Authors

Exploring Zadie Smith 24 years on

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Photo by Jen Bonner on Unsplash

On March 19, 2024 member Sandra E. presented on the works of Zadie Smith, who hit the literary scene running with her debut novel in 2000, written while she was a student. That novel, White Teeth, still resonates with readers in the more polarized political world of 2024. In the years since, Sandra posits that Ms. Smith has continued to explore community and race with truth and humour.

“Reading is an addiction for which there is no cure…” with those words Sandra started her talk. She went on to show how Zadie Smith (a fellow addict) writes books that have a straightforward, often comedic turn but also provide the reader with more if they want it.

Sandra gave a reading from the essay North West London Blues, about the importance of a library to a community, particularly to its children. This is a point that many in our club would second. A reader and writer from an early age, Smith completed her first novel, when she was 21. White Teeth explores the relationships between immigrants, the English, and the children of immigrants in this novel of life in the northwest London community of Kilburn. While this is her background, Ms. Smith has said the book is not about her life.

Next, there was a reading from On Beauty, a novel mirroring Howard’s End set in modern day Massachusetts. E.M. Forster is one of Zadie Smith’s major influences. In this case, she wanted to explore middle class life – a life that she always thought must be different from her own. As it turns out, middle class life has it’s troubles.

NW is a novel told in a different voice in each section. While set in Kilburn, it is a departure from Smith’s previous work. Swingtime, also set in Kilburn explores competitiveness between 2 young women. The Fraud, Zadie Smith’s most recent novel is a fictional retelling of a significant Victorian news story.

Sandra next discussed Feel Free, a book of essays. In it Smith highlights how her love of dance and dancers of all genres has helped her as a writer.

As is often the case, our meeting ran by quickly, with time seeming too short to fully explore Zadie Smith’s novels, essays, podcasts and media interviews. Using readings and quotes from Smith, Sandra showed how Smith is a writer that can be read quickly for fun but upon rereading shows great nuance.

Join us next week when member Katja W. will discuss the works of Canadian author Sheila Heti.

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Marcie R. Rendon- Prairie Gothic Mysteries and More

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Photo S. Mattison

Shawna’s presentation was accompanied by a slideshow, with the first intriguing image being an aged black and white photo. Shawna explained it was taken on her family farm near Richdale, Alberta. We would soon find out its connection to her talk.

While she was suffering Covid’s lingering “brain fog,” Shawna discovered Marcie R. Rendon, an Anishinaabe (Ojibwe) author from the White Earth Nation in Minnesota. Seeking “lighter” reading, Shawna became hooked on mysteries and read at least forty.

Shawna has an affinity for Ms. Rendon’s Cash Blackbear Series (2018- .) Shawna related to the author’s descriptions of farm settings in Minnesota and North Dakota, which seem not unlike Alberta’s. She also related to the 1970s timeframe. A creepy atmosphere, so important to mysteries, can be found in rural landscapes that include lonely and somewhat dilapidated farmhouses, burnt down buildings, and more.

Shawna read some selections which mirrored her own rural experiences – e.g. “She lifted four fingers off the steering wheel in a courtesy wave.” However, many of the Indigenous experiences Ms. Rendon writes about would be outside our knowledge and experience. As one example of the darkness to be discovered in the books, Shawna read a disturbing excerpt describing a child tasked with collecting eggs.

Cash, the 20-year-old Ojibwe protagonist, is sometimes led by visions, and is full of spirit and grit having survived a brutal foster care system. She has fought bigotry as an orphan working hard on a farm, as Indigenous, and as a young woman who is now a truck driver. Cash and the other fascinating, well-developed characters in the novels highlight many important issues Indigenous people deal with.

Shawna briefly summarized Ms. Rendon’s other works, including poetry, plays, short stories and children’s books. They touch on the same themes, but it is the Cash Blackbear series that will reach a wider audience, heightening people’s awareness of Indigenous experiences through an intriguing mystery.

Janet H.

Next week member Robin S. will present on author Jonathan Franzen.

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“Embrace the Spirit of Radio”

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On October 31, 2023, guest speaker Wakefield Brewster invited the members and guests to “embrace the spirit of radio-enter the Theatre of the Mind” while he performed his poetry.

Mr. Brewster is Calgary’s current Poet Laureate. His work is meant to be heard and felt. For him, his words are a gift that must come out – a blessing.

He first gave a reading from “Lunar Herstory” envisioning a cosmology where culture, lyricism, and astrophysics are the rings and his mother is the planet. “She knew more than she spoke..” – his vibrant, energetic voice filled the room. His rhythmic cadence is akin to rap music and he strode around the room while he spoke. Movement is an essential part of him and therefore an essential part of his poetry. It is kinetic- the work moves him.

Next he read from “H2O”, a poem written in 2001 in reference to the Walkerton disaster.

Finally, he presented a series of 5 poems representing 5 stages of the Covid pandemic. Covid is a Rumor, Covid is For Real, Polarized People, New Norms , and Projecting and Reflecting. Brewster ended his presentation with the encouraging words for us: “Y’all keep going.”

His beautiful voice, the rapping cadence, and his footsteps keeping time made for an electric presentation. Read his poems, yes, but see him in person. This work is meant to move and to move you.

Wakefield Brewster was born in Toronto to Barbadian parents. He now is happy to call Calgary home. Visit his website for more information and to see his video introduction to the Calgary Surge.

Next week, member Cathy R. will present on Barbara Kingsolver. Kingsolver is a novelist and essayist, whose recent work includes Demon Copperhead.

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2023 Spring Luncheon & AGM

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On this April afternoon, snow was falling gently but steadily outside the Glencoe Club windows. Inside was nothing but cheer, as we still don’t take for granted the pleasure of meeting in person! Spring bouquets graced our tables. Our special guests were Calgary Public Library friends Sarah Meilleur (CEO) and Brin Bugo (Manager, Memorial Park Branch,) along with award-winning Calgary writer Sharon Butala. Cecilia read the 1927 poem “Desiderata” by Max Ehrmann. Without knowing our guest speaker’s theme today, it was to be a perfect example of writing that remains relevant through time. Our buffet lunch was as delectable as it was a feast for the eyes!

Sharon Butala, a prolific author of fiction, essays, articles, poetry, and plays, has just published This Strange Visible Air: Essays on Aging and the Writing Life. Sharon began her talk by describing a time years ago when a press agent rejected her book for publication because it was “old-fashioned.” Feeling dismissed, then angry, this spurred her to publish an article in The Walrus, and since then she actively writes and speaks against “ageism.” She gave an overview of how writing styles have evolved from the 18th Century to contemporary authors. She concluded that she needn’t be apologetic for choosing to write in a style she prefers to call “traditional” rather than “old fashioned” (a term which has more to do with outdated words and syntax.) Personally, she is not fond of some current trends in writing and believes “traditional” humanistic stories will still be read with great pleasure by a multitude of readers today and in the future.

The Annual General Meeting was a celebration and a tribute. We surmounted the challenge of Covid this year by pivoting from in-person, to online, to in-person meetings. Our presenters introduced us to fascinating 21st Century authors, with lively discussions ensuing. Our Principles and Guidelines document was updated. Our website drew in 30% more visitors, resulting in some new members. This year, we began using online storage for Minutes and other important documents. Our Archivist ensures we continue to learn more about – and add to – our “story” in the Glenbow Archives. In short, the Club remains current, while honoring its past and traditions. We closed with our thanks to Helen who is leaving our executive team, to Natashia who is taking over as Program Chair, to all those who served last year, and to those who will serve on the new executive team. Our 2023-24 program will be “Authors who have never been presented to the Club, focusing on Canadian women writers.”

Janet Halls

Memoir as an exploration of place and generational trauma

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Guest Speaker Dr. Robert Boschman

On March 28, 2023 CWLC was pleased to host guest speaker Dr. Robert Boschman. Dr. Boschman (read more here), discussed his 2021 autobiography White Coal City. This is the book he has been working on “since he was child”, his life story – and his family’s story – wrapped in the history and culture of rural Saskatchewan.

Photo by weston m on Unsplash

The focal point of White Coal City is “the grandmother he never knew he had”, a grandmother lost tragically young to a senseless accident. The book tells of his experience coming into consciousness as a child becomes an adult – he ends the story in his mid-teen years. He also wanted to tell of the place he grew up in.

Dr. Boschman found he could not tell the story of his grandmother without telling the story of his large Mennonite family. He also wanted to discuss his parent’s loving and thoughtful decision to adopt an Indigenous child, his beloved sister, although this is his story not her story. Overall, he wanted to tell the truth without hurting anyone’s feelings and his parent supported this.

The author read 2 passages from the book. The first told of the moment he discovered his “missing” grandmother in 1970. The second reading told of the adoption of his sister and the bond he quickly formed with her.

Following the readings, Dr. Boschman answered questions from the group about his definition of place, his feelings about the hockey system, inherited trauma, and other topics. The readings and his answers demonstrated his passionate search for truth and healing in his family and in the world.

Shawna M.

Next Tuesday member Margaret S. will present on author Emma Donoghue. Ms. Donoghue is the author of the novel Room and other works.

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When the Data Comes Together…

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Photo by Hunter Harritt on Unsplash

On November 22, 2022 member Natashia H. gave her premier presentation to the CWLC on the works of Malcolm Gladwell. Mr. Gladwell is the author of five New York Times bestsellers — The Tipping Point, Blink, Outliers, What the Dog Saw, and David and Goliath. In addition, his work is widely known through print and visual media, and through his podcasts which include Revisionist History and Broken Record.

Natashia is a lover of non-fiction, and her interests lean towards math and sciences. When she discovered Malcolm Gladwell’s popular non-fiction books based on analytics, she found a refreshing narrative based on real-life stories, which provide new ways to look at life. She likens Malcolm Gladwell to a skilled detective, who raises entirely new questions, analyses information, suspends judgment, and removes assumptions to reveal truths. He is a skilled writer, making his theories, the research behind them, and the implications for application accessible to a general audience.

In The Tipping Point: How Little Things Can Make a Big Difference, Gladwell analyzed how a few “influencers” can wildly affect the success of a product or idea – although the work pre-dates the term. In Outliers: The Story of Success Mr. Gladwell interviewed business owners with mega-success, such as Bill Gates. He discovered success depends not only on drive and intelligence but other factors beyond the individual’s control. It is in Outliers the world learned it takes 10,000 hours of practice before mastery of anything. Gladwell also explores the concept of mastery. He posits that while raw talent is necessary for success, a supportive home life, opportunity and practice are part of most meteoric success stories such as The Beatles and Bill Gates.

In Blink, Natashia was drawn how people think without thinking (intuition). While intuition can be powerful, she cited Gladwell’s example of gender bias in the selection of professional musicians and how more women “made the cut” when auditions were “blind”. People who beat all odds are the subject of David and Goliath: Underdogs, Misfits and the Art of Battling Giants. Gladwell’s examples show that when the little guy wins, more than luck is usually involved.

In summary, Natashia urged everyone to look for the hidden patterns and use data to challenge “known truths”. Members and Natashia finished up the last regular meeting of 2022 with discussion and questions about the work of this well-known author.

Janet H. & Shawna M.

In the spring, we will continue our theme of New Writers of the 21st Century. Members will present on the authors Gary Shteyngart, Elizabeth Strout, Mary Lawson, Emma Donaghue, Joseph Boyden, and Andrey Kurkov. In addition, we will welcome Dr. R. Boschman as a guest speaker. The updated schedule will be posted soon… see you then.

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“A Writer Creates Their Own World…”

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Photo by Jack Anstey on Unsplash

On November 8, 2022 member Robin S. invited members into the many worlds created by Emily St. John Mandel. Ms. Mandel is the author of the novels Last Night in Montreal (2009), The Singer’s Gun (2010), The Lola Quartet (2012), Station Eleven (2014), The Glass Hotel (2020), and The Sea of Tranquility (2022). Station Eleven was the 2015 winner of the Arthur C. Clarke Award for best Science Fiction published in the United Kingdom.

Mandel had a unique path to authorship. She grew up in British Columbia, lastly in an island community, leaving to study dance without completing her high school diploma. She became a travelling dancer, then a dancer who writes, then a writer who dances and finally a successful writer. While her island upbringing is reflected in her work, she loves urban life in cities such as Montreal, Toronto and New York City.

Her latest novels are difficult to put in a box: mixing noir mystery, the supernatural and science fiction. Station Eleven solidified Mandel as a genre writer. The book is post-apocalyptic science fiction, exploring celebrity culture, and the importance of art in society even when things fall apart. Robin found this to be a hopeful book (her advice however is don’t read it on a plane trip!).

The author falls in love with her characters, and uses them again. Characters introduced in Station Eleven reappear in The Glass Hotel and The Sea of Tranquility. This most recent book is speculative fiction about time travel and the time traveller’s dilemma: “If you could change history, would you? should you?”.

Robin finds that Emily St. John Mandel’s work is getting better with each book. Since I have no air travel coming up, I plan to try out Station Eleven.

Shawna M.

Next Tuesday, member Anne Marie D. will discuss the works of Thomas King via Zoom.

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Guest Speaker – Poet Leah Horlick

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On October 17, 2022 the Club welcomed guest speaker, Leah Horlick, the Canadian Writer in Residence, University of Calgary Distinguished Writer Program. She is the author of several collections of poetry: Riot Lung, For Your Own Good, and Moldovan Hotel.

Image from the author’s website. Photograph by Erin Flegg.

Ms. Horlick started with a brief introduction, relating her personal love for the Central Memorial Library. Then, she gave read a selection of her poems. The first, Amygdala, was from For Your Own Good, a collection of poems relating her experience of intimate partner abuse.

The next readings were from Moldovan Hotel, and included the title poem from the collection. Horlick’s went to Moldova in 2017, seeking insight into her Jewish family’s life before, during and after World War 2.

Following the readings, the speaker answered member questions about her creative process, the barriers to getting published as a poet in Canada, her early love of reading assisted by the Saskatoon library system, and why she was drawn to poetry.

Read more about Ms. Horlick and the University of Calgary Distinguished Writer Program here: https://arts.ucalgary.ca/calgary-distinguished-writers-program/writer-residence/current-writer-residence.

Shawna M.

Next week, member Barbara R. will be presenting the works of Timothy Caufield. Interested in joining us? Click here: https://calgarywomensliteraryclub.com/join-

The Illustrated Life – Guest Speaker Teresa Wong

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Photo from https://www.byteresawong.com

On April 5th, 2022 the Club welcomed a marvelous guest speaker, Teresa Wong. She is the author of the graphic memoir Dear Scarlet: The Story of My Postpartum Depression, a finalist for The City of Calgary W.O. Mitchell Book Prize and longlisted for CBC Canada Reads 2020. Her comics have appeared in The Believer, The New Yorker and Event Magazine. She teaches memoir and comics at Gotham Writers Workshop, and is the 2021–22 Canadian Writer-in-Residence at the University of Calgary. Read more at: https://www.byteresawong.com.

The author gave an beautiful and engaging illustrated reading from her pandemic narrative #tantrumseries. This narrative started on Instagram, and will be part of the anthology Good Moms on Paper, which presents the challenges and rewards of being a mom while authoring creative works. During the early days of the Covid 19 pandemic, she recorded her 4 year old son’s morning tantrums with photo’s and watercolours, which she then posted. In total, 20 watercolour portraits of her son were completed – visit her Tumbler blog or search #tantrumseries on Instagram to view these lovely images and more.

While recording these moments, she pondered her motivation: Was she recording these moments for herself, for others, for her son in the future? Was this an intrusion into her son’s privacy? Was her motivation to present a more realistic portrait of toddler parenting and to show it can be funny? Or was she looking for affirmation or “likes”? The series ended when her son told her “stop taking my picture”. Two years later, he sometimes scrolls through the pictures and recognizes himself. Her concluding comment on #tantrumseries was that the creative work was “fully alive and fully itself, like a child in my care”.

The author was going through a crisis herself at the time of the #tantrumseries, and found she could relate to her son’s frustration and feeling of helplessness. In early 2020, she was trying to get Dear Scarlet into the world, along with the daily work of parenting 3 children. To quote her: “mothers have guilt rather than the space and time to do creative work”.

Next, she presented Piano Lessons, short comic published by Believer magazine , illustrating her 10 years of piano lessons and what classical music means to her. To quote “music took me somewhere… elegant, refined, orderly”.

After the presentation, there were a number of questions from members about Ms. Wong’s development first as a writer and then as a graphic memoirist. Ms. Wong said that she was always a writer, but began painting after she had children. She described the graphic genre as more poetry than prose, bringing out ideas with phrases and imagery. Personally, I am a fan of graphic memoir, history and fiction and hope to read more from Teresa in the future.

Shawna M.

Next week, member Helen T. will be presenting the works of Tash Aw. Interested in joining us? Click here: https://calgarywomensliteraryclub.com/join-

Peter Carey: Quintessentially Australian

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From Wikimedia Commons: CC BY-SA 4.0

A question for members only: What does Peter Carey have in common with Susan Hill, Alexandr Solzhenitsyn, George Jonas, and Rex Murphy? If you don’t know, the answer is “Anita.” My tenure in CWLC only goes back to 2012, so this is just an incomplete list of Anita’s eclectic author presentations!

That’s the thing about our “book club with a ­­difference:” Our annual theme takes on a life of its own when one is on the upcoming slate. The presenter has been reading and researching like crazy, quite often an author and/or theme that may not be one she normally reads. The lucky members come home with new insights and another author to add to their ever-expanding reading lists. Horizons expand! With all of us stuck at home this year, our theme of Australia and New Zealand has given us a welcome new literary horizon. Anita selected two-time Booker Prize winner Peter Carey, whose novels, short stories and non-fiction are summed up by Anita as “quintessentially Australian.”

Janet H

Learn more about Peter Carey from our “resident expert” here!