Amy Spurway’s debut book Crow is ridiculous – and ridiculously good GlobeArts
Full disclosure: I met the premise of this novel with a groan. Middle-aged woman with brain tumours goes home to her rural Cape Breton community to die? That conjured up a) the sort of earnestly bleak kind of CanLit that feels medicinal or b) a Lifetime movie mash-up of. It was a toss-up for which option depressed me more. Thankfully, as is often the case, the back-of-the-book blurb proved untrustworthy, in the best possible way.
This debut comes at you, to use the Cape Breton parlance, like a puck in the teeth. From the first line, it’s a novel that makes demands of its reader. Our narrator, Stacey Fortune, comes on strong, a bit like those people who tell you their entire life story within 15 minutes of meeting them. Like the pot of tea forever brewing on her mother Effie’s stove, Crow is a strong flavour: bracing, bold and, at times, bitter with a brassy bite.
It also demands much of a reader’s tolerance for the everything-plus-the-kitchen-sink school of plotting. The book begins with a terminal diagnosis, but that’s just chapter one. Before you’ve even cracked the middle of the spine,tosses into the pot a missing father, an unexpected pregnancy, a shocking death and a healthy serving of some magical realism, and rigorously stirs it with at least two different love triangles.
Philippines Latest News, Philippines Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Review: Angélique’s Toronto debut shows how Lorena Gale’s drama was ahead of its timeVividly anachronistic 1998 drama about an enslaved black woman who set Montreal aflame in 1734 finally receives its Toronto premiere at Factory Theatre
Read more »
Baffin Island has all the right ingredients for 'ridiculously rare' gemstonesBaffin Island holds some of its treasures in plain sight with rocks that produce rare gems sitting exposed to the elements, scientists say.
Read more »
Review: Review: Against the Grain Theatre’s production of Kopernikus is a true operatic ritualClaude Vivier’s opera Kopernikus follows its central character Agni through a non-linear story towards purification and the attainment of a state of pure spirit
Read more »
Movie reviews: 'Shazam!' brings classic comic book zaniness to the big screenSuperhero films come in all shapes and sizes. In the recent renaissance of the do-gooder movie we've seen comedies, political thrillers, period pieces and all-out action films. Iron Man quips, Batman broods and Doctor Strange is simply surreal. 'Shazam!,' the new Warner Bros. adaptation of a DC comic, adds new textures to the genre's palette, sincere zaniness.
Read more »
Habs' Poehling scores hat trick, shootout winner in debut - TSN.caMaking his NHL debut, Montreal Canadiens forward Ryan Poehling scored a hat trick in regulation before adding the winner in the shootout as the Canadiens beat the Toronto Maple Leafs 6-5 in their final regular season game of the season.
Read more »
Ryan Poehling shines in NHL debut, leads Canadiens over Maple Leafs - Sportsnet.caRyan Poehling notched a hat trick and then added the shootout winner in his NHL debut as the Montreal Canadiens beat the Toronto Maple Leafs 6-5 in the season finale for both teams on Saturday.
Read more »
Dream debut for Poehling gives Canadiens more hope for next season - Sportsnet.caIt is the silver lining to this failed Montreal Canadiens season: Three goals on three shots and a shootout winner for Ryan Poehling in his National Hockey League debut, offering yet another glimpse of a bright future for the organization.
Read more »
Ryan Poehling shines in NHL debut, leading Canadiens to win over Maple LeafsRyan Poehling shines in NHL debut, leading Canadiens to win over Maple Leafs Globe_Sports
Read more »