• canada's own vonnegut?

    From August Abolins@1:153/757.2 to All on Tue Jul 20 11:24:42 2021
    A new book, just released, boasts..

    “Canadians rejoice! Our Vonnegut has finally arrived! Morgan Murray’s debut is a great, brawling, sprawling, muscular glory of a story. Funny, dark, and wholly original.” -- Will Ferguson, winner of the Scotiabank Giller Prize

    A brief synopsis:

    In late 2008, as the world’s economy crumbles and Barack Obama ascends to the White House, the remarkably unremarkable Milton Ontario – not to be confused with Milton, Ontario – leaves his parents’ basement in Middle-of-Nowhere, Saskatchewan, and sets forth to find fame, fortune, and love in the Euro-lite electric sexuality of Montreal; to bask in the endless twenty-something Millennial adolescence of the Plateau; to escape the infinite flatness of Saskatchewan and find his messiah – Leonard Cohen. Hilariously ironic and irreverent, in Dirty Birds, Morgan Murray generates a quest novel for the twenty-first century—a coming-of-age, rom-com, crime-farce thriller—where a hero’s greatest foe is his own crippling mediocrity as he seeks purpose in art, money, power, crime, and sleeping in all day.
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    * Origin: The Rusty MailBox - Penticton, BC Canada (1:153/757.2)
  • From George Pope@1:153/757 to August Abolins on Fri Dec 31 13:07:24 2021
    A new book, just released, boasts..
    ôCanadians rejoice! Our Vonnegut has finally arrived! Morgan MurrayÆs debut is
    a great, brawling, sprawling, muscular glory of a story. Funny, dark, and wholly original.ö -- Will Ferguson, winner of the Scotiabank Giller Prize
    A brief synopsis:
    In late 2008, as the worldÆs economy crumbles and Barack Obama ascends to the White House, the remarkably unremarkable Milton Ontario û not to be confused with Milton, Ontario û leaves his parentsÆ basement in Middle-of-Nowhere, Saskatchewan, and sets forth to find fame, fortune, and love in the Euro-lite electric sexuality of Montreal; to bask in the endless twenty-something Millennial adolescence of the Plateau; to escape the infinite flatness of Saskatchewan and find his messiah û Leonard Cohen. Hilariously ironic and irreverent, in Dirty Birds, Morgan Murray generates a quest novel for the twenty-first centuryùa coming-of-age, rom-com, crime-farce thrillerùwhere a heroÆs greatest foe is his own crippling mediocrity as he seeks purpose in art,
    money, power, crime, and sleeping in all day.

    Is this Goodread's blurb, or the book jacket's?

    I'm gettinhg this book, it sounds like the kiind of irreverent comedy I love most in a novel!

    & I should, I think, read more Canadian-produced content, seeking the gems we produce more often than even we know. . .

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    * Origin: The Rusty MailBox - Penticton, BC Canada (1:153/757)
  • From August Abolins@1:153/757.21 to George Pope on Tue Jan 4 19:59:00 2022
    Hello George Pope!

    ** On Friday 31.12.21 - 13:07, George Pope wrote to August Abolins:

    A new book, just released, ..

    A brief synopsis:
    In late 2008, as the worldÆs economy crumbles and Barack
    Obama ascends to the White House, the remarkably
    unremarkable Milton Ontario û not to be confused with
    Milton, Ontario û leaves his parents' basement in..

    Is this Goodread's blurb, or the book jacket's?

    I do believe it's the backcover text. I forgot to check my own
    copies at the shop. I'll try to remember for tomorrow.


    I'm gettinhg this book, it sounds like the kiind of
    irreverent comedy I love most in a novel!

    The accolades are extensive. Hope you like it. I'm going to
    give it a go myself. Some other comments about it refer to the
    dry humor style of Hitchhicker's Guide to the Galaxy,
    satirical. I liked Vonnegut's humour too.


    & I should, I think, read more Canadian-produced content,
    seeking the gems we produce more often than even we know.

    Would love to hear your opinion of the book!
    --
    ../|ug

    --- OpenXP 5.0.51
    * Origin: Stare into this point intently ->.<- (1:153/757.21)
  • From August Abolins@1:396/45.29 to George Pope on Wed Jan 5 19:27:00 2022
    ** On Tuesday 04.01.22 - 19:59, August Abolins wrote to George Pope:

    I'm gettinhg this book, it sounds like the kiind of
    irreverent comedy I love most in a novel!

    The accolades are extensive. Hope you like it. I'm going
    to give it a go myself. Some other comments about it refer
    to the dry humor style of Hitchhicker's Guide to the
    Galaxy, satirical. I liked Vonnegut's humour too.


    An update on "Dirty Birds, by Morgan Murray". I'm lovin' it.
    The satire is pratically non-stop. Excerpt:

    "Saskatchewan is the distillation of geography into the purest
    mathematical form of utilitarian colonial averageness.

    "It's what happens when history and landscape are erased, and a
    kind of bland Victorian modernist utopia is designed from
    scratch by bureaucrats who had never seen a prairie sky in its
    full spring fury, who had never had a whiff of native prairie
    grasses in late summer, who had never had their nostrils freeze
    shut in a cold prairie winter

    "The Queen's Own Rulers and Her Majesty's Protractors drew a
    perfect rectangle in the middle of an imperfect continent.
    Nothing to define it but four lines drawn arbitrarily through
    the southern dust and northern bogs and then cut into a million
    perfect six-mile, then mile, then half-mile squares. Just
    squares within squares within one massive square. Everything in
    two dimensions. Everything straight, everything flat. Infinite
    flatness. Infinite.

    I think the book might be more enjoyable for folks who are
    somewhat familiar who Leonard Cohen is, the streets of
    Montreal, and perhaps a lil'bit of french.

    This description of Montreal was interesting:

    "Montreal the mega-city is spread across the Hochelaga
    Archipelago-a bunch of islands at the confluence of the St.
    Lawrence and Ottawa rivers. The two biggest islands, Ile
    Montr‚al and Ile J‚sus, make the shape of a pair of lips.."

    Another bit:

    "Milton's trek through the park nearly killed him.

    "It was only a kilometre, but he could have sworn it was
    equivalent to the entire length of Ellesmere Island. He
    staggered the last few feet across avenue du Mont-Royal and
    onto the sidewalk in front of a McDonald's.

    "Out of the wind he collapsed onto his deflated duct-taped
    sack. He lay there for a long while, catching his breath,
    collecting his thoughts, contemplating his manhood, slowly
    freezing to death. A woman walked by and put three quarters in
    his hand.

    "Quel dommage, c'est terrible!"

    "Milton had lost his will to go on. He was sure he was going to
    die there, in a pile, on the sidewalk in front of a McDonald's.
    Another stranger handed him a couple nickels.

    "The custom of giving new arrivals loose change struck him as
    odd, but also a bit delightful. What a kind and generous place,
    he thought, as someone handed him an entire loonie.

    I'm much further along in the book now. I'm captivated by the
    main bloke's advercity and the down-on-his-luck situations.
    --
    ../|ug

    --- OpenXP 5.0.51
    * Origin: Age Doesn't Matter Unless You're a Cheese (1:396/45.29)
  • From George Pope@1:153/757 to August Abolins on Wed Jan 5 18:35:14 2022
    An update on "Dirty Birds, by Morgan Murray". I'm lovin' it.
    The satire is pratically non-stop. Excerpt:
    "Saskatchewan is the distillation of geography into the purest
    mathematical form of utilitarian colonial averageness.
    "It's what happens when history and landscape are erased, and a
    kind of bland Victorian modernist utopia is designed from
    scratch by bureaucrats who had never seen a prairie sky in its
    full spring fury, who had never had a whiff of native prairie
    grasses in late summer, who had never had their nostrils freeze
    shut in a cold prairie winter

    Reminds me of episode one of Corner Gas:

    A stranger pulls up to the gas station & addresses Brent S: Sure is flat here. . .
    B: How do you mean?
    Hank: Maybe he means topographically? S: I mean there's nothing to see here, it's so flat and empty. B: Plenty to sees, like those tall majestic purple mountains over that way; wjat th'? I could've sworn they were there this morning! S: Is this hgow you treat all your visitors? H: Nothin' else to do.

    "The Queen's Own Rulers and Her Majesty's Protractors drew a
    perfect rectangle in the middle of an imperfect continent.

    Somebody slapped a ruler down & drew a line on either side, & voila!. we had an even ten provinces!

    I think the book might be more enjoyable for folks who are
    somewhat familiar who Leonard Cohen is, the streets of
    Montreal, and perhaps a lil'bit of french.

    I'm out ohn the streets of Montreal. . . The boroughs, maybe, as I broke up my doctor search by them. . .

    "Milton had lost his will to go on. He was sure he was going to
    die there, in a pile, on the sidewalk in front of a McDonald's.
    Another stranger handed him a couple nickels.
    "The custom of giving new arrivals loose change struck him as
    odd, but also a bit delightful. What a kind and generous place,
    he thought, as someone handed him an entire loonie.

    I & a coulpe mates were in Victopria for a day out, & an older lady pressed a handful of change into the one guy's hand, who usually dressed rather down home-y. . .

    Apparently they do this to try to forestall am unconfortable meeting where someone asks them for change & they have to lie. Or mybe it's for good luck?

    My buddy didn't care. Free money. I was just jealous (was almost $5!)

    --- BBBS/Li6 v4.10 Toy-5
    * Origin: The Rusty MailBox - Penticton, BC Canada (1:153/757)
  • From Mike Powell@1:2320/105 to AUGUST ABOLINS on Thu Jan 6 16:23:00 2022
    I think the book might be more enjoyable for folks who are
    somewhat familiar who Leonard Cohen is, the streets of
    Montreal, and perhaps a lil'bit of french.

    Leonard Cohen the singer?

    Mike


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