LET’S TALK BOOKS

I love reading books. I’ve always loved reading books. I think this love came from my mother who taught me to read before I went to school. She had a bookcase headboard crammed with yellowing thrift store paperbacks—some you wouldn’t expect your mother to read like Messalina and Peyton Place—along with fat, hard-cover, Reader Digests. My mother was an armchair adventure who got “tight” after one glass of wine, giggled, and crossed her legs. Sorry, Mom, but I love that memory of you.

My criteria? If I like a book, I write about it. So, naturally, my reviews and musings end up here. I know what it takes to write a book, the endless hours, the sleepless nights; so I don’t write about a book if I don’t connect with it.

I’m a proud Canadian and have been writing reviews of fellow Canadian authors for the Ottawa Review of Books for the past few years. This has allowed me to discover some brilliant writers. They may not be New York Times Bestselling authors—because Canadian publishers cannot submit to the NY Times—but they’re wonderful just the same. So, if you like to discover new authors too, read on. Oh, interspersed you may find some superstar authors, like Maggie Stiefvater, who lives in the state of Virginia, and I read just because I wish I could write like her. Literary Envy. Argh!