Summer Reads 2019 Globe

 

My writing about books, authors, and publishing has contributed to more than a decade of Canada’s literary news and opinion. From 2018 to 2021 I was a frequent contributor to the books pages of the Globe and Mail. I have also written for the National Post and Toronto Star and reviewed books for the Globe. My popular column about Toronto’s literary scene ran on open-book.ca for six years.

GLOBE AND MAIL

TORONTO STAR

REVIEWS (Globe and Mail, National Post)

SELECTED COLUMNS (open-book.ca)

  • Ten Years of Type | A beloved indie bookstore celebrates a big birthday, and a columnist reflects on a decade of life in Toronto shared
  • Festival Like a Pro at Toronto’s Great Big Literary Party | A festival-going guide to the International Festival of Authors.
  • Booking Up: With big, big names at no, no prices, Appel Salon events are filling up fast | A season preview for the Toronto Public Library’s Salon.
  • On the Sensory Pleasures of Putting Pen to Paper | In praise of pens and ink pots.
  • Could We Can the Cover Copy? | Raging against the spoilers.
  • Booksellers for a Day | Authors mobilize in support of indie bookstores at the first Canadian Authors for Indies Day.
  • The Word on the Street and the Weather | 200,000+ Torontonians take to the street to celebrate reading, rain or shine.
  • The Week We Wayzgoosed | A new publishing season is in session after Coach House Books’ annual bash.
  • Prom Night for WORN | A fashion magazine with a difference celebrates the launch of its first book.
  • National Poetry Month Exercise | A poetry-reading procrastinator gets motivated.
  • The Risk of the Long Read | On TV-viewing marathons and the return of The Long Novel.
  • A Foot in the Door, A Brogue in the Basket | What did your first boss do to (or hopefully for) you?
  • Welcome to the World’s Biggest Book Club | Reading Dan Brown and taking on book snobs.
  • A VJ Looks Back, Publishes Forward | A record label gets into the book biz with enhanced music memoir.
  • (R)age Appropriate | Freedom to Read Week and banning books in schools.
  • Toronto: Great Idea | Edward Keenan’s look at Toronto post-amalgamation.
  • Judging a Book | On dipped edges and catching the eye.
  • The Book Diet | On roughage, motivational bookshelves, and finding poetry in weighing the mayor.
  • Don’t Know Zarganar? Joke’s on You | Meeting Burma’s “most famous opposition figure.”
  • Wither (sic) the CanLit? | “To say that these books aren’t Canadian enough is absurd.” On this year’s award nominees
  • The Circus is in Town | Is The Night Circus worth all the hype?
  • Planes, Trains, Ondaatje-mobiles | From the international launch of The Cat’s Table at the Edinburgh International Book Festival.
  • The News of the World of 1812 | Where we find (or steal) our stories.
  • The Book Bakery | A library in the palm of your hand, an artwork in the pages of your library.
  • Party Politics | Celebrating our freedom of speech.
  • When Tattoos Get Serious Ink | The Scando-crime phenomenon lifts genre fiction out of the ghetto.
  • Literary Insurance Policy: Tassels, Beads and Bananas Included | Fundraising for BRICK magazine, 1920s style.
  • Keep Your Eye on the Many Values of the Prize | Why there are many winners with literary awards.
  • IFOA Hamilton: Festival-goer on Tour | Does Toronto’s provincial festival partner still have pizzazz?
  • To Do: Make List | Fall is the season of the fiction prize.
  • Library Worker by Day, Library Socialite by Night | The Toronto Public Library is cool for more than its Air Con..
  • The CanPub World Cup of Bookball | A play-by-play of a rocky month in publishing, as told by a soccer nut.
  • Toronto The Good and Well Written | On reading Shawn Micallef’s Stroll and walking literary Toronto.
  • The Evolution of an Independent Bookstore | Type Books thrives by the laws of Darwin.