Bluff was born from Skomal’s own experience sitting at her gravely ill mother’s bedside, and the frustration, fear and hope all come through in her writing. To her credit, she hasn’t only drawn on this experience in writing Bluff, but has enlisted the advice of health, religious and legal professionals, all of whom are acknowledged.
Author:
An interview with Menna Van Praag
The author of The house on Hope Street talks about her new novel, why her characters were allotted ninety-nine days to heal, about her characters, about magical realism and why she’s drawn to it, her setting, on “translating” the novel from English to American, her favourite writing quotes, and lots more.
A review of The Return of the Thin Man by Dashiell Hammett
If you’re like me, you’ll want to read everything that Hammett has written, but be warned that this is not literature, simply because language doesn’t set out to do everything. Then again, screen stories like these (and The Third Man by Graham Greene is another example) are an interesting genre, primarily for what they might reveal about the writer.
A review of Status Quo by Mark Rosendorf
An outer space adventure by a motley crew of mixed ages and a cat, all curious about a hole beyond the moon’s orbit.
A review of The Shadow Year by Hannah Richell
It is in this setting that the dual tragedies unfold as each character faces the practical, ethical and moral dilemmas they have inherited from the past. She builds up tension by releasing the story in carefully crafted chapters told from two different perspectives of the events which happen in the two different periods of time.
The Return of a Prodigy: Shuggie Otis, Inspiration Information/Wings of Love
The now lean, soft-spoken and austere but friendly loner Shuggie Otis’s Wings of Love, the new companion to Inspiration Information, answers a lot of historical questions about the creative interests and development of the musician.
Beauty, Contrast, Speed, Unity: Charles Lloyd and Jason Moran’s Hagar’s Song
The boy prodigy Charles Lloyd, now a musical elder, was born in the late 1930s and mentored by pianist Phineas Newborn, and Lloyd worked with B.B. King and Howlin’ Wolf, before graduating from the University of Southern California with a master’s degree.
Confident, Sensual, Soulful Singer-Songwriter: Kail Baxley, Heatstroke/The Wind and the War
One discerns the different influences on the singer-songwriter; and Kail Baxley’s voice, solitary and soulful, is a strong voice that sounds traditional and reminds this listener of Chris Whitley and Amos Lee. “Say Goodbye to the Night” is both confident and melancholy, with Baxley’s deep voice inside a pleasant rhythm.
Earthy Pleasure Beyond Conflict and Poverty: Cedric Watson and Corey Ledet’s Goin’ Down to Louisiana
The divergent rhythms in “Ma Negresse” give the composition its complexity and charm, whereas “Black Snake,” with drumming by Brad Frank, has a country blues feel. Watson’s fiddle is the dominant force in the old-fashion country dance song “Calinda.” The tempo is fast and sends “Madame Faielle” reeling with a lot of energy; and although the song has some lyrics, it is mostly instrumental.
A Master of Melody and Swing: Kermit Ruffins and his Happy Talk
Anyone who has heard of the talented, improvising trumpeter Kermit Ruffins, a friendly sensualist, and one of the founders of the Rebirth Brass Band, as well as a respected barbecue grill man, knows that those who love the trumpeter’s work consider him an embodiment of the spirit of New Orleans.