In his marvellously thoughtful review of Wes Anderson’s The Fantastic Mr. Fox, Will Self sounds off on his predilection for (nearly) all things Dahl.
At one point, he admits that although he hasn’t read every book Dahl wrote, those he has read have been read aloud. Subsequently, he speculates that “it might be an idea for all literary critics to read the books they analyse aloud – it certainly helps to fix them in the mind, while providing a readymade seminar with your audience.”
A readymade seminar with your audience. Too right, Mr. Self. On this point, we wholeheartedly agree.
Good news everyone! Zorgamazoo has been shortlisted for the 2010 Silver Birch. It’s one of the Forest of Reading awards run by the Ontario Library Association and it’s voted on by actual readers, which is always nice to see.
I’m extremely excited and honoured to have been shortlisted — and to be in such good company! For a detailed description on the award and how the whole program breaks down, head over to this page on the OLA Website.
On Sunday the 8th, I’ll be presenting Zorgamazoo at the annual Milton Book Fest. Also appearing will be Hugh Brewster, Judy Ann Sadler, Frieda Wishinsky, Werner Zimmermann, and main presenter, all the way from New Brunswick, Sheree Fitch!
Tickets are $3.00 for children and $5.00 for adults. They’re available at the Milton Public Library or from the Freckled Lion Bookshop in nearby Georgetown, Ontario. Hope to see you there!
On the afternoon of Sunday the 15th, I’ll be reading from Zorgamazoo and signing books at the Toronto McNally Robinson store, 1090 Don Mills Road.
If you’re able to come, it’s certainly worth the drive/bus ride north up to Don Mills, if only to see the new store. It’s certainly as exceptional as the others I’ve visited — the original one in Winnipeg, as well as the affiliated McNally Jackson in NYC.
Nuit Blanche ‘09 was even more of a madhouse than last year. In case you missed it, I’m sure there’s a ton of photographs being posted as we speak — and here’s a scant few more to toss on the pile:
Mashmallow ghosts haunt the rooftops.
The streets crawled with photographers.
Royal Conservatory of Music.
Remember those old commercials for Twizzlers?
Rock balancers. No glue, no supports. Pretty impressive.
It ought to be a wild and ridiculous ride, not to mention a good warm-up to trick-or-treating. Attendees are encouraged to dress up (as characters from one of the three books, provided you’ve actually read them).
Tickets are $15 and that also gets you a signed copy of the book of your choice. They’re available in advance at Mabel’s Fables Bookshop (662 Mt Pleasant Rd), or at the door.
This afternoon I received an email from someone I didn’t know. Or at least didn’t remember. His name was Jason and he claimed we’d met at a party some weeks ago. I had only the foggiest recollection of this (sorry, Jason!)
Turns out he’s a producer with CBC news. They were doing a piece on the 30th anniversary of Owl and Chickadee magazines, and they wanted a comment from a children’s writer, preferably one who was a fan as a kid.
Okay, I thought, I was crazy about those magazines. No problem. So I called Jason and he said, “Can you be ready to do an on-camera interview in about an hour?”
No, I thought.
“Yes,” I said.
Sixty minutes later, I met Andrew Nichols on a park bench and gave him the lowdown on the how-slash-why I loved Chickadee and Owl. (It also made me recall Ranger Rick and Cricket. Remember them? I was a fiend. I had subscriptions to all four).
Anyway, it’ll be on the local CBC news here in Toronto, “sometime between 5 and 6:30pm tomorrow,” which couldn’t be more vague. But it’s hard to blame them. Television is clearly a medium that flies by the seat of its pants.
PS: Happy 30th, Chickadee & Owl! Thanks for all the years of fun, and here’s to thirty more!
A teacher friend of mine (thanks, J!) passed on a link to this recent blog-posting by a middle-school teacher. The Shelf Elf describes herself as a former “harpist, pastry chef, children’s bookseller,” and I was quite flattered by the praise she heaped on Zorgamazoo; it’s one of the kindest reviews I’ve read.
This morning I was brushing my teeth and when I looked out the window I saw had a guest. He ambled up to the window and — as the photograph clearly attests — apparently tried to give me a high-5.
I figure either my tooth-brushing is innately fascinating to procyonids or he’s addicted to sunscreen. One of the two.
In his marvellously thoughtful review of Wes Anderson’s The Fantastic Mr. Fox, Will Self sounds off on his predilection for (nearly) all things Dahl.
Good news everyone! Zorgamazoo has been shortlisted for the 
Sixty minutes later, I met 
Good news everyone. Chapter four of 
