Do you read more in summer? Here are some thought provoking books I’ve recently read – all by Canadian authors! My selection is a mix of fiction, biography, and travel writing.
Protecting The Prairies – Lorne Scott and the Politics of Conservation: by Andrea Olive - 2023, University of Regina Press I first met Lorne Scott in the year 2000 when he was NDP Minister of Environment, Saskatchewan, and I was the Manager of the Saskatchewan Native Prairie Conservation Action Plan. My husband had the pleasure of banding owls with Lorne when he was a child, since both are from Indian Head, Saskatchewan. I must admit, I’d been hesitant about reading another book about conservation written by an academic, since I’ve spent most of my life working in conservation. However, I found the book both easy and enjoyable to read. Olive’s research spanned a number of years and she cast a wide net for information sources about the impacts of Saskatchewan politics/policy, and about Lorne himself. Olive even conducted personal interviews with Grant Devine and Roy Romanow, both past Saskatchewan Premiers. In Protecting The Prairies, Olive captured Lorne’s essential nature: that of an astute, polite, and deeply caring man. I’ve observed first-hand how well Lorne remembers people’s names - even though he knows so many people. I’ve also noticed that he makes sure to spend time with entry level conservation aspirants. Many people comment how well Lorne can “work a room” at meetings, and in the book, Lorne admits that he’s always loved attending meetings! A true mark of an effective conservationist? I thought it was fitting that Grant Devine’s Conservative political missteps actually worked to create some of the strongest conservation laws in Canada, both provincially and federally, and due in no small part to Lorne’s unceasing efforts to conserve natural areas. Olive wrote that her goal was to write a story about how an individual farmer has worked to conserve nature in an increasingly industrialized agriculture landscape. Oliver includes an incredibly long list of the conservation awards Lorne has received during his lifetime. Olive’s book provides an excellent chronology of the political events that have caused Canadian native grasslands to become one of the most endangered ecosystems on earth. Their loss is also the primary reason why grassland songbird populations have declined so much. I am sure that the Andrea Olive will use her book in the environmental policy classes she teaches at the University of Toronto, and I am hopeful that other universities and teachers will become aware of its value as a conservation teaching tool as well. The Prison Book Club: by Ann Walmsley – 2015, Viking Books Ann Walmsley’s memoir intrigued me, since many years ago I’d taken a multi-day workshop with a federal prison guard. The comments he made about his work caught my interest. Before her adventure with Ontario prisoners, Walmsley had been mugged while living with her family in England. The experience left her traumatized. Her friend, Carol Finlay, invited her to help with her dream – Carol wanted to set up book clubs in Ontario prisons. She believed that inmates would benefit by reading and discussing carefully selected books. The Prison Book Club was easy to read, Walmsley is an accomplished writer. I was captivated by how she wrote about prisoners’ perceptions of many popular books, whose titles I often recognized. Book club members read both new and classic titles, all carefully selected by Carol Finlay and her team. Finlay, with the help of Walmsley and others, was able to create book clubs in most Ontario prisons in a few short years. Walmsley tells us that recent research shows that reading fiction helps prisoners develop compassion and empathy by reading about compelling fictional characters. Did Walmsley’s experience help her to deal with her own trauma? Yes, I believe it did, since she agreed to meet privately with many book club members after their incarceration ended. “The books changed the men, and the men changed Walmsley.” Trail Mix: 920 km on the Camino de Santiago: by Jules Torti - 2021, Rocky Mountain Books I love reading travel memoirs written by modern pilgrims who’ve walked Spain’s Camino de Santiago, since I also walked the Camino Frances in 2005. Just a few short months ago, my husband and I once again became pilgrims, walking both the Camino Portuguese and the Finisterre-Muxia Camino. Trail Mix is one of the more recent memoirs in my camino collection, and this week, I read Torti’s book for a second time. She gives a day-by-day account of her walk with her partner, her information being both authentic and realistic. Torti tells us stories about snorers and dorm life, the constant threat of blisters, long days spent walking between Spanish villages, the plethora of baguettes and salami eaten, and the constant lack of privacy while staying in albergues. Torti reminds us that it’s essential to have a good partner if you’re walking a camino – otherwise you’re better off on your own. I agree with her. I like the way she ended her book - you’ll have to read it yourself to find out what happened! Lastly, Trail Mix is a wonderful source of information for anyone contemplating their own camino. Highly recommended! The Economy of Sparrows: by Trevor Herriot - 2023, Thistledown Press In his latest book – his first work of fiction - Herriot explores bird conservation history and current habitat conservation issues. Economy of Sparrows takes place in Indian Head and Deep Lake Saskatchewan, areas that I am familiar with. I found his characters engaging and the story arc interesting. As the story in The Economy of Sparrows unfolds, we learn about bird collector history in both Canada and the Indian Head area, and about the natural history of grassland songbirds. At the beginning of each chapter, a bird species is featured, along with its perceived impact on agriculture. I noted that many grassland birds depend on cultivated crop field margins for the weed seeds they contain. From my own work in native grassland conservation, I also know that well-managed livestock grazing supports a wide diversity of grassland bird species. Herriot’s main character, Nell, considers her life and love of birds in the context of loss of the small family farm, bison extermination, smallpox, and the ongoing destruction of native grassland habitat in view of Canada’s move towards expansive corporate/industrial agriculture. Nell experiences personal change and gains closure on key questions she’s been struggling with as the story evolves. I found that I could relate to Nell. I had to chuckle at times, Herriot did an exceptional job of capturing the essence of prairie life and attitudes through his characters’ dialogue. Stereotypical perspectives of both conservationists and farmers - conversations I’ve often heard myself – were bang on. No rock was left unturned, scenes illustrating urban and rural culture clashes rang true. I believe Harriot was successful in relating bird and grassland conservation issues through use of fictional characters in The Economy of Sparrows. We have an urgent need for diverse vehicles of messaging about the importance of nature in agricultural landscapes. Indeed, during a recent road trip across our three prairie provinces, I was shocked by the increased size of crop fields, the apparent heavy use of herbicides (ie. many now-large fields appeared absolutely weedless – how could that be?), the loss of aspen clones, and unceasing drainage of wetlands. The diverse species formerly found on native prairie grasslands and smaller cropped field edges, so important for grassland birds, are now absent on much of the agriculture landscapes of Manitoba, Saskatchewan and Alberta. Where nature goes, we will go? * Right now, you’re on my very own author website. While here, you can peruse my historical fiction novel “Heart Stones – A Ukrainian Immigration Story of Love and Hope,” published in 2023. My story is based on my family’s difficult and prolonged immigration experience during and after WWI. Check out Heart Stones reviews, my blog page, and other information about my book. You can even download chapter one for free! My website is: www.christinenykoluk.com Follow me on Facebook at: www.facebook.com/christinenykolukauthor/
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Welcome...I'm Christine Nykoluk, author of Heart Stones, produced through FriesenPress and now available for purchase. TopicsArchives
June 2024
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