Canadian authors
 

Hello everyone,

Whilst on our recce trip the other week travelling through the boonies, we saw a lot of advertising for a book by Brian Horeck called 'Frozen Beneath'. We ended up buying it and I'm currently enjoying reading it.

It occured to me then that I couldn't name any Canadian authors (apart from Brian Horeck) so I wondered if any of you have read any good books by Canadians and if so what were they?

Re: Canadian authors
 

Visiting Hours by Shane Koyczan is a really good poetry book. The guy is extremely talented with words.

Re: Canadian authors
 

Jane Urquhart, Margaret Atwood...........

Re: Canadian authors
 

I thought Margaret Atwood was British, woops! so I did know one then.

Re: Canadian authors
 

Great, coz I love poetry, I'll check him out.

Re: Canadian authors
 

No, you're thinking of Terry Pratchett

Re: Canadian authors
 

Kathy Reichs - The 'Bones' series.


Oops...my mistake. She's American.

But much of her stuff happens in Montreal I think.


Strangely, Brian Horeck is on Amazon.com but the Canadian Amazon doesn't seen to know him by name. :confused:

Re: Canadian authors
 

In that case don't forget Leonard Cohen.

Re: Canadian authors
 

Hi BristolUK,

I haven't read any of her books, is it similar to Patricia d. Cornwell's stuff?

We only found out about Brian Horeck because we saw the adverts on billboards in the middle of nowhere! We stopped at a gas station and asked the lady there about it because they were selling the book there.

Re: Canadian authors
 

Are you trying to be funny about Terry Pratchetts alzheimer battle? :thumbdown:

What Jane Urquart books would you recommend?

Re: Canadian authors
 

Re: Canadian authors
 

Thanks for the list Aviator.

I just wondered if there were any personal reccomendations too?

Re: Canadian authors
 

Anything by Charles Taylor. Which given the tenor and subject of debate on this forum lately might be a good idea for us all.

Re: Canadian authors
 

I like local history.
Nothing Too Good for a Cowboy by Rich Hobson
Gang Ranch - Two versions
This looks like a good read http://www.aviationworld.net/default...f-a-dream.html

Re: Canadian authors
 

Is Anything a good read then?

Re: Canadian authors
 

Very droll.

Try, Multiculturalism: Examining the politics of recognition

Re: Canadian authors
 

Oink, I think that you and I are on 2 different plains here. Anything you write goes over my head and anything I write gets berated or pissed on, you ole intellect!!

Anyway, apart from Multiculturalism books that could be good to read, I strongly feel, that a book on basic manners would stand you in good stead. However, this is a thread on Canadian authors, so maybe just put in your two penneth's worth (like you're gonna anyway) and either contribute and not give us all a telling off and lecture, or 'shut your cakeole' (polite talk from my old multicultural town where I used to live, it means keep quiet).

Re: Canadian authors
 

I've not read PC's books but they sound similar.

The first Kathy Reichs one I read was all in Montreal and it was particularly interesting as I'd been living there at the time and I knew the places her character was at.

The character seems to share time between Canada and America in the books.

Chapters bookstore in Montreal had a Canadian authors section. Maybe they do elsewhere.

Re: Canadian authors
 

I almost have a feeling that I might have raised a smile from you on that one:eek:

Re: Canadian authors
 

I think you misunderstood my intention here. Taylor is a very accessible, clear and interesting writer. And, he's Canadian.

Re: Canadian authors
 

Thanks BristolUK,

I'll defo check her out. It does make it more interesting when you know the places that are mentioned. In the Brian Horeck book he mentions places, lakes etc that we saw and stopped off at on our journey.

Re: Canadian authors
 

Oink,

You do come across as a poor misunderstood soul, well at least you do by me. I will try a lot harder from now on to try and understand you.

Re: Canadian authors
 

Try Linwood Barclay, he's got three murder thrillers out. See http://www.linwoodbarclay.com/news.html. Also Linden McIntyre's new book The Bishop's Man is a good read.

Re: Canadian authors
 

He won't be doing any more writing where he's going. What with trying to buy that naomi campbell with some dodgy diamonds and killing all those people.

Re: Canadian authors
 

But haven't read any of them?? I like her early stuff otherwise it's annoying

Try
Lawrence Hill; Any Known Blood. The book of Negroes

Timothy Findlay; Not Wanted on the Voyage. You Went Away. The Butterfly Plague

Margaret Lawrence: The Stone Angels

Robertson Davies

Wayson Choy: All That Matters

Vincent Lam: Blood Letting an Miraculous Cures

Re: Canadian authors
 

Assuming you mean Margaret Laurence???

Re: Canadian authors
 

If that nice old white guy is on trail in The Hague, who the hell has been teaching at McGill? :eek:

Re: Canadian authors
 

My friend Jackie is an excellent newer Canadian author.

It's pretty "dark" but I do think you'd find her first novel definitely worth a read:

http://www.amazon.ca/Horsemans-Grave.../dp/0002008939

Re: Canadian authors
 

I give you that u.

Re: Canadian authors
 

Thanks for the recommendation Alex, I'll put it on my list to try.

Re: Canadian authors
 

You might want to try Robert Munsch, he's a little quirky but he's probably what you're looking for. Good luck with your Canadian literary adventure.

Re: Canadian authors
 

Yeah, my younger kids really like his stuff. Thanks Oink.

Re: Canadian authors
 

;)

Re: Canadian authors
 

I get the feeling that I may be understanding you a little bit;)

Re: Canadian authors
 

I really enjoyed Three Day Road by Joseph Boyden.

http://www.canlit.ca/reviews.php?id=13918

I'd also go with the Margaret Atwood recommendations.

Another couple of good ones are:

Stanley Park by Timothy Taylor and
The Time in Between by David Bergen

Re: Canadian authors
 

I read any crap (well, at least the first sentence . . .) and include the following as some of my Canlit faves (fic & and n.f.):

Gabrielle Roy - The Tin Flute *[best Canadian novel evah!]
Mordecai Richler - The Apprenticeship of Duddy Kravitz, St. Urbain's Horseman, Solomon Gursky Was Here, Oh Canada! Oh Quebec! Requiem for a Divided Country.
Susanna Moodie - Roughing it in the Bush
Douglas Coupland - Generation X: Tales for an Accelerated Culture, City of Glass
Michel Tremblay - Les Belles-SÅ“urs, Quarante-quatre minutes, quarante-quatre secondes
Hugh MacLennan - Two Solitudes
Michael Ondaatje - In the Skin of a Lion, Running in the Family, The Collected Works of Billy the Kid
Stephen Leacock - Sunshine Sketches of a Little Town
Marie-Claire Blais - La Belle Bete, A Season in the Life of Emmanuel, L'ÃŽle
John Richardson - Wacousta
Naomi Klein - No Logo
Gwynne Dyer - War, With Every Mistake, Climate Wars
Farley Mowat - Lost in the Barrens, Never Cry Wolf,
Marian Engel - Bear
Roch Carrier - The Hockey Sweater
Timothy Findley - The Wars, Elizabeth Rex,

p.s. Can't tolerate anything Margaret Atwood (at least anything after Surfacing). She's the Canadian answer to Jeffrey Archer. Once saw Chuck Palahniuk answer, with a smirk, a question re Atwood something thus: "Who the ʞɔnɟ is Magreet Atwood?"

Re: Canadian authors
 

Google the list of Booker prize nominees in the last few years and you will see that Canadian authors are producing literature that is worthy of respect.

Three that I have enjoyed are Alistair MacLeod, Wayson Choy and Alice Munro.

Re: Canadian authors
 

Robertson Davies is also good.

Re: Canadian authors
 

You just took pretty much all my recommendations. Timothy Findlay in particular - Not Wanted On Voyage is one of SWMBO's favouritest books in the whole wide world ever ever. As for Atwood, of her relatively more recent stuff I quite enjoyed Oryx and Crake and The Blind Assassin.

I'd add Mordecai Richler (Barney's Version, the Jacob Two-Two children's books), Rohinton Mistry (Such a Long Journey, A Fine Balance), Michael Ondaatje (The English Patient, Anil's Ghost) and William Gibson (Neuromancer, The Difference Engine) to that list.

Oh, I see dthomas has beaten me to it, I must actually follow some of his recommendations - I remember some of those authors from a previous CanLit thread and still haven't got round to reading Michel Tremblay, not even in translation :o

Re: Canadian authors
 

Guy Vanderhaeghe is a very good writer from Saskatchewan - which may sound like I'm damning him with faint praise, but I'm not.

I Heard the Owl Call my Name, by Margaret Craven (an American but the story is set on an Indian Reserve in BC) is also good.

W O Mitchell - "Who Has Seen the Wind" is also a Canlit must read.

W P Kinsella can also be added to the list.

I just read the "Book of Negroes" recently (mentioned above) - an excellent and very moving book.

Barbara Gowdy - The White Bone is a very moving novel written through the eyes of an elephant!