That Just Happened!

Bambrick, Winifred.  Keller’s Continental Review.  The Riverside Press (1946). 

This is now the oldest book I own.  It took quite a bit of searching, but I finally found a place in the States that had a copy.  It should be noted that this copy came without its dust jacket and is an American printing.  The Canadian novel and original name was Continental Review.  I also could not find a synopsis of the book online, so I am going to have to write my own, for the first time in the history of my blog.

Continental Review  follows Herr Direktor and his company across the Continent putting on a Review.  The cast of characters is vast, yet they are like one big, happy family.  Suddenly, there lives are thrown into turmoil as rumours of war break out one the Continent.  The closeness they once experienced dissolves as the company is torn apart by prejudices, governments and an falling economy.  As much as the characters are feeling this external pressure, things are also changing within the company.  They experience love and loss all within the context of the oncoming war.  Meanwhile they continue to take their show on the road and perform 2-4 hour shows a day.  Herr Direktor fights for things to remain the same, but he loses his grip on his company and they go spiraling down.

Me.

This was an interesting book.  Reading it was like experiencing the Review itself, there were so many details.  The Review is a cross between performance art, burlesque and a circus.  The closest thing I can think to relate it to these days is Cirque du Soleil.  The Reader basically gets to watch each of the shows as they are presented.  The Reader gets a feeling of organized chaos and there is no feeling of judgment within the cast, or from the outside world.  The company is portrayed happily and every where they go they are loved.  It is not an easy life, being on the road, but it is a content one.  There are also a lot of lovers in this book.  One day they love each other and the next they are torn asunder.  It always comes down to love.   As the war approaches the Reader starts to feel the tension within the company as they are no longer allowed to travel as they did before.  It all comes to an interesting end and I liked how Bambrick gave a little review about where all the characters ended up.  It is not a happy story, by any means, but circus stories never are.  I find there is always an underlying sense of tragedy to them. 

I give this book 3 eh’s.  I liked the story, but I thought the author became a little too bogged down in the details at times.

Maclennan, Hugh.  Two Solitudes.  McClelland and Stewart.  (2008, originally 1945). 

Two Solitudes, by Hugh MACLENNAN(Toronto, New York and Des Moines, 1945), is a novel whose title has become emblematic of Canada’s most troubling legacy: the relations between English and French Canadians. Using historical settings within a mythological framework, MacLennan explores the tensions in these relations from WWI to 1939. The French Canadian realities are set in the parish of Saint-Marc-des-Érables, which is dominated by its priest, Father Beaubien, and by Athanase Tallard, a powerful but tragic figure ostracized by his church for trying to industrialize the village. Montréal, on the other hand, is dominated by characters such as Huntley McQueen, a Presbyterian businessman from Ontario. Tallard’s son Paul, at home in both languages but alienated from both cultures, embarks on an Odyssean quest for his own identity and for a vision of Canada as he struggles to write a novel which will define his own Canadian experience. It has been translated into French, as Deux solitudes (Paris, 1963), and Spanish, Swedish, Czech, Dutch and Estonian.

The Canadian Encyclopedia Online

This book is provides deep insight into the French/English divide that has occurred in Canada, and still continues to affect relations today.  The Conscription Crisis further divided the country by “race” and we are still seeing the scars.  For those who are not from Canada, there has been a lot of talk over the years about some nationalists wanting to separate Quebec from the rest of Canada.  There is just too much politics to go into here (I don’t have the energy to tackle it), but you can go here   and here  if you are interested in reading more about what it means to be French or English Canadian and here  if you want to read more about the Parti Québécois. 

What I really appreciated about this novel is the ability of Maclennanto write from both sides of the debate, although I must say the English-Canadians were presented in a more disapproving light.  The book itself is written in 4 parts and follows a family over 2 generations, WWI and the beginning of WWII.  The prejudices of the characters are definitely accurate and continue even today (by some, but not a majority).  There was also a strong human element to the characters.  Not everyone is defined by one characteristic and the ability to make connections with others is representative of that, especially in the younger generation.  Canada is a very large country and there is difficulty uniting the population for a common cause because it is so vast and there are so many cultural influences.  Paul, half French and half English, represents this divide as he has difficulty reconciling it in himself.

I would definitely recommend this book to anyone who would like to learn more about Canadian history from a people’s point of view.  Although it is a piece of fiction, the underlying themes and causes are real.  I would also recommend this to anyone who likes books with a strong male perspective, well-developed characters and books that span generations.

I read this as part of my personal Governor General Award for Fiction Challenge and I am giving it

I liked it, but it was a bit dry in parts.  Overall, an excellent choice for GG winner.

Welcome to my little corner of the blogosphere!   On Wednesday I posted about the RONA MS Bike Tour  that MPW is participating in this weekend.  I also threw out this challenge:

For every new follower between now and Friday I will donate $1*!   Yes, that’s right…you can donate someone else’s money, so there is no reason not to help out.  If you subscribed via email leave me a comment saying so (honesty policy reigns).

I have facebooked it, commented on many of blogs (in hopes that they return the favour and want to get involved, I didn’t actually say I was doing this), got people to twitter it and I have had a less than stellar response.  Now, I know I am not strictly a book blog, but I do post a lot of reviews and I am participating in quite a few challenges, including my own personal one.  I am attempting to read all the Governor General Literary Award winners for fiction since the prize began in 1936.  This award is the most prestigious book award in Canada (I have my own opinions about the Giller). 

There are so many charities out there that are looking for support and I really believe that the MS Society can use yours.  Just by becoming a follower, you can help a cause that affects this little one here…

…whose grandmother has trouble even holding her because her Multiple Scelrosis has caused havoc on her body.  The morning of the baby shower for this Little One, she was rushed to the hospital and I don’t even want to think about how many more important events she could miss because of this. 

After today I will go back to posting fun and book-appropriate materials, but since the bike ride is tomorrow, I want to make my contribution today.  And of course, if you follow me, I will follow you! 

Posts to look forward to: A Surprise 60th birthday, Review: The Guinea Pig Diaries, My Weekend Alone, and Angus Update

Thanks for stopping by!

Yeah, That Just Happened!