|
Literary Scene -
Write Around Town
|
By: Deanna McFadden
June 2008
 One of the highlights of any major city for a visiting tourist would have to be simply walking the streets. Getting slightly lost, finding the way again, stopping for a drink, it's all a part of exploring a place where you don't live and work. It's not a new concept, acting like a tourist in your own city, but it's one that people should consider more often.
Reading can be done anywhere: in a park, on a bench, in your backyard, on the deck at the cottage. The portable nature of a book cuts to the very essence of the written word itself; its ability to transport the reader to an imaginary place the minute the letters are strung together in sentences and the story begins.
This month, however, why not take a slightly different approach to the stories about Toronto and take a literary walk around the city? It's as easy as taking your favourite books set in Toronto and seeking out their origins. Spend an afternoon following Elaine Risely's trip back home and walk around Yorkville; visit the Royal Ontario Museum because it's where the characters from Life Before Man worked; walk across the Bloor Street Viaduct and see what the characters in Ondaatje's In the Skin of a Lion saw; imagine the construction of the Sky Dome through the eyes of the characters in Michael Redhill's Consolation; and if you're feeling particularly cheeky, you can always visit Jilly's where Paul Quarrington's Phil McQuigge goes to drown his sorrows (just kidding, of course).
Amy Lavender Harris, a geography professor at York University, has thought a lot about imagining the literary spaces in Toronto. She's got a number of Toronto-centric literary suggestions listed on her web site, and her book, Imagining Toronto, will be published this fall. She's got a number of books and places listed on her blog that any enterprising walker could create a great afternoon outing from, and then spend a part of this gorgeous summer outdoors exploring the setting and inspiration for many city-based stories.
Toronto Walks and Bikes has two literary walks listed on their website: "In the Footsteps of Charles Dickens" and "Swansea and L.M. Montgomery." They're both over two hours, so it might be nice to spread them over two weekends, and maybe go for brunch beforehand. If you're looking for a more historical approach to exploring the city, Heritage Toronto is always organizing walks. And if you're feeling particularly adventurous, pick up a copy of Greg Gatenby's Toronto: A literary guide, which contains 58 walking tours of the city - each one with a book bent.
Now that you've got your weekend walks planned, what's on this month in the world of book events? Well, the nominees for the Trillium Book Awards will be reading on Wednesday June 11th from 7:00pm until 9:00pm at the Brigantine Room (York Quay Centre, 235 Queen's Quay West). The finalists are: Gil Adamson (The Outlander), Lorna Goodison (From Harvey River), Barbara Gowdy (Helpless), Robert Hough (The Culprits), Dennis Lee (Yesno) and Ray Robertson (What Happened Later). It's an invitation only event but you can win tickets at Readings.org.
Hopefully, I'll see you out on the streets this summer exploring your favourite literary haunt. My one piece of advice? Wear a really good pair of shoes. And take along a book in case you want to take a rest and let your imagination do the work for a little while.
|
