I'm asking for more help. Before my trip in July I would like to read some books about or set in the places I'm visiting. If you know of or have read any books set in Toronto, Montreal , Quebec, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia , Newfoundland, or Prince Edward Islands - I would appreciate any recommendations - fiction or nonfiction. (Of course, I know about the Anne of Green Gables books. Dh and I are going to listen to them on our drive.) I also have Shipping News checked out already. There's a real good chance that I won't be finishing all the challenges I've listed on my sidebar, but I think I'll still finish up some of them.
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22 comments:
Hi. I just read An Audience of Chairs by Joan Clark which is set in Nova Scotia. Another good book is The Colony of Unrequited Dreams by Wayne Johnston which is set in Newfoundland.
Krin, Thank-you so much. I'm so excited to visit the Marine Provinces. I lived in Newfoundland for 3 years and 2 of my sisters were born there. The more I learn about Nova Scotia the more I look forward to spending several days there.
Barometer Rising by Hugh Maclennan (1941)
Pussreboots, Thanks for the suggestion. This is what I found - "Hugh MacLennan’s first novel is a compelling romance set against the horrors of wartime and the catastrophic Halifax Explosion of December 6, 1917." I know nothing about that explosion, so this will be another good read where I learn about history.
Oh my golly,booklogged, that is some trip, I am SO envious!!!!!!!
I will have to think of some books for you...one book that I love a lot and read everytime we drive to Montreal is "Sacre Bleus" by Taras Grescoe. It's non-fiction though.
Sorry, booklogged, that should read, "Sacre Blues"
Margaret Atwood's Cat's Eye would be a good one to read. Or Michael Ondaatje's In the Skin of a Lion.
Willa Cather's "Shadows on the Rock" is a great book. It's set in 17th century Quebec. One of the things I remember most about it was the amazing descriptions of town and landscape. Here is a link to "Cather related sites in Montreal and Quebec" as well.
http://cather.unl.edu/community/tours/quebec.html
I really liked Random Passage by Bernice Morgan, a tale about the outbacks of Newfoundland. And Kit's Law by Donna Morrisey is also set in Nfld. Nfld seems to have a lot of fiction written about it.
psst: the Maritime provinces
For something very funny set in Montreal, try Colleen Curran's novels, starting with Something Drastic. The first one is the best of the trilogy; they are light and amusing with a wonderful narrator, Lenore.
Wow... can't believe no one's recommended the novel I felt captured the essence of that part of Canada... The Shipping News.
Still thinking: for Maritimes fiction, try Lesley Choyce, maybe The Republic of Nothing or Sea of Tranquility; for Quebecois literature, try Jacques Poulin's Autumn Rounds.
I was going to say The Shipping News. Naturally, I can't think of any others - yet, but if I do, I'll be back.
I had fun in Montreal, but good gravy. It's wall to wall underground shopping. Miles and miles and miles. I had no idea.
I spent a week in Toronto two summers ago and loved it. I can't wait to go back!
Many of Margaret Atwood's novels are set in Toronto, I recommend The Robber Bride or The Edible Woman.
I don't know if you have young kids but I love The White Stone in the Castle Wall by Sheldon Oberman. It would be great for kids if you intend to visit Casa Loma (which the book is about).
Almost anything by Margaret Atwood. The University of Nebraska Press just put out Because a Fire Was in My Head by Lynn Stegner. It covers some of rural Canada. The bookpage is: http://www.nebraskapress.unl.edu/bookinfo/5201.html
Have fun in the great white north!
Hi again, booklogged!
I know you asked for book recommendations, but if you and Mike are movie buffs you might want to see the recently released "Away From Her" a movie that was almost entirely shot in Ontario. It was made by a young Canadian film maker called Sarah Polley.
For NS reads,
Helen Creighton, a NS folklorist, wrote a few books in the 50's.
My Grandfather's Cape Breton- a boy remembers visting his Acadian Grandfather in the 60's.
Anything by Alistair MacLeod.
For history related stuff in Cape Breton, check out http://www.capebretonbooks.com/
or NS-
http://www.nimbus.ns.ca/books.html
If you want any suggestions of good used bookstores in Montreal, let me know - there's quite a few.
Hi. You could try Kamouraska by Anne Hebert. It takes place in the small town of kamouraska, Quebec. It was originally written in French (which I read in school), but I picked up the English version a couple of years ago in a used bookstore in Montreal. It's a little choppy in English, but still not bad.
I would also suggest Random Passage, and Cape Random by Bernice Morgan. Fall on Your Knees is set in Nova Scotia, but not quite a good 'vacation' novel. And, also mentioned, most books by Margaret Atwood.
Stop You're Killing Me listed a mystery writer this month whose books are set in Nova Scotia, Anne Emery.
"Hugh MacLennan’s first novel is a compelling romance set against the horrors of wartime and the catastrophic Halifax Explosion of December 6, 1917." That's the book.
I know you're looking for east coast books but if you want to expand to west coast Canada, The Forest Lover by Susan Vreeland is very good.
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