Heather Jessup’s The Lightning Field has the potential to be a Canadian classic. Set in Cold War Toronto, Jessup writes with incredible depth, detail and insight. The novel spans four decades and sheds light on the Avro Arrow, but it’s when Lucy Jacobs is struck by lightning in a field the narrative unravels. Jessup’s take […]
Shannon Webb-Campbell
Posted inArts + Music
Sarah Slean
Sarah Slean has made her timeless masterpiece. Exploring the ocean’s depths and vastness of landscape, this double disc—Land produced by Joel Plaskett, Sea produced by Slean and Jonathan Goldsmith— showcases a sophisticated songstress at the height of her classical-pop poetic powers. Slean’s sorted through the muck of being human and settled the score with herself. […]
Posted inArts + Music
Cuff The Duke
On the first half of a two-parter, alt-country band Cuff the Duke explores loss. Opener “Time is Right” lets listeners in on the process of losing someone. No matter how dark the night, Morning Comes. Produced by Greg Keelor, the album translates isolation, confusion and loneliness into sound. Wayne Petti’s voice rings with catharsis and […]
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The Sixth Gun
The Sixth Gun is an action-adventure-horror-western comic, a combination that works surprisingly well. Pinkertons, cursed civil war veterans, priests with machine guns and a preacher’s daughter all duke it out amongst each other to control the sixth gun, a weapon that gives its owner the powers of prophecy. The characters may not be all that […]
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Nocturne Quick Picks
DOUBLE FANTASY Curated by Danielle St-Amour, Francesca Tallone The Khyber, 1588 Barrington Street Zone 1: Downtown Halifax It’s a TV party at the Khyber featuring videos from Bridget Moser, Patrick Vezina, Vinh Truong, Brendan Reed, Ray Fenwick, Jessie Rainville, Jacqueline Lachance, Willie Brisco, Steve Wiseman, Jason Harvey, Leah Cameron and Kate O’Connor. Curated by Palimpsest […]
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Pen to paper
Writing and life are inextricably linked. Often, one gets in the way of the other. There are times to write, others to live. Novelist and Dalhousie instructor Heather Jessup and her partner, poet and King’s teaching fellow Warren Heiti, know this. Both have books coming out this fall, educate and keep a kitchen that always […]
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Fall Arts at a glance
EVENTS & LITERARY AUTHORS Hal-Con November 12-13,hal-con.com The great thing about Hal-Con is not just that it brings big names in sci-fi and fantasy to Halifax but that it also gives local institutions a bigger stage to spread the geek word. Like last year, Hal-Con’s 2011 convention is a mix of Halifamous and Hollywood famous, […]
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Finding Ana
“My goal with this book is to make some people aware of Ana Mendieta and her work,” says author Redfern. “You never know how it could inspire someone, affect someone, encourage someone. It’s hard to measure the effect of this sort of seepage of knowledge. Sometimes a small leak can spread a long way.” Born […]
Posted inArts + Music
Daybreak
It’s certainly not the first graphic novel about zombies. Brian Ralph’s got his own take on the genre. He takes you, the reader, into the story. Open the cover. Find yourself ragged, covered in debris. A one-armed man greets you, offers underground safety. Pours you a cup of water. Becomes your protector. Daybreak’s a survival […]
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Certified Copy
Abbas Kiarostami questions art and authenticity in his new film Certified Copy (Copie Conforme). Strongly cinematic, quietly dramatic and deeply concerned with perfection, the value of originality and intention of copy, the film follows gallery owner Elle (Juliette Binoche), who took home best actress at Cannes, and author James (William Shimell) through the Tuscan countryside after they meet at a reading. Staggeringly […]
Posted inNews + Opinion
Coming out at Halifax schools
When J.K. Rowling outed Albus Dumbledore a few years ago during a Q&A session at New York’s Carnegie Hall, the news went viral. Readers had their suspicions confirmed and members of the queer community held their wands high with pride. Dumbledore’s queerness made Hogwarts a safe place for sexual exploration. “University is naturally conducive to […]
Posted inNews + Opinion
Halifax student bars
Hogwarts has Hogsmeade, Halifax has downtown: When Hogwarts students need a break from strict professors and all those confusing, moving staircases, they’d head down to the village of Hogsmeade for a beverage at a pub. Likewise, Halifax students can find respite at local taverns. They may not serve butterbeer, but Henry’s House’s six British-style ales—non-pasteurized, […]