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Mindblown: a blog about philosophy.

  • Character Study: Vivienne Pink

    Character Study: Vivienne Pink

    Death Valley is a hallucinogenic romp by Susan Perly (Wolsak & Wynn), following legendary war photographer Vivienne Pink on her latest assignment: she has five days to photograph servicemen about to deploy for active combat. Along for the ride are her husband and her best friend, but this is really Vivenne’s story: she heads out…

  • ALU Book Club: #teamALU talks A Gentle Habit (+ discussion questions)

    ALU Book Club: #teamALU talks A Gentle Habit (+ discussion questions)

    We’re well into our second ALU Book Club pick, A Gentle Habit. Last week we introduced the title and got some insider information from the publisher and today we’re sharing our #teamALU discussion of the stories. We once again sat down with lots of candy to talk about the various aspects of the collection: from…

  • Cover Collage: Olympics

    Cover Collage: Olympics

    The Olympics started in Rio last Friday so we’re getting into the spirit with some sports-inspired CanLit titles. If you’re more bookish than sporty pull up a comfy chair, flick on the Olympics, and crack open one of these titles. Go Canada!!

  • Read This, Then That: Put Your Nose to the Grindstone with Two Corporate Reads

    Read This, Then That: Put Your Nose to the Grindstone with Two Corporate Reads

    Our Read This, then That picks today have even more in common than usual: Malcolm Sutton, author of novel debut Job Shadowing, is Jacob Wren’s (Rich and Poor) editor. Funny that both would write on a theme that’s front-of-mind for many living in North America – the present-day, post-recessionary job market and the ethical dilemmas that…

  • In Review: The Week of August 1st

    In Review: The Week of August 1st

    With the Civic Holiday weekend behind us, we’re now staring Labour Day in the face. If you, like us, are in denial that another summer will soon be coming to an end, chill for a little longer in this, the first week of August.

  • First Fiction Fridays: Cretacea & Other Stories from the Badlands

    First Fiction Fridays: Cretacea & Other Stories from the Badlands

    Alberta’s Badlands missed the memo when Canada was deciding on becoming a verdant, forested country: dusty, barren, cruel and gorgeous all at once, they’re the perpetual backdrop of Martin West’s debut collection, Cretacea & Other Stories from the Badlands (Anvil Press). From delayed threesomes to failing gas stations to workplace experiments, West’s stories are as raw…

  • If You Liked x, Read y: TV Edition

    If You Liked x, Read y: TV Edition

    Out of episodes? We’ve matched up reads to small-screen favourites so that you can make that TV feeling last a little bit longer.

  • ALU Book Club: Meet A Gentle Habit by Cherie Dimaline!

    ALU Book Club: Meet A Gentle Habit by Cherie Dimaline!

    Welcome to our August Book Club pick! After our July pick, Two-Gun & Sun, which we had so much fun with, we wanted to pick something a little different. To that end we decided on a short story collection: A Gentle Habit, published by Kegedonce Press, was written by Toronto author Cherie Dimaline and features…

  • Where in Canada: The Vancouver of Michael Mirolla’s Torp

    Where in Canada: The Vancouver of Michael Mirolla’s Torp

    Torp takes place in the Vancouver of 1970—or at least an approximation of that Vancouver as interpreted through the prism of a specific story line and set of characters.

  • This [Month] in Literary Events: August

    This [Month] in Literary Events: August

    Happy holiday! Because literary events are naturally more scarce in the summertime, we’ve lumped August together into a supersized, coast-to-coast literary listing! Set your calendar to “month” and plan for these great events.Are you hosting an event featuring an author whose titles are available on All Lit Up? Send the event details, including author, book,…

  • In Review: The Week of July 25th

    In Review: The Week of July 25th

    Happy long weekend! It’s sad that the summer is halfway over but we’re so happy to have three days off that we’re all planning on doing as little as possible to maximize our relaxation levels. If you’re feeling like us in this non-stop heat, sit back with this week’s bookish review … all you have…

  • First Fiction Fridays: Shade

    First Fiction Fridays: Shade

    After her plans for the future are disrupted by an unexpected breakup, Benni Manlapaz, born and raised in northern Ontario, seeks escape from her everyday routine by visiting her father in the Philippines – the fantastical land of ghosts and glamour that her parents described to her as a child.

  • Character Study: The Most Heartless Town in Canada

    Character Study: The Most Heartless Town in Canada

    The Most Heartless Town in Canada by Elaine McCluskey (Anvil Press) looks at media agendas, amateur sport, family dynamics, and the divide between rural and urban Canada. The story starts with a newspaper photo taken in the obscure town of Myrtle, Nova Scotia, after the murder of eight bald eagles. The Photo wins a contest…

  • ALU Book Club: Life after Two-Gun & Sun (Further Recommended Reading)

    ALU Book Club: Life after Two-Gun & Sun (Further Recommended Reading)

    If June Hutton’s Two-Gun & Sun suddenly up and left your life like…whoops – that was almost a spoiler-alert! But seriously, if you’ve got a Two-Gun shaped hole in your little reader’s heart, we’ve got the follow-up reads that might just fill it.

  • Do-Lit-Yourself: Book-Loving Bullet Journals

    Do-Lit-Yourself: Book-Loving Bullet Journals

    Have you heard of a Bullet Journal? The newest in twee tedium is a type of analog organizer, with tons of “page” ideas for keeping people’s lives in order (and fabulous-looking). Yours truly couldn’t resist starting one, and is sharing a couple of book page ideas for you to keep track of your reads, in…

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