Book Me Book Me

Journalist and Photographer, Jack Scrine, joins Lindsay remotely to chat about his book HALIfolks: The Faces and Stories of Halifax, a compilation of stories and images from his popular blog/social media project of the same name. He shares his inspiration for the project, his tactics for approaching strangers and helping them to open up, the responsibility of being entrusted with people's intimate stories, and how those stories evolve over time.



About Halifolks:

In the early 2010s, Australian Jack Scrine found himself in Halifax, Nova Scotia, with plenty of travel experience but little more than a camera to his name. As he wandered the city, he started to capture images that documented the eclectic, the unusual, and the everyday lives of the people around him. A fan of Brandon Stanton’s Humans of New York, Scrine realized there were similar stories of love and loss, happiness and sadness, friends and enemies, and embarrassments and triumphs all around him—and Halifolks was born, first as a blog, then as a Facebook page, and now, for the first time, as a book.

Featuring 150 captivating colour images of Haligonians, both famous and obscure, Halifolks: The Faces and Stories of Halifax highlights stories that cut to the heart with truth, simplicity, and honesty. It’s not every day we are confronted with questions like: When were you happiest? What is your greatest struggle? What is your biggest regret? The answers can be tragic, uplifting, and even funny—but ultimately, they are always healing.

Whitney Moran, Managing Editor of Nimbus Publishing and Vagrant Press, joins Lindsay to give a peak behind the editing scenes and share a whole host of expert book recommendations. Hear her break down some of her favourite recent reads and the comparable East Coast CanLit books you don't want to sleep on. From social outcasts and renaissance Italy to non self help books that nevertheless help the self, this one is chockablock with editor approved TBR gems, including some last season books you may have missed and forthcoming releases to preorder now.

Lindsay is joined by multi-award nominated, bestselling author, Jo Treggiari, to discuss her exciting new YA thriller, Heartbreak Homes. Jo breaks down multi-perspective writing, character development that feels 'close to truth', crafting a satisfying mystery, the importance of giving Queer characters a happy ending—and more.

A gripping locked-door YA murder mystery narrated from the perspectives of three teens—each with their own motivations, Heartbreak Homes is about what compels us to kill - and the true face of justice.

Author, musician and teacher, Jennifer Britton, sits down with Lindsay to chat about her lyrical lullaby book, If You Could be Anything, illustrated by Briana Corr Scott. Jen talks about the process of creating the book, a career high moment with Stuart McLean, the value of kidlit, and that East Coast pull that whispers, “home.” Plus, hear the lullaby version of the book AND another special appearance from Lindsay’s daughter, Nina, who may or may not be vying for her mom’s gig.

If You Could be Anything is a lyrical lullaby from educator and musician Jen Britton, with illustrations by celebrated artist Briana Corr Scott (Mermaid Lullaby, Wildflower) asks young readers, If you could be anything, what would you be? Responses run the gamut from lupins to sea glass to a lighthouse shining bright to the pull of the tides, celebrating the abundant natural and cultural landscapes of the East Coast. With gentle, rhyming text and dreamy oil illustrations, If You Could Be Anything is the perfect story to send little ones off to dreamland, and older ones off on new adventures.

In this week’s episode, Lindsay's ex-work wife (settlement pending) and multi-hyphenate of the Halifax arts scene, Tara Thorne, stops by to chat about her debut book of essays, Low Road Forever. Giggles and tangents abound as they riff on essay topics both pop culture and personal. A League of Their Own, Hollywood juicing conspiracy theories, making a lesbian vigilante revenge film, going from fired to inspired—it’s all in there.
CW: Adult Language.

A self-proclaimed “gay feminist harpy since before it was cool,” Tara Thorne is situated somewhere between the sharp-eyed urban commentary of Nora Ephron and ribald cultural analysis of Lindy West. In her debut book of essays, the Halifax-based filmmaker, arts critic, and recovering journalist gives readers her unvarnished take on the films and music that made her a feminist, how the #MeToo reckoning led her to write a misandrist vigilante film, what it’s like being the only woman in a band, and the snarky tweet that made her lose her position as CBC Radio’s arts and culture columnist. Alongside are musings on coming out later in life, remaining resolutely child-free, and why she’s decided to step back from being professional to the point of erasure: after two decades, it’s time to take the low road.

With the cranky forthrightness of Fran Lebowitz in, Pretend It’s a City, Thorne’s voice is both self-assured and deeply self-effacing as she exposes the light haze of misogyny that hangs over us all to find what’s funny, what’s true, and what needs to be said.

Katherine Alexandra Harvey shares the process of creating her piercing debut novel, Quiet Time, a project six years in the making. She touches on the importance of dichotomous characters, the lure of folklore, and what it was like to draw from her own journey of pain and self discovery—creating and healing in tandem—and inevitably, to let it all go.

“Quiet Time” is an unchronological coming-of-age story detailing the main character, Grace's, journey to find her voice after a lifetime of being silenced. Told through vivid and mesmerizing vignettes—cut-jagged with themes of addiction, mental illness, the supernatural, and obsessive relationships—it is her story of resilience, bravery, and redemption.