along at a good pace with enough happening to keep me interested. The writing was fine – consistent, accessible, and well-developed characters.

And yet… there was nothing about this book that blew me away. Is it unreasonable to expect something of the ‘breathtaking’ variety when we’re talking Booker Prize winners? Or, if not breathtaking, then something that is arresting, dividing readers into one-star or five-star reviews? (I like books that illicit strong opinions either way.) Continue reading →

In Cars: On Diana by Leanne Shapton

Posted by Kate W in Non-fiction and tagged with , , , , , , , , ,

I think about Leanne Shapton’s 2012 memoir, Swimming Studies, often. I  sometimes wonder if I ought to drop Leanne an email to tell her what a deep impression Swimming Studies left on me… in fact I will. *adds to to-do list*

Like Swimming Studies, In Cars: On Diana, is an interesting blend of art and prose. Described as a ‘visual essay’, Shapton focuses on Princess Diana getting out of cars. Stepping out of the car highlights a transitional space – moving from the privacy and safety of the vehicle to being on show, where her identity was fought over, flash bulbs popped, she was scrutinised and criticised, ‘on duty’.

Diana stepping out of a car,
cab and curb. Concealment and exposure. Continue reading →

Literary Wives Club: Recipe for a Perfect Wife by Karma Brown

Posted by Kate W in Fiction and tagged with , , , , , , , ,

Years ago, I saw a play performed by Melbourne Theatre Company called Home, I’m Darling. It begins with a 1950s couple – him returning from a tiring day at work, her waiting with his slippers and the newspaper. Except that it’s not the 1950s. It’s a ‘modern’ couple who play at husband and wife from the fifties. Was life ‘better’ then, when roles and expectations were clearly defined? This is what the play examined, as the couples’ life butted against that of their ‘modern’ friends.

I was thinking about the play as I read Recipe for a Perfect Wife by Karma Brown. Continue reading →

The Book of Malcolm by Fraser Sutherland

Posted by Kate W in Non-fiction and tagged with , , , , , , , ,

Canadian poet, Fraser Sutherland, documented his son’s life with schizophrenia and his sudden death in a posthumous memoir, The Book of Malcolm.

…every day that week was difficult; each had the potential to be the hardest yet.

Sutherland’s memoir is divided into three parts – the first tells of the weeks following Malcolm’s death; the second is a chronological account of Malcolm’s life, including Sutherland’s recollection of memorable family moments; and the third describes Malcolm’s diagnosis with schizophrenia and his subsequent experience of the mental health system in Canada. Continue reading →

Sample Saturday – a bar, lies, and a crime

Posted by Kate W in Fiction, Stuff and Nonsense and tagged with , , , , , , ,

Sample Saturday is when I wade through the eleventy billion samples I have downloaded on my Kindle. I’m slowly chipping away and deciding whether it’s buy or bye.

This week, the three samples that have been on my Kindle the longest (so, no idea why I have them). Continue reading →