AltWeeklies Wire
Ten Picture Books for Tree-bound Totsnew
Given that there's no new Wii this season, you may just have to suck it up and give some picture books to the preschooler in your life.
The Georgia Straight |
John Burns |
12-10-2007 |
Fiction
Tags: Fiction Reviews
Pulitzer-winner Richard Rhodes Examines the Russiansnew
Rhodes sifts the half-century between World War II and the dissolution of the USSR to understand the hysteria that brought the supergiants (and the rest of us) to the brink of Armageddon. The result is a meticulously researched, compelling examination of the 20th century's dread-wracked second half.
The Georgia Straight |
John Burns |
11-12-2007 |
Nonfiction
Alberto Manguel on Optimismnew

The anthologist, essayist, and translator argues that in stories we can find our salvation.
The Georgia Straight |
John Burns |
10-12-2007 |
Author Profiles & Interviews
Tags: Alberto Manguel, The City of Words
The Father of Cyberpunk Speaks on 'Spook'new

We know that William Gibson's new novel digs into high-tech surveillance and messianism, but what about that mysterious shipping container?
The Georgia Straight |
John Burns |
08-13-2007 |
Author Profiles & Interviews
Tags: Spook Country, William Gibson
Idealism Fades Away in 'Bottle Rocket Hearts'new
The Toronto grrrl-poet's first novel is brief, charming, and suggestive, but it lacks a shape.
The Georgia Straight |
John Burns |
07-13-2007 |
Fiction
The Literary Scandal of 2007new

One of Germany's best-known anti-Nazi novelists confesses to a stint in the SS, noting that onions are endlessly nested, bringing tears to those around them.
The Georgia Straight |
John Burns |
07-06-2007 |
Nonfiction
'DMZ' Follow-up Even Darker Than Firstnew
America is split between a hair-trigger authoritarian government and the secessionist Free States Army, with the island of Manhattan the no man's land of the title.
The Georgia Straight |
John Burns |
07-06-2007 |
Fiction
War is Hellnew
Moody's collection of three novellas speaks to war obliquely and directly all at once.
The Georgia Straight |
John Burns |
07-06-2007 |
Fiction
The Finest Wheelchair-basketball Novel Out This Seasonnew
It's also one of the finest Canadian first novels I've read in ages.
The Georgia Straight |
John Burns |
07-06-2007 |
Fiction
A Plan to Clean Up the 'Mess' in the Middle Eastnew
Dyer, long a believer in the extended cycles of history, argues that the will of Iraqis cannot be checked forever.
The Georgia Straight |
John Burns |
07-06-2007 |
Nonfiction
Gore: The Enemy of Reason is Fearnew
The Assault on Reason purports to examine America's dramatic skid off the road of reason since 9/11.
The Georgia Straight |
John Burns |
06-08-2007 |
Nonfiction
'After Dark': Filled With Dreamy Fatalismnew
Murakami's stories blur edges between characters and realities.
The Georgia Straight |
John Burns |
06-01-2007 |
Fiction
Michael Chabon Doles Out Wisecracking Oddnessnew
There's all manner of weirdness flavoring The Yiddish Policemen's Union.
The Georgia Straight |
John Burns |
05-11-2007 |
Author Profiles & Interviews
Unlocking Levelsnew
"This book is kind of a gamble -- it's flat-out irony; there's no respite."
The Georgia Straight |
John Burns |
05-15-2006 |
Author Profiles & Interviews
Love and Other Catastrophesnew
Adverbs is a world of Lego blocks of unhappiness and isolation, endlessly reassembled -- plus, it's funny.
The Georgia Straight |
John Burns |
05-05-2006 |
Author Profiles & Interviews
Tags: Adverbs, Daniel Handler