Author Archives: John Sloan

About John Sloan

John Sloan is a senior academic physician in the Department of Family Practice at the University of British Columbia, and has spent most of his 40 years' practice caring for the frail elderly in Vancouver. He is the author of "A Bitter Pill: How the Medical System is Failing the Elderly", published in 2009 by Greystone Books. His innovative primary care practice for the frail elderly has been adopted by Vancouver Coastal Health and is expanding. Dr. Sloan lectures throughout North America on care of the elderly.

The Book of Love. Kelly Link.

Posted on May 16, 2024 by John Sloan

Link, Kelly. The Book of Love. Random House New York, 2024. F; 5/24. I’ve put off writing about Kelly Link’s first novel because it’s big: long and packed with a lot of fascinating stuff, but it’s I guess you could … Continue reading →

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Cahokia Jazz. Francis Spufford.

Posted on April 6, 2024 by John Sloan

Spufford, Francis. Cahokia Jazz. Simon and Schuster, New York, Simon and Schuster New York, 2023. F; 3/24. This long book grew on me steadily and I ended up pretty delighted. Mr. Spufford is 60 and a Cambridge English lit BA, … Continue reading →

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Ocean Club Café, Sechelt.

Posted on February 25, 2024 by John Sloan

February 2024 I was vaguely aware of this place that sits directly on a Georgia Strait walkway, below a couple of swish waterfront apartment buildings. I’m not sure why I had never walked along that waterfront but it’s the upmarket … Continue reading →

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The Possessed. Elif Batuman.

Posted on February 22, 2024 by John Sloan

Batuman, Elif. The Possessed. Farrar Straus and Giroux, New York, 2010. Memoir, 1/24. I really like this author. She is a trueblue lit academic: Harvard undergrad before it “woke up” and then a Stanford comparative lit PhD, also New Yorker … Continue reading →

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The Sun Walks Down. Fiona McFarlane.

Posted on January 14, 2024 by John Sloan

McFarlane, Fiona. The Sun Walks Down. Allen and Unwin, Australia, 2022. F;12/23. I enjoyed a light hearted story by McFarlane in the Paris Review (246) about a sexy offbeat flight attendant. It was cool-colloquial but there was a subtle buried … Continue reading →

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Artificial Intelligence

Posted on December 24, 2023 by John Sloan

Life is full of surprises but what I have to say on this subject probably won’t surprise anyone particularly considering the traffic these posts get… Like most people I’m interested in artificial intelligence but I am so far agnostic about … Continue reading →

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Women. Charles Bukowski.

Posted on December 18, 2023 by John Sloan

Bukowski, Charles. Women. Black Sparrow, Boston, 1978. F;12/23. This is one of several novels by a writer of a particular niche character that in the later 20th century included others like Henry Miller (this reference not typical) and (later) Jim … Continue reading →

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The Hero’s Journey. Joseph Campbell.

Posted on December 7, 2023 by John Sloan

Campbell, Joseph. The Hero’s Journey. Harper & Row, New York 1990 (original publication). NF; 11/23. This is a compendium of quotes and interviews with Campbell, preceded by several exordia and apparently edited by a Dr. Stuart Brown, a psychiatrist with … Continue reading →

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Day. Michael Cunningham.

Posted on December 3, 2023 by John Sloan

Cunningham, Michael. Day. Random House, New York. 2023. F;11/23. When I saw this title and author in my weekly online Book Marks Bulletin I got excited. One of my favourite novels of all time is Cunningham’s The Hours. For some … Continue reading →

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Dissident Doctor. Michael Klein.

Posted on November 22, 2023 by John Sloan

Klein, Michael. Dissident Doctor. Douglas & McIntyre, Madeira Park, 2018. NF; 11-23. Like most Canadian family physicians I’ve known Dr. Klein by reputation for decades. He’s been a leader of Family Practice departments in various cities, and has published a … Continue reading →

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