David Sedaris’s previous book, 2010’s Squirrel Seeks Chipmunk, was an exploration of human foibles told allegorically through animal tales. It was an attempt to break out of his comfort zone, and for this brazen experimentation Sedaris was duly punished. Though know that by “punished,” I mean that it was the first time, as far as I know, that a Sedaris book has met with something other than universal acclaim. The Guardian’s critic outright condemned it, while several others offered the kind of faint praise someone trying an unfamiliar dish might give in the presence of the cook: “Well that’s… different.” Read more…
essays
ONE IN EVERY CROWD
by Ivan E. Coyote
Despite being a fortysomething, confident, self-identified butch lesbian with a crew cut, tattoos, and killer biceps, Ivan E. Coyote’s heart still races when she enters high schools, where she gives talks far more often than she would like. Most performers try to connect with the broadest possible audience. Coyote’s hope is to reach just one or two kids – those whose lives may be changed forever because they met someone like her; like themselves. Read more…
PIECE BY PIECE:
Stories About Fitting Into Canada
by Teresa Toten, ed.
“Immigrants,” writes editor Teresa Toten in her excellent introduction to this collection of essays and memoirs, “are so often hyper-aware, hyper-alert to their surroundings. We are alive to every potential snub or slur. We can track a raised eyebrow that is invisible to everyone else at the table. We are forever searching for the unwritten social rules, the clues to belonging.” Read more…
THE FIRST MAN IN MY LIFE:
Daughters Write About Their Fathers
by Sandra Martin
In her introduction to this excellent collection of short essays by prominent Canadian women about their fathers, editor Sandra Martin admits that finding a title that “didn’t imply incest as an overarching theme was an onerous struggle.” But surely, Sandra, one shouldn’t give up entirely? Read more…
DON’T GET TOO COMFORTABLE
by David Rakoff
Ex-pat Canadian and long-time New Yorker David Rakoff is an extremely funny man. This, his second release (following a collection of autobiographical essays called Fraud) is for the most part an extremely funny book. Read more…