The Beech Forestby Marlis WesselerPublished by Thistledown PressReview by Brandon Fick$24.95 ISBN 9781771872546 The Beech Forest by Marlis Wesseler is a novel that combines day-to-day life in rural Saskatchewan with a gradual reckoning with the Holocaust on the part of its protagonist, Lisa Braun. Lisa is a middle-aged retiree, a wife and a mother – with all the attendant regrets and worries – who is mostly separate from her German husband, Gerhardt, throughout the course of the novel. This causes her to reflect upon her marriage and far-flung children, induces general restlessness, and transforms a semi-detached understanding of the Holocaust into a morbid, all-consuming fascination. The latter is incited by meeting Ben Meisner, an elderly Jewish man who was interned at Buchenwald. Meisner’s harrowing recollection of life under Nazi Germany, coming at the novel’s midpoint, is the hinge that pulls all the story’s disparate threads together. Wesseler’s writing is clear and understated. Much like the pristine German beech forest Lisa walks through in the opening scene, there is no “excess of any kind.” But while there are no rhetorical fireworks, secrets and ironies – familial, cultural, interpersonal – abound. The largest irony being that Buchenwald means “beech forest” in German….

The Rasmussen Papersby Connie GaultPublished by Thistledown PressReview by Brandon Fick$24.95 ISBN 9781771872539 Connie Gault’s The Rasmussen Papers is a precise work of psychological realism about one woman’s obsessive quest to gain access to the papers of a deceased poet, Marianne Rasmussen, in order to write her biography. Readers enter the mind of an unnamed narrator who bluffs her way into lodging with Rasmussen’s former lover, the almost-centenarian Aubrey Ash, and his eighty-year-old brother, Harry, who live in an aging townhouse in Toronto’s Cabbagetown. Gault’s novel toys with the premise of Henry James’ 1888 novella, The Aspern Papers, but no knowledge of that book is required to enjoy this deft look at a lonely soul. One of the book’s major strengths is the narrator’s observations of those around her, whether it’s Aubrey’s “shiny, scaly, scabby scalp, his dandruff sprinkled Ray-Bans, the blue vein like a snake at his temple,” or in a key turning point, a female addict with the “look of having been eroded from the inside.” But there is a limit to these observations. What does the narrator really see? There’s more to the situation with Aubrey and Harry, Marianne’s poetry, the marginalized people she encounters, and even…

Half-Wild and Other Stories of Encounterby Emily PaskevicsPublished by Thistledown PressReview by Shelley A. Leedahl$24.95 ISBN 9781771872485 It’s entirely rare that a first book packs a punch like Emily Paskevics’ Half-Wild and Other Stories of Encounter. The Ontario writer’s auspicious debut is multi-layered, engrossing, and technically well-wrought (Paskevics is a graduate of the Humber School for Writers), and it credibly features the no-nonsense, hunting-and-fishing folks who populate Ontario’s hardy wilderness communities. If you love gothic literature, you’ll devour these dozen stories. Think taxidermy. Animal fetuses in jars. Hitting a strange creature with your car on a dark, lonely road. Think “mobile home with its porch light swinging … The blue painted door is all scratched up from when a bear tried to get in”. Often characters are fleeing, or someone close to them has recently died, and the remote landscapes—rife with bears, wolves, coyotes, harsh climate and dangerous waters—brilliantly parallel the characters’ dire situations, their psychological turmoil, and the endangered ecosystem. “Bear Bones” is set in Sadowa, where “deer-crossing signs [are] half-battered with buckshot,” a snowstorm’s afoot, and Louisa’s gone missing in a “man’s oilskin coat”. There’s a touch of magic realism at play, but the next story—also featuring loner…

The Heathens and the Dragon: A 13th-Century Adventureby Kate A. BoormanPublished by Thistledown PressReview by Toby A. Welch$16.95 ISBN 9781771872478 It’s been decades since I was in middle school, the suggested reading demographic for The Heathens and the Dragon. But I loved every word. Don’t let the age recommendation turn you off if you are a fan of fun historical fiction. This is an enjoyable read that people of all ages can get into.  The Heathens and the Dragon tells the story of a spunky 12-year-old named Elodie. She and her younger brother become orphans when their mother passes away and their master is arrested. Not sure how to survive, they attempt to follow and find him. They head into a forest, which is where the real spice in the book kicks in. They encounter a troubadour – a French medieval lyrical poet – who offers to help them and their amusing pet chicken. To survive, they create a music performance to make money for food and supplies. (The music and magic show they perform is called The Heathens and the Dragon, hence the name of the book.) A prevalent dynamic of the story is Pagan beliefs and rituals as well as resistance toward anyone…

The Economy of Sparrowsby Trevor HerriotPublished by Thistledown PressReview by Shelley A. Leedahl$24.95 ISBN 9781771872461 I’m considering what I enjoyed most about award-winning Regina writer, grassland conservationist, and naturalist Trevor Herriot’s first foray into fiction. His debut novel, The Economy of Sparrows, conveys the story of pensioner Nell Rowan, a Saskatchewan-born birder and researcher who—after earning a biology degree at Carleton and working for two decades as a night janitor cleaning “the bathrooms and hallways of the National Museum of Nature’s research and collections facility”—returns to her family’s southern Saskatchewan farmstead and remains dedicated to learning everything possible about “long-dead bird collector” William Spreadborough, and the other early naturalists and collectors she read about on her work breaks. Is there some connection between Spreadborough and her own family? This multi-layered book succeeds on every level. Firstly, the plot: Nell’s obsession with Spreadborough drives the story, but there’s also a mother who walked into winter and was never found; a teenaged foster child with a knack for communicating with animals; interesting rural neighbours; and Nell’s passion for documenting the birds in her area … her “bird survey stuff”. Nell tries to remain optimistic, but her faith in policy-makers re: reports, surveys…

The Elephant on Karlův Bridgeby Thomas TrofimukPublished by Thistledown PressReview by Toby A. Welch$24.95 ISBN 9781771872331 Holy cannoli – what did I just finish devouring?!! This amazing fiction read will be on my Top Three Books of 2023 list.  Considering how much I loved The Elephant on Karlův Bridge, I am horrified to admit that I was skeptical at first. The premise seemed ridiculous. The novel is narrated by a bridge in Prague – what the heck? The story centres around an elephant named Sál that escapes from the Prague Zoo, detailing the people she encounters as she navigates her freedom. How can that be entertaining? But I jumped in as I have been a huge Trofimuk fan since 2002 when I read the award-winning The 52nd Poem, his first published novel.  My life changed the moment I cracked The Elephant on Karlův Bridge open. That sounds dramatic but it’s true. This book will linger long in my consciousness. Under Trofimuk’s expert hand, the five-ton elephant took on human characteristics. Crazy, I know! Another bonus is the joy of being submerged into the beautiful and alive city of Prague; if readers close their eyes and focus, they can feel like they are actually there.  As enthralling as Sál…

Leaving Wisdomby Sharon ButalaPublished by Thistledown PressReview by Toby A. Welch$24.95 ISBN 9781771872362 I first fell in love with Sharon Butala’s writing in the 90s when someone gifted me a copy of her #1 best-selling book The Perfection of the Morning. Since then, I have followed her writing journey closely, devouring almost all of the 20+ books she has penned. Butala’s ability to craft a story that sticks with you long after you’ve turned the last page continues with her latest book, Leaving Wisdom. This is a fascinating novel centered around an intriguing character named Judith. The mother of four adult children, Judith is headed to her own retirement party when she slips on a patch of ice. She whacks her head and suffers a life-altering concussion. Struggling to recover and deal with the memories that her fall seems to have dislodged, she moves from big town Alberta to small town Saskatchewan to be closer to the family farm. What ensues is a wild journey filled with unanswered questions and a woman’s quest for the truth. The book is divided into three parts: Wisdom, Sage, and Jerusalem. Hesitant to give away too much, I’ll just say that the third part…

a beautiful rebellionby Rita BouvierPublished by Thistledown PressReview by Shelley A. Leedahl$19.95 ISBN 9781771872348 I took an extended pause before opening a beautiful rebellion, the fourth poetry collection by Saskatoon’s Rita Bouvier. The Métis writer and educator grew up beside the Churchill River, and the cover photo of a forceful river flowing between forested banks before a backdrop of white sky is immensely effective. To me, the scene says: Yes, this is the answer to all that ails us. This is holy. Indeed, a sense of reverence permeates much of the work in this moving and intimate collection, with its odes to jack pine, bear, the moon, aunties and other relatives, and “feathery snowflakes/whirling down from the heavens above”. One of my favourite pieces, “holy, holy, holy,” ingeniously juxtaposes “waves crashing against the rocky shoreline” with “God/reaching in and then out again”. Bouvier’s narrator in “daylight thief at Amigos Café” watches the other patrons-including a dancing child-and considers herself “a thief … in broad daylight/stealing the sacred … all around me.” This careful poet continually turns to the natural world for restoration and peace as she considers colonialism, patriarchy, “the murky waters of truth and reconciliation,” climate change and the…

Gordie’s SkateWritten by Bill Waiser, Illustrated by Leanne FransonPublished by Thistledown PressReview by Shelley A. Leedahl$14.95 ISBN 9781771872355 Few athletes in Canadian history are as iconic as Gordie Howe. Nicknamed “Mr. Hockey,” the Floral, SK-born hockey legend played professionally for an astounding five decades (plus a single game in a sixth decade), and a school, campground, football stadium, and hockey arena are named in his honour. The Gordie Howe International Bridge across the Detroit River–Howe was the Detroit Red Wings’ star player for 25 seasons–is set to open in 2024. It’s fitting that this historically-revered Canadian be celebrated via the arts, as well, and that one of Canada’s foremost historians, Saskatoon’s double GG Award-winning Bill Waiser, has shifted genres (Waiser’s well-known for his non-fiction work) and written an illustrated children’s book, Gordie’s Skate, to share the story of Howe’s humble beginnings, his passion to play, and his ultimate success. Waiser’s successfully transitioned into the magical world of children’s literature with a compelling story that introduces us to a young Howe who “would have played [hockey] all day and night if he could … even in his sleep.” Inspired by Howe’s autobiography Mr. Hockey: My Story, Waiser’s book is set in…

Silencing Rebeccaby Nikki VogelPublished by Thistledown PressReview by Toby A. Welch$18.95 ISBN 9781771872263 Silencing Rebecca is a fantastic book that jumps right into the action with a claustrophobic scene that has us questioning what the heck is going on with the main character. The book then goes on to answer that intriguing question. The story of Rebecca, a teenager transplanted from Toronto to Edmonton, starts predictably. She struggles with the upheaval of moving to a new place and starting at a new school, something most of us can relate to. But things quickly take an unexpected turn when Rebecca morphs into a golem.  I had no idea what a golem was. I vaguely remembered hearing the word in an X-Files tv show episode. But that was in the late 90s and my memory was drawing a blank. Vogel described a golem as an ugly monster, a mythical clay creature straight out of Jewish folklore. Still feeling clueless, I had to find out more. Enter Google. Stories of golems go back centuries. While golems started in Jewish mythology, they have morphed into popular culture in Dungeons & Dragons, Pokémon, and many more places. Currently golems are considered robots that operate through…