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The Life Sentences of Rik McWhinney
Although people sometimes misquote Winston Churchill as having said that we can judge the level of civilization in a society by the way it treats its prisoners, it was actually Fyodor Dostoyevsky who...
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The Book of Eels
This past month, I read Swedish author Patrik Svensson’s The Book of Eels: Our Enduring Fascination with the Most Mysterious Creature in the Natural World along with my fellow book club members....
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TPL Book Sanctuary Collection
There is a reason why I am a proud supporter of the Toronto Public Library (TPL), the busiest urban public library system in the world. Yes, you read that correctly. With its 4 million branch visits...
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Why Artists Love Ireland So Much
Short answer — taxes. Long answer — taxes and a new pilot program in which Ireland’s federal government supports artists financially. So I have a friend. He’s a writer. Although he wasn’t born in...
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Iceland: Fire & Ice & Books
As many people know, Canada has an intimate relationship with Iceland. Aside from that fact that we can obviously see the Land of Fire and Ice from our backyards in the Great White North, the...
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Summer Reading 2023: The Mixed Bag Edition
A Heartfelt Bibliophile of Books Summer. Sun. Sand. Suds. Salaciousness. Books. Q. Which of the above words does NOT belong there? If you fell into the oldest trap in the, er, book, then you are...
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Summer Reading 2023: NYT Fiction
If you have a digital subscription to The New York Times, then you can click here to read Kate Dwyer’s “24 Works of Fiction to Read This Summer.” If, however, you do not, then I am choosing five...
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Sarah Bernstein & The Booker Prize 2023 Longlist
This Year’s (Literary) Crown Jewels The Booker Prize 2023 Longlist has just been announced and there’s only one thing you need to know: there’s a Canuck on the world’s most prestigious literary list....
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New Words for 2023
Colleagues, Netizens, countrypeople, lend me your two peepers. There are some new English words and terms out for 2023 that are officially in the dictionary and ready for you to do with what you...
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TPL (Kinda) Back Up and (Sorta) Running
This is what you are likely to confront on your next visit to the TPL Here’s the good news: You can take out, put holds on, and return books once again at the Toronto Public Library (TPL). Here’s the...
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