Ren Louie’s Kidlit Books

Indigenous author, Ren Louie (left) is set to release an adaptation of his book for younger audiences, about his childhood journey of connecting with his culture through a drum gifted by his mother.” FULL STORY

 

Brunch with the Jackals

September 29th, 2015

Don McLellan’s second story collection, Brunch with the Jackals (Thistledown $18.95), echoes the “hard-boiled” style of Raymond Chandler and Mickey Spillane. Urban life is fraught with danger. Four junkies anxiously await a drug dealer. A gang leader copes with racism, greed and mutiny. A terminally ill man plots his own demise. Independent reviewer and Vancouver historian Sheryl Salloum has responded, “Brunch with the Jackals takes readers to uncomfortable places in foreign locales and the east side of Vancouver. These include the ‘troubles’ in Ireland, a war-ravaged Asian country, and migrants’ experiences with human smugglers and an impassive Canadian bureaucratic system; as well as the unforgiving realms of gangs, junkies, murderers, and terminal illness. Themes and images of abandonment, betrayal, brutality, greed, hopelessness, mistrust, misogyny, racism, vengeance, and violence fill the pages. McLellan skilfully uses black humour, intriguing juxtapositions, irony, plot twists, stories within stories, unusual similes, and sometimes shockingly frank descriptions and language to highlight life’s starker aspects. His stories are profoundly dark, spare, unforgettable, and finely honed. As with a good mystery or psychological thriller, after the last page the reader wishes for more of this bold author’s neo-noir stories. Brunch with the Jackals is an arresting second book from an intriguing literary voice that highlights emotional, physical, and psychological shadows.” Don McLennan edits a trade magazine in Vancouver and he has worked in Canada, South Korea and Hong Kong; his short stories have been published in Descant, Joyland, and the Dalhousie Review. His work has been nominated or short-listed for a Western Canada Magazine award, a Tabbies International Editorial and Design award and a Kenneth R. Wilson Memorial (business writing) Award. For more, visit ABCBookWorld. 978-1-77187-050-4

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