Métis author Katherena Vermette’s debut novel The Break is one of the most impactful contemporary novels that I have recently read. The book forces me to confront one of my worst fears as a mother, that a child could be brutally hurt. Utilizing shifting narratives, this novel approaches a sensitive topic with the right tone and sensitivity to express …
Greatgrandma’s Supapawa!
Regarding Stories presents A Tale for the Time Being by Ruth Ozeki this week. One of the most prominent characters has to be the greatgrandma, a 104-year-old Japanese Zen Buddhist nun named Jiko Yasutani. The title of this post honours greatgrandma Jiko’s lessons to her teenage greatgranddaughter, Naoko, affectionately known as Nao or Nattchan. Here is Nao recalling …
Mothers
This week delves into Ru, a semi-biographical novel inspired by the author Kim Thúy’s exile from Vietnam to Canada. Winner of the Governor General’s Literary Award for fiction, CBC Canada Reads 2015, The Grand prix littéraire Archambault, the Prix du Grand Public Salon du Livre/La Presse, the Grand prix littéraire RTL-Lire (France), and the Mondello Prize …
Sisters
Stated in the title, Older Sister, Not Necessarily Related, the theme of sisterhood runs through the book. The Korean salutation unni, older sister, is used to address her elder stepsister, but it also reflects her multiple roles as younger sister to her unni, and older sister to her younger sister named Bora [edit: previously mistaken as a salutation of …