pickStreet 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.
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.
pickLoved!
Roy was a successful mid-century 🇨🇦 writer. Her novel Tin Flute still gets assigned in Canlit classes but otherwise her reputation has dimmed. Which, it turns out, is a shame because this is wonderful! A semi-autobiographical collection of linked stories told from the perspective of a young girl growing up in a large French family in Manitoba. Nothing flashy. Just lovely, rich insights into the complexity of people through innocent eyes.
Nice to see the river open again. And a duck!
More 🇨🇦 #Canlit 🇨🇦 for my #weekendreads.
Print: Streets of Riches (1957) by Gabrielle Roy
Audio: Beautiful Losers (1966) by Leonard Cohen. (This one is challenging. 😬)
@rachelsbrittain
Another quick read from the library. So far I‘m quite liking it.
#FoodandLit #Canada I made Cabbage Rolls it is unclear as to who invented this lovely dish, but we do have a lot of Ukrainian immigrants that came to Canada in the early 1900 s. I learned how to make it from a French Canadian lady. The recipe is very easy.
1. Cook beef with onions and add beef broth pouch until cooked. Cook rice separately. Mix the two together and add soya sauce. Don't be cheap but taste. ⬇️
pickRead this one for the Heliconian Lecture Series. Maya works for a NGO in an unnamed African country and is asked to rush in site when a young woman from the community accuses one of the staff of rape. It is an examination of what the meaning of charity is, the chasm between the community and the visitors to that community. It is also a story of bias and complicity. Parts of the book didn‘t work and there is some clunky language, so a low pick.
![[tagged book]](https://image.librarything.com/pics/litsy_webpics/icon_taggedBook@3x.png){kind=icon}
Bookish Pair:This would be an interesting pairing with a more contemporary collection, such as Bernardine Evaristo‘s Girl Woman Other (2019).
Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ 5d