Personal prose: 

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“In 1962, a stranger helped save my dad's life. Meeting him made me more grateful for my own.” First Person (online), CBC, October 19, 2024.

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“Uncovering.” Island Writer Magazine, Victoria, BC, vol. 23, no. 1, summer 2024, p. 50-53.

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"Frozen: Icon of hyper flight." The Ice Cubicle (online), Meg Walker, Dawson City, YK, August 2009.

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“St. Petersburg, Russia: June 2006.” The Danforth Review (online), Michael Bryson, Toronto, ON, September 2006.

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Articles:

“Summer reading picks.” Focus, Victoria, BC, July/August 2018, p. 56-57.

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“Silky sass and secret lives.” Interview with vocal trio The Millies and their musical director, Stephen Hatfield. Focus, Victoria, BC, March/April 2017, p. 52-53.

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“In service to the sound: Drummer, composer, educator and band leader Kelby MacNayr.” Interview with Kelby MacNayr on his new album The Measure of Light. Focus, Victoria, BC, April 2014, p. 32-33.

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“The ultimate unplugged music.” Interview with James Young on the Early Music Society of the Islands. Focus, Victoria, BC, November 2013, p. 42-43.

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“A meeting of minds on being human.” Interview with Rhonda Batchelor and Susan Sanford Blades on The Malahat Review’s inaugural WordsThaw literary symposium. Focus, Victoria, BC, March 2013, p. 32-33.

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“From Beaconsfield to Beijing and Oceans in Between.” Interview with Team Canada Olympic swimmer Stephanie Horner. Alma Matters, Montreal, QC, summer 2012, p. 08-09.

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“The lifeblood of medical care.” Interview with Victoria-based hematopathologist Dr. Brian Berry. Focus, Victoria, BC, June 2012, p. 42-43.

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“Talking trash with Randy Smith: A salute to the guys that ride the trucks and heave the cans.” Interview with Saanich garbage collector Randy Smith. Focus, Victoria, BC, May 2012, p. 42-43.

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“The art of driving bus.” Ride-along and interview with BC Transit driver Cathy Baker. Focus, Victoria, BC, March 2012, p. 42-43.

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“Creativity and control: Book writers and sellers discuss the self-publishing trend.” Interviews with authors Janet Rogers, Lyn Hancock, and Rebecca Kennel. Focus, Victoria, BC, March 2011, p. 32-34.

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“HOOP Dreams: Marites Carino’s movies are a moving duet for dancer and camera.” Interview with Montreal-based filmmaker. This Magazine, Toronto, ON, January/February 2011, p. 36-37.

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“Hey, how's it going? Focus takes the economic pulse of our community by talking with people in the bellwether sectors.” Focus, Victoria, BC, October 2010, p. 26-32.

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“Vikings With Amps: Norse mythology meets power chords in Týr’s mighty music.” Reprint of The Walrus article. Utne Reader, Topeka, KS, August 2007, p. 26-27.

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“Hail to the Hammer: Ancient ballads get the Viking heavy-metal treatment.” Travel piece and interview with Heri Joensen, singer of Faroese Viking heavy-metal band Týr. The Walrus, Toronto, ON, March 2007, p. 20-21.

 

 

Book Reviews & Author Interviews: 
 

“Sentenced at Birth: On forced mother-child separation.” Review of Prison Born: Incarceration and Motherhood in the Colonial Shadow by Robin F. Hansen. Literary Review of Canada, Toronto, ON, November 2024, p. 20.

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“Robert Bringhurst's The Ridge helps us submerge ourselves in what the forest knows.” Review and interview on The Ridge by Robert Bringhurst. Focus on Victoria (online), Victoria, BC, August 25, 2023.

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“Private Eyes: Who is watching the watchmen?” Review of Changing of the Guards: Private Influences, Privatization, and Criminal Justice in Canada edited by Alex Luscombe, Kevin Walby, and Derek Silva. Literary Review of Canada, Toronto, ON, June 2023, p. 15.

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“Crisis Mismanagement: Homelessness in our largest city.” Review of Displacement City: Fighting for Health and Homes in a Pandemic edited by Greg Cook and Cathy Crowe. Literary Review of Canada, Toronto, ON, April 2023, p. 15.

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“Much grows in shadow.” Review of This Unlikely Soil by Andrea Routley. The British Columbia Review (online), Vancouver, BC, March 11, 2023.

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“Your Consent is Not Required—a disturbing new book by Rob Wipond.” Review and interview on Your Consent is Not Required: The Rise in Psychiatric Detentions, Forced Treatment, and Abusive Guardianships by Rob Wipond. Focus on Victoria (online), Victoria, BC, February 5, 2023.

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Review of Confessions With Keith by Pauline Holdstock. Focus on Victoria (online), Victoria, BC, October 27, 2022.

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“Sentence Structure: Views from the inside.” Review of The Life Sentences of Rik McWhinney by Rik McWhinney, edited by Jason Demers. Literary Review of Canada, Toronto, ON, October 2022, p. 17-18.

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“With the Grain: Dead trees outlast the lives of men.” Review of The Longbow, the Schooner, and the Violin: Wood and Human Achievement by Marq de Villiers. Literary Review of Canada, Toronto, ON, July/August 2022, p. 19.

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“Worth More Standing: Connection, grief, ecology and protection of trees are explored through the words of some of Canada’s most talented poets.” Review and interview on Worth More Standing: Poets and Activists Pay Homage to Trees edited by Christine Lowther. Focus on Victoria (online), Victoria, BC, April 29, 2022.

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“Afterlight: In Search of Poetry, History, and Home.” Review and interview on Afterlight: In Search of Poetry, History, and Home by Isa Milman. Focus on Victoria (online), Victoria, BC, February 11, 2022.

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“Astra reveals the constellation of selves in one woman.” Review and interview on Astra by Cedar Bowers. Focus on Victoria (online), Victoria, BC, November 15, 2021.

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“Orphans of Empire: Grim desolation—or glorious beginning?” Review and interview on Orphans of Empire by Grant Buday. Focus on Victoria (online), Victoria, BC, October 6, 2021.

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“Following the Good River: The Life and Times of Wa'xaid, by Briony Penn with Cecil Paul.” Review and interview on Following the Good River: The Life and Times of Wa'xaid by Briony Penn. Focus on Victoria (online), Victoria, BC, July 6, 2021.

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Review of Spirits of the Coast: Orcas in Science, Art and History edited by Dr. Martha Black, Dr. Lorne Hammond, and Dr. Gavin Hanke with Nikki Sanchez. Focus on Victoria (online), Victoria, BC, June 27, 2020.

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“The End of Me: In its exploration of death and mortality—and by extension life—John Gould's new book serves up 56 very short, fascinating and timely stories.” Review and interview on The End of Me by John Gould. Focus on Victoria (online), Victoria, BC, April 2020.

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“Recently nominated for the Governor General’s Literary Award, Darrel McLeod’s memoir will break hearts in the best possible way.” Review and interview on Mamaskatch: A Cree Coming of Age by Darrel McLeod. Focus, Victoria, BC, November/December 2018, p. 56-57.

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“Unprecedented crime.” Review and interview on Unprecedented Crime: Climate Science Denial and Game Changers for Survival by Elizabeth Woodworth and Dr. Peter Carter. Focus, Victoria, BC, September/October 2018, p. 56-57.

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“Windows into the weird and wonderful.” Review and interview on Quarrels by Eve Joseph. Focus, Victoria, BC, July/August 2018, p. 54-55.

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Review of You Are Not Needed Now by Annette Lapointe. The Malahat Review, Victoria, BC, summer 2018, p. 105-109.

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“Mythic dam battle at Site C is a showdown between 'progress' and those who would preserve the valley.” Review and interview on Breaching the Peace: The Site C Dam and a Valley's Stand Against Big Hydro by Sarah Cox. Focus, Victoria, BC, May/June 2018, p. 56-57.

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“The strength in vulnerability: Claire Sicherman delves into the silent stories of her family’s traumatic past.” Review and interview on Imprint: A Memoir of Trauma in the Third Generation by Claire Sicherman. Focus, Victoria, BC, March/April 2018, p. 56-57.

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“Whale in the Door: Author Pauline Le Bel’s personal journey of losses, learning, and hope for Howe Sound.” Review and interview on Whale in the Door: A Community Unites to Protect BC's Howe Sound by Pauline Le Bel. Focus, Victoria, BC, January/February 2018, p. 54-55.

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“In his new book, award-winning writer Tim Lilburn begins the process of ‘personal decolonization’.” Review and interview on The Larger Conversation: Contemplation and Place by Tim Lilburn. Focus, Victoria, BC, November/December 2017, p. 54-55.

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“Victoria poet laureate Yvonne Blomer combines literary forces to appreciate and protect our large salty neighbour.” Review and interview on Refugium: Poems for the Pacific edited by Yvonne Blomer. Focus, Victoria, BC, September/October 2017, p. 56-57.

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“An out-of-the-box thinker, writer, editor and translator believes in daring to be different for the social good.” Review and interview on The Midwife of Torment & Other Stories by paolo da costa. Focus, Victoria, BC, July/August 2017, p. 54-55.

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“A coming-of-age story invites us to step out of the comfortable.” Review and interview on Son of a Trickster by Eden Robinson. Focus, Victoria, BC, May/June 2017, p. 56-57.

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“Sacred Herb/Devil's Weed: Andrew Struthers takes readers on a long, strange—and fun—trip through marijuana and human culture.” Review and interview on The Sacred Herb/The Devil's Weed by Andrew Struthers. Focus, Victoria, BC, March/April 2017, p. 56-57.

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“Jan Zwicky: The Long Walk.” Review and interview on The Long Walk by Jan Zwicky. Focus, Victoria, BC, January/February 2017, p. 56-57.

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“Navigating belonging.” Review and interview on The Heaviness of Things That Float by Jennifer Manuel. Focus, Victoria, BC, November/December 2016, p. 56-57.

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“The Two of Us: stories of intimacy.” Review and interview on The Two of Us by Kathy Page. Focus, Victoria, BC, September/October 2016, p. 56-57.

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“De-tox for public discourse.” Review and interview on I'm Right and You're an Idiot: The Toxic State of Public Discourse and How to Clean it Up by James Hoggan. Focus, Victoria, BC, July/August 2016, p. 56-57.

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“Water, trust and truth.” Review and interview on Slick Water: Fracking and One Insider's Stand Against the World's Most Powerful Industry by Andrew Nikiforuk. Focus, Victoria, BC, May/June 2016, p. 54-57.

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“Towards a life of integrity.” Review and interview on Becoming Lin by Tricia Dower. Focus, Victoria, BC, March/April 2016, p. 54-55.

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“Nature is foreclosing.” Review and interview on The Climate Nexus: Water, Food, Energy and Biodiversity in a Changing World by Dr. Jon O’Riordan and Robert William Sandford. Focus, Victoria, BC, February 2016, p. 40-41.

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“Falling in love with the future.” Review and interview on Journey to the Future: A Better World is Possible by Guy Dauncey. Focus, Victoria, BC, January 2016, p. 38-39.

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“The power in your hands: 45 years of fooling around with A. Banana—a book and an exhibit.” Review and interview on Anna Banana: 45 Years of Fooling Around with A. Banana edited by Michelle Jacques. Focus, Victoria, BC, December 2015, p. 40-41.

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“On origins and endings.” Review and interview on He Leaves His Face in the Funeral Car by Arleen Paré. Focus, Victoria, BC, November 2015, p. 40-41.

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“The real thing.” Review and interview on The Real Thing: The Natural History of Ian McTaggart Cowan by Briony Penn. Focus, Victoria, BC, October 2015, p. 40-41.

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“The fight for real food.” Review and interview on Saving Farmland: The Fight for Real Food by Nathalie Chambers, with Robyn Alys Roberts and Sophie Wooding. Focus, Victoria, BC, September 2015, p. 34-35.

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“Building a House Together: Two books expand the conversation on how, together, Indigenous and settler people can create a new story.” Review and interview on On Being Here to Stay: Treaties and Aboriginal Rights in Canada by Michael Asch and Islands' Spirit Rising: Reclaiming the Forests of Haida Gwaii by Louise Takeda. Focus, Victoria, BC, July/August 2015, p. 42-43.

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“A healing place: A visual and literary homage to Tod Inlet, its history, nature, and people.” Review and interview on Tod Inlet: A Healing Place by Gwen Curry. Focus, Victoria, BC, June 2015, p. 40-41.

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“The mystery: The complexities of our relationships with animals are explored in a new anthology.” Review and interviews on In the Company of Animals: Stories of Extraordinary Encounters, edited by Pam Chamberlain. Focus, Victoria, BC, May 2015, p. 42-43.

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“Super-unequal British Columbia.” Review and interview on A Better Place on Earth: The Search for Fairness in Super Unequal British Columbia by Andrew MacLeod. Focus, Victoria, BC, April 2015, p. 42-43.

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“The enemy is pink Lego.” Review and interview on The Wollstonecraft Detective Agency: The Case of the Missing Moonstone by Jordan Stratford. Focus, Victoria, BC, March 2015, p. 42-43.

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“Knitting stories: In her most recent book, Sylvia Olsen tells stories of knitting relationships as well as wool.” Review and interview on Knitting Stories by Sylvia Olsen. Focus, Victoria, BC, February 2015, p. 42-43. 

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“Of the coast and its creatures.” Review and interview on Great Bear Wild: Dispatches from a Northern Rainforest by Ian McAllister. Focus, Victoria, BC, January 2015, p. 38-43.

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“A poet explores the oil sands through the eyes of its workers.” Review and interview on Prologue for the Age of Consequence by Garth Martens. Focus, Victoria, BC, December 2014, p. 32-33.

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“Reflections of Canada and democracy.” Review and interview on Who We Are: Reflections on My Life and Canada by Elizabeth May. Focus, Victoria, BC, November 2014, p. 40-41.

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“Converging plotlines.” Review and interview on The High Clear Bell of Morning by Ann Eriksson. Focus, Victoria, BC, October 2014, p. 40-41.

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“Balancing on a thread: Pat Bovey's new book on the life of Pat Martin Bates and the transformative power of her art.” Review and interview on Pat Martin Bates: Balancing on a Thread by Pat Bovey. Focus, Victoria, BC, September 2014, p. 36-37.

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“Cloudwalker: Robert Budd and Roy Henry Vickers collaborate on a story about the people of the Skeena.” Review and interview on Cloudwalker by Robert (Lucky) Budd and Roy Henry Vickers. Focus, Victoria, BC, July/August 2014, p. 40-41.

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“Ancient pathways, ancestral knowledge: Nancy Turner's monumental new work explores humanity's multi-faceted relationship to plants.” Review and interview on Ancient Pathways, Ancestral Knowledge: Ethnobotany and Ecological Wisdom of Indigenous Peoples of Northwestern North America by Nancy Turner. Focus, Victoria, BC, June 2014, p. 40-41.

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“Searching for a rightful place.” Review and interview on Jane and the Whales: Stories by Andrea Routley. Focus, Victoria, BC, May 2014, p. 36-37.

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“Below the surface.” Review and interview on When is a Man by Aaron Shepard. Focus, Victoria, BC, April 2014, p. 40-41.

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“People who are treasures.” Review and interview on Shadow Woman: The Extraordinary Career of Pauline Benton by Grant Hayter Menzies. Focus, Victoria, BC, March 2014, p. 40-41.

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“Writer as witness.” Review and interview on What Does a House Want by Gary Geddes. Focus, Victoria, BC, February 2014, p. 34-35.

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“An unheralded artist.” Review and interview on The Life and Art of Edythe Hembroff-Schleicher by Christina Johnson-Dean. Focus, Victoria, BC, January 2014, p. 34-35.

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“Reflections on the inside.” Review of A Crowbar in the Buddhist Garden by Stephen Reid. Focus, Victoria, BC, December 2013, p. 48-49.

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“Our nation's collective memory.” Review and interview on Ted Grant: Sixty Years of Legendary Photojournalism by Thelma Fayle. Focus, Victoria, BC, November 2013, p. 48-51.

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“Listening to their songs.” Review and interview on We Are Born with the Songs Inside Us: Lives and Stories of First Nations People in British Columbia by Katherine Palmer Gordon. Focus, Victoria, BC, October 2013, p. 50-52.

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“Tilly: The journey to—and through—teenage alcoholism and racism is the focus of Monique Gray Smith's new novel.” Review and interview on Tilly: A Story of Hope and Resilience by Monique Gray Smith. Focus, Victoria, BC, September 2013, p. 50-51.

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“Poetry for the Earth, from Victoria.” Review and interview on Poems From Planet Earth edited by Yvonne Blomer and Cynthia Woodman Kerkham. Focus, Victoria, BC, July/August 2013, p. 34-35.

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“Digging the City: Growing food locally is a political act of community preservation.” Review and interview on Digging the City: An Urban Agriculture Manifesto by Rhona McAdam. Focus, Victoria, BC, June 2013, p. 32-33.

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“Bog Tender: Long-slumbering memories are awakened and explored in George Szanto's new book.” Review and interview on Bog Tender: Coming Home to Nature and Memory by George Szanto. Focus, Victoria, BC, May 2013, p. 42-43.

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“Brokering Access: A new book tells the story of how the public is denied information about the public's business.” Review and interview on Brokering Access: Power, Politics, and Freedom of Information Process in Canada edited by Kevin Walby and Mike Larsen. Focus, Victoria, BC, April 2013, p. 40-41.

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“Given: Susan Musgrave's new novel illustrates our potential for endurance.” Review and interview on Given by Susan Musgrave. Focus, Victoria, BC, February 2013, p. 34-35.

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“Gardens Aflame: The Garry Oak meadows of South Vancouver Island were shaped by more than nature.” Review and interview on Gardens Aflame: Garry Oak Meadows of BC's South Coast by Maleea Acker. Focus, Victoria, BC, January 2013, p. 34-35.

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“The simple pleasures.” Review and interview on The Book of Marvels: A Compendium of Everyday Things by Lorna Crozier. Focus, Victoria, BC, December 2012, p. 28-29.

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“A revealing journey.” Review and interview on For the Boy With the Eyes of the Virgin: Selected Poems by John Barton. Focus, Victoria, BC, November 2012, p. 28-29.

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“An Indigenous approach to global crisis.” Review and interview on Tsawalk: An Indigenous Approach to Global Crisis by Umeek/E. Richard Atleo. Focus, Victoria, BC, October 2012, p. 32-33.

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“Gold Mountain—not: How Canada's cruel policies around immigrant Chinese workers affected one family.” Review and interview on A Cowherd in Paradise: From China to Canada by May Q. Wong. Focus, Victoria, BC, September 2012, p. 28-29.

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“Open-hearted runner.” Review and interview on Open Heart Runner: Searching for Meaning After My Heart Stopped by Greg Marchand. Focus, Victoria, BC, July/August 2012, p. 28-29.

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“Embracing the complexity.” Review and interview on The Book of Changes by Madeline Sonik. Focus, Victoria, BC, June 2012, p. 36-37.

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“Seeking healthy scepticism.” Review and interview on Seeking Sickness: Medical Screening and the Misguided Hunt for Disease by Alan Cassels. Focus, Victoria, BC, May 2012, p. 28-29.

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“Worlds beautiful and dangerous.” Review and interview on Floating Like the Dead by Yasuko Thanh. Focus, Victoria, BC, April 2012, p. 38-39.

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“The mystery of life.” Review and interview  on The Priest Who Left His Religion: In Pursuit of Cosmic Spirituality by John Shields. Focus, Victoria, BC, March 2012, p. 34-35.

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“The Whaling People: Coastal first peoples lived a life rich in technology, trade and ritual.” Review and interview on The Whaling People of the West Coast of Vancouver Island and Cape Flattery by Alan Hoover. Focus, Victoria, BC, February 2012, p. 30-31.

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“Love, art and transformation.” Review and interview on Painting my Life: A Memoir of Love, Art and Transformation by Phyllis Serota. Focus, Victoria, BC, January 2012, p. 30-31.

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“The unspoken spaces.” Review and interview on Stopping for Strangers by Daniel Griffin. Focus, Victoria, BC, December 2011, p. 32-33.

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“Strong words: First Nations writer Janet Rogers doesn't mean to be confrontational—just honest.” Review and interview on Unearthed by Janet Marie Rogers. Focus, Victoria, BC, November 2011, p. 32-33.

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“Starting with character.” Review and interview on Half-Blood Blues by Esi Edugyan. Focus, Victoria, BC, October 2011, p. 28-29.

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“Travelling with a purpose.” Review and interview on Drink the Bitter Root: A Writer's Search for Justice and Redemption in Africa by Gary Geddes. Focus, Victoria, BC, September 2011, p. 28-29.

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“Tunnelling through the wall of hate.” Review and interview on Generation Us: The Challenge of Global Warming by Andrew Weaver. Focus, Victoria, BC, July/August 2011, p. 34-35.

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“No endings at all.” Review and interview on The Master of Happy Endings by Jack Hodgins. Focus, Victoria, BC, June 2011, p. 26-27.

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“Local humour.” Review and interview on British Columbia Bizarre: Stories, Whimsies, Facts and a Few Outright Lies from Canada's Wacky West Coast by Rosemary Neering. Focus, Victoria, BC, May 2011, p. 30.

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Review of The Measure of Paris by Stephen Scobie. The Malahat Review, April 2011, p. 105-107.

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“The examined life.” Review and interview on The Gate by Michael Elcock. Focus, Victoria, BC, April 2011, p. 34-35.

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“A natural love story.” Review and interview on A Walk with the Rainy Sisters: In Praise of British Columbia’s Places by Stephen Hume. Focus, Victoria, BC, February 2011, p. 32-33.

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“A detailed, child’s-eye view: The civilizing influence of children on a gold rush.” Review and interview on Children of the Klondike by Frances Backhouse. Focus, Victoria, BC, January 2011, p. 34-35.

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“Walk yourself home…. A new anthology offers an artful and therapeutic response to violence against women.” Review and interview on Walk Myself Home: An Anthology to End Violence Against Women edited by Andrea Routley. Focus, Victoria, BC, December 2010, p. 26-27.

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“Exploring love, death and virtue.” Review and interview on Seven Good Reasons Not to be Good by John Gould. Focus, Victoria, BC, November 2010, p. 26-27.

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“Making your world bigger.” Review and interview on This Innocent Corner by Peggy Herring. Focus, Victoria, BC, October 2010, p. 24-25.

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“Images from the Likeness House.” Review and interview on Images from the Likeness House by Dan Savard. Focus, Victoria, BC, September 2010, p. 28-29.

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“How to ensure your food supply.” Review and interview on The Zero-Mile Diet: A Year-Round Guide to Growing Organic Food by Carolyn Herriot. Focus, Victoria, BC, August 2010, p. 26-27.

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“48°, 26', 14.4" N, 123°, 19', 40.6" W: Melanie Siebert's new book navigates the idea of place, both wild and urban.” Review and interview on Deepwater Vee by Melanie Siebert. Focus, Victoria, BC, July 2010, p. 26-27.

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“A century of impoverishment.” Review and interview on Makúk: A New History of Aboriginal-White Relations by John Lutz. Focus, Victoria, BC, June 2010, p. 26-27.

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“We’re all family.” Review and interview on Sweetness from Ashes by Marlyn Horsdal. Focus, Victoria, BC, May 2010, p. 24-25.

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“Bringing history alive.” Review and interview on On to Victory by Mark Zuehlke. Focus, Victoria, BC, April 2010, p. 28-29.

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“Michelle Mulder’s kids’ books tackle real-life issues.” Review and interview on After Peaches by Michelle Mulder. Focus, Victoria, BC, March 2010, p. 28-29.

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“Deborah Willis and the unpredictability of life.” Review and interview on Vanishing and Other Stories by Deborah Willis. Focus, Victoria, BC, February 2010, p. 26-27.

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“Brian Brett’s poetic, non-romanticized view of nature and farm life.” Review and interview on Trauma Farm by Brian Brett. Focus, Victoria, BC, January 2010, p. 26-27.

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Review of Duet for Wings and Earth by Barbara Colebrook Peace. The Malahat Review, Victoria, BC, June 2009, p. 105-106.

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Review of The Sweet Fuels by Erin Knight. The Malahat Review, Victoria, BC, June 2008, p. 91-93.

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Review of Yellowknife by Steve Zipp. The Danforth Review (online), Toronto, ON, February 2008.

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Review of We Are Not in Pakistan by Shauna Singh Baldwin. Quill & Quire, Toronto, ON, October 2007, p. 49.

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