BC Book Prizes

If it’s Saturday We Must Be In Prince George
Posted by Bryan Pike

We had an excellent reading at Books and Company last night here in Prince George. There was a big group out to see the authors including lots of kids. The book store sold out of books and I had to give them some of the books we had with us to keep up the demand. We have a day off today and will start again tomorrow visiting school here in Prince George before heading off to Quesnel in the afternoon.

Filed under: Northern Leg 2011 | 1 Comments | Permalink

Too Much Hot Chocolate
Posted by Gina McMurchy-Barber

I’m having a wonderful time here in Prince Rupert….even if it’s cold, raining and I’m on my third mug of hot chocolate. I’ve just come from a presentation at a great school called Lax Kxeen and the 100 or so students were a wonderful audience. One boy even said I was “cool”. You gotta feel good with that kind of compliment. 

Tonight we’re doing a reading at the museum here. It’s a beautiful building and looks like a traditional First Nations longhouse. The two authors I’m with, Gary Kent and Stephen Collis are great travelling partners. I’m learning lots about fishing from Gary (he wrote a picture book called Fishing with Gubby) and getting really ticked off about the tar sands, oil companies and our over consuming society from Stephen (his book of poetry is called On the Material).

Filed under: Northern Leg 2011 | 2 Comments | Permalink

Roaring into Rupert
Posted by Stephen Collis

Loving Prince Rupert: it’s like Tofino, minus the rich people. Read at Charles Hays Secondary School—great audience (thanks guys). Best question of the day: ever write a break-up poem? You bet I have! (But it’s been a while, that’s for sure.) I even tried to read it, from memory. I’m sorry about that. Back to railing against oil and mining companies for me!

Filed under: Northern Leg 2011 | 2 Comments | Permalink

Elementary fun
Posted by Gary Kent

Three gigs so far from Terrace to Prince Rupert. Buckets of clean and crisp Rupert rain. I was up first at Lax Kxeen Elementary with a fine bunch of 8 year-olds of potential gubsters. Gina’s crowd of 80 totally devoted students were a real pleasure to behold and Stephen over at the secondary school wrapped willing teenagers in his beautifully crafted poems. Next up the Museum of Northern BC.

Filed under: Northern Leg 2011 | 1 Comments | Permalink

First reading in Terrace
Posted by Bryan Pike

We had a great flight up from Vancover. Our first reading of the tour was tonight here in Terrace for a nice group. We are all looking forward to the drive to Prince Rupert in the morning.

Filed under: Northern Leg 2011 | 0 Comments | Permalink

One Week Away from 2011 Tour
Posted by Bryan Pike

I can’t believe that I leave in just over a week for the 8th annual BC Book Prizes On Tour. I have had the pleasure of being the Tour Driver/Director every year and I thoroughly enjoy it. Getting to know new authors every year, exploring the province, and sharing reading, writing and literacy with communities and schools; nothing beats it.

This year we’re excited to return to Salmon Arm in the Sushwap. We visited schools there several years ago, but will be having an afternoon event at the public library on Saturday, April 16. I’m looking forward to meeting the people of Salmon Arm and exploring the town after the event. Let us know the best spot to have dinner!

I also have some favourite things to do each year, especially when the authors haven’t travelled within BC extensively. The event at the Museum of Northern BC in Prince Rupert is stunning. The museum staff make us feel so welcome and we present in this gorgeous room with tall totems and floor-to-ceiling windows. The view and the sunset from that room is breathtaking.

Another highlight is the drive between Smithers and Prince Rupert on the Yellowhead Highway. The Skeena River, Coast Mountains, and northwest Native culture are all incredible sights on this journey. It may seem like a long drive to be stuck in the car with relative strangers, but it is actually these long drives that strengthen our new friendships.

So, to close, I hope to see you all at the Soirée on April 5th, and I’ll be headed out on the Northern Leg bright and early on Thursday morning (April 7).

Filed under: Northern Leg 2011, Okanagan Leg 2011, Lower Mainland Leg 2011 | 0 Comments | Permalink

Final Photos from the Southern Tour
Posted by Tim Carlson

We had a great last few days in Southern BC and here are some lovely photos. To view all our photos, visit the BC Book Prizes Flickr Photostream. It’s been organized into albums and we’ll soon be posting Gala photos.

Sylvia reads from Counting on Hope at the Oliver Public Library

Myself (Tim), Fred and Sylvia enjoy the Osoyoos view after an excellent dinner at Passa Tempo restaurant, Nk’mip Winery.

Fred signs a copy of is a door for a fan at Cafe West Books in Rossland.

Filed under: Southern Leg 2010 | 0 Comments | Permalink

Final tour days & Gala tonight
Posted by Fred Wah

So I’m in Victoria today, Saturday, after finishing off schools and readings in Osoyoos, Oliver, and Sidney.
I have found a new enthusiasm for talking with 14-yr olds. How out of touch I’ve become from those teen years that, finally, spurred my own poetic investigations and diatribes.
My book, is a door, leans much on my interest in hybridity and senses of “betweeness.” Talking about difference, identity, marginalization with the students has been surprising and interesting. Of course many of them are at that crucial turn in life when identity first offers its confusions.
The teachers, those brave educators who work in the trenches (not towers), have been likewise open and caring about the social, and more aware than I about issues of difference and confidence.
Traveling with Sylvia Olsen, whose life on a reserve informs all of her books on the interface between aboriginality and whiteness, has been an incredible pleasure. Tim Carlson and I have listened throughout the long trip to some amazing and informative stories about her life as a “white Indian.” In fact, our conversations have been so central to our trip that Tim didn’t dip into his box of cd’s he so thoughtfully put together.
So, again, the great thing about the BC Book Prizes has been the school visits. Since BC doesn’t have a “writers in the schools” program, this tour has been, I think, the most useful and productive aspect of the Prizes. I hope it grows (without the bed bugs).

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Final Leg
Posted by Fiona Bayrock

The week has flown by. We leave shortly on the final leg of our tour. We’re bound for Sydney where we’ll meet up with Sylvia Olsen and Fred Wah (and Tim!) of the Southern Leg.  Fred and Ehor will give presentations at the high school while Sylvia and I visit Sidney Elementary to talk with the younger set. I’m hoping we arrive in time for me to catch some of Sylvia’s presentation, as I particularly enjoyed her book Counting on Hope and would love to hear more about her approach to writing it and how she made her interesting format choices.  It looks like another gorgeous Island weather day today.

Filed under: Okanagan / Vancouver Island Leg 2010 | 0 Comments | Permalink

What does it mean?
Posted by Fiona Bayrock

As I sit in the hotel lobby for a few minutes before heading off to our public readings at the Vancouver Island University Book Store, my mind turns to the whirlwind that makes up the last few days. For me that has included eight presentations to more than 650 students, plus two public book store/library readings, and some lovely downtime along the way—-leisurely meals at funky eateries, ammonite shopping in Courtenay, and feet-up on a piece of driftwood on the Comox spit, soaking up the sunshine and salt air in the company of a happy seagull or two. Man, we live in a beautiful province!

Wherever we go, the teachers, librarians, and book store owners all tell us the same thing, and with a genuineness and intensity that is palpable: they are so very grateful that the BC Book Prizes tour has brought an author to their community to visit with students and patrons. Time and again we’ve heard stories about how valuable an experience it is to have personal contact with a “real live author”,  how meaningful and inspiring it is to hear the stories of our writing processes and writing life, the successes, the challenges, effort and perseverance it takes to create the works we do. As Mari at the Courtenay Library said, “The impact is huge.” And yet, I was the first author many of the kids I talked to had ever seen. Hearing our hosts talk about the importance of these personal connections, I am extremely humbled and grateful to be part of the BC Book Prizes tour this year.

Filed under: Okanagan / Vancouver Island Leg 2010 | 1 Comments | Permalink