Place and the Blues
“My lifelong involvement with Mrs. Dempster began at 5:58 o’clock p.m. on the 27th of December, 1908, at which time I was ten year and seven months old. I am […]
2012 Thanks
This is the last post for 2012. Canadian Writers Abroad has now been going for just over a year. Since November 23, 2011, I have posted 45 entries. The site […]
Solstice
I was thinking of wintry poems for this holiday post, and hit upon Robyn Sarah’s “Solstice.” So I emailed her to ask if I could post her poem, and she […]
Leonard Cohen Gives Back
This is not breaking news, but I forgot to mention it last week. When Leonard Cohen was awarded the Glenn Gould prize, he gave the money back to the Canada […]
When one is gone and far — Leonard Cohen
Audrey Thomas isn’t the only Canadian writer to have spent time in Greece. I almost called today’s post “resurrection man” because he resurrected his career, but I didn’t because something […]
From British Columbia to Ghana
At the beginning of November I took my daughter to British Columbia to see big trees, mountains, and relatives. (Her priorities; mine were in reverse order.) Which got me to […]
Laurence of Africa last
Here is the last excerpt from my essay, “Laurence of Africa,” which brings us to the end of it. The focus is on the novel, This Side Jordan, which is […]
Laurence of Africa 2
This continues last week’s post, with excerpts from my essay, “Laurence of Africa.” Nearly a decade later, in her 1970 Preface to A Tree for Poverty, Laurence regrets that she […]
Margaret Laurence
Yes, the Margaret Laurence whose books they forced you to read in high school, which they really shouldn’t have done. The Margaret Laurence who wandered far from her home in […]
Respirer et écrire
I have been thinking about Sara Jeanette Duncan lately. I should be thinking about her work, but I’ve been thinking about her. OK, when I cough (a lingering cold), I […]
Sharing
I thought I would share with you some of the great resources I come across in my research for Canadian Writers Abroad. I found the two below while doing photo […]
Would it be best for you if you left the country?
I thought I would follow up on Margaret Atwood’s comment in the last post, that up to the 1960s, if you were a writer in Canada who wanted an international […]
Douglas LePan
Startled by George Monbiot’s dire observations on the melting of Arctic ice in “The Heat of the Moment” in the Guardian this morning, I have decided to post a poem […]
A Little Light Reading on my Vacation
When I was book editor for the Varsity newspaper at the University of Toronto, I reviewed a dictionary. This outraged the Review editor so much that I still remember his […]
The Innocent Traveller
There is nothing quite like poking about second-hand bookshops while on vacation. I was looking for anything by Sara Jeannette Duncan. Instead I found Ethel Wilson’s first novel, The Innocent […]
The Future Margaret Laurence Wanted
Are you disappointed by the results of Rio+20, the U.N. Conference on Sustainable Development? Here are some uplifting words from a wise woman who once lived in Knightsbridge, not far […]
Love Literary London
There are many things to love about London, but my favourite is its celebration of literature. Besides theatre, Sherlock and Doctor Who. Dead authors appear on blue plaques on walls […]
T.C. Haliburton and the Olympics
The London Chapter of the Haliburton Society is joining the Olympics, in the same way that the Cultural Olympiad is running in parallel with the London 2012 Olympic Games. It’s […]
