Steven Langdon's Blog: The Write Stuff - Posts Tagged "novels"
Ten from 2011
Last year left vivid book memories for me -- here are 10 great reads that stick strongly in my mind:
1) Cat's Table, by Michael Ondaatje -- maybe the best novel I read during the year;
2) Half-Blood Blues, by Esi Edugyan -- the deserving Giller Prize winner, my favourite novel;
3) State of Wonder, by Ann Patchett, an imaginative environmental drama far up the Amazon in Brazil;
4) Room, by Emma Donoghue, a harrowing, fierce novel of kidnapped childhood in a single room;
5) Cutting for Stone, by Abraham Verghese, evocative, emotional novel of Ethiopian childhood and immigration to America
6) The Witch of Babylon, by Dorothy McIntosh, best mystery/thriller of the year, with fine insights into the devastation inflicted in Iraq
7) Sanctuary Line, by Jane Urquhart, deeply contemplative story of family, passion, pain and death set in the Essex County I love
8) Native Speaker, by Chang-Rae Lee, his superb first novel, exploring the hubris of a Korean political boss in immigrant New York
9) The Water Man's Daughter, by Emma Ruby-Sachs, a fine first novel set in South African slums, with a probing take on the politics of water
10) Some Great Thing, by Lawrence Hill, his first novel (from 1992,) a hard-edged portrayal of being black in Winnipeg amidst tough political conflicts.
1) Cat's Table, by Michael Ondaatje -- maybe the best novel I read during the year;
2) Half-Blood Blues, by Esi Edugyan -- the deserving Giller Prize winner, my favourite novel;
3) State of Wonder, by Ann Patchett, an imaginative environmental drama far up the Amazon in Brazil;
4) Room, by Emma Donoghue, a harrowing, fierce novel of kidnapped childhood in a single room;
5) Cutting for Stone, by Abraham Verghese, evocative, emotional novel of Ethiopian childhood and immigration to America
6) The Witch of Babylon, by Dorothy McIntosh, best mystery/thriller of the year, with fine insights into the devastation inflicted in Iraq
7) Sanctuary Line, by Jane Urquhart, deeply contemplative story of family, passion, pain and death set in the Essex County I love
8) Native Speaker, by Chang-Rae Lee, his superb first novel, exploring the hubris of a Korean political boss in immigrant New York
9) The Water Man's Daughter, by Emma Ruby-Sachs, a fine first novel set in South African slums, with a probing take on the politics of water
10) Some Great Thing, by Lawrence Hill, his first novel (from 1992,) a hard-edged portrayal of being black in Winnipeg amidst tough political conflicts.
Six for Summer, 2012:
Here are six recent books for summer reading . . .
1. "Ru," by Kim Thuy -- a multi-layered rumination on the life of a 10 year old Vietnamese refugee who escapes to bewildering small-town Quebec, then later returns to Vietnam as a UN official. Beautiful lyrical writing, with sharp, hard insights that snap out to slap your face. Essentially a memoir, starkly honest, "Ru" shows us Vietnam from the perspective of its own people.
2. "Why Men Lie," by Linden MacIntyre -- captures well the texture of downtown Toronto and of insular Cape Breton Island, as it explores the way violence and deceit can disintegrate people’s lives. MacIntyre is brave to try to write from the point of view of Effie, the central woman figure. The novel follows from two earlier books that involve some of the same characters -- and has a depth and complexity that such a trilogy permits.
3. "The Headmaster’s Wager," by Vincent Lam -- another brave book set in Vietnam, about a hard-edged Chinese survivor. A novel about human relationships -- between parents and children, between lovers, between close friends -- all in a context where betrayals, deceptions and passions are released brutally by the cruelties of war. Percival Chen, the headmaster, is a victim of his own powerlessness -- but somehow maintains the strength to endure for the sake of his family.
4. "The Witch of Babylon," by D.J. McIntosh -- just out in a new edition, this is a well-paced adventure combining insights into the world of antiquities dealing in New York, and front-line battles over cultural treasures in post-invasion Iraq. McIntosh has done serious research into Mesopotamia for this novel, and the plot is full of twists and turns that will keep you hooked to the end -- and then agitating for the next volume in this planned trilogy. One of five leading Canadian books in sales now!
5. "The Beginner’s Goodbye," by Anne Tyler -- a bitter-sweet tracing of the arc of grief, remembrance and renewal that a flawed but thoughtful man endures when his wife is shockingly killed in a freak accident. Eventually, Aaron’s reaction is to decide Dorothy has returned from the dead -- so that they can work out the underlying tensions in their marriage. A moving and emotional book, written with a verve that keeps it lively and often humourous.
6. "Out of the Blue," by Jan Wong -- a harshly honest memoir by a noted Canadian journalist on how she was shattered by depression, and overcame her illness despite remarkable abuse by her employer. This is a memoir of courage, and a story of resistance in a world that is growing more vicious. Jan Wong has always written with powerful clarity. She continues to do so, even in recounting how her own life became so clouded and corroded.
1. "Ru," by Kim Thuy -- a multi-layered rumination on the life of a 10 year old Vietnamese refugee who escapes to bewildering small-town Quebec, then later returns to Vietnam as a UN official. Beautiful lyrical writing, with sharp, hard insights that snap out to slap your face. Essentially a memoir, starkly honest, "Ru" shows us Vietnam from the perspective of its own people.
2. "Why Men Lie," by Linden MacIntyre -- captures well the texture of downtown Toronto and of insular Cape Breton Island, as it explores the way violence and deceit can disintegrate people’s lives. MacIntyre is brave to try to write from the point of view of Effie, the central woman figure. The novel follows from two earlier books that involve some of the same characters -- and has a depth and complexity that such a trilogy permits.
3. "The Headmaster’s Wager," by Vincent Lam -- another brave book set in Vietnam, about a hard-edged Chinese survivor. A novel about human relationships -- between parents and children, between lovers, between close friends -- all in a context where betrayals, deceptions and passions are released brutally by the cruelties of war. Percival Chen, the headmaster, is a victim of his own powerlessness -- but somehow maintains the strength to endure for the sake of his family.
4. "The Witch of Babylon," by D.J. McIntosh -- just out in a new edition, this is a well-paced adventure combining insights into the world of antiquities dealing in New York, and front-line battles over cultural treasures in post-invasion Iraq. McIntosh has done serious research into Mesopotamia for this novel, and the plot is full of twists and turns that will keep you hooked to the end -- and then agitating for the next volume in this planned trilogy. One of five leading Canadian books in sales now!
5. "The Beginner’s Goodbye," by Anne Tyler -- a bitter-sweet tracing of the arc of grief, remembrance and renewal that a flawed but thoughtful man endures when his wife is shockingly killed in a freak accident. Eventually, Aaron’s reaction is to decide Dorothy has returned from the dead -- so that they can work out the underlying tensions in their marriage. A moving and emotional book, written with a verve that keeps it lively and often humourous.
6. "Out of the Blue," by Jan Wong -- a harshly honest memoir by a noted Canadian journalist on how she was shattered by depression, and overcame her illness despite remarkable abuse by her employer. This is a memoir of courage, and a story of resistance in a world that is growing more vicious. Jan Wong has always written with powerful clarity. She continues to do so, even in recounting how her own life became so clouded and corroded.
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