The Last Guide is the life story of Frank Kuiack, the last fishing guide to work in Algonquin Park, Ontario, Canada.
Ron Corbett, the author, alternateThe Last Guide is the life story of Frank Kuiack, the last fishing guide to work in Algonquin Park, Ontario, Canada.
Ron Corbett, the author, alternates chapters on Frank's life with chapters describing a fishing trip Corbett took with Frank.
The story is heartwarming and entrancing, evoking the beauty of Algonquin Park, and a longing for the peace and tranquility of a way of life that has passed by. At the heart of the story is Frank's love for his wife, Marie, as well as his love for fishing. The book also describes Frank's struggles with alcohol and tells the tales of many of the other famous guides that populated the park throughout its history.
One of the great strengths of the book is Frank's total honesty in describing his life.
If you enjoy reading about nature, fishing, camping, canoeing, and the outdoor life, I highly recommend this poetic and inspirational story....more
Algonquin Park-A Place Like No Other is a fascinating, detailed and comprehensive history of all aspects of Ontario's massive provincial park.
The booAlgonquin Park-A Place Like No Other is a fascinating, detailed and comprehensive history of all aspects of Ontario's massive provincial park.
The book covers the indigenous first peoples--the Algonquins--who have long used the park for hunting, fishing and gathering, the logging history and lives of the lumberjacks, the trappers and poachers, the wardens and rangers and fighting of fires, the railway lines, youth camps, inns and leased cottages, the recreational uses of the Highway 60 corridor and deeper interior camping, and the world-renowned work of the park's researchers.
MacKay writes well and tells a good story, informing the book with his deep knowledge and peppering it with the great old tales of the park's legendary figures. This should be the definitive history on the park for a long time to come. ...more
I first read Steinbeck back in my early twenties, The Grapes of Wrath. That novel immediately became one of my favourites and almostI loved this book.
I first read Steinbeck back in my early twenties, The Grapes of Wrath. That novel immediately became one of my favourites and almost single-handedly established what social conscience I have. In the years that followed, I read and loved Of Mice and Men and also enjoyed The Red Pony. Other than rereading the first two books, I didn't pick up another of Steinbeck's works until a few weeks ago, though I have always been meaning to read East of Eden.
The author's writing still moves me deeply. It's a simple and humble story of his trip across America in a camper to find America, but the man knows how to write and turn a phrase. I enjoyed every minute with him on his trip with Charley. His descriptive powers are tremendous, his narrative voice compelling, and his story-telling skills strong. It was the perfect book to read while canoeing the French River in northern Ontario and before and after backpacking in Algonquin Park.
It's taken a long time to return to Steinbeck's great works, but I'm going to check out a few more while I'm still thinking of his journey.
This is the first novel by Haruki Murakami that I've read, and if the others are even better, I've got a lot to look forward to.
I enjoyed the mysterioThis is the first novel by Haruki Murakami that I've read, and if the others are even better, I've got a lot to look forward to.
I enjoyed the mysteriousness of the pit and the Gatsby-like Menshiki, the descriptions of paintings and the artistic process, and the combination of the realistic lives and routines of the characters and the transition into the supernatural. The writing kept me captivated and the author definitely knows how to build suspense and craft a story.
Although I enjoyed the leisurely pace of the novel, and the many diversions, it is a little too long at close to 700 pages. Many background details are repeated numerous times...things the reader doesn't need reminding of. One of the main female characters, the thirteen-year-old Mariye, isn't developed fully, and there is too much awkward discussion of the size of her breasts. Also, after carefully establishing the credibility of the narrative over several hundred pages, the descent into the underworld seems rushed. But these were minor concerns and did not diminish my love of the story. And I liked the ending after the protagonist returns to the real world.
It's a delight to find another great author to read. And it's wonderful to read one of his later works with fresh eyes unencumbered by views of his past great works. Now, on to further of his novels!...more
I'm proud to say I haven't outgrown my Jim Morrison and the Doors phase. Thirty years ago I became a fan of Jim's lyrics and the Door's eclectic mix oI'm proud to say I haven't outgrown my Jim Morrison and the Doors phase. Thirty years ago I became a fan of Jim's lyrics and the Door's eclectic mix of the blues, jazz, rock, and carnival music, and having recently revisited their albums and Jim's lyrics and poetry, I'm still a big fan.
The American Night is much better than I expected it would be. Given it's the last collection of Jim's work and was published many years after his death, I thought it might be a 'scraping of the barrel' effort. But it's not--this is a solid collection of interesting, original, and entertaining poetry.
I've alluded to this before, but it's hard to judge the outside writing efforts of one's favourite songwriters; part of the fun is bound to be noticing references to their lives or experiences or albums, as well as a general high level of rock 'n' roll excitement (plenty of sex and drugs and rebellion). Often you can be reading along enthralled, but a part of you wonders if what you are reading is actually any good. I think Jim's poetry is the real thing and it's too bad he didn't live further to develop his voice and substance.
This collection is put together nicely--it clearly wasn't just a quick cash-in to profit from Jim's fame and celebrity. The contents include 'An American Prayer,' the two performance pieces that became songs, 'A Celebration of the Lizard' and 'The Soft Parade,' Jim's poems from The Village Reading, various sets of the poems from his journals, several of his lyrics, and the last poems he wrote as his 'Paris Journal.' It's quite a diverse offering and there is an illuminating description of where each section's poems came from.
I think it's true that Jim's lyrics are stronger than his poem's overall, perhaps because he chose the best poems to turn into lyrics and then fine-tuned them down into tighter and somewhat more coherent works. But his poems are fascinating to me and I recommend this book if you are a fan of Jim Morrison's lyrics and the Doors. ...more
This is a wonderful edition of Rimbaud's Complete Works in translation.
Paul Schmidt, the translator, divides the poems into eight seasons according toThis is a wonderful edition of Rimbaud's Complete Works in translation.
Paul Schmidt, the translator, divides the poems into eight seasons according to the estimated chronology. There is a fine introduction to Rimbaud's work, and there are further introductory notes at the beginning of each season section, providing context to the poems. Rimbaud's letters are placed both throughout the text, and there's a large collection at the end in the eight season. This makes the book read somewhat like a memoir as the reader progresses through the various comments, poems, and letters.
Among the highlights for me were the sixth season, which includes the A Season in Hell poems, the seventh season, which contains the breathtaking poems Lines, Lives, and Cities I and II, and the last season in which his letters reveal the pain of Rimbaud's last years and unfold in tragedy.
The only concern I had was in trying to identify which poems belonged to which books that have been published in the past: it's not easy for a novice like me to know which poems would have been included in Rimbaud's various works (i.e. Poesies, Illuminations, A Season in Hell). Perhaps a better cross-referencing would have helped.
It was reading Bob Dylan's Complete Lyrics recently that brought me to Rimbaud's poems, and it was reading Rimbaud's Complete Works that brought me to re-listen to all of my Door's albums and to reread Jim Morrison's biography, No One Here Gets Out Alive....more
A good very basic introduction to songwriting. The book starts with the history of songwriting, reviews the elements of a lyric and melody, covers sonA good very basic introduction to songwriting. The book starts with the history of songwriting, reviews the elements of a lyric and melody, covers song structure and simple music theory, discusses the recording/arranging/producing of songs, and moves on to legal and business issues. ...more
Unfaithful Music is a highly enjoyable read. Costello is a witty, humorous, and intelligent writer, and providing close to 700 pages he certainly is gUnfaithful Music is a highly enjoyable read. Costello is a witty, humorous, and intelligent writer, and providing close to 700 pages he certainly is generous. Sometimes it's hard to tell if a book's perceived flaws are actually its strength-Costello diverges off on many tangents and though many of these tangents are fascinating they at times go on too long. I like that the book is discursive, but an editor could have provided more focus.
The high points for me are Costello's descriptions of his songwriting process and the stories behind many classic songs and albums, the revelations of his many collaborations with the likes of Paul McCartney, Allen Toussaint, and Burt Bacharach, the meetings and shared concert appearances he had with Bob Dylan over the years, and the touching account of his relationship with his father who was a singer in the big band days.
I do wish that Costello told more about the breakups of his first two marriages, in particular his second to Cait O'Riordan (formerly of the Pogues), of which virtually no information is provided. I also would have liked to know more details about why the Attractions split up, specifically the nature of his fractured relationship with Bruce Thomas. And I found the first half of the book fully-formed and thorough, a good history of his making it as an artist, but the second half seemed rushed with less depth and reflection.
While reading the book, I listened again to my Costello albums and about a dozen others on Spotify. The words and music, as always, were sublime: This Year's Model, Spike, Get Happy, King of America, and When I Was Cruel are personal favourites. I couldn't believe how good Live at Hollywood High was...before checking the date of release, I thought it must have been a later period show because the band sounded like they'd been playing together forever! And his most recent release, Look Now, is wonderful too. ...more
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