Louanne's Cross Canada Adventures
DiskuteraCanadian Fiction/Non-Fiction Reading Challenge
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1L-Anne
This sounds like a wonderful Canadian challenge. I haven't been reading as much Can Lit as I have in the past, so I look forward to revisiting our great Canadian landscape! I'm only posting my reading from 2010 to the present.
NEWFOUNDLAND/LABRADOR
READ The Colony of Unrequited Dreams by Wayne Johnston
NOVA SCOTIA
TBR Fall on Your Knees by Ann-Marie MacDonald
NEW BRUNSWICK ???
PRINCE EDWARD ISLAND ???
QUEBEC
READ Last Night In Montreal by Emily St. John Mandel
READ The Cruellest Month by Louise Penny
ONTARIO
READ The Best Laid Plans by Terry Fallis
READ The Landing by John Ibbitson
READ The High Road by Terry Fallis
TBR Through Black Spruce by Joseph Boyden
TBR Clara Callan by Richard B. Wright
MANITOBA
TBR Children of the Day by Sandra Birdsell
SASKATCHEWAN
TBR Good to a Fault by Marina Endicott
TBR The Last Crossing by Guy Vanderhaeghe ???
TBR Waiting For Joe by Sandra Birdsell
ALBERTA
READ Mrs Mike by Benedict Freedman
TBR: The Last Crossing by Guy Vanderhaeghe ???
BRITISH COLUMBIA
READ The Woefield Poultry Collective by Susan Juby
TBR The Jade Peony
TBR After River
YUKON ???
N.W. TERRITORIES ???
NUNAVUT ???
NEWFOUNDLAND/LABRADOR
READ The Colony of Unrequited Dreams by Wayne Johnston
NOVA SCOTIA
TBR Fall on Your Knees by Ann-Marie MacDonald
NEW BRUNSWICK ???
PRINCE EDWARD ISLAND ???
QUEBEC
READ Last Night In Montreal by Emily St. John Mandel
READ The Cruellest Month by Louise Penny
ONTARIO
READ The Best Laid Plans by Terry Fallis
READ The Landing by John Ibbitson
READ The High Road by Terry Fallis
TBR Through Black Spruce by Joseph Boyden
TBR Clara Callan by Richard B. Wright
MANITOBA
TBR Children of the Day by Sandra Birdsell
SASKATCHEWAN
TBR Good to a Fault by Marina Endicott
TBR The Last Crossing by Guy Vanderhaeghe ???
TBR Waiting For Joe by Sandra Birdsell
ALBERTA
READ Mrs Mike by Benedict Freedman
TBR: The Last Crossing by Guy Vanderhaeghe ???
BRITISH COLUMBIA
READ The Woefield Poultry Collective by Susan Juby
TBR The Jade Peony
TBR After River
YUKON ???
N.W. TERRITORIES ???
NUNAVUT ???
2starfishian
Welcome, Louanne -- looks like you've picked some good books so far.
3RidgewayGirl
I look forward to seeing what you think of these books as you read them.
4L-Anne
Hi starfishian and RidgewayGirl. Thanks for the welcome. I should have read some of these books ages ago.
5mathgirl40
Welcome, Louanne! You have some good choices there.
6L-Anne
Mrs Mike by Benedict Freedman. For Alberta
I LOVED this novel! This is the coming of age story of a young woman from Boston who moves to Northern Alberta in the 1900s and marries a Mountie. I experienced a range of emotions during this book. I was in awe of the majesty and beauty of the Far North, and horrified at the ferocity and harsh nature of that same Northern climate. I was amazed at the strength and pioneering spirit of the people. I was enthralled at the details of the lives of the women, particularly the Native women of that region. I was also sad. Sad when the novel ended. But then most overjoyed to learn that a sequel exists.
This book came out in the 1940s, and I am so happy to have finally read it! It reminded me of Little House on the Prairie, Late Nights on Air, and Susanna Moodie's Roughing it in the Bush all rolled in to one!
7L-Anne
Who knew it would take me this long to get going on my Can Lit for this challenge? Anyway, finally....
I've also picked up Farley Mowat's Lost in the Barrens to read at a later date.
I've also picked up Farley Mowat's Lost in the Barrens to read at a later date.
9L-Anne
Thanks for the recommendation RidgewayGirl. Tisha sounds like the perfect follow-up to the Mrs Mike series. Besides, the weather is so darn hot right now in Southern Ontario that books set in the frigid North suit me just fine!
Have you read the other Mrs Mike novels as well?
Have you read the other Mrs Mike novels as well?
10starfishian
I'm joining the bandwagon -- you've all loved Mr. Mike so much, I'm going to pick up a copy. I really liked Tisha, so Ridgewaygirl has sealed the deal!
11L-Anne
>10 starfishian: Another vote for Tisha! Have to look for that one soon.
It seems funny to me that I generally read a good bit of Canadian material, either by Canadian authors, or at least set in Canada. The moment I decided to do this challenge.....I'm reading Brits, Americans, etc etc. According to LT, the author(s) of Mrs Mike are NOT Canadian though.
My fave Canadian authors read in 2009:
Cellist of Sarajevo by Steven Galloway
Three Day Road by Joseph Boyden
Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen
The Other Side of the Bridge by Mary Lawson
The Day the Falls Stood Still by Cathy Marie Buchanan
Sweetness in the Belly by Camilla Gibb
Coventry by Helen Humphreys
Deafening by Frances Itani
Also liked in 2009:
Late Nights on Air by Elizabeth Hay
Still Life by Louise Penny
Read prior to 2009, and wonderful:
Crow Lake by Mary Lawson
The Book of Negroes by Lawrence Hill (U.S. title: Someone knows my name)
The Birth House by Ami McKay
A Fine Balance by Rohinton Mistry
Random Passage by Bernice Morgan
Lives of the Saints trilogy by Nino Ricci
The English Patient by Michael Ondaatje
Everything by Robertson Davies
It seems funny to me that I generally read a good bit of Canadian material, either by Canadian authors, or at least set in Canada. The moment I decided to do this challenge.....I'm reading Brits, Americans, etc etc. According to LT, the author(s) of Mrs Mike are NOT Canadian though.
My fave Canadian authors read in 2009:
Cellist of Sarajevo by Steven Galloway
Three Day Road by Joseph Boyden
Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen
The Other Side of the Bridge by Mary Lawson
The Day the Falls Stood Still by Cathy Marie Buchanan
Sweetness in the Belly by Camilla Gibb
Coventry by Helen Humphreys
Deafening by Frances Itani
Also liked in 2009:
Late Nights on Air by Elizabeth Hay
Still Life by Louise Penny
Read prior to 2009, and wonderful:
Crow Lake by Mary Lawson
The Book of Negroes by Lawrence Hill (U.S. title: Someone knows my name)
The Birth House by Ami McKay
A Fine Balance by Rohinton Mistry
Random Passage by Bernice Morgan
Lives of the Saints trilogy by Nino Ricci
The English Patient by Michael Ondaatje
Everything by Robertson Davies
12L-Anne
The Colony of Unrequited Dreams by Wayne Johnston
I started reading this and although I was loving it, I had to set it aside due to lack of time. I plan to pick it up again very soon....
13L-Anne
The Landing by John Ibbitson. For Ontario
Winner - Governor General's Literary Awards- Children's Lit
This was a short little YA book about a teen who feels trapped by circumstances in Ontario cottage country (Muskoka) during the Depression. He plays the violin, and music is the joy that feeds his soul, as he and his family try to make ends meet catering to the needs of wealthy cottagers. A nice book to curl up with in a hammock on a summer afternoon.
14vancouverdeb
Just thought I would come and say hi! I just started the Cross Canada Reading Challenge about 2 months ago. I'm really enjoying it! We have a number of Canadian reads in common!I included some of my 2009 reads in my challenge.
16L-Anne
>14 vancouverdeb: Hi vancouverdeb and
>15 Bcteagirl: Hi Bcteagirl
I had planned to properly update this thread/challenge after I added the pics yesterday. I am currently reading The Colony of Unrequited Dreams for Newfoundland. It is FANTASTIC!!!
The Landing by John Ibbitson is a YA novel I read during the summer. It fits the Ontario challenge, as it takes place in cottage country Muskoka during the Depression years. I'll probably end up with many Ontario books as I progress through this challenge.
Will have to find your threads for other suggestions.
>15 Bcteagirl: Hi Bcteagirl
I had planned to properly update this thread/challenge after I added the pics yesterday. I am currently reading The Colony of Unrequited Dreams for Newfoundland. It is FANTASTIC!!!
The Landing by John Ibbitson is a YA novel I read during the summer. It fits the Ontario challenge, as it takes place in cottage country Muskoka during the Depression years. I'll probably end up with many Ontario books as I progress through this challenge.
Will have to find your threads for other suggestions.
17L-Anne
Finally updating this thread! I am about to begin Unless by Carol Shields so I can finish it before Canada Reads begins. I also plan to get back to The Colony of Unrequited Dreams which I had to set aside due to lack of time.
18Bcteagirl
Sounds like a good plan! I need to try again at starting The Birth House for Canada Reads. During the holidays for some reason I had no interest whatsoever in the book :P
19L-Anne
Last Night In Montreal by Emily St. John Mandel. For Quebec
Lovely and beautifully written debut novel created around flawed but realistic characters. Each character has a marked obsession, and the author skillfully weaves their stories together into a brilliant tale about compulsive travel, words and language, memories, love and family. It's about finding your place in the world. Or sadly, not finding it.
I had many fave passages, but this one using ice skating as a metaphor for life, stood out for me:
"...you can skate over the surface of the world for your entire life, visiting, leaving, without ever really falling through. But you can't do that, it isn't good enough. You have to be able to fall through. You have to be able to sink, to immerse yourself. You can't just skate over the surface and visit and leave."
As a Canadian, I found the following quote to be quite hilarious.
It's a comment about graffiti on a wall that says: "Montreal en francais: 101 ou 401." One character explains the graffiti to another, saying "Bill 101 was one of the laws that specifically restricts the use of the English language. The 401 was the highway out of the city." Speak French or get out.
20L-Anne
>18 Bcteagirl: Hi Janice! I read The Birth House some time ago, and then re-read it with my book club. It was a favourite! I'm happy to see it on the Canada Reads list. I've reserved The Best Laid Plans as well at the library, but I'm not sure about Essex County.
21Bcteagirl
I am glad to hear that you enjoyed it! I picked up Last night in Montreal this summer when I was in Montreal, so hoping to get to that soon. So many books, so little time :p
22L-Anne
>21 Bcteagirl: Last Night in Montreal was very good. The author was born in B.C. and lived in Montreal at one time, but now lives in the U.S. It's a fast read, but I found many lovely passages that I wanted to re-read...slowly. Hope you like it too.
23VivienneR
>19 L-Anne:, 21, 22: I loved Last Night in Montreal. Beautiful writing; wonderful story. It's a reminder that behind every story is another one.
24L-Anne
>23 VivienneR: Hi VivienneR! Yes! The writing is superb. Another favourite passage of mine:
"His only part in the story: to observe and remember the chain of events. Not all of us will be cast in the greatest dramas; someone has to remember them. Or perhaps it's just this: memory is too unreliable to entrust a story to the hero alone. Someone else has to have observed the chain of events to lend credibility; if no one else remembers your story, how are you to prove that it was real?"
"His only part in the story: to observe and remember the chain of events. Not all of us will be cast in the greatest dramas; someone has to remember them. Or perhaps it's just this: memory is too unreliable to entrust a story to the hero alone. Someone else has to have observed the chain of events to lend credibility; if no one else remembers your story, how are you to prove that it was real?"
25L-Anne
3. The Colony of Unrequited Dreams by Wayne Johnston for Newfoundland
(Copied from my 50-book challenge thread)
I thoroughly enjoyed Colony of Unrequited Dreams. I loved the way Johnston brought alive the harsh beauty of Newfoundland, and the way he described Joe Smallwood's determination to make something of himself despite his humble beginnings. Johnston captures life in Newfoundland from the early 1900s through to Confederation: the fishing outposts, railway travel, politics, the newspaper industry - he covers it all! And no East Coast material would be complete without mentioning the unceasing generosity and kind hospitality of the people, and the powerful majestic landscape!
I found many meaningful quotes and passages, but one that I believe nicely sums up the main character was when Joe remarks, "It seemed to me that unless I did something that historians thought was worth recording, it would be as if I had never lived..."
27thornton37814
I'm really glad to hear you enjoyed The Colony of Unrequited Dreams because it is the book I have in my stash for Newfoundland.
28L-Anne
>26 Bcteagirl: and >27 thornton37814: It was a very good read!