Landmarks: The Art of Dorothy Knowles Text by Terry Fenton, Art by Dorothy Knowles Published by Hagios Press Review by Shelley A. Leedahl $25.95 ISBN 978-0-9783440-2-3 If members of the general public were asked to name a prominent Canadian landscape painter, I’d guess that they might identify a member of the Group of Seven or Emily Carr, but here in Saskatchewan we also have a number of landscape painters of prominence, and high on the list is Dorothy Knowles. Terry Fenton, acclaimed landscape painter and former Mendel Art Gallery director, has forged an aptly-named homage to his friend and fellow artist, Saskatoon’s Dorothy Knowles, and Hagios has packaged the text and forty stunning Knowles’ images in a book that one might expect to pay twice as much for. Land Marks: The Art of Dorothy Knowles is a tour de force. Fenton met his subject at an Emma Lake Artists Workshop in 1965, where another artist commented: “That housewife from Saskatoon is making good paintings.” Not surprisingly, the famous Emma Lake workshops (initiated in 1933 by Walter Murray and Augustus Kenderdine) played an integral role in Knowles’ life and work. It was here that she “discovered a passion for art that…

Like numerous other professional writers’, Heidi Garnett’s work had appeared in reputable literary journals and chapbooks, was broadcast on CBC, and earned her awards. She had honed her craft at the renowned Banff Centre, and participated in other creative writing programs. In short, the poet had an impressive curriculum vitae before her first book, “Phosphorus,” was ever published, and the proof of her apprenticeship is in the quality of the poems themselves.

Tuck and Kayuk’s Adventure by Robert W. Friedrich Published by Last Mountain Publishers Review by Shelley A. Leedahl In my career as a writer, I’ve often met people who say they have an idea for a novel or a children’s story and are going to write a book one day. I expect that “one day” never arrives for most of these would-be authors, nor do they realize how difficult and time-consuming it is to acquire a publisher. Sometimes, however, the story does get written, and the writer sidesteps the long process of publishing with a publishing company by taking the matter into his or her own hands. The self-published children’s story Tuck and Kayuk’s Adventure, by Regina writer Robert W. Friedrich, and illustrated by Walter Mink, of Le Pas, Manitoba, is a fine example of what can result when one has the determination to see their story in print. As the title suggests, this is an adventure story, which Friedrich dedicates to “all young boys everywhere.” The main character, Tuck, lives in the (undefined) north with his family and his canine companion, Kayuk. The boy dreams of being “the best hunter in his village” and being celebrated as such by…