A haunting portrayal of the gentrification of Toronto’s Chinatown-Kensington Market, told from the viewpoint of an elderly Chinese-Canadian woman, Wang Cho Sum. After the heartbreaking death of her husband in a hit-and-run accident, Cho Sum copes with grief by collecting recyclables. Loss is everywhere: shops closing, loss of the Toisan dialect. How can you build a new life when elders are dismissed and discarded? The moving prose is accompanied by beautifully-rendered black-and-white drawings by David Innes. This book should be a powerful contender for Canada Reads, championed by Naheed Nenshi.
Category: Book themes
Roaming – Jillian and Mariko Tamaki
The Tamaki cousins have created a brilliant graphic novel about 5 days in New York city in 2009, experienced by three 19-year-old Canadian women. Initial euphoria is tempered by reality as friendships are tested. Overall, an immersive slice-of-life, in part a love letter to a great city. This book was a chance discovery at the October Word Fest, a true find.
Superfan – How Pop Culture Broke My Heart – Jen Sookfong Lee
A non-linear memoir of Ms. Lee’s search for a Chinese-Canadian identity, where pop culture (Anne of Green Gables, Bob Ross, etc.) is used as an escape from her fractious family life and as a means of fitting in. She has provided a candid account of her struggles and failures; her insights are tender, often hilarious and always profound.
Starling House – Alix E. Harrow
This is an excellent modern gothic fantasy. There is a spooky mansion that may be sentient. Can dreams and nightmares create monsters? What constitutes bad luck? Opal is a 26-year-old survivor who is fighting to create better future opportunities for her younger brother. And finally, the Kentucky setting provides a sinister background to a tale of worlds within worlds. Highly recommended.
Moon of the Turning Leaves – Waubgeshig Rice
In this sequel to the excellent Moon of the Crusted Snow, 12 years have passed since a mysterious cataclysm produced a total blackout. Now, six Indigenous members of a remote northern community journey 500 km south to their original location on the north shore of Georgian Bay. How will anarchy shape their journey? This is a compelling story of resilience and survival that is reminiscent of Cormac McCarthy’s brilliant account of a post-apocalyptic journey in The Road. Highly recommended.
The Spoon Stealer – Lesley Crewe
Be advised: this is an emotional tear-jerker so have tissues nearby, especially for the end of the story. The book is presented in two parts. In 1968, 74-year-old Emmaline reads her poignant life story to a group of English women as part of a memoir-writing class. In the second half, Emmaline returns to Nova Scotia to confront her fractured family. Her personality is a fascinating blend of brassiness and abrasiveness, but also generosity. The core of the story, however, is friendship between women.
Britt-Marie Was Here – Fredrik Backman
Britt-Amarie is a 63-year-old who leaves her husband to take a temporary job in a small town, in an attempt to (re)gain some self-esteem. She is a somewhat odd character (think of A Man Called Ove, also by Backman), told that she is passive-aggressive and socially incompetent. What kind of impact can she make in a town of fellow misfits? Backman’s insight into human nature is profound, making this such an enjoyable read. Thans Amy, for giving me this book.
Tom Lake – Ann Patchett
Simply put, this is another great novel by Ms. Patchett (her 9th). Lara (age 57) and her three adult daughters are picking cherries at their Michigan orchard. During this time together, Lara shares details from when she spent 4 months at a summer stock theater, specifically about an intense relationship with another actor when she was 24. At its core, this is an insightful relationship story between parents and children, and offers a gentle meditation on youthful love in contrast to married love, and the life parents led before they had children. What do we reveal to our children at different ages and maturity, and what, if anything, is withheld? Fabulous story telling, highly recommended.
The Future – Catherine Leroux
A superb depiction of an alternative dystopian story for Detroit, with urban decay and ecological disasters. In particular, feral children leave their homes to live wild in a park. Gloria arrives after the death of her daughter (an unsolved murder) to search for her two missing grand-daughters. What follows is a brilliant portrayal of family resilience. This book should be a powerful contender in the upcoming Canada Reads competition, championed by the brilliant Heather O’Neill.
What David Read 