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Susan Tooke

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The end of the year is good for at least three things: 1) Reading new books, 2) celebrating the holidays (by reading) and 3) looking back at the year that was. I’d say looking back fondly but if you’ve seen the internet you know it was a year many can’t wait to see in the rearview.

At Atlantic Books Today it was a year of significant change as we reinvented ourselves and our major publications, while maintaining our usual volume of online output. This list of the ‘most popular’ posts (as evidenced by readers’ clicks) showcases the wide variety of content found here at AtlanticBooksToday.ca. So while you may have come across some of these articles, recipes, interviews and more, now is the time to catch up on any you’ve missed below before we charge into 2017.

Thank You, North Preston

Katie Ingram looks at the creation of Shauntay Grant’s first children’s book, Up Home, and the collaborative process with illustrator Susan Tooke.

Being An Artist

Lee Thompson’s Q&A with “overnight success” Kerry Lee Powell on her debut short story collection, Willem de Kooning’s Paintbrush.

Women in Publishing

Todd MacLean’s profile of Nimbus Publishing’s Heather Bryan and the influence of women in publishing.

Moncton Writer’s Trip and Just Jen

Chris Benjamin’s Q&As with Jason Murray, about his forthcoming book on indie rockers Eric’s Trip and Jen Powley, about her forthcoming memoir, were part of a series on King’s MFA grads with publishing deals.

An Ode to Indies

Jon Tattrie’s love letter to three of the many small, independent publishers behind the hundreds of books our region produces annually.

A Growing Concern

Todd MacLean’s Q&A with PEI author Jackie MacKay on her book Butterflies in My Belly and the rising prevalence of childhood anxiety.

National Aboriginal Day

A special list for National Aboriginal Day, June 21, listing some of the many great books by Indigenous writers in Atlantic Canada.

Antigonish Goes International

Journalist Heather Brimicombe looks at the Coady Institute in Nova Scotia, which was cited by author Augusta Dwyer in her book, The Anatomy of Giving, as a rare example of hands-on, bottom-up world aid work.

Broken Books

Denise Flint tells the story behind the St. John’s indie bookstore.

 

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DadsReadHappy Father’s Day! To celebrate Dads in our usual literary way, we asked a few local writer-dads what their favourite Atlantic Canadian books are. We got a great range of answers, some books to read to the kids and some that go great with that post-bedtime nightcap:

Steve Law, father of two girls, author of Tailings of Warren Peace and the forthcoming Colour of a Tattoo (2017), suggests two personal favourites:

Tinker and BlueTinker & Blue by Frank MacDonald. Steve says: “Not only do we finally get to meet the ‘other feller,’ but Tinker & Blue share their storytelling zeal as they travel in their Plymouth to Haight-Ashbury, form a band, find love, fight ‘the man’ and the big corp ‘Fucdepor’ while evading the FBI. What’s not to love in a 60’s road trip to San Fransisco with a couple of boys from Cape Breton Island?”

Up HOmeUp Home by Shauntay Grant with artwork by Susan Tooke. Steve says: “Because all fathers should read books to their kids. Beautifully illustrated, a memory of home that allows us to reminisce and our kids to dream. An Atlantic Canadian gem.”

Jamie Fitzpatrick, host and producer at CBC Radio in St. John’s and author of You Could Believe in Nothing, vividly recalls one of his favourite Atlantic Canadian novels and the impact it had on him:

“The Way the Crow Flies by Ann-Marie MacDonald isn’t MacDonald’s best known work, but it still Anne-Marie MacDonald The Way the Crow Fliesknocks around in my head many years after I put it down. I remember the first glimpse through the car window, the military houses, the empty spaces in town that the kids know intimately. New Year’s Eve and slumber parties. The sense that something’s wrong long before we find out that something is very, very wrong. The sex and the slumber party and the pineapple upside down cake. I have a post-it on my computer that says ‘pineapple upside down cake’ as a reminder of how a single, small detail can engage your imagination with a story.”Sara Tilley Duke

Jamie also loves Duke by Sara Tilley: “Probably my favourite novel of the last year or so. A man from Newfoundland heads west to seek his fortune, with the long shadow of his family hanging over every move. Sounds like a hundred other east coast tales you’ve heard? Well it is, and it very much isn’t.”

Justin Gregg, science writer, author of Are Dolphins Really Smart? and 22 Fantastical Facts About Dolphins and father to “a young bookworm who sleeps under a pile of Star Wars encyclopedias,” also provides two offerings. As a father who delights in mildly embarrassing his daughter at every opportunity, he focuses on the anti-hero:

Empire of DeceptionEmpire of Deception by Dean Jobb. Justin says: “Leo Koretz built his fortune by running an intricate Ponzi scheme in the 1920s, fleecing millions from Chicago’s rich and powerful. He even preyed upon his closest family members – convincing his own mother to invest in his non-existent Panamanian oil fields. Koretz is the forgotten forefather of investment fraud, and Jobb’s masterful account of his life (and sugary demise) makes for a compelling read.”

Aftershock by Janet Maybee. Just says: “Maybee revisits the life of Francis Mackey – the harbour pilot Aftershockwho guided the ill-fated Mont Blanc during the Halifax Explosion. Mackey has long been regarded as the man responsible for the worst maritime disaster in Nova Scotian history. But we learn that not only was Mackey wrongly blamed by the media (and history), but his diligence and skill as a pilot might well have saved lives that day.  Mackey went on to have a successful career, and raise a loving family that adored him.”

Michael De Adder, a proud father and also one of our region’s preeminent political cartoonists, author of several books of cartoons, most recently You Might be from Newfoundland and Labrador If..., suggests the very first Atlantic Canadian book he ever read, and the most recent:

 Each Man’s Son by Hugh MacLennan. Michael says: “I read it Hugh MacLennan Each Man's Sonwhen I was so young and it stuck with me. It was the first local book I ever read.” And it happens to have a nice Father’s Day-ish (with a twist) theme to it. MacLennan’s fourth novel features Dr. Daniel Ainslie, who yearns for a son but can’t have one and comes to love the son of a man who deserted his family to become a professional fighter.

alan doyle where i belongDe Adder also recommends his most recent local read, Where I Belong by Alan Doyle. “I just really enjoyed this one,” he says. “I read it just after I wrote You might Be From Newfoundland and Labrador If….” Seems like perfect timing. Our reviewer, Tara Thorne, called this book “the story of [Doyle’s] youth; of cod tongue-cutting and hockey; of mostly innocent little-boy neighbourhood antics; of school and religion; of family and music.”

And finally, David Fleming, a Halifax father, poet and short story writer, says that his favourite Atlantic writers appeal to him in fact because they deal with parenting complexities in their writing.

Light Lifting by Alexander MacLeod. David says, “Of all the great stories in this collection, ‘Wonder Alexander MacLeod Light LiftingAbout Parents’ is my favourite. It deftly follows a couple through the trials of lice infestation, a severely ill baby and long holiday road trips with an unforgettable style that should amuse, exhaust and awaken any dad of little kids.”

Sue Goyette’s The Brief Reincarnation of a Girl. David calls this work “a heartbreaking Sue Goyette The Brief Reincarnation of a Girlpoetic drama about a child who died in Massachusetts of over-medication. Goyette places the reanimated girl in a courtroom with her stuffed bear, as a cast of deeply broken people — her mother, father, doctor and lawyers — struggle to assign blame for the girl’s death. The toy bear ultimately rescues her to a place of peace and meaning. Few books of poetry have shaken me like this one.”

 

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Up Home 005Shauntay Grant and Susan Tooke recreate North Preston’s childhood magic

Shauntay Grant’s 2008 picture book, Up Home, is the Halifax-based writer’s thank you note to the community that helped her become who she is today.

Grant spent part of her childhood living in North Preston, a predominately African Nova Scotian community located in the Halifax Regional Municipality. She and her parents moved into Halifax when she was young, but Grant retains strong ties to the community through family and friends. It’s these connections she drew on upon in Up Home.

“Writing always starts from something you know or something you want to know,” says Grant. “I go to my memory and when I think of the times that brought me joy as a child, North Preston is there.”

Grant, who is also a spoken word artist and creative writing professor, says that without North Preston, she wouldn’t be the person she is today.

“The intention was just to write something to say thank you to the place that inspired me as a child to tell stories,” she says,” she says. “But for me, it ended up being a way to celebrate a community that had a huge part in shaping who I am as a person; my first recollection of music and art are from home.”

Initially, Grant wasn’t going to publish Up Home. She had written it as a teenager and was reciting the then poem at a Writers Federation of Nova Scotia event where it was heard by Sandra Macintyre. At the time, Macintyre was the managing editor for Nimbus Publishing.

“It really was Sandra hearing it and approaching me afterwards that led to the publication,” says Grant. “Things just sort of snowballed from there.”

As part of this snowball effect, Grant worked with artist Susan Tooke to help bring the stories and characters of Up Home to life. As part of their collaboration, Grant and Tooke visited North Preston to get a better sense of the people and places Grant referred to.

“I go about it in the same way you might do a movie; each illustration is a scene,” says Tooke. “You want to make sure you’ve got everything placed accurately, the right viewpoint, and you want to be able to get the proper landscape.”

Tooke isn’t from North Preston, so used this experience to better understand Grant’s connection to the community.

“It was important for me to get to know the community and the community to get to know me because it was Shauntay’s story, so I also wanted to see how she related to it,” says Tooke. “They were all very welcoming.”

Grant also found taking Tooke to North Preston was important for their partnership to be successful.

“I don’t think our relationship happens often, where the writer works with the illustrator,” she says. “The opportunity to take Susan to the community, showing her around and meeting my family was instrumental in making the book happen the way it did.”

Each time, Grant and Tooke would spend a few hours meeting and interacting with community members before they set to work. However, due to the time of year, they ran into seasonal issues when creating a few of the scenes, like one that involved blueberry picking.

“It was black fly season and it was very foggy, so it wasn’t exactly ideal,” says Tooke. “When you see the image in the book, you think it’s a beautiful, sunny, warm day but it was something quite different.”

Up Home 002Tooke sometimes had to incorporate different faces into a drawing, such as those featured in the picture of the church choir. She found it challenging because she wanted each person to be equally represented.

“I wanted to make sure that I included every choir member and that everyone had their own identity so they could recognize themselves,” she says. “That was quite a challenge, but I was happy to do it.”

After all, Up Home is not only about celebrating the people that inspire Grant, but a place she is proud to call home.

“I love being able to look back at the book and see the faces of my community documented,” says Grant. “It’s beautiful to see.”

Up Home was Grant’s first book and was published in 2008. It was also the 2009 winner of the Best Atlantic Published Book Award.