Starter Dog (My path to joy, belonging and loving this world) by Rona Maynard
“When my husband said, 'Let's get a dog,' I nearly retorted Let's not.' I could think of three good reasons to veto this notion on the spot. But there sat Paul with his hand on mine and that dreamy yet resolute way I've learned not to take lightly. Waiting for me to say, 'Yes, let's.'”
Maynard goes on to say that in more than 40 years of marriage, the couple had managed quite fine without a dog. Personally, I don't know how such a thing could be possible, but people do have different ways of looking at the world. No dogs? Not my style.
But this isn't my story, it is Rona's. And she wanted to love her life again. She figured she was stuck in the doldrums of what-next. Finally, after plenty of back and forth discussions, Rona gives in and the couple finds their first dog – a rescue mutt named Casey.
The rest is history.
Starter Dog by Rona Maynard came out in 2023 from ECW Press, with a cover price of $24.95. Maynard is best known for her acclaimed memoir My Mother's Daughter and a stellar career at the helm of Chatelaine magazine.
You can meet up with the author at www.ronamaynard.com and listen to our talking books and stuff's podcast chat with her by visiting the ldrimmer You Tube channel and searching for episode 241.
Flight Risk by Meg Braem
“Where do stories come from? This story comes out of a bad year. In the span of six months I watched my father die, began to suffer excruciating headaches, got fired from my job, went blind in one eye, and lost the ability to walk more than ten feet without falling over. It felt like the earth was trying to shake me off. I was 32 years old. I thought 'If this is adulthood, I'm not gonna make it.'”
This work is part stage play, part memoir, part essay collection, and totally a moving tribute to Canadian veterans of the Royal Canadian Air Force bomber crews during the Second World War. As noted on the back cover of this publication, Flight Risk is the story of finding exactly who you need when you least expect it.
From the University of Calgary Press, Flight Risk came out in 2023. The author is an Alberta-based playwright and dramaturg who is a literary advisor in theatre, opera, or film. Our podcast visit with Meg Braem is easy to find by going to the ldrimmer You Tub channel and looking for episode 240.
The Retreat by Elisabeth De Mariaffi
“The door flies open against the wind and then Maeve is flying too, her body hurtling out into the cold, the palm of her hand ripped open and bleeding hard. It's still night. Snow swirls up and sprays at her eyes as she stumbles into the dark.”
This haunting story sees a group of artists gathered at a remote fine arts school when an unexpected avalanche finds them cut off from civilization. In an article from July 31, 2021, the Saskatoon Star Phoenix newspaper, it is noted that novelist De Mariaffi can make a reader's blood run cold.
This one will do the same, as murder and mayhem are unleashed on both the unsuspecting characters and you, dear reader.
The centre of the story is Maeve, a retired dancer and mother of two who is the emotionally scarred survivor of a violently abusive relationship. The Retreat offers a thrilling setup followed by a galloping sprint to the final page.
Originally from Toronto, the writer is based (at the time of this writing ) in St. John's, and The Retreat won the 2022 fiction prize at the Newfoundland and Labrador Book Awards. The Retreat came from Harper Collins in 2021 with a cover price of $23.99.
Her website is www.elisabethdemariaffi.com and our podcast chat with her can be located through the ldrimmer (accept no substitutes ) You Tube channel at episode 140.
Stay literate, my friend, stay literate.
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