Tag Archives: Sarah Purdy

Reviews

Canuck Book Reviews- Irma Voth

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There are several cover variants for Toews novel, but we like this one.

Miriam Toews’ Irma Voth follows the trials and tribulations of a rebellious, yet eager to please, 19 year old young woman from a strict Mennonite community near Chihuahua. The story begins with Irma recalling the failure of her marriage to local Mexican man. Irma provides the reader with a brief glimpse into her past while she pines over her botched marriage. Her family’s mysterious and seemingly unexplained relocation from the Canadian prairies and her father’s disapproval and disownment over her marriage are vaguely addressed. The story, told by Irma, weaves her past with her present in an effort to understand her situation and the situation of those around her. In her attempt to reason and understand her surroundings, Irma reveals what she knows and what she longs to understand.

As Irma guides the reader through her interactions with the family and community that has cast her aside, the reader catches a glimpse into her very foreign and complex world. As the story unfolds, different characters are exposed. Irma’s younger sister, the 13-year-old Aggie, sees her older sister’s life as an adventure and longs to follow in her footsteps—however resistant Irma may be to this. Aggie’s innocence seems to mirror what Irma has lost in her recent actions and through her actions, the reader can understand the difficulty facing Irma: protecting her sister vs. letting her find her own way, no matter what mistakes she may possibly make. The reader cannot help by admire Aggie’s eagerness and lust for life. Irma robustly contrasts this and the reader is left to try to decipher Irma’s motivations.

Miriam Toews was born in 1964 in the Mennonite town of Steinbach,Manitoba. Did you know? Miriam was a CBC freelancer making radio documentaries. photo: Carol Loewen from www.randomhouse.ca

The novel is told through the eyes of Irma. Much of the dialogue and action is driven by Aggie’s character. Irma takes the position as an observant watcher, but through her actions and inner musings, drives the plot and offers the reader a detailed insight into her past. Not until the end does Irma take a long overdue aggressive stand and make bold moves for reasons she feels justified in. With an ending that will resonate with any reader, this novel tells a haunting tale of moral obligations and maturity.

Sarah Purdy is an educator and a book and literary reviewer for The Silo. Search “Sarah Purdy” from our site to read more Canadian book reviews.

Reviews

Canuck Book Review – Linden MacIntyre’s Why Men Lie

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Why Men Lie is the third book in a series that takes place in Nova Scotia’s Cape Breton by Canadian author and journalist Lynden MacIntyre. As a follow up to Giller Prize Winning The Bishop’s Man, this installment of the story follows Effie MacAskill Gillis—a member of the cast in the last two novels in the series.

Effie is an intelligent and accomplished woman. She is a well-respected professor an unnamed university in Toronto. Leads an active social life and has a strong relationship with her adult daughter. However, as reader of the previous two novels will know, Effie has had a rocky past filled with repressed memories that haunt her throughout the book in a series of cloudy flashbacks. As with MacIntyre’s previous two novels, the present is wound fluidly with the past. Effie’s character enhances your understanding of her life and feelings through narrated flashbacks and musings.

Veteran CBC journalist-cum-author Linden MacIntyre

Perhaps what is most remarkable about this novel is that it is written in the female perspective. MacIntyre has been known for many years, both as a journalist and novelist, to have an impeccable ability to tell a story. Throughout reading this novel, the reader will forget that it is, in face, a male author and feel connected with Effie.

If one picks up this novel to see exactly why men lie, they may be disappointed. However, instead of giving the reader an answer, it leads them in the search for truth in Effie’s life and even their own. Sarah Purdy is an avid reader and reviewer of books for The Silo.

Reviews

Canadian Book Reviews The Sentimentalists

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photo: Aaron_McKenzie_Fraser- www.amfraser.com

Johanna Skibsrud’s Giller Prize winning novel, The Sentimentalists, is a journey that sometimes takes place between the lines. Skibsrud’s unnamed narrator takes the reader across time as she tries to reconnect with her troubled past and with her father, which has always been shrouded in secret.

From the beginning, the reader knows little about the narrator. Skibsrud weaves details from the past as she navigates the narrator through a trip back to Casablanca (save yourself some Mapquesting- this is a fictional town CP), Ontario, her hometown. Sparked by recent heartbreak, the narrator travels to Casablanca to spend time with her father in the twilight of his life.

Novels often have multiple cover styles- this one reflects the ‘hidden, not quite visible’ character of the narrator.

In what seems like an attempt to distract herself from her own problems, she devotes herself to finding out some truths about her father’s life before he slips away….forever. The reader never knows much about the narrator. This will be a test for those who like to know about the person who is telling the story. Never named, the narrator releases little information about herself, but a clear and exhaustive picture is painted of her father, Napolean.


[One of the best Woody Allen films- uses an imaginary-advice-giving-fedora-wearing character straight out of Casablanca as a narrative device CP]

Lyrically written, this novel can be a frustrating read at some points. It is full of beautiful passages and poetic imagery. However, at times, the reader may find themselves somewhat lost in the fog of the past and present blending together.

“Lost in the fog of the present and the past….” Lost in the fog – Mount Washington (NH, USA) photo:traveldudes.org

A haunting and promising debut, The Sentimentalists leaves the reader with something to think about. Although difficult at times, it is definitely worth sticking with until the end.

Johanna Skibsrud’s second release is a series of short stories called This Will be Difficult to Explain and Other Stories.  For the Silo, Sarah Purdy.

Reviews

Canadian Book Lullabies For Little Criminals

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“Love is a big and wonderful idea, but life is made up of small things. As a kid, you have nothing to do with the way the world is run; you just have to hurry to catch up with it.”

Heather O’Neill’s first novel, Lullabies for Little Criminals, is a firsthand heartbreaking account of growing up. Told through the eyes of a young girl as she matures, the novel navigates through the perils of maturing in a harsh, and at most times, unforgiving world.

The author of Lullabies for Little Criminals: Heather O’Neil photo courtesy of quillandquire.com

The story revolves around a young girl named Baby. Baby lives a nomadic life with her father, Jules, in urban and rural Quebec. Motherless and often neglected by her drug addicted, yet loving, father, Baby is left to her own devices.

As the story evolves, Baby ages and rapidly enters into young adulthood. Going from carrying around her dolls around in a vinyl suitcase from apartment to apartment to blossoming into an attractive young woman, Baby struggles to understand her place in her small world. Tempted by a dominant male figure when her father begins to distance himself from her, Baby begins to quickly get lost in an adult world she is not ready for.

An alternate cover.

Perhaps one of the most striking elements of this story is O’Neil’s ability to capture and depict the young mind at work. We have all been there—young and confused. Baby epitomizes this perfectly. O’Neil’s writing is full of heartbreaking realizations that, at one time of another, we have all come face to face with.

“From the way people have always talked about your heart being broken, it sort of seemed to be a one-time thing. Mine seemed to break all the time.”

Silo Direct Link to Fictionwriting’s interview with Heather O’Neil

A captivating read that will absorb its reader from the very start, Heather O’Neil’s Lullabies for Little Criminals, is one that will capture your imagination and stir your senses. For the Silo, Sarah Purdy.

Reviews

Canuck Book Review: The Sister’s Brothers

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Patrick DeWitt’s The Sisters Brothers is everything a good western should be. Set during the Gold Rush of the 1850s and littered with gun fights, loose women, saloons and robbery, this novel would easily appeal to any western enthusiast or history buff. However, just buried beneath this classic western narrative, is a story about the power of relationships, family, redemption and self-awareness.
They story is narrated by one of the Sisters brothers, Eli Sister. From the very beginning the reader can tell Eli is more brains than brawn—the introverted, overweight polar opposite of his brother, the notorious and lethal hit man, Charlie. As a duo, they are given the job to kill a man named Hermann Kermit Warm. Their orders are given to them by a man who is only known as Commodore and who only meets with Charlie. Everything the reader knows about the job is second-hand information given by Eli. The lack of information engulfs their mission in a cloak of secrecy and mystery. The reader, along with Eli, is not quite sure why there is a hit on this man, only that there is and the brothers are the ones to execute it. From this point on the brothers travel from Oregon City to San Francisco meeting a variety of noteworthy characters from all backgrounds along the way.

Patrick Dewitt (L) and author Peter Benchley (R) more than a passing resemblance?

The most engaging aspect of this novel is DeWitt’s ability to engage the reader through fast dialogue and deep inner thoughts. Eli serves as a vehicle for the reader to see and understand what is going on in the novel. Although Eli lives a disgusting life full of violence, lust and indignity, his words and thoughts produce a character that is truly human and surprisingly relatable. Eli suffers with feelings of inadequacy when it comes to his relationship with his brother and the line of work they pursue. This inadequacy is subtly mirrored by his relationship with his horse, named Tub, who seems like more of a burden to Eli and the mission than anything else.
Perhaps the most striking theme in this novel is the theme of relationship and family. Eli forms and fosters many relationships throughout the novel—most notably his relationship with Charlie, his brother. Eli’s venerability is exposed through this relationship. At one point, when asked about his relationship with his brother, Eli states, “Our blood is the same, we just use it differently.” A very thought provoking statement gets to the very heart of human nature and relationships. Throughout the novel, Eli’s relationship with Charlie is tested through action and dialogue. As the novel comes to a close, relationships change due to circumstance and the roles they both play in each other’s lives will not be reversed, but destroyed in an unlikely way.
A book wholly deserving of its Scotia Bank Giller Prize Short List nod, Patrick DeWitt’s The Brothers Sisters is a surprising hard edged exploration of what makes us all human at our very core. Book review by Silo contributor Sarah Purdy. Read more from Sarah by searching her name from our homepage. Silo Direct Link to Patrick DeWitt Website  CP

Culture

Douglas Coupland Player One

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As the world teeters on the brink of disaster, four people converge in a Toronto Airport cocktail lounge. As oil prices suddenly approach $300 a barrel, power cuts out, planes stop taking off and cell phone signals die—a self imposed apocalypse sets into motion. As you read, four people come to terms with the situation, and more importantly, each other. Karen, the 40 year old receptionist at a psychiatric clinic who has flown to Toronto to meet a man she met on the Internet; Rick, the recovering alcoholic bartender who eagerly awaits the arrival of an obviously transparent self-help guru; Luke, a pastor, recently turned felon, who has run off with $20 000 from his church renovation fund; and Rachel, a beautiful, young autistic woman with the intention to find a man to be the father of her child.

“Cocktails and laughter—and what will come after?” asks the haunting voice of Player One after the self-narrated character introductions and before the announcement of the skyrocketing gas prices that quickly envelop the world in complete chaos. The novel follows a simple format: each character narrates their version of the same events, over a five hour period, followed by Player One’s omniscient and sometimes mocking narration. The identity of Player One remains a mystery up until the end of the novel where resolution is provided and final comments are made.

Player One is the first fiction selection for the CBC Massey Lecture series. Presented in a series of five, one hour, real-time lectures, Coupland explores what people do, talk about and think about as the world sits on the brink of total disaster. For anyone who has read Coupland, this novel addresses many familiar themes and ideas. Mild drama and in-depth dialogue where topics from humanity to sexuality fill the text of this lecture turned novel.

 

This book, simple in structure, but at times complicated in meaning, provides the reader with a scary dystopian view of what will become of us when a daily staple in most of our lives becomes virtually unavailable. The dialogue can drag on at times and the characters can be a little predictable and melodramatic, but this novel is more about what it leaves you with when you put it down. What would happen if gas became unaffordable? How small would our world actually get? Douglas Coupland will infect your mind with these questions long after you put down the book and forget about the meddling and self-loathing characters.

As Player One haunts the pages of this book, the ideas and inferences you read will haunt your mind every time you indulge in a modern day convenience, such as filling a vehicle up with gas, making this book a worthy read.  For the Silo, Sarah Purdy.

Supplemental:

iTunes link: Massey Lecture with Douglas Coupland