First Words: River of Smoke by Amitav Ghosh

"Deeti's shrine was hidden in a cliff, in a far corner of Mauritis, where the island's eastern and southern shorelines collide to form the wind-whipped dome of the Morne Brabant. The site was a geological anomaly - a cave within a spur of limestone, hollowed out by wind and water - and there was nothing like it anywhere else on the mountain. Later Deeti would insist that it wasn't chance but destiny that led her to it - for the very existence of the place was unimaginable until you had stepped inside it.
   The Colver farm was across the bay and towards the end of Deeti's life, when her knees were stiff with arthritis, the climb up to the shrine was too much for her to undertake on her own: she wasn't able to make the trip unless she was carried up in her special pus-pus - a contraption that was part palki and part sedan chair. This meant that visits to the shrine had to be full-scale expeditions, requiring the attendance of a good number of the Colver menfolk, especially the younger and sturdier ones. 
   To assemble the whole clan - La Fami Colver, as they said in Kreol - was never easy since its members were widely scattered, within the island, and abroad. But the one time of year when everyone could be counted on to make a special effort was in mid-summer, during the Gran Vakans that preceded the New Year. The Fami would begin mobilizing in mid-December, and by the start of the holidays the whole clan would be on the march; accompanied by paltans of bonoys, belsers, bowjis, salas, sakubays, and other in-laws, the Colver phalanxes would converg on the farm in a giant pincur movement: some would come overland on ox-carts, from Curepipe and Quatre Borne, through the misted uplands; some would travel by boat, from Port Louis and Mahebourg, hugging the coast until they were in sight of the mist-veiled mipple of the Morne."



In September 1838 a storm blows up on the Indian Ocean and the Ibis, a ship carrying a consignment of convicts and indentured laborers from Calcutta to Mauritius, is caught up in the whirlwind. When the seas settle, five men have disappeared - two lascars, two convicts and one of the passengers. On the grand scale of an historical epic, River of Smoke follows its storm-tossed characters to the crowded harbors of China. There, despite efforts of the emperor to stop them, ships from Europe and India exchange their cargoes of opium for boxes tea, silk, porcelain and silver. Among them are Bahram Modi, a wealthy Parsi opium merchant out of Bombay, his estranged half-Chinese son Ah Fatt, the orphaned Paulette and a motley collection of others. All struggle to cope with their losses – and for some, unimaginable freedoms – in the alleys and crowded waterways of 19th century Canton.    

-Bronwyn 

Sea of Poppies by Amitav Ghosh

Several Christmas's ago, I took a copy of Cutting for Stone home with me on Christmas Eve. My favourite memory of that holiday, is being curled up on my rocking chair with a cup of tea voraciously reading the novel. Since then, I have been on the lookout every Fall for my "Christmas Day Book" to continue the tradition. 

I heard all the buzz about Sea of Poppies when it first arrived on the scene, but never gave it more than a glance. That is until the sequel, A River of Smoke, came into the store. I took one look at the beautiful blue cover and knew that I wanted to read this book on Boxing Day. Which naturally means, I need to read Sea of Poppies now! 

The novel (which is actually part of a trilogy) features a glorious cast of characters that come together on a magical boat, the Ibis, just before the Opium Wars took place in China. The ship's destination across the Indian Ocean, is to fight in China's vicious nineteenth-century Opium Wars.

Some of my favourite characters include: Deeti, a widow, along with her lover, who is escaping her brother-in-law's rage. Paulette is the orphaned daughter of a French biologist who can't find a way to fit in with the British colonists, Jodu is the Indian playmate that she grew up with. Zachary is a freed mulatto American slave, now the second Captain after everyone died on the voyage to India. The diverse cast of Indians and Westerners each have an enchanting story to tell. Once they board the ship, they let go of their family ties and caste stereotypes and begin to see themselves as ship-brothers. 

What I am enjoying most about this enchanting book is the different stories of the characters before they arrive on the boat, the various slang that they use, and the lush descriptions of the poppy fields by the Ganges river, the sea that has a life of it's own, and the backstreets of Calcutta and Canton. 

- Bronwyn 

The Perfect Gift Pt.1

For the person on your list who has everything:

This book takes a dramatically original approach to the history of humanity, using objects which pervious civilizations have left behind, often accidentally, as prisms through which we can explore past worlds and the lives of themen and women who lived in them. The book's range is enormous: it begins with a chopping tool from Africa (one of the earliest surviving objects made from human hands) to a solar powered lamp and charger made in modern-day China. MacGregor (who is the director of the British Museum) shows how these objects were and still are significant. This is on of the most engrossing and unusual history books published in years.

  

  

           
For the history buff on your list:Award-winning author Tim Cook turns his narrative powers to the conflict between two towering Great War figures: Sir Arthur Currie, Canadian Corps commander and a brilliant, morally brave general and innovator who overcame many of the challenges of trench warfare, and Sir Sam Hughes, Canada’s war minister who accused Currie of being a butcher, a callous murderer of his own men. Set against the backdrop of Europe’s battlefields and Canada’s political tumult, The Madman and the Butcher is a powerful double biography that explores the nation’s discomfort with heroes, the need to place blame, and the very public war of reputations that raged on after the guns fell silent. Using newly uncovered sources, Cook creates a haunting portrait of our greatest battlefield general and the man who tried to destroy him.

For the grown-up Harry Potter fan: "The Magician King" is a grand voyage into the dark, glittering heart of magic--an epic quest for the Harry Potter generation. It also introduces Julia, a powerful new voice whose angry genius is thrilling. Once again Grossman proves that he is the modern heir to C.S. Lewis, and the cutting edge of literary fantasy.

Jan Brett for Christmas!

Every year I look for a new Christmas book to share with my children. A book featuring magical illustrations that evoke a feeling of childhood innocence and an equally inviting story sharing the wonder of Christmas. It is now our family tradition to read this book before our kids get tucked into bed on Christmas Eve.

This year I can not decide between two Jan Brett titles: The Night Before Christmas (the 10th anniversary edition) and Home for Christmas. Both are equally lovely and fit all my Christmas book requirements. I have always enjoyed sharing Jan Brett's picture books with children. Her art work is wonderfully detailed and always features smaller pictures in a border that tell another aspect of the story.

In her version of The Night Before Christmas, two elves have hidden in Santa's sleigh and are watching Santa deliver gifts to all the homes. The side-bar illustrations of their captivated faces is precious and adds so much delight to Clement Moore's poem. The new version includes a DVD with music by the Boston Pops and narrated by Jim Dale.

The inspiration for Jan's latest, Home for Christmas, came from a trip she took to Sweden. The pictures depict a Scandinavian landscape with many of the animals and traditional clothing she discovered there. Rollo is a naughty little troll who runs away from his family because he doesn't want to do his chores. He tries to find a new family by living with different animals. First he lives with an owl family, then some bears, and finally a herd of moose that he travels with at the beginning of winter. Rollo starts to miss his family - will he be able to find them before Christmas? The side-bar pictures in this case show what his family is doing while he is away from them.

Both of these are a delight and perfect for cozy cuddling on Christmas day - or before. We love them so much that we ended up creating a beautiful window to celebrate Jan Brett's work.

- Bronwyn

Mark McEwan's FABBRICA

For a few years now, Words Worth has been teaming up with Uptown 21 in throwing our “Words Worth Eating” events. We have had several memorable evenings with a variety of notable cookbook authors. None of these have been as well received as the event we did with Mark McEwan last year. Mark is the owner of several excellent Toronto restaurants: North 44, One, Fabbrica, and the upscale food store McEwan.

It was delightful to spend not one but two evenings with the man and learn about his life in food and restaurant culture. He talked about his love for Italy – it’s his favourite cuisine and favorite place to escape his hectic life and have some downtime. So it doesn’t surprise me that his newest cookbook, Fabbrica, is a celebration of all of the Italian dishes that they serve up at this restaurant.

The book is gorgeous – I love the paper quality and almost every page features a full colour photo of the recipe. And each recipe has a short introduction about what inspired it. Here is a list of the recipes that I am looking forward to creating in the coming weeks:

Pg. 32 Charred Octopus with Chickpeas

Pg. 56 Stuffed Cherry Peppers

Pg. 97 Pesto Pizza with Clams and Shrimp

Pg. 136 Ricotta Gnocchi with Heirloom Tomato Sauce

Pg. 157 Risotto with Sugar Pumpkin and Pancetta

And for dessert Pg. 245 Vanilla Panna Cotta with Streusel and Figs

MMMM…Yum! Bonne Appetite! - Bronwyn

First Words: A World Elsewhere by Wayne Johnston

Lanish Druken lived in the two-room attic of a house near the end of Dark Marsh Road that was in no way remindful of any other place he'd ever lived. A mile away, in a twelve-room house, his father lived alone.

Under the terms of what Landish called the Sartorial Charter, his father had let him keep his clothes but had otherwise disowned him. When he was too hungry and sober to sleep, he walked the edge of the marsh in the dark, smoking the last of his cigars, following the road to where it narrowed to a path that led into the woods.

He had gone to Princeton, where father-made men spent father-made fortunes. Now they were back home, learning the modern form of alchemy, the transmutation of sums of money into greater sums of money. He'd told them that this was, at best, all they would ever accomplish. "Whereas," he'd said, "I will write a book that will put in their places everyone who has ever lived. It may take me as long as a month, but I will not falter." It was five years since he'd made the boast and he'd yet to write a word that he could resist the urge to burn."

Beloved author Wayne Johnston returns with this sweeping tale of ambition, remorse and hope. A World Elsewhere is an astounding work of literature with all the hallmarks of Wayne Johnston's much-loved and acclaimed novels: outsiders yearning for acceptance, dreams that threaten to overpower their makers, and romance in the unlikeliest of places. The beating heart of this story is the touching relationship between a father and his adopted son. This sweeping

tale is set in St. John's, Princeton and North Carolina at the close of the 19th century.

Landish Druken is a formidable figure: tall with a mass of curls, broader than most doorways,

quick-witted and sharp-tongued. As a student at Princeton, he is befriended by Padgett "Van" Vanderluyden, son of the wealthiest man in America. But when Van betrays Landish, causing his expulsion from Princeton, Landish renounces him. Destitute, he returns to St. John's and nightly he starts his novel, only to burn the pages. The widow of one of his father's first mate, lost at sea, asks Landish to adopt her son. Landish and Deacon quickly fall into a relationship that,

though not supported by the comforts of home, is strong in its shared intimacy. When financial burdens threaten to overpower them, Landish sees little choice but to ask Van for assistance. Van, now ensconced at a mansion, Vanderland in North Carolina, sends them tickets. The father and son learn the truth behind Van's self-constructed life and cement their commitment to one another.