Welcome to Litsy!

Ring (Quincunx 5 (3)), by André Alexis (2021 ??)
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️?

Premise: A woman falls in love for the first time, only to learn that the women of her family have a magical ability to change three things about their potential spouse. But of course, it comes with a warning, and at a cost.

Review: Of all the books in this odd series, this is the one that took me the longest to get into. But I think it will also be the one that will stick with me. ⬇️

In my small town, the restaurants are predictably mediocre. Occasionally there's a delicious surprise, but for the most part, the food here, while not bad ain't great either.
This book was like dining at a local restaurant. The story of two friends at near-70 reflecting on their life choices was pretty mediocre. Some wise insights were shared but most of the narrative reminded me of dining out on a serviceable steak served with too many fries.

Me too, Claudia. Me too.
I often read the end of the book to relieve my anxiety. And a few years ago, I discovered my mother does too. Sacrilege perhaps but I still do it. (And it rarely reveals much.)

It was weird

3⭐️ I really tried to understand what this book was about and while it was an interesting read, I really didn‘t understand it. I am really interested to hear what others in this #Canadianlit #bookclub I am a part of will think of the book. #2025 #fiction #sciencefiction #speculative #historicalfiction #fiction #canadian #mexico

I did the return two books, borrow two books thing at the library. I always check the poetry section to see if they‘ve got anything from the years I‘m still missing from my personal challenge where I read a book from every year I‘ve been alive, and this branch had Di Brandt‘s 1987 collection. The tagged book came from the shelf beside it, because I can‘t resist a tiny memoir.

Elizabeth Rex, by Timothy Findley (2000 🇨🇦)
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Premise: On the night before her lover is put to death on her orders, a restless Queen Elizabeth I spends time with William Shakespeare‘s troupe and gets into a battle of wits about the performance of gender with a man who has spent his whole career in drag.

Review: This is probably my favourite play-as-literature thus far. Cont.

Street of Riches, by Gabrielle Roy (1955, trans. 1957 🇨🇦)

Premise: A series of stories about the author‘s childhood in Manitoba‘s francophone community.

Review: This was a marvelous surprise. These stories — seventy years old themselves, but recounting events of thirty years earlier — strike a perfect balance: You feel the foreignness of this version of Canada from a century ago, while also seeing the seeds for the country we‘ve become. Cont.

Quite the epigraph!

Reminds me of The Dud Avocado but with a married protagonist. Its chaotic and messy and, at times, quite dry and witty. The letters from her mother are priceless.
First time reading Gallant who is known more for short stories so not sure where this novel ranks.
My plough through #Canlit continues. But chose this for the Ben's Read Good challenge: a book with 15 letters in the title.