Is there a book you love to read over the holidays, hope to get for Christmas, or plan to give to family or friends? We asked a few faculty and staff to share their favourite holiday reading. Fiction or non-fiction, funny or serious, for the young or the young at heart, there’s something to love on this list.
Nina Johnson loves to share children’s picture book Ish with her creative writing students.
Ish
“Ish by Peter H. Reynolds is a wonderful children’s picture book about a little boy, Ramon, who loves to draw. His older brother criticizes his artwork, and Ramon feels crushed. In despair, he gives up drawing until his little sister shows him the magic of ‘ishful’ thinking,” says Nina Johnson, faculty in English and Modern Languages. “Ish is an inspiring story—and a great gift—for children (and adults) who long for the joy of creativity. I read this book to all my creative writing classes, and invariably ‘ish’ becomes a class mantra.”
Wishin’ and Hopin’: A Christmas Story
“One of the main things that I like to do during the holidays is curl up with a good book because I finally have some time,” says Becky Mann, lab technician/demonstrator in Journalism, Communication, and New Media. “Wishin’ and Hopin’: A Christmas Story, by Wally Lamb, is a great read if you are looking for something light, festive, and cheerful. At moments I couldn’t stop my laughter from bubbling over. I love to pass on this book to friends and family, hoping they will enjoy it as much as I do.”
The Back of the Turtle
“I am in the early stages of reading Thomas King’s latest novel, The Back of the Turtle,” says Ginny Ratsoy, faculty in English and Modern Languages. “Having taught two of his novels and his Massey Lectures, and hoping to create a course on Eco-Criticism someday, my interest is partly professional. (My personal and professional interests dovetail more often than not, thankfully). So far, I have not been disappointed: the novel is delightful, humorous, and hard-hitting—the perfect combination, in my opinion.”
Charles Hays fights winter blues by reading South, about the voyage of the Endurance to Antarctica.
South
“My favourite winter book is South–Ernest Shackleton’s memoir of his ill-fated Antarctic voyage on the Endurance. Oddly enough perhaps, it is my antidote to the psychological presence of long cold nights,” says Charles Hays, faculty in Journalism, Communication and New Media. “Usually after I’ve finished it—including the technical reports at the end of the book—I’ll jump into T.E. Lawrence’s Seven Pillars of Wisdom. Two men who loomed large in their worlds, caught up in larger events whose repercussions resonate to the present day.”
Waking, Dreaming, Being
“My favorite book for this particular holiday season: Waking, Dreaming, Being: Self and Consciousness in Neuroscience, Meditation and Philosophy,” says Terryl Atkins, who teaches art, art theory and visual culture in Visual and Performing Arts. “I bought two, one for myself and one for the friend who is going to want to read it as soon as I start talking about it. What’s not to love about neurophenomenology? The perfect fireside reading and always better discussed with a good friend.”
A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius
“I have always loved work done by Dave Eggers,” says continuing education coordinator Alana Hoare. “In particular, A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius. Dave Eggers writes from the heart. He is genuine, dramatic, sarcastic and self-loathing. I wept, I laughed, I raged. The book is aptly named.”
Mind Over Water: Lessons on Life from the Art of Rowing
“I love to read and reread Mind Over Water: Lessons on Life from the Art of Rowing when I need inspiration,” says Janine Chan, faculty in Respiratory Therapy. “When I can’t be on the water rowing (from November to early April) and it seems so far away ’til ice off, Craig Lambert’s narrative of his experiences in the sport and on the water bring all my time in my rowing shell back in focus and it makes me smile inside.”
The Book of Negroes
“The Book of Negroes by Lawrance Hill,” says Biological Sciences faculty member Naowarat (Ann) Cheeptham. “As sad and harrowing as it is (in regards to how human beings can be so cruel to others just because we look different), it is an inspiring book. One of those books that no matter how many times you read it, you still want to read it again.”
The Bhagavad Gita
“I’ve got one-click ordering on my iPad,” says Karen Hofmann, English and Modern Languages faculty, “and as soon as I’m finished marking, I’m going to download The Bhagavad Gita and read it over the next year. It’s a classic of mythology, psychology, philosophy, and poetry. It’s something I’ve always wanted to read, and it will spark my own writing as well as give me some useful ideas to pass on to students.”
A Game of Thrones
“If my husband lets go of it, A Game of Thrones, by George R. R. Martin,” says Amanda Blyth, graphic designer in Marketing and Communications, “because I want to know more than the TV is telling me.”
You Have to F*****g Eat
“Over my holidays I plan on gifting You Have to F*****g Eat by Adam Mansbach to my husband and friends or family that also struggle through mealtimes with willful toddlers or young children,” says Danna Bach, communications officer in Research and Graduate Studies. “Parenting is hard. It’s important to laugh about the shared frustrations. It’s also a good reminder when we’re tearing our hair out during torturous mealtimes, that this too shall pass, and likely all too soon.”
The First Muslim: The Story of Muhammad
“I would love to receive a copy of Lesley Hazleton’s The First Muslim: The Story of Muhammad. I heard an interview with Hazleton on CBC’s Tapestry and—to my surprise—am now interested in the history of Islam,” says Linda Komori, graphic production supervisor in Marketing and Communications. “I may just cut to the chase and buy it as a gift for my husband (and then read it before or after he does).”
The Storms of War
“I’ve just finished reading The Storms of War by Kate Williams, the saga of a half-German family living in Edwardian England that is torn apart by the First World War,” says George Johnson, faculty in English and Modern Languages. “The family secret revealed at the end has been used too often in recent British fiction, but it was believable, as was the depiction of relationships thwarted and destroyed by war. If you like Downton Abbey, you will find this saga more engrossing and probing, a story to sink into before the next season of the smash hit appears on PBS in January.”
Born to Run
“I am giving three books this year that reminded me of the power of perseverance and commitment, that great things are achieved through many small steps, and our obligation to inspire others,” says Bart Cummins, photographer/writer in Marketing and Communications. “Born to Run by Christopher McDougall, Running Like a Girl: Notes on Learning To Run by Alexandra Heminsley, and Hell on Two Wheels by Amy Snyder. My interest in long distance running, hiking, and walking goes back to reading Lord of the Rings and the numerous passages of pursuing a goal despite having to cross vast stretches of land that at times looks impassable and inhospitable.”
Check out TRU Reads, the Library’s leisure reading collection on the third floor of the House of Learning, for a great selection of popular titles and a cosy spot to curl up with a book.
