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Getting Lit With Linda

The Canadian Literature Podcast (Learning to Love Literature, One Book at a Time)


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  • 77. "But I'm Holding a Pineapple" - An Open Letter to Ivan Coyote

    14:57||Season 5, Ep. 77
    Linda writes an open letter to Ivan Coyote, in response to their book, Care Of: Letters, Connections, and Cures (published by McClelland & Stewart during the pandemic). This important volume of letters is extraordinary and, while we're no longer in the throes of a pandemic, it remains as relevant as ever. With references to WB Yeat's poem "The Second Coming" and an article by Anna Russell that appeared in The New Yorker, this episode highlights the vital contribution this book makes - and it's more than just a pineapple.

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  • 76. A Ghost Story Without Ghosts: Jenny Haysom's Keep

    37:41||Season 5, Ep. 76
    In this episode, Linda converses with Jenny Haysom (2.48) about her novel Keep (published by Anansi). Featuring three main characters, the narrative is driven by the conflict that emerges when Harriet, an elderly poet, is diagnosed with the onset of dementia and must face selling her house -- and the two home stagers, Eleanor and Jacob, tasked with emptying it of its contents. Both Eleanor and Jacob are drawn into Harriet's world and the questions around what we keep, what we throw away, and what we value and why. It becomes clear why Haysom refers to this Victorian-esque novel as "a ghost story without ghosts."The discussion also turns toward Haysom's literary debut as a poet and her collection Dividing the Wayside (4.15, published by Palimpsest Press) and the difference between writing poetry and writing novels (4.32).
  • 75. Haunted by a Colonial Past - Michel Jean's Qimmik

    24:05||Season 5, Ep. 75
    A bilingual episode/un épisode bilingue. Linda opens with her delight about having won the Women in Podcasting Awards in Education - she effusively thanks her listeners!eWhat kinds of books haunt us and why? In this episode, Linda considers Eden Robinson's Monkey Beach and Jessica Johns' Bad Cree, but ultimately picks a book that thoroughly haunted her - Michel Jean's Qimmik (published by Libre Expression, not yet translated into English). Author of Kukum (House of Anansi) and editor of Amun:A Gathering of Indigenous Voices, Jean addresses one of the legacies of a colonial past not frequently addressed. Set in Nunavik, the novel traverses two time periods--that are connected in ways that are completely unexpected and deeply moving.Quels types de livres nous hantent et pourquoi ? Dans cet épisode, Linda choisit un livre qui l'a profondément hantée : Qimmik de Michel Jean (publié par Libre Expression, pas encore traduit en anglais). Auteur de Kukum (House of Anansi) et rédacteur en chef d'Amun:A Gathering of Indigenous Voices, Michel Jean aborde l'un des héritages d'un passé colonial qui n'est pas souvent traité. Situé au Nunavik, le roman traverse deux périodes qui sont reliées de façon tout à fait inattendue et profondément émouvante.
  • 74. What I Was Meant to Do - An Interview with Amanda Peters

    34:19||Season 5, Ep. 74
    Linda opens with a word of thanks to her listeners who voted--because she is now a Finalist for the Women in Podcasting Awards. This episode features an interview, which was live at Word on the Street in Toronto, with the writer of Mi'kmaq and settler descent, who published a novel, The Berry Pickers and, most recently, her short story collection, Waiting for the Long Night Moon (both published by published by Random House). It is a joyful and animated conversation, with an audience that was warm and supportive.
  • 73. An Unconventional Love Story in a Brat Summer: Corinna Chong’s Bad Land

    32:57||Season 5, Ep. 73
    Linda speaks with Corinna Chong about her novel, Bad Land, published by Arsenal Pulp Press and long-listed for the Giller Prize. Chong, originally from Calgary, lives in Kelowna, B.C. where she teaches English and fine arts at Okanagan College. She published her first novel, Belinda's Rings, in 2013.In her opening remarks, Linda explains why she sees the protagonist and main narrator, Regina, as … well, kind of “brat.” She's a fascinating, messy, and lovable character who has buried her life--and the secrets around that life--in the home in which she and her brother, Ricky, were raised ... until he shows up with his daughter, Jez, with a new secret of their own. The tensions that are produced open wide the secrets by the novel's end, revealing both the beauty and violence that have haunted Regina for years. Other sources of discussion or references include:Henry James’ What Maisie Knew (14.45)Aristotle (16:10)Nabokov, Lolita (18.30)Sinclair Ross, As For Me and My House (18.30; 19:30)Unreliable narrators (18:50)the geode (and archeology (25:25)And a final reminder! Please vote for us in the Women's Podcasting Awards! Only a few days left!
  • 72. Breathing Life into the Drowning Girls

    41:13||Season 5, Ep. 72
    Linda considers the persistence of present-day misogyny, then speaks with Daniela Vlaskalic about her co-written play, The Drowning Girls, which features the women who were victims of a turn-of-the-century serial killer. It was such a famous case, even Agatha Christie mentioned it in one of her novels. To set the stage - pun intended - for this play, Linda outlines the legal and historical situation for women in Canada - obtaining the right to vote was a bare minimum., but even getting bank accounts and mortgages were an ordeal up until only a few decades ago. It's not so surprising that this history informs the present moment, when, for example, women still make less in terms of pay than men and disparaging remarks are being made about single women who have cats in the United States. (Linda is not afraid to mention that she has two cats - Pinky and Moe.) She also briefly alludes to women and legal matters, including her right to get a divorce.
  • 71. Being Educated About Being Educated

    25:27||Season 6, Ep. 71
    Linda has been mulling over what an education is, what purposes it serves. She was so curious about it that she begin to reflect on the etymology of the word. The root of “educate” comes from educe, from the Latin, meaning "to lead forth" or "lead out of," which then led her to think, leading out of … what? From where and to where? And who is doing the leading? For whom? And why? Weaving in her personal conversations and experiences alongside different cultural texts – from Valley of the Bird Tail to An Education to Tom Wayman’s “Did I Miss Anything?” – she ultimately focuses on M. NourbeSe Philip’s She Tries Her Tongue, Her Silence Softly Breaks to demonstrate the potential deleterious effects of an “education.” It is not always an innocent or innocuous process.Also in this episode – our first giveaway ever! We have a book to give away in honour of Indigenous History Month. The first person to write to Linda (gettinglitwithlinda@gmail.com) with the correct response to the question Linda poses in this episode will receive a copy of Willie Poll’s (Metis) My Little Ogichidaa in addition to a gift from Getting Lit With Linda.In the Takeaway, she notes that this episode is being released during Indigenous History Month, and so she recommends her listeners to visit the website, www.jelisautochtone.ca, which was produced by Dr. Colette Yellow Robe (member of the N. Cheyenne Nation in the USA), in addition to Cherie Dimaline's The Marrow Thieves.References:An Education, Scripted by Nick Hornby (3:55)Willie Poll, My LItle OchigidaaValley of The Bird Tail (4.40)Emily Carr, Klee Wyck (5.15)Clarke, Irwin’s expurgation of Klee Wyck (5:30)Residential schools (6.15)Re-education Camps, Vietnam (6:50)Kim Thuy, Ru Tom Wayman’s “Did I miss Anything?” (8:10)M, NourbeSe Philip, She Tries Her Tongue, Her Silence Softly Breaks (9.50; 13.10; 15.10 )Zong! (13:40)“Discourse on the Logic of Language” (16.50)Music: Raphael Krux (The Madness of Linda) and Brian Teoh (Finally See the Light)Assistant Producer: Marco Timpano