Once again, the Canada Reads web site gives you everything you’re going to need to know about the recently announced finalist books for Canada Reads 2014, the book defenders, what everyone else thinks about the books and the debaters and what their strategies should be … all ramping up to the actual debates, which will take place in early March, 2014. (The debates are scheduled a little later this year because of the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi, which run from February 7th to 23rd, 2014.)
Between now and March, many of us will be enthusiastically reading and re-reading these fine books in preparation for some lively, heated and surprising discussions. To help everyone get up to speed on the books, we’re offering again a compendium of reviews and articles. (Please note that while most are positive, some are critical and perhaps even provocative. The idea here is to share how others have reacted to the finalist books, in whatever fashion, as long as it’s thoughtfully expressed.) If you have or know of any pieces that should be part of this collection, contact me via @bookgaga or add a comment below to get the relevant link added. Thanks!
Canada Reads Twitter book club
On November 28, 2013, last year’s champion Canada Reads defender Trent McClellan (@Trent_McClellan) will kick off the discussions with a #canlit Twitter chat. CBC Books will host additional weekly Twitter chat to discuss each of the Canada Reads finalist books in the new year.
The Year of the Flood
by Margaret Atwood (@MargaretAtwood)
(McClelland & Stewart)
championed by Stephen Lewis
Reviews and articles:
- Ursula K Le Guin reviews The Year of the Flood by Margaret Atwood in The Guardian
- Jeanette Winterson reviews The Year of the Flood by Margaret Atwood in The New York Times
- James Grainger reviews The Year of the Flood by Margaret Atwood in Quill & Quire
- Robert Charles Wilson reviews The Year of the Flood by Margaret Atwood in Literary Review of Canada
- Allegra Young reviews The Year of the Flood by Margaret Atwood
- Steven W. Beattie reviews The Year of the Flood by Margaret Atwood in Canadian Notes & Queries
- Margrit Talpalaru examines “Extinctathon: Margaret Atwood’s Urge for an Immanent Episteme in Oryx and Crake and The Year of the Flood” in Canada and Beyond: A Journal of Canadian Literary and Cultural Studies
- Trent McClellan considers The Year of the Flood by Margaret Atwood for Canada Reads
- Jeanne Duperreault reviews The Year of the Flood by Margaret Atwood on Goodreads
- Julie D reviews The Year of the Flood by Margaret Atwood
- Rebecca Hansford reviews The Year of the Flood by Margaret Atwood
- Marissa Kanaris reviews the MaddAddam trilogy by Margaret Atwood in the pagesforbreakfast blog
The Orenda
by Joseph Boyden (@JosephBoyden)
(Hamish Hamilton Canada)
championed by Wab Kinew (@WabKinew)
Reviews and articles:
- Kamal Al-Solaylee reviews The Orenda by Joseph Boyden in Quill & Quire
- Donna Bailey Nurse reviews The Orenda by Joseph Boyden in National Post
- Charles Foran reviews The Orenda by Joseph Boyden in The Globe and Mail
- Article about Joseph Boyden and The Orenda by Alexander Varty in Georgia Straight
- RedIndianGirl reviews The Orenda by Joseph Boyden in An Onkwehonwe in Kanata blog
- Michael Bourne reviews The Orenda by Joseph Boyden in The Millions
- David Annand reviews The Orenda by Joseph Boyden in The Telegraph
- Allegra Young reviews The Orenda by Joseph Boyden
- Cheryl Finch reviews The Orenda by Joseph Boyden
- Review of The Orenda by Joseph Boyden in Sukasa Reads blog
- Review of The Orenda by Joseph Boyden in Worn Pages and Ink blog
- Marissa Kanaris reviews The Orenda by Joseph Boyden in the pagesforbreakfast blog
Half-Blood Blues
by Esi Edugyan
(Thomas Allen Publishers)
championed by Donovan Bailey (@DonovanBailey)
Reviews and articles:
- Chris Barton reviews Half-Blood Blues by Esi Edugyan in Los Angeles Times
- Robert J. Wiersema reviews Half-Blood Blues by Esi Edugyan in Quill & Quire
- Christina Vasilevski reviews Half-Blood Blues by Esi Edugyan
- Barbara McVeigh reviews Half-Blood Blues by Esi Edugyan
- Steph Cilia VanderMeulen reviews Half-Blood Blues by Esi Edugyan in Bella’s Bookshelves blog
- Steven W. Beattie reviews Half-Blood Blues by Esi Edugyan in That Shakespearean Rag blog
- Léonicka Valcius reviews Half-Blood Blues by Esi Edugyan in Leonicka.com blog
- Donna Bailey Nurse reviews Half-Blood Blues by Esi Edugyan in The Globe and Mail
- Review of Half-Blood Blues by Esi Edugyan in Worn Pages and Ink blog
- Sue Reynolds reviews Half-Blood Blues by Esi Edugyan
- Julie D reviews Half-Blood Blues by Esi Edugyan
- Allegra Young reviews Half-Blood Blues by Esi Edugyan
- Trent McClellan considers Half-Blood Blues by Esi Edugyan for Canada Reads
Cockroach
by Rawi Hage
(House of Anansi Press)
championed by Samantha Bee (@iamsambee)
Reviews and articles:
- Nicholas Blincoe reviews Cockroach by Rawi Hage in The Telegraph
- James Lasdun reviews Cockroach by Rawi Hage in The Guardian
- Mary Gaitskill reviews Cockroach by Rawi Hage in The New York Times
- Corey Redekop reviews Cockroach by Rawi Hage in the Shelf Monkey blog
- Tamara Palmer Seiler reviews Cockroach by Rawi Hage in Project Muse
- T.F. Rigelhof reviews Cockroach by Rawi Hage in The Globe and Mail
- Boris Fishman reviews Cockroach by Rawi Hage in London Review of Books
- Vicki Thomas considers Cockroach by Rawi Hage in Canada Reads Top 40 Reviewed blog
- Trent McClellan ponders Cockroach by Rawi Hage for Canada Reads
- Marissa Kanaris reviews Cockroach by Rawi Hage in the pagesforbreakfast blog
- Paul Whelan reviews Cockroach by Rawi Hage
Annabel
by Kathleen Winter (@supremetronic)
(House of Anansi Press)
championed by Sarah Gadon (@SarahGadon)
Reviews and articles:
- Vicki Ziegler (c’est moi) reviews Annabel by Kathleen Winter in the bookgaga blog (that’s right here)
- Christine Fischer Guy reviews Annabel by Kathleen Winter in The Globe and Mail
- A. Brown reviews Annabel by Kathleen Winter in The Canadian Book Review
- Stacey D’Erasmo reviews Annabel by Kathleen Winter in The New York Times
- Jeanne Duperreault reviews Annabel by Kathleen Winter in the bookdiscovery blog and interviews Kathleen Winter, too
- Vicki Thomas reviews Annabel by Kathleen Winter in Canada Reads Top 40 Reviewed blog
- Katherine Govier reviews Annabel by Kathleen Winter in National Post
- Natasha Hesch reviews Annabel by Kathleen Winter
- Julie D reviews Annabel by Kathleen Winter
I have also been reviewing the Canada reads contenders amongst my other book reads on my blog http://www.pagesforbreakfast.wordpress.com. I’m not anybody in the business just an ordinary woman who loves reading and has put her two cents out there.
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Thanks for including my review of Annabel by Kathleen Winter, for for letting me know on twitter. It’s good to be part of the discussion. best, Katherine
Thanks so much for including me on your list of reviewers of Annabel. Such a tremendous novel. I’m slowly but surely making my way through the Canada Reads Top 40 list.
I did start reading The Orenda but had to put it down – I’ll be giving it a complete read when I get to it. I’m very much looking forward to reading Cockroach and to rereading The Year of the Flood. Admittedly Half Blood Blues is not a book I would normally choose to read, but thanks to my decision to read all the novels on the Top 40 list, I’ll be reading it.
I’ll have to get my reading done before the Olympics since I have a tendency to become glued to televisions and monitors during the Olympics…
cheers,
vicki
You’re welcome, Vicki. You’ve set an ambitious reading goal, but definitely an interesting one!
I am wondering if there are any reviews of The Orenda written by First Nations reviewers? I have seen a few negative comments about the book on Twitter by members of the First Nations community . e.g @redindiangirl and would like to hear about the book from their perspective.
I’ve found one such review (from @redindiangirl, as you suggested) and invite and will be on the lookout for others.
Thanks for including my review for Half-Blood Blues! Boy, do I love that book. I look forward to following the debates and participating if I can. I also very much enjoyed Annabel, but have to reread The Flood. I don’t have The Orenda or Cockroach yet. (I thought I had bought Cockroach a while ago but I must’ve just dreamed it or something!!)
Steph