Devour a book

The Book of Pi(e)

“Jurassic Pork,” anyone? How about “Harry Potter and the Deathly Mallows”?

Every year on or around April 1, the worldwide Edible Books Festival  invites book lovers, chefs, and anyone who enjoys a good pun to create an edible piece of art that has something to do with books. On March 31, the Winnipeg Public Library and our Library Board are holding our second annual Books 2 Eat event.

The Challenge: Your creation must be made of edible materials and be inspired by a book in some way: pun on a title, refer to a scene or character, create a book or book cover lookalike… That’s the only rule – how you choose to interpret it is part of the fun!

How to Enter: Send an email with your name, phone number, email address and “book” title to Books2Eat@winnipeg.ca or mail the information to Books2Eat, c/o Reader Services, Millennium Library, 251 Donald St, Winnipeg, MB, R3C 3P5.

• Enter the appropriate category: Adult, Kids (14 and under), or Professional/Culinary Schools.
• The deadline to send in your entry form is March 23.
• The edible entries themselves can be dropped off on March 30 or 31.
• On March 31, all entries will be put on display and judged on various qualities such as “Most Bookish” or “Best Pun.”
• Culinary school entries will also be served at the end of the day, so bring your appetite!

Talks about cooking techniques featuring local chefs plus a food-themed children’s storytime & craft circle will be going on at the same time. All of this is absolutely free and open to the public.

Books 2 Eat 2011 was attended by over 100 people and received dozens of entries, including this Roald Dahl-inspired cake. Check out some more photos of last year’s fabulous entries on the Library’s Flickr account, and start planning your entry today!

Danielle

Paris in the Springtime

Cole Porter famously wrote, “I love Paris in the springtime.” Of course, he went on to love Paris in every other season as well, but the city persists in seeming particularly alluring in the spring. For Winnipeggers, spring may have felt as if it was just around the corner for most of this unseasonably warm winter, but Paris is a little less attainable. Fortunately, the armchair traveller has many choices to help transport them to the City of Light.

In Paris Times Eight: Finding Myself in the City of Dreams, author Deirdre Kelly visits Paris eight times—initially as a 19-year-old, and later through work as a writer and reporter, and as a traveller with family. The chapters serve as snapshots of her life at different stages and highlight what she sees in the city, depending on where she is in her life’s travels. At every age, though, Paris is a source of inspiration, as it has been for so many before her.

In Buying a Piece of Paris, Australian Ellie Nielsen seeks to fulfill the romantic dream of an apartment in Paris, complete with charm and character and chic French style.  Given an impossible timeline and minimal grasp of French, grappling with the foreign real-estate system proves challenging, to say the least. All the stereotypes seem to be accurate, from snobbish agents to impossibly complex banking procedures, showing that more than mere distance separates her from her geographical home.

Many biographies and memoirs interperse reminiscences with recipes. When Paris is the setting, it is almost impossible not to discuss food!  In Lunch in Paris: a Love Story, with Recipes, Elizabeth Bard recounts the unfolding of her romance with a Parisian, along with the many small encounters which comprise getting acquainted with another country at the same time. A greater challenge she faces is living without the familiarity of her own language, which leaves her adrift when faced with navigating the unspoken nuances of French culture.

The Sweet Life in Paris: Delicious Adventures in the World’s Most Glorious—and Perplexing–City by David Lebovitz assembles a series of musings on various aspects of Parisian life followed by a recipe or two. Some examples are chapters about the rudeness of the residents he encounters or peculiarities of the medical system, which make for entertaining reading. The recipes do not always have an obvious connection to the anecdotes, but the writer is a cookbook author who spent substantial amounts of time cooking in a very tiny apartment kitchen!

The author of numerous cookbooks, Doris Greenspan tours some of the most noted bakeries in Paris Sweets: Great Desserts from the City’s Best Pastry Shops. This collection comprises the most classic of French recipes, including favourites such as madeleines and crème brulee. As one might expect, many of the concoctions are fairly complicated and require a degree of expertise, but the “armchair baker” will still enjoy anecdotes about the bakeries and histories of the most noted sweets. The charming illustrations may just tempt you to whip up your own batch of homemade marshmallows.

Moving to a more rural setting, author Susan Herrmann Loomis brings together house-hunting and cooking in On Rue Tatin: Living and Cooking in a French Town. After her culinary training, she and her husband immersed themselves in the search for a French home and its subsequent renovations. Attempts to bridge the cultural divide lead to humorous encounters with a cast of incorrigible characters, providing background to a collection of local recipes.   

Finally, you might want to check out the recent Woody Allen movie Midnight in Paris. A writer travels to Paris and falls in love with the city, and unexpectedly encounters the literary greats who have shared his passion over the years. Readers will appreciate the references to Paris’ literary history, and the Paris streetscapes are a treat for any viewer.

So even if your travels take you no further than your local library, you can still get a taste—literally and figuratively—of Paris in the springtime!

Brenda

Best Home and Garden Books: Part Two

“More things grow in the garden than the gardener sows.”  Spanish proverb

In my last article I highlighted a few of the top interior design books of 2011. With gardening season on the horizon, here are some of the standout titles and trends in gardening that appeared last year in BookNews.

Sustainable Gardening

Manitoba Hydro Place exemplifies the best practices of sustainable architecture.  Green roofs provide protection from solar gain in summer and insulate to reduce heat loss in winter. The interior vertical WinterGarden acts as the “lungs” of the building pretreating incoming air to provide 100% fresh air. For ideas on incorporating these commercial systems into a domestic setting see:

 Vertical vegetables and fruit

 Small green roofs: low tech options for greener living

Natural low maintenance greenscaping

Lawns are unsustainable in terms of the hours spent mowing and watering and the negative effects of toxic chemicals on humans and wildlife. Native perennial grasses are slowly replacing Kentucky Bluegrass. Find instructions for transforming a conventional lawn into a low maintenance sanctuary in:

Eco-yards: simple steps to earth friendly landscapes

 Gardening naturally: a chemical free handbook for the prairies

Urban Farming

Growing your own food is a movement which Michelle Obama has championed. Community gardens are flourishing in Winnipeg and gardeners are cultivating fruits and vegetables along with chickens for eggs, bees for honey and grapes for wine. Learn more about guerilla gardening and supporting local farmers and food producers in Manitoba at the Growing Local conference Feb 23 -25, 2012. To find out how to  grow your own food in the city read:

I garden:urban style

 Complete Idiot’s Guide to Urban Homesteading

 Gardening in small spaces

With the trend to downsizing to apartment and condo living, gardens are shrinking to fit a patio, balcony or window box. Plants are used as privacy screens in high density dwellings and provide a calming space for relaxation. Ideas for creating a green refuge in small spaces are found in:

 Apartment Gardening

 Grow plants in pots

Get ready for the gardening season at Seedy Saturday and learn more about local biodiversity, find inspiration for your garden and take part in the community seed exchange on March 3, 2012. For more of the latest trends in gardening subscribe to Home and Garden Booknews to get a monthly list of our choice of the new and inspiring titles arriving in our collections.

 Get down and dirty this spring!

 Jane

School of Hard Rock

I recently came across a book at the library entitled Eddie Trunk’s Essential Hard Rock and Heavy Metal. In it, the author writes thirty-five informative and anecdotal reviews about the most famous hard rock groups of the last thirty years. For anyone interested in furthering their hard rock and metal education, this short description of iconic rock groups would be the book to start with.

Another way to educate yourself about rock music is by reading the rock biography. Often filled with the age-old narrative of Sex, Drugs, and Rock ‘n’ Roll, these books detail individual life experiences within the rock ‘n’ roll world. Musical stories are as divergent as Anthony Kiedes’ (The Red Hot Chili Peppers) on again, off again battle with drug addiction in Scar Tissue , Freddie Mercury‘s (Queen) complex inner life, and Dave  Mustaine‘s  (Megadeath) Metallica heartbreak. The rock bio is an essential part of any rock music lover’s reading list. They are very entertaining!

Or if you’re like me and want to see the other sex represented, check out Rock Chicks: The Hottest Female Rockers from the 1960s to Now.  This book contains short biographies of some of my favorite female rockers. I was enthralled.  I love Suzi Quatro and it was nice to see that she was given credit for inspiring the legendary Joan Jett and many of the other hard-rocking women who are described. Pat Benatar’s growly voice on the song “Hell is for Children” exemplifies why she is also on that list. Another female rocker who is included, Courtney Love, has recently published her meandering and angst-ridden diaries.

The library also has an extensive collection of concerts and music documentaries. A must-watch for aspiring fans of hard rock music is Sam Dunn’s wonderful documentary Metal: A Headbanger’s Journey. It provides enlightening explanations of the subgenres within punk, rock, and metal.

And remember, this is just the beginning! There are countless underground metal and hard rock bands that are considered essential listening by music connoisseurs. If the library doesn’t have them in our collection, you can always suggest that we buy them! Or check out one of my favorite Winnipeg metal music stores such as War on Music!

Finally, it is important to go to some shows. Winnipeg has the best collection of hard rock and metal bands of any place in Canada. The illustrated book Call * Response contains a great pictorial representation of some of these hard rock, punk, and metal bands. It was created as a fundraiser for the Kids Help Phone Line, and more volumes are expected to be released. Go buy one!

Manitoba Metalfest 2012 on February 24^th and 25^th  is the perfect opportunity to support local music. It is an easy and entertaining way for anyone to improve their hard rock and metal music education. Bring on the headbanging! Yah! See you at a show…

Nadine

Caught in a Bad Romance

“We are all fools in love.”

                                                                 –Jane Austen

   As I was riding the bus the other day, a couple of women sitting next to me were comparing their e-readers and commenting on the convenience, portability, and so on. However, the best thing about an e-reader, they both agreed, was that they could read their romance novels in public, and nobody would know.

That started me wondering – what’s so bad about romance novels? Why is it that reading romance novels is seen as something to hide? Is it the cover art? Is it the writing style? The subject matter? Why judge romance novels, and those that read them, so harshly? Considering the huge market share that romance novels command, shouldn’t their readers demand more respect, if only because there are so many of them?

According to the article The Social Significance of the Romance Novel, this style of novel has been around for centuries, with the first ones appearing during the English Renaissance. Perhaps because the earliest romance novels were written by men, they started out as morality tales, in which errant females were punished for their faults.  Despite the strongly anti-female bias in the stories, the primary reading audience was women. Criticism and ridicule of  both the books and those who read them began soon after. So there’s a longstanding tradition of not taking the romantic fiction genre seriously. Despite the negative publicity, women embraced this writing style eagerly, and a new genre was born.

As time went on, the romance novel developed into the form as we know it today – essentially, two people meet, feel a powerful connection to one another, surmount a series of obstacles to their relationship, and end up falling in love.

Pamela by Samuel Richardson is considered to be among the first of the romantic novels written in the English language.

Jane Austen took those essentials and gave them a depth and resonance that still speaks to us today.

East Lynne by Mrs. Henry Wood has gone from a piece of light reading to a literary classic.

Georgette Heyer’s Regency novels are widely credited as being the first historical romances.

And of course, there’s no way to write about romance fiction without at least mentioning Harlequin, the publishing empire started in the 1930s whose name is synonymous with romantic fiction in all its forms.

With all of that rich history and influence on their side, readers of romantic fiction shouldn’t feel that they have to hide what they read; in fact, they should show off their book covers with pride. Readers of romantic fiction are carrying on a fine tradition–and you never know, today’s Harlequin could be tomorrow’s literary classic.

If you like facts about fiction, take a look at  A Natural History of the Romance Novel by Pamela Regis to gain some great insights into the evolution of the romance novel, and how it reflects the changes in society. A feminist view of romantic novels is explored by Janice Radway in Reading the Romance: Women, Patriarchy and Popular Literature. The author’s conclusions go far beyond the generic stereotypes, and provide an understanding of not only the books themselves, but also to the audience that reads and enjoys them.

Things have come a long way in the romance world since the first pairs of eyes met and the first hearts beat a little faster. Romance readers have their choice of almost any possible plot, from a chaste kiss to the sky’s the limit: historical settings, mythical beings, drama, comedy,  supernatural creatures, outer space, tragedy, time travel, inspirational writing, domestic settings, or any combination you can dream of. And really, isn’t that what romance is all about – daring to dream? There’s nothing bad about that.

-Lori

My Favourite Photoblogs

Do you love taking photos or do you just appreciate viewing beautiful  photography? Either way, photoblogs are a great idea-generating resource for your next picture-taking excursion or a way to travel to new worlds that you aren’t planning to go to in person anytime soon. They’re also great for seeing how others look at the world — with different eyes.

Here are some of my favourite photoblogs, as well as some other photographic resources that I enjoy; I hope you do too!

Fascinated by astronomy, I find the Terrastro Gallery from a talented hobbyist in Australia to be an amazing collection of nighttime sky shots. His tagline pretty well sums it up: “The Milky Way and all things astronomical.” Is he looking at the same sky we are?

Sam Javanrouh is an equally amazing Toronto photographer that has been taking daily urban photos of his hometown since at least 2006. His visually stunning streetscapes, in both black/white and colour, in his blog daily dose of imagery are works of art I find worthy of frequent visits.

It’s hard to beat National Geographic for great photography, and you’ll be pleased to know they’ve transferred their great magazine art skills into cyberspace. Their photoblog site includes a special ‘photo a day’. You can also send in your own favourite pics during contest windows.

Another great personal photoblog site is Peter Farago’s from Hungary (photonique). His self-expressive shots shows a lot of passion, dedication, and an eye for beauty wherever he finds it.

Back to astronomy, there’s a site I’ve visited for years that never disappoints. It’s the out-of-this-world Astronomical Picture of the Day gathered by NASA, which often brings a sense of awe into an otherwise bland day. Not only do you get a great pic each day but an educational description of the shot by someone who knows what they are talking about.

Other assorted photo sites to visit include Pixiq: the photo world in focus (only 150 more photoblogs), free use photos from Flickr, Slate.com’s Today’s Picture page, our collection of Winnipeg Public Library online photos, and the not-to-be-missed cool photoblogs hall of fame site.

Of course there are a lot of photography resources right here at Winnipeg Public Library. Come take a look, or visit our online catalogue and reserve a copy of your favourite photo book. One excellent option is Freeman Patterson’s book, Photography and the Art of Seeing.

Last but not least, two shameless plugs for photo sites of people I know. My friend Verda Heinrichs is well on her way to creating a interesting, reflective site that explores technical as well as spiritual aspects of digital photography. Take a peek here. And my avid photographer son, Joel Penner, is currently holding a photo exhibition at the Millennium Library’s second floor Blankstein Gallery. His exhibition-related site is here. As biased as a father can be, I really enjoy what he’s coming up with!
- Lyle

Giants and Patriots: Not what you think

Well the Superbowl happened last weekend. Although I don’t really follow American football all that closely, I do like Superbowl weekend because that means that baseball is only weeks away! Instead of talking about the NFL or clever commercials or cheesy half-time shows or anything like that, I thought we could take a quick look at some of WPL’s materials that deal with  other giants and patriots out there.

GIANTS

The Iron Giant by Ted Hughes

The Iron Giant (1999) based on the Ted Hughes story

Originally published in Great Britain under the title, “The Iron Man”, Hughes’ fable tells the story of the sudden appearance of a large robot-like creature in the English countryside. He terrifies locals by eating their farm equipment, but is eventually befriended by a little boy who protects him. The Iron Giant is put to the test later on in the story when a giant dragon threatens Earth’s safety. This story was made into an animated feature film in 1999. The title was changed to “The Iron Giant” when it was published in the United States so that there wouldn’t be confusion with the Marvel Comics’ character “Iron Man”.

Fall of Giants by Ken Follett

Fall of Giants by Ken Follett (2010)

Ken Follett is known for writing epic tales like “Pillars of the Earth” and “World without End”, and he doesn’t disappoint readers in this 2010 offering. Part one of what he calls “The Century Trilogy”, “The Fall of Giants” follows five inter-related families from Wales, Germany, Russia, England and America as they weave through the events leading up to and including World War I. Follett has the uncanny knack of making potentially dusty and boring historical events pop with the human touch. I can’t wait for Part 2, which I assume will deal with World War II.

Odd and the Frost Giants by Neil Gaiman

Odd and the Frost Giants by Neil Gaiman (2008)

Neil Gaiman wrote this short novel for World Book Day, an annual event organized by UNESCO to promote reading, publishing and copyright. It tells the story of a boy named Odd who assists the Norse gods Odin, Loki and Thor who have been tricked into leaving Asgard by a crafty Frost Giant. Full of adventure and a wonderful introduction to Norse mythology for reluctant readers, Neil Gaiman brings the goods again.

PATRIOTS

On to the patriots!

John Adams HBO Mini-series

Promotional Poster for HBO's John Adams (2008)

This series, directed by Tom Hooper of “The King’s Speech” fame, has won four Golden Globes and more Emmys than any other mini-series in the Emmys’ history. Starring Paul Giamatti and Laura Linney as John and Abigail Adams, it tells the life story of the second president of the United States. The series opens on the night of the Boston Massacre and follows Adams through the some of the major events that led to the formation of the United States of America. Strong performances from Tom Wilkinson as Benjamin Franklin and Stephen Dillane as Thomas Jefferson make this captivating viewing, even for us Canadians.

American on Purpose: The Improbable Adventures of an Unlikely Patriot by Craig Ferguson

Craig Ferguson's American on Purpose (2010)

 

On a lighter note, irreverent late night talk show host Craig Ferguson has written a book for his legion of cheeky monkeys and robot-skeletons. Mr. Ferguson recounts stories from his early days growing up in Scotland to his arrival in Hollywood where he landed a role on “The Drew Carey Show” and later became host of “The Late Late Show” on CBS. Along the way, he tells the reader about his struggles with alcohol and drugs, as well as his becoming an American citizen in 2008. I recommend getting a hold of the audiobook version, so that you can enjoy the author reading his own book. Most of the stories here demand to be told in a saucy Scottish accent. Coincidentally, Franklin’s “Join or Die” drawing used extensively in the promotion of “John Adams” is also tattooed on the inside of Craig Ferguson’s right arm.

Louis Riel and Gabriel Dumont by Joseph Boyden

Louis Riel & Gabriel Dumont by Joseph Boyden (2010)

We can’t do a post on Patriots without a little Canadian content, yes? There is an excellent series out there called “Extraordinary Canadians” of which any title would make a suitable example of a Canadian Patriot. I’ve singled out “Louis Riel & Gabriel Dumont” by Joseph Boyden for a couple of reasons. First, I absolutely LOVE Joseph Boyden as a novelist. His book Three Day Road is easily in my top five favourite books of all time. Secondly, why not include a little local history? Boyden covers the period in history when Dumont, a master hunter and Riel, a brilliant yet troubled university-trained leader came together in 1884-85 to form a united Métis worldview that threatened Sir John A. MacDonald’s vision of Canada and ushered in Manitoba as a province. This book reads like a novel and like Follett, Boyden has the ability to make history breathe.

Wasn’t this more fun than reading about a couple of teams from New York and New England?

Trevor

Bicentennial of the arrival of the Selkirk Settlers

This year we mark not only the bicentennial of the War of 1812 (as previously posted here) but also a pivotal event in our province’s history: the arrival of the Selkirk settlers to what would later become Winnipeg.  Thomas Douglas, 5th Earl of Selkirk, used personal wealth to help re-settle poor farmers from Scotland in what he hoped would be a permanent colony.  This not only heralded the coming of permanent European settlements, but also introduced agriculture in a region that had been dominated by the fur trade.  The enterprise faced many hardships, including the financial ruin of Lord Selkirk and the razing (twice) of Fort Douglas, the initial trading post of the colony, not least because of the wars fought between the Hudson Bay and NorthWest Companies. Despite never prospering in Selkirk’s lifetime, the Red River Colony eventually became the Province of Manitoba.

Starting on February 4, Winnipeg Public Library will exhibit replicas and authentic artifacts representing the Selkirk Settlers’ clothing, tools, and everyday objects, provided courtesy of Parks Canada, the Manitoba Museum, and the Active History Associates. The exhibit will run from early February until late April .  Come and check it out!

For those who would like to read up on the subject, there are a few choice picks that I can recommend.  J. M. Bumstead is an authority on the subject of the Red River Colony and has written an excellent biography of Lord Selkirk. 

Another fascinating read is “A Son of the Fur Trade: the life of Johny Grant” , the memoir of a Metis fur trader and rancher who lived an adventurous life in the Red River territory through much of its history from 1833 until his death in 1907. Grant was involved in the rebellion of 1870, and  even briefly arrested on orders of Louis Riel for opposing him.    

If you are a fiction reader with an interest in this era (this being festival du voyageur month),  then Margaret Elphinstone’s “Voyageurs” might appeal to you.  A devout English Quaker in search of his sister who disappeared in the Canadian wilderness faces war and hardship while working with voyageurs in the fur trade.  The inner conflict between religious beliefs and ”real life” is also a central element of the story.    

On a housekeeping note, I would like to announce that a book scanner is  now available for the public use in the Local History Room at the Millennium Library.  There is no charge to use the scanner, but patrons will need to bring a memory stick in order to save the scanned material on it.  This will provide an improved way to make copies of the material in the Local History Room and also help in the preservation of more fragile material.  Though the scanner’s primary function is to allow the digital reproduction of Local History Room books, the public can bring outside material to scan as well.