We like consuming words on the page almost as much as we like consuming food on the plate. Welcome to the Scout Book Club: a brief and regular rundown of what we’re reading, what’s staring at us from the bookshelf begging to be read next, and what we’ve already read and recommend.

Heads up, fellow book-lovers and curious minds, in general: If you missed the in-person version of this year’s Vancouver Writer’s Fest – or if you attended but were unable to squeeze every event of interest into your schedule – then take note that the virtual version is happening from December 16th through the end of January 2025, including online screenings of more than two-dozen full-length tapings of author conversations, panel discussions, and readings. Find out more.

Currently Reading, Recently Read, and Recommended

Heat: An Amateur’s Adventures as Kitchen Slave, Line Cook, Pasta-Maker, and Apprentice to a Dante-Quoting Butcher in Tuscany (Doubleday Canada), by Bill Buford | The author of the 2006 cooking memoir, Heat, doesn’t claim to be a good cook – in fact, Bill Buford is plenty aware of his own shortcomings and lack of acumen/adroitness in the kitchen. However, what he undeniably is is an excellent journalist and writer, with a true passion for food and cooking, an overabundance of curiosity and drive, and just the right amount of masochism to duke it out BOH (in both a New York three-star restaurant kitchen circa its “peak” 90s rock n’ roll chef celeb era, and various tiny rural Italian kitchens) AND write about it in a way that is engaging, witty, informative, and introspective. Well-seasoned with food history discoveries and uncensored industry-related misogyny and racism, overall Heat is a brilliant piece of food literature from a (literally and figuratively) ravenous personality – complete with a humble and resonating takeaway: “small” food (as in small-scale producers) is better than “big” food (commercial companies with large-scale production sizes). — TS

At the time of publishing, there is one used copy in stock from Massy Books.

The Reeds (ECW Press), by Arjun Basu | Power is the overarching theme of The Reeds, a new novel by Montreal author and podcaster (The Full-Bleed Podcast), Arjun Basu. Over the course of a singular story, each member of the titular family – husband and wife, Bobby and Mimi, and their adopted children, teenaged Dee and newly adult Abbie – takes turns retailing the ins and outs of their day-to-day lives as they go through their respective personal transformations. Besides the fact that all four family members live under the same roof and eat dinner together, each of the Reeds’ experiences with power – as it shifts, grows and morphs – is very different. What happens when the male “breadwinner” is stripped of his personal and professional status and egotistical workplace alter-ego all at once? What affect does the sudden realization of financial power – enough to to trump her husband’s income and render it inconsequential, his employment redundant – have on Mimi’s psyche and her family/relationship dynamic? What power comes with discovering your sexual identity; or with the validation of your artistic pursuit as a potentially lucrative career option? To find out for yourself, pick up a copy of The Reeds and then get ready to squirm. — TS

A Man of Two Faces: A Memoir, A History, A Memorial (Grove/Atlantic), by Viet Thanh Nguyen | In A Man of Two Faces, Viet Thanh Nguyen uses a second-person, stream-of-consciousness style to pull readers back into his childhood world, diving deeply into themes of identity, displacement, and belonging. At the heart of his story is his connection to ‘Ma’ (a two-time refugee), and his inner struggle with revealing her story of suffering, knowing she’d never want it told while simultaneously understanding the necessity of doing just so. By blending his family’s and his own experiences and difficulties building their life in a strange land (America) with larger cultural, historical, and political forces, Nguyen shows us how personal stories are always connected to something bigger. Nguyen’s memoir is a unique portrait of a brilliant and visceral storyteller and critic, depicting the tension that exists between the writer he has become and the person he is at his core. — Jamie Mah

Currently available from Upstart & Crow and Iron Dog Books.

Nauetakuan, a silence for a noise (Book*Hug Press), by Natasha Kanapé Fontaine | Recently translated from French (by Howard Scott), Nauetakuan bills itself as a sort of road trip to self discovery (including no shortage of well-buried inherited trauma), with stops in Montreal, Vancouver, Mexico, and Pessimet (an Innu community on Quebec’s North Shore). The book’s most successful moments are its dream sequences, rife with natural symbolism and poeticism, attesting to the first-time author’s already established notoriety as a poet. However, the narrator (Monica) is so naive as to be implausible as a twenty-something-year-old not literally living under a rock (although she was raised mostly by a moody and overly protective mother, who kept her sheltered from her Indigenous roots, we know Monica’s also racked up no small number of years living in Montreal, in part as as a struggling Art History student). Despite its short duration (slightly over 200 pages), the story doesn’t hit its stride until late in the book’s length – if it’s the author’s intention to withhold her prowess until her final chapters in order to make the most impact (the writing, which verges on psychedelic, peaks with the intensity of the storm it describes), then she does so at the very real risk of losing her readers’ interest along the way. My biggest takeaway from Nauetakuan is a faint but lingering intrigue to know more about Innu culture and mythology, and seek out Fontaine’s voice at its forte, in poetry in translation, if available. — TS

Currently available from Upstart & Crow, Iron Dog Books, and Massy Books.

Not Even the Sound of a River (Book*Hug Press), by Helene Dorion | On the other hand, the new English translation of the latest novel by Helene Dorion – who is a well-seasoned Quebecois poet and author with no less than 30 novels under her belt – follows another woman’s journey through various stops in Quebec. Hanna, a writer in her own right, hits the highway in search of answers to her identity as a woman, daughter, lover and poet, by retracing the cold trail left by her emotionally absent mother after her death to cancer. Hanna, like Monica, is living with a lack she can’t describe, as well as an inexplicable connection to some natural force; she is also partly reliant on her best friend, Juliette, to be her copilot and reliable source of personal insight. However, the similarities between the books and their main characters end there. Dorion is adept at weaving poetry and history into fiction in a way that is lyrical but never heavy handed or jarring. Not Even the Sound of a River deftly channels the St. Lawrence River at its centre with prose that is strong and sure, carrying readers along to its conclusion. BONUS: for added ambience, while reading this book, listen to Dorion’s curated soundtrack here. — TS

The Pineapples of Wrath (Pow Pow Press), by Cathon | Who doesn’t love a bit of tropical-themed escapism? Enter the delightfully tongue-in-cheek Agatha Christie inspired murder mystery comic, The Pineapples of Wrath. Be transported to (Tiki-obsessed) author and illustrator Cathon’s imagined Hawaiian neighbourhood – located in the very unlikely city of Trois-Rivières, Quebec – and home to avid mystery reader, bartender and amateur detective, Bonnie Lavallée. Replete with an obscene amount of pineapples and hilarity, this graphic novel is probably all-the-better enjoyed while keeping cozy on a bleak Vancouver winter day (nothing in comparison with an actually cold winter day in real-life Trois-Rivières), with a strong and fruity cocktail in-hand. Cheers! — TS

Currently available from Lucky’s Books and Comics.

Nunavik (Pow Pow Press), by Michel Hellman | For a cooler “trip”, pick up a copy of Michel Hellman’s cartoon memoir, Nunavik, an honest and unglamorous yet humourous recounting of the cartoonist’s visit up North while in the midst of some serious writer’s (cartoonist’s?) block. Up until then mostly ignorant about the realities of the Northern Canadian Territory, Hellman interweaves his personal adventures (battling mosquitos, boredom, low tides and even lower temperatures, high prices, culture shock, and more), and interactions with locals and fellow visitors, with historical facts and revelations about the land and its human and non-human inhabitants. — TS

At the time of publishing, there is one used copy available from Iron Dog Books.

*It would be remiss for me not to mention Vancouver’s various independent and used book stores, and encourage you to pay them an in-person visit to seek out these and other titles.

MORE! OUR ARTICLE PICKS

The Best Food Bank Day Will Be When They Don’t Exist: Food insecurity is real, but here are some better solutions. | Graham Riches and Ian Marcuse joint-authored this recent The Tyee essay challenging the ways in which we help those in need of food, and come to the shared conclusion that it isn’t working, plus offer up suggestions about what can be done to improve. Via The Tyee. — JM

We Deserve Free Sparkling Water: Why more restaurants are making sparkling water free | Eater Correspondent Jaya Saxena’s controversial opinion on what’s more important: a diner feeling a small “win”, or a restaurant finding ways to profit? Via Eater. — JM

Totally Cooked | A diary of Dan Koi’s comedy- and foible-laden attempt to cook 25 of the most important recipes of the past century. Via Slate. — JM

WORD: Powwow | In the latest episode of the CBC history podcast, The Secret Life of Canada, co-hosts Leah-Simone Bowen and Falen Johnson discuss the origins and evolution of the powwow – including its not-small relationship to food. Listen.