Summer Arts Guide 2023: 4 B.C. books to keep your mind engaged
A youth spent at the PNE; connections between the land and Indigenous people’s health; and more for local book lovers
IT’S THAT TIME OF year again: the chance to grab a book, toss it in your bag, and head to your nearest outdoor urban oasis to read it over at an easy, breezy pace. Here’s a few titles by B.C. writers to keep the literary love local.
East Side Story: Growing Up at the PNE (Arsenal Pulp Press/Robin's Egg Books, pictured at top)
Vancouver writer, comedian, and elementary-school teacher Nick Marino was 12 years old when he started working at the PNE in 1980, a job that saw him through six summers. In his wildly entertaining debut book, he shares behind-the-scenes stories of everything you never knew about life at the fair: arcade bouncers going on midnight roller-coaster rides, riots breaking out at concerts, local kids helping themselves to pretty much anything and everything. Then there were the carnies, hustlers, scammers, and countless other unconventional characters.
Marino has performed at Just for Laughs Northwest and curated a series of comedy and music shows called Bite of the Underground, and his humour shines through in this personable, laugh-out-loud-funny memoir. With a foreword by Vancouver comedian and author Charles Demers and featuring archival black-and-white photographs of the fairgrounds and PNE denizens over the years, this is the must-read Vancouver book of 2023. It comes out August 8, just in time for this year’s exhibition.
This Place Is Who We Are: Stories of Indigenous Leadership, Resilience, and Connection to Homelands (Harbour Publishing)
Gabriola Islabnd-based nonfiction writer Katherine Palmer Gordon explores the deep connection between the land and Indigenous peoples’ physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual well-being in her new book.
The author dives into the ways Indigenous people and communities across B.C. have protected their sacred territory since time immemorial, a practice and principle of escalating importance in the era of the climate crisis.
There are 10 tales of reconnection, including the lived experience of Dzawada̱’enuxw Hereditary Chief Maxwiyalidizi K’odi Nelson, who discusses the building of a healing centre and ecolodge, and Wei Wai Kum Chief Christopher Roberts, who sheds light on the challenges and opportunities for an urban First Nation looking to prosper while protecting the environment and ancient Ligwiłdaxw history.
With photographs that showcase the West Coast’s natural beauty, the book also looks at the impacts of colonization, the inherent wisdom and cultural value of the land, and the determination and resilience of Indigenous people.
“This is a story of defiance of seemingly impossible odds and of overcoming the worst of human experiences,” Gordon says in a release. “It is a story of courage, strength, resilience, and determination. Above all, it is a story of the triumph of culture over colonization, hope over great hardship, and love over immense loss.”
Pacific Voyages: The Story of Sail in the Greatest Ocean (Douglas & McIntyre)
The chief designer of the Vancouver Maritime Museum, Gordon Miller is a well-known locally based maritime artist. The intricate illustrations in his new book bring the history and culture of the West Coast to life, detailing the days of early seafarers, whether under smooth sail, facing stormy seas, or docked in busy ports. His detailed visuals paint a history of four centuries of human travel across the Pacific Ocean as well as some of the realities of European exploration and contact.
Over the years, Miller has completed numerous commissions for the Museum of Anthropology at UBC, Ottawa’s Museum of History in Ottawa, The Royal BC Museum in Victoria, the Canadian Museum of History, the Junior Encyclopedia of Canada, National Film Board of Canada, the Canadian Mint, and other outlets.
Fishing for Leviathan (Anvil Press)
This collection of poems comes from local writer Rodney DeCroo, who came to Canada from the northeastern United States. Having crawled across more glass than he cares to remember throughout his life, he still managed to turn out alright, the self-described fighter and survivor choosing poetry and song as his weapons.
Okay, so maybe this one isn’t a pick for a care-free summer’s day; it’s more of a gutting, sobering read. DeCroo’s poems illustrate the fallout for traumatized children of traumatized parents. The words evoke people who have done horrible things and experienced even worse—think neglected Vietnam vets, unemployed coal miners, and men full of rage and despair. Fishing for Leviathan is about those who are have no choice but to make the world possible for the well-to-do. Check your privilege.
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