Voices by Ursula K. Le Guin

Once, Ansul was a light of reason and education on the Western Shore. But, for the past seventeen years, it's been occupied by the Alds of the western desert. They, believing that all writing is a sin and a form of devil-worship, destroyed Ansul's library and university. The occupied population has resorted to hiding their remaining books, often finding ways to bring them secretly to the house of Arcamand, where the old Waylord of Ansul resides. Memer is a resident of the house of Arcamand. Since she was a small child, she's had the secret ability to enter a hidden room in the house, and enjoyed nothing more than spending time with the books there. When the Waylord discovers her ability to enter the room, he begins to teach her to read and write, and to appreciate the written word in all its forms. But trouble is brewing in Ansul, and subterranean whispers for liberty break the surface when Orrec Caspro, the great poet and orator, arrives in Ansul, seeking the lost books of the old university.

Contest for word nerds

I'm on the board of the Editors' Association of Canada, BC branch (EAC-BC), and we are currently holding a contest on our Facebook page. Stop by for the chance to win one of the following:

• a free 2012/2013 EAC-BC seminar
• a $100 Amazon gift card
• 2 EAC-BC prize packs

$100 to spend at Amazon will get you a lot of used books, or an e-reader. Perfect for us book nerds.

So, on behalf of EAC-BC, I urge you to share, share, share this contest with your network. As of today, there are only a few entries, so your chances to win are good! The contest closes Sept. 22, 2012 at 12am EST, and is open internationally.

Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins

Katniss Everdeen has returned home to District 12, after winning the Hunger Games with fellow tribute Peeta Mellark. Her life returns to normal, for the most part: she's living with her mother and sister, albeit in a big, fancy house in the Victor's Square; she hunts with Gale, although their relationship is newly awkward; and she doesn't see much of Peeta, and is not sure what to think of that. But as the Victor's Tour approaches, Katniss receives a terrifying visit from President Snow himself. He warns her that her feigned love for Peeta hasn't convinced the population of the districts, and that they now stand at the edge of revolt, emboldened by her own actions during the Hunger Games. She has to convince the people of the districts that she's truly in love with Peeta, or the people she does love will suffer the consequences.

Suggested book for August 2012

Cat's Eye
by Margaret Atwood

When a gallery in Toronto wants to do a retrospective of her work, Elaine Risley returns to the city of her youth and finds herself reliving important moments from her childhood and adolescence. She revisits her trio of childhood friends and their casual cruelties. She rediscovers her teenage years and the forces that help shape her into an artist. And she reexamines her first marriage and its implications on her present. Will what she learns free her from the ghosts of her past? Or will a part of her still remain prisoner?

I avoided reading Margaret Atwood for years because of all of the hype around her as "the best Canadian writer of our times." What if I didn't like her? Or worse, what if I really liked her and suddenly became compelled to spend my scant money on her complete works or start parroting lines from her books to my peers? Well, I'm afraid the worst happened. This book spoke to me. It moved me.  The politics of childhood stay with us all of our lives. Cat's Eye is a wonderful read because it's so vivid, and it reminds me that reminiscing on the simplicity of our childhoods can be misleading--everyday wasn't just running around on the playground and seeing your favourite teacher at school. Children can be cruel, even the kind ones. But you can't have the sour without the sweet in life, and I'd definitely categorize time spent reading this book as "sweet" time. You'll be happy to know, however, that I've kept my favourite lines to myself.

View my suggested books by Margaret Atwood

Suggested book for July 2012

The Mists of Avalon by Marion Zimmer Bradley

At Tintagel castle, Morgaine spends her days in the company of her mother and aunt, until the fateful day her mother is introduced to the new king, Uther Pendragon. Their meeting ignites a conflict between Uther and Morgaine's father, Gorlois, than culminates in Gorlois's death and the conception of Morgaine's half-brother, Arthur Pendragon. Follow Morgaine and the other women of Camelot, as they discover the wonders of Avalon, the intrigues of a Christian court, and the atrocities of war.

I first picked up The Mists of Avalon by Marion Zimmer Bradley because it had the word Avalon on the cover, and a lovely picture of a woman holding a sword. When I started reading, I discovered a version of Arthurian legend told through the eyes of its women. It's difficult to adequately describe the feeling I get when I read this book: I feel transported. This story takes the reader to a world that most people consider male-dominated, and shows readers the important, even magnificent, roles that women might have played. Of course, this is a fictitious story, and I don't actually believe that the ladies of Avalon had any kind of mystical power, or that Avalon even existed. But this story has a way of grabbing you, and like Tehanu by Ursula K. Le Guin, forcing you to see the integrity and import of women's lives, even when they're doing such mundane activities as carding wool, spinning, or sewing.

View my suggested books by Marion Zimmer Bradley

The Mists of Avalon

Life events get in the way

For those of you who are wondering why I've been posting so sporadically lately, here's why: I'm getting married in a few weeks. Wedding planning has sucked up a great deal of my free time over the past months.

I hope to get back to posting on a more regular basis sometime in August.

However, I expect that while I'll be posting more often starting in August, it will probably be less often than I have been posting in the past; probably 3-4 times per month instead of 5 or 6.

C'est la vie.

Leviathan Wakes by James S. A. Corey

Life has become very different in the Belt. It's gone beyond the oddly elongated bodies of the Belters and their tolerance to low gravity: in an abandoned ship, a new lifeform is growing. Jim Holden has to watch his friends and shipmates get nuked when they stumble too close to the secret; the fall-out of which is potential inter-planetary war. And Detective Miller is on the hunt for a missing Earther with important connections. Both are on a trajectory toward a gruesome discovery, but what will happen to human civilization when they arrive?

The book jacket describes Leviathan Wakes by James S. A. Corey as a "kick-ass space opera." Now, I don't know what a space opera is; when I imagine it, I see fat aliens wearing pig-tailed wigs and viking helmets, and somehow I don't think that's what they're going for. So, after reading this book, I would say a space opera is genre-bending sci-fi, since this book is equal parts sci-fi and noir, with some horror thrown in.

The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins

Ever since the unsuccessful rebellion of the thirteen districts against Panem's government, tributes from each of the remaining twelve districts have been required to participate in the Hunger Games. Every year, one boy and one girl from each district are randomly selected to fight to the death in a carefully controlled environment. In the 174th Hunger Games, Katniss Everdeen volunteers as the tribute in place of her sister Prim. Katniss travels to the Capitol with fellow tribute Peeta, to participate in a televised event that will undoubtedly claim both their lives.

I watched the film version of The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins first, and found it to be lacking in emotional tension. I was hoping for something a little more intense in the book. Unfortunately, that didn't pan out, but reading the book did help me better understand Katniss's character. What I took for a flat plot and lack of acting chops in the movie turns out to the result of a staggeringly rational and humourless protagonist. She's naive and confused for most of the book, but her thoughts are described so thoroughly that readers can't help but relate to her.

Vision in White by Nora Roberts

What do you get when you combine an absent father, a narcicistic and manipulative mother, and an innate talent for photography? Mackensie Eliot, the staff photographer at Vows, a high-end, all-inclusive, wedding venue in Greenwich. Even though Mac is surrounded by marital bliss, she's never been able to master the long-term commitment. So, when a sexy schoolteacher harbouring an old crush enters her life, she's swept up by passion and romance more quickly than she could have anticipated. But is she equipped for real love, or will she let it slip through her fingers?

Well, I managed to hold out for 15+ years, but this past weekend I finally gave in and read a romance, Vision in White by Nora Roberts. And you know what? I liked it. I suppose I was expecting Harlequin, so the focus on all of Mac's personal relationships and not just her budding romance with Carter was a relief. I must admit the greatest draw for me personally was the wedding venue angle, since I will be experiencing matrimony myself in August.

Suggested book for June 2012

The Clan of the Cave Bear by Jean M. Auel

Ayla is little more than an infant when an earthquake destroys her home and claims her family. She wanders for days without food and shelter, eventually falling prey to a cave lion, who visciously slashes her leg. Wounded and alone, she's found on the brink of death by Iza, the medicine woman of the Clan. She adopts Ayla as a daughter and raises her to be a medicine woman of her line. But Ayla is different from the rest of the Clan, and there are some who never truly accept her. She must find the strength within herself to find her place in a confusing and dangerous world.

In The Clan of the Cave Bear, Jean M. Auel gives readers her unique perspective on the lives of neanderthals. By making the protagonist homo sapiens, it gives readers a comfortable lens through which to view this very different and yet very similar race of humans. Ayla herself is a highly likeable protagonist: she has plenty of gumption and curiosity, and the situations she gets herself into will keep you turning tha pages. Be warned however; while Auel's sweeping exposition on subjects like cultural evolution and ecology are interesting and informative, to some readers they grow repetitive by the end of the book (or in any subsequent readings).

This book is the first of her Earth's Children series. NB: In The Valley of Horses, the second book in the series, Auel's style morphs to include elements of the romance genre, including explicit love scenes.

View my suggested books by Jean M. Auel