Burdenby Douglas Burnet SmithPublished by University of Regina PressReview by Shelley A. Leedahl$19.95 (softcover) ISBN 9-780889-777729 In award-winning Canadian poet Douglas Burnet Smith’s seventeenth collection, Burden – a sparely-written account of a distant cousin’s World War I experience – I often found myself wincing. This visceral reaction’s a testament to the efficacy of the Governor General-nominated poet’s precisely-chosen words; to the bone and spirit-shattering power of war; and to this harrowing, personal story that wields the force of a novel in just fifty-nine taut pages. The title, Burden, alludes to the seventeen-year-old British soldier, Private Herbert Burden, whom the poet’s relative, Lance Corporal Reginald Smith, befriended and fought alongside; to the permanent weight of war on one’s psyche; and to ...
Sleeping BrilliantWritten and illustrated by Jessica WilliamsPublished by All Write Here PublishingReview by Shelley A. Leedahl$16.99 ISBN 978-1-9995397-7-1 Here’s what I know about Saskatchewan writer Jessica Williams: she’s originally from British Columbia; her first book, Mama’s Cloud, thoroughly impressed me with its gentle handling of depression; and she continues to prove herself as a prolific and talented writer of childrens’ books. Her latest offering, Sleeping Brilliant, delivers a delightful spin on a fairytale we all know – but may not all love, with its prince-as-saviour theme – and this time Williams has even illustrated her own clever story. We learn from page one that Williams is going to have great fun turning this traditional tale on its crown. The “beloved” King and Queen longed for a child, and thus “a...
Serenity Unhinged (a memoir)by Jim DugglebyPublished by YNWPReview by Shelley A. Leedahl$14.95 ISBN 9-781988-783574 As a writer myself, I’m always curious about other writers’ inspiration for their books. In his memoir Serenity Unhinged, Regina writer, editor and journalist Jim Duggleby mines the landscape of his own history – family, childhood, career – and his bright imagination for material, but the essays and articles in this fun read really owe their existence to a Regina writers’ workshop that took place between 2017 and 2019. The workshop, which included “fewer than a dozen people” at Regina’s Lifelong Learning Centre, was facilitated by Bob Juby and Ivan Millard, and was “loosely themed ‘As I Remember’”. Duggleby has a long history with and passion for the written word. The former Saskatoon Star-Phoenix rep...
Griffin’s Cureby J.C. PaulsonPublished by Joanne PaulsonReview by Michelle Shaw$20 ISBN 9780995975668 A brilliant scientist lies dead in his laboratory at the Canadian Light Source (CLS) at the University of Saskatchewan. There is no bullet wound, no stab wound, no sign of blunt force trauma. In fact, no obvious cause of death. Yet he was clearly murdered. This is the fourth book in J.C. Paulson’s Adam and Grace romantic suspense series and Paulson really does get better with each book. The plot in Griffin’s Cure revolves around a unique mushroom with unusual healing powers and a brilliant young University of Saskatchewan student Jay Griffin. There’s lots of action (romantic and otherwise) as Detective Sergeant Adam Davis of the Saskatoon Police and StarPhoenix reporter Grace Rampling desperately try to figure out who killed Dr Ta...
Fully Half Committed: Conversation Starters for Romantic Relationshipsby Barbara Morrison and Ed RislingPublished by Wood Dragon BooksReview by Shelley A. Leedahl$19.99 ISBN 9-781989-078167 If you’ve been single and searching for a healthy new connection over the last decade or so, you’ll know that the dating and relationship landscape has changed significantly, in large part due to the popularity of online dating. With a few key strokes, finding “another fish” at the first sign of conflict or boredom is a mighty temptation for some, and short-term relationships are the new norm. Tragically, our throw-away society’s come to include people. But what about actually working on a relationship and allowing it to evolve? And why are people less likely to commit, fully and completely, today? Professional couples’ therapists Barbara M...
In My Own Moccasins: A Memoir of Resilienceby Helen KnottPublished by University of Regina PressReview by Elena Bentley$21.95 ISBN 9780889777316 (Softcover) Is there any other act more revolutionary than healing? No, not for Helen Knott, debut author of In My Own Moccasins: A Memoir of Resilience. “Healing yourself is the ultimate act of resistance… of remembering who we are as Indigenous peoples.” This book is a coming home story. A return to family, culture, tradition, and language. A reclamation of an Indigenous identity that had, for too long, been suppressed by shame, sexual violence, and intergenerational trauma. Within the covers of this newly released paperback edition published by the University of Regina Press, Knott seamlessly weaves together memories from her past with the events, both personal and familial, that led...
Flight: Stories of Canadian Aviation, Volume 2by Deana J. Driver and ContributorsPublished by DriverWorks InkReview by Keith Foster$19.95 ISBN 978-1-927570-50-0 When a Concorde carrying French President Francois Mitterrand landed in Regina for an official visit in June 1987, citizens turned out in droves. Not to see the French president, but to admire the Concorde. Such was the attraction of this supersonic jet, one of the most sophisticated airplanes in the world. The visit of the Concorde is only one of the thirty-seven chapters of Flight: Stories of Canadian Aviation, Volume 2. This sequel carries on from where Volume 1 left off, with more exciting stories and more thrilling exploits, written by Deana J. Driver and twelve contributors. Among the authors are Saskatchewan aviation historian Will Chabun, hot air balloonist Malcolm McLeod,...
Nature’s Broken Clocksby Paul HuebenerPublished by University of Regina PressReview by Michelle Shaw$24.95 ISBN 9780889777125 For someone who has always regarded time as primarily linear or cyclical, Paul Huebener’s book Nature’s Broken Clocks is rather mind-bending. Weaving together science, history, narrative and the natural world, Huebener—described as one of the leading figures in the field of ecocritical time studies—challenges the reader’s perceptions of time, particularly within in the context of the environmental crisis. He discusses varying concepts of time, from the sun (humanity’s “original clock”) to the politics of time—and points out that even so-called natural time is a lot more complex than we might think. I was especially fascinated by the various examples of the natural world he used. From...
Chalk Dust: Memoirs of a Prairie Teacherby Dianne MillerPublished by Your Nickel’s Worth PublishingReview by Keith Foster$19.95 ISBN 978-1-988783-51-2 Dianne Miller’s Chalk Dust: Memoirs of a Prairie Teacher is a delightful read. Writing in a chatty conversational style, she not only relates her own stories but incorporates anecdotes of others as well, usually from their point of view. She has a passion for brilliant imagery and humour, and her prose is sprinkled with them. For more than thirty years, from 1970 to 2003, Miller taught a variety of grades in nine schools, primarily in Saskatoon, Yorkton, and Swift Current. She reviews her career as she rises through the ranks as student, teacher, vice-principal, principal, and administrator. One way Miller sets the context of her sixteen chapters is by describing the changing fa...
The Organist: Fugues, Fatherhood, and a Fragile Mindby Mark AbleyPublished by University of Regina PressReview by Shelley A. Leedahl$21.95 (softcover) ISBN 9-780889-777613 Does anyone ever really know anyone else? In multi-genre writer Mark Abley’s absorbing memoir, The Organist: Fugues, Fatherhood, and a Fragile Mind, the Pointe Claire, QC writer contemplates the life of his perplexing father, Harry Abley – virtuoso organist, composer, and music teacher with a complex “range of identities” – and in doing so the author attempts to reconcile why this accomplished and restless man, more than twenty years gone, never seemed enough to his only child. Abley has a dozen critically-acclaimed books behind him and I heartily recommend this title because the writing’s exceptional: I was hooked by the end of the short prologue. The w...
