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Mindblown: a blog about philosophy.
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ALU Summer Book Club: Intro to Where the Jasmine Blooms
Our August book club pick is Zeina Sleiman’s rich, beautifully observed debut novel Where the Jasmine Blooms, a book that is by turns a family historical novel, a political thriller, and a Muslim feminist love story. We chatted with the book’s publisher Fernwood Publishing about how the novel came to the press, why telling Palestinian…
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Excerpted: ICEMEN
Read a tense, two-hander scene from celebrated playwright Vern Thiessen’s latest play ICEMEN (Playwrights Canada Press).
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Writer’s Block: Sky Gilbert
Sky Gilbert’s latest novel The Blue House (Cormorant Books) explores the dark side of creative genius through the fictional memoir of Rupert Goldmann, a cello prodigy whose extraordinary talent is not publicly recognized. Inspired in part by a real-life encounter from Sky’s youth, The Blue House delves into questions of artistic failure, obsession, and whether…
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Two Poems: Hag Dances
In her new collection Hag Dances (At Bay Press), poet Susan Wismer confronts the darker recesses of the self in order to change and heal. Read the poems “Hand Shadows” and “After All” from the book, below.
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ALU Summer Book Club: What to Read After I Think We’ve Been Here Before
Wondering what to read after Suzy Krause’s I Think We’ve Been Here Before (Radiant Press)? We’ve gathered four follow-up books that will offer the big existential questions for the reflective reader.
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Excerpted: The Language of the Stars
Today’s featured excerpt is from teenage writer and space expert Nathan Hellner-Mestelman, who is following up last year’s hit book Cosmic Wonder with The Language of the Stars (Linda Leith Publishing). This new offering promises more of Nathan’s signature humour and comics, as well as complex astronomy topics made easier to understand.
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Writer’s Block: Nick Thran
Trillium Book Award–winner Nick Thran’s Existing Music (Nightwood Editions) is a lyrical exploration of the “sad song,” which Nick tells us more about in the interview, including how he was a “first responder during a genuine poetry emergency.” We love to see it.
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Poetry in Motion: Kyle Flemmer + Supergiants
Publisher and poet Kyle Flemmer reads two poems from his new collection Supergiants (Wolsak & Wynn), which employs the technical language of astrophysics and engineering to examine what our exploration of the cosmos says about us.
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ALU Summer Book Club: Team Discussion, I Think We’ve Been Here Before
We weren’t expecting “cozy apocalypse” but that’s exactly what we got with Suzy Krause’s I Think We’ve Been Here Before (Radiant Press). Thoughtful, emotional (yes, a few of us cried), with a satisfying ending, it gave us plenty to talk about. Here are some highlights from our mostly spoiler-free team discussion.
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Excerpted: Ugh! As If!
July 19 marks the 30th anniversary of forever-favourite film, Clueless! In her new book Ugh! As If! (ECW Press), Veronica Litt dives into the deep and surprisingly feminist undertones of the hilarious film. In this featured chapter, she discusses “the ditz.”
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In House: How a Podcast and a Kickstarter Helped Build Shadowpaw Press
When Edward Willett launched Shadowpaw Press, he never imagined it would grow into a full-fledged publishing house—or that it would one day be home to an ambitious five-volume science fiction and fantasy anthology series. Today, Edward traces the unexpected evolution of the press through the Shapers of Worlds anthologies, which came out of his podcast…
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Two Poems: The Door at the End of Everything
Lynda Monahan wrote her new collection The Door at the End of Everything (Shadowpaw Press) while hospital writer-in-residence at the Victoria Hospital in Prince Albert. Frequently, she was stationed on the youth and adult mental health wards, and this collection honours the strength and courage of those living with mental illness. Read “closet space” and…
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ALU Summer Book Club: An interview with Suzy Krause, author of I Think We’ve Been Here Before
In I Think We’ve Been Here Before (Radiant Press), Suzy Krause blends small-town prairie life with big existential questions—about time, connection, and what it all means—wrapped in a story sparked by a recurring dream of the end of the world. We spoke with Suzy about where the novel began, how déjà vu and synchronicity shaped…
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Excerpted: A Dark Death
In the latest instalment of Alice Fitzpatrick’s Meredith Island Mystery series, A Dark Death (Stonehouse Publishing), a group of archaeology students find more than artifacts on a dig on the sleepy Welsh isle. Will writer Kate get involved in the mystery they uncover? Read an excerpt from the book below.
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Poetry in Motion: Chris Hutchinson + Lost Signal
Poet Chris Hutchinson returns with his latest collection, Lost Signal (Palimpsest Press), a celebration of the adaptability of language, even among various earthly crises. Hear Chris read “How I Ended Up on the Shores of Labrador” from the collection, below.
Got any book recommendations?