Serafim and Claire is a story about two people trying to escape the rigid social mores of the past to find passion in their single-minded pursuit of art. Claire flees the servitude of working for a rich Anglo family to dance on the stages of Montreal’s burlesque theatres, where she’s sure she’ll get noticed and […]
Lexical Vexations coarse 1. adj. of a thick gauge; 2. adj. rough; 3. adj. unrefined, crude (of a person). course 1. n. a path or route followed by people or things; 2. n. a series of classes on a topic of study; 3. n. an established procedure or approach to something; 4. n. a part […]
Vest-Pocket Vocabulary Chow’ter, v. to grumble like a child or frog. Word in the Wild: Amitav chowtered at his roommate after she accidentally put his 2014 tax slips through the shredder. This fun word is obsolete, but let’s not let that stop us from using it anyway. Its etymology is unknown, though chowter is similar […]
In Nikolski Montreal is a migratory hub, a city where nomads wind up, at least for a time. They carry their histories with them, mapping their routes and their roots as they go. Joyce leaves the fishing village of Tête-à-la-Baleine, Quebec, to become a pirate… Noah arrives from the Canadian prairies to study (even if […]
Cockroach unfolds during a bitter Montreal winter. Its narrator, despite his de facto membership in a community of exiles, is utterly isolated and both fearful and desirous of human ties. As a master thief, he ties himself instead to people’s effects, using them to read the people he cannot trust. He skirts the edges of […]
Montreal Reads My usual rules for pleasure reading are few. In fact, I may have only one “rule” for reading, which is that I must have variety. I like to routinely switch from one genre to another, from one setting to another, from one century to another (I have a particular soft spot for unselfconsciously […]
There seems to be an ever present anxiety that the English language is on the edge of some catastrophe. But never fear, it’s held up just fine to the technological upheavals of the printing press, radio and cable TV, and it will weather blogs, podcasts and YouTube, as well. This isn’t to say that the […]
Lexical Vexations palate 1. n . the top or roof of the mouth; 2. n. one’s sense of taste. palette 1. n. an easily held flat surface on which an artist mixes paints; 2. n. a range of available colours. pallet 1. n. a straw-filled mattress, a temporary (and often uncomfortable) bed; 2. n. a […]
Vest-Pocket Vocabulary Ba’bery, n. playthings for a child. Word in the Wild: Receiving nothing but blank looks from her nephews after she asked them to clear the living room of their babery and detritus, Celine tried again: “For pity’s sake, clean up your toys and junk!” You can find a complete listing of the Word […]
Lexical Vexations lessen 1. v . to decrease. lesson 1. n. the presentation of information, a tutorial, a teaching. Words in the Wild: Simon’s driving lessons really seem to have lessened the frequency of his car accidents—he’s only had four of them this year. I spotted a lessen trying to pass itself off as a […]