About Me

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If who we are is what we do, then like most people, I am a mixed bag of personas. Writer, bookworm, friend, are what first come to mind. Equally apt would be potty mouth, dog walker, Guinness drinker, swimmer, storyteller, political animal, baker and proud Canadian. Mostly though, I consider myself simply insanely lucky to have a small posse of near and dear ones who put up with me and my curvy, creative, curly haired, opinionated self. I started this blog several years ago with the idea to challenge myself in a myriad of ways. Years in, despite the sporadic entries, I still like to muse about the absurdity of life, what inspires surprises and angers me, books and other entertainments, my menagerie, my travels and any other notion buzzing round in my head.

Wednesday, February 11, 2009

Review & Preview

Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress

“This fellow Balzac is a wizard.”

And in truth, so is Dai Sijie. His charming coming of age story of two city boys sent to the mountains for re-education during China’s Cultural Revolution was thoroughly delightful. The narrator and his pal Luo are stuck in a tiny village away from everything dear to them because their parents are deemed “enemies of the state”. Sent to toil in the rocky village on Phoenix Mountain, the boys long for home, despairing they will never be released back to civilization. A chance meeting with the young daughter of a local tailor and their friendship with this “Little Seamstress”, stirs feelings in the boys they have never experienced as both are drawn to her beauty and charm. Stumbling upon a hidden stash of contraband western literature exposes the boys to ideas about love, honour, and philosophical points of view never imagined. As Luo acts out and reads Balzac to the Little Seamstress as a means to seduce her, the narrator’s own confidence grows; inspired by the books he reads which include classics by Flaubert, Dumas, Dickens and others.

Funny and appealing, Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress is a good read.


The Maytrees

Annie Dillard is a wonderfully talented artist. Opening up The Maytrees the other night, I was immediately struck by the mastery of this author. My absolute favourite kind of book to read – this story is full of beautifully evocative words, emotionally rich and colourfully painted scenes to sense and feel. It’s already proving difficult for me to slow my pace a bit and savour this treat. Dillard has written a moving story about the love shared between Toby Maytree and Lou Bigelow and I am hooked.
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