Governors Book Pub: Authors with Glasses is back for another instalment. This month’s edition of the series will take place March 16th, 7-9pm, at Governors Pub on the Esplanade in Sydney. The idea for the reading series came from Laura Syms. “I figured the Island’s authors deserve the opportunity to share their words more often and that audiences wanted more opportunity to hear those words. After all, everyone likes to be read to!”
Cape Breton Bound Presents is the group that hosts the monthly Governors Book Pub: Authors with Glasses, and the plan is to turn the group into a society. According to Syms, “This society will administer the Book Pub, as well as put in place the framework for organizing special events for visiting authors, as well as author readings across the Island. Cape Breton Bound Presents will also connect Cape Breton’s various creative writing initiatives to share information, ideas and interest in growing the Island’s writing and reading culture.”
This month, there will be readings by Lesley Crewe and Bill Conall. Montreal born Crewe is the bestselling author of Relative Happiness and Shoot Me. From a very young age, she knew she wanted to live in Cape Breton and moved here with her husband after graduating university. She was a regular contributor to The Cape Bretoner Magazine for five years before writing her first novel Relative Happiness. The Chronicle Herald said of Crewe, “Her graceful prose…and her ability to turn a familiar story into something with such raw dramatic power, are skills that many veteran novelists have yet to develop. Relative Happiness is a genuine pleasure to read.”
Bill Conall is a song and story writer who lives on the Cabot Trail. According to his website, he has been writing songs since JFK was in the White House. His stories have been published in many Canadian magazines and anthologies. In 2009, he published his first book, The Rock in the Water, of which the Victoria Standard remarked, “Bill Conall tells his tale with great humour, unflinching honesty, and gentle empathy for the failings and foibles of his characters. The result is a complex and subtle pattern; a rich, colourful, and utterly believable tale of island community life that will feel like home, no matter where you’re from.”
Of course, there will also be an open stage portion of the evening where unpublished authors have an opportunity to share their works. The event will be hosted by Ken Chisholm, local writer, director, actor, musician and all-round great artistic guy! The event is pay-what-you-can and it’s worth every cent you put in! So, check out Governors Book Pub: Authors with Glasses on March 16. The event will be held regularly on the third Tuesday of each month in the future.
