Words and music
Novels, kid lit, poetry and other new works by Concordia alumni
By Ian Harrison, BComm 01
The Legend of Baraffo (Bookhug Press, $23), by Moez Surani, MA 05, tells the story of a boy named Mazzu who grapples to understand Babello, a man imprisoned for arson. When the accused begins a hunger strike and another fire is deliberately set, tensions flare in Baraffo, a town gripped by revolutionary fervour, and Mazzu considers a brazen risk.
Painter Mathieu Laca, BFA 05, recently published his first novel in French, L’invention d’un visage (Leméac, $29.95). The story centres on Antoine, a fine-arts student at Concordia, and his creative attempts to reclaim his lost ability to recognize people facially after a terrible accident.
In The Atomic Bomb in Images and Documents (McFarland & Company, $49.95), Samuel S. Kloda, BSc 71, MSc 75, provides a comprehensive overview of the scientific advancements and human efforts that shaped the Atomic Age, from the Manhattan Project to the tragic annihilations of Hiroshima and Nagasaki.
Artist Guy Giard, BFA 83, shares how art, music, meditation and humanitarian acts gave him purpose in the self-published The Courage to Love: From Abuse to Happiness, a Healing Memoir ($24.99). Written as a mystery, the memoir includes a foreword by Patch Adams.
À tout prendre et Il était une fois dans l’Est (McGill-Queen’s University Press, $37.95), by Julie Vaillancourt, BFA 05, MA 07, is a tribute to the pioneers of queer cinema in the province of Quebec. Through the lens of sociology, Vaillancourt analyzes the works of influential filmmakers from the Quiet Revolution to the present day.
In her debut book of poetry, Hoods of Motherhood (Prolific Pulse Press, $14.86), Lindsay Soberano Wilson, BA 00, compiles a bittersweet portrayal as she contends with intergenerational trauma, recurrent miscarriages and the routine ups and downs of maternity
“Meet your trivia match with 555 pop culture challenges!” is the promise of Trivia Fusion: Connect the Thoughts ($14.50), the latest self-published book by satirist and word-game enthusiast David Mitchell, BA 89.
Daniel Goodwin, MA 96, has published his third novel, The Great Goldbergs (Cormorant Books, $24.95). Protagonist Sean McFall is enamoured with the Goldberg family until he discovers a dark underbelly that includes abuse and plenty of secrets. As he confronts this reality, Sean must redefine his identity amid the allure of wealth and acceptance.
In Next Station, Life: Switching to the Other Side of the Tracks (Prominence Publishing, $24.95), Steve Georgopoulos, BComm 76, and Jarrod Nichol, MBA 20, provocatively explore how the smallest of decisions can alter the course of a life. The authors returned to their alma mater in January to discuss their book.
Éloïse Marseille, BFA 20, has published Naked: Confessions of a Normal Woman (Pow Pow Press,$24.95), a graphic memoir that examines her sexual education (and miseducation), questions of lust and love and her nuanced relationship with her own body and self.
Through a hopeful and darkly humorous lens, the poems in Welcome to Hard Times (Ekstasis Editions, $24.95), a new collection from Mary Melfi, BA 73, navigate emotional conflicts amid societal challenges related to class, ethnicity, gender, dysfunctional family dynamics and more.
Mon Plan A (Éditions de l’Isatis, $22.95), an illustrated children’s book by Anne Renaud, BA 83, features Lou, a resourceful grade-schooler who devises a clever strategy to seek resolution — and perhaps even friendship — with his bully.
Five decades after he wrote A Manifesto on Lyrical Conceptualism, Paul Hartal, MA 77, has published Lyco Art: The Story of Lyrical Conceptualism (Austin Macauley, $40.17), a new exploration of the painter and poet’s attempt to unite the scientific with the creative.
In her debut novel, How A Gangsta Rapper Made Me a Better Mom (LR Price, $17.57), Stacey Jackson, BA 91, tells the story of stay-at-home mom Stephanie Bloom, whose dream of becoming an international pop star is confronted by obstacles — and a life-changing opportunity — along the way.