Author Archives: John Sloan

Harding, Paul. This Other Eden. Goose Lane Additions, Fredericton, 2023. F; 09/23. This semi-historical tale is I think Paul Harding’s second novel, the first (Tinkers) won the Pulitzer Prize for fiction. This one is short-listed for the Booker. I was … Continue reading →

Maroo, Chetna. Western Lane. Knopf Canada, Toronto, 2023. 09/23. This short novel is about Gopi, a young East Indian girl growing up in England and excelling at the sport of squash. It’s one of five on the 2023 Booker shortlist. … Continue reading →

Bernstein, Sarah. Study for Obedience. Knopf Canada, Toronto, 2023. F;10/23. This story is another one of the 2023 Booker short-list group. The author is Jewish, originally a Canadian from Montréal now living and teaching in Scotland. The story, which – … Continue reading →

McBride, James. The Heaven and Earth Grocery Store. Riverhead Penguin New York, 2023.F; 9/23. This is the second novel I’ve read by this author and it’s even better than Deacon King Kong, the first one. Mr. McBride has a Jewish … Continue reading →

September 2023. However debauched the little town of Cefalu we enjoyed in Sicily 14 years ago may have become, there are persisting charming little villages not far away. Castellobueno is one. My practice of identifying Michelin-named restaurants caught our attention … Continue reading →

La Siciliana, Cefalu Sicily, September 2023. This is one of the middle-of-the-road Sicilian eateries in this heavily touristy town. We had lunch here and it satisfied with its brisk cheerful service and a back terra-cotta courtyard nicely decorated and shaded … Continue reading →

September 2023. This little spot might be the best restaurant we found this year in this lovely town where we enjoyed six matinee plays in a seven-day stay in an incomparable B and B with friends. We were told the … Continue reading →

Café Bouffon, Stratford Ontario, September 2023 We thought this place had changed hands, formerly Italian and now very français. Anyway it’s a nice dark-wood classy bar you walk past on the way in, and a big bustling venue with plenty … Continue reading →

September 2023. This nice spot is on the main floor of a two-storey restaurant on a quiet street in downtown Stratford, the upper floor said to feature South African food. We were seated outside on a nice evening in a … Continue reading →

McCarthy, Cormac. Blood Meridian. Random House, New York, 1985. F; 8/23. I have to count this violent monster among the Big Books of my experience. The list would include Infinite Jest, A Book of Memories, some of Nabokov’s stories, Middlemarch, … Continue reading →