"Canadiana"

 

This photo was taken at Grandma D's house on Christmas Day in 1958. My brother and I are in the middle with our cousins on either side. But this story is about the wing-backed chair with the floral upholstery. The chair was beside the built-in shelves that held Grandma's library of Canadian books. Over the years, I spent many, many hours in that chair, my legs hanging over the armrests, reading her books. When she died, I got the books and the chair. It has been re-covered but sits in my living room to this day. 

Grandma was a great supporter of Canadian authors, including many books written by women. I have first editions of all of Emily Carr's books, as well as books by Pauline Johnson, Susanna Moodie, Nellie McClung, L.M Montgomery and Louis Hémon to name a few. When I was older, she loved to take me to the "Canadiana" section of Coles bookstore where she bought books for me by a variety of authors including Margaret Laurence, Margaret Atwood, Gregory Clark and Farley Mowat. 

A few years ago I noticed that because of time spent online, I was reading fewer books and was having trouble focusing on reading for extended periods. I resolved to read one book a week and have been able to meet or exceed that goal for several years now. We have excellent libraries in our city that offer online and physical resources. My Kindle is a constant companion. This month I read three "Canadiana" books that I know Grandma would have enjoyed. 

Extraordinary Canadians by Peter Mansbridge is the One Book One Community selection for 2021. It tells the stories of 17 ordinary Canadians who through hard work, contributed greatly to their communities. There are voices from women, men, disabled people, Indigenous leaders, health care, business and political advocates. Each story is about 20 pages long, so it is easy to read. 

I do love a good mystery and I have enjoyed all the Chief Inspector Gamache novels by Louise Penny. Most of the stories are set in Montreal and the Eastern Townships of Quebec and this is the 17th book in the series. I have become bored with some serials when the writing quality diminishes over time. This book was one of the best in the series, in my opinion, and is set optimistically in post-pandemic Quebec. My good friend kindly mailed me her new copy of the book when she was done with it. I would have waited months to get it at the library. 

Sometimes I just feel like a light read, and Iona Whitshaw's Lane Winslow Mystery series fits the bill. The books are set in British Columbia after World War 2. Lane Winslow worked for British intelligence during the war and decides to move to Western Canada to start a new life far from the conflicts of Europe. The books deal with social, political, and historical issues of the time period within the stories. This is book 8 in the series. I found book 7 somewhat weak but was happy to find that this book was up to the standard of the first six books.

I am up to book 44 this year (this is week 39) and have read a wide variety of authors and topics. Grandma's chair is still very comfortable for reading!

Grandma's Wing-backed Chair