New Fall Books

I'm excited to see these titles hitting the shelves and feel very honoured to have been given the opportunity to work on them.

She Inc: A Woman's Guide to Maximizing Her Career Potential

Experts estimate that you will change not only your job, but your career an average of four to five times in your life. Stability and job security are things of the past. Whether you're an employee, business owner, entrepreneur, or re-entering the work force, this book is for you!

Corporate downsizing, whirlwind swings in the markets, job outsourcing — there has never been a more important time for women to take a proactive approach to their career tracks. Author Kelley Keehn meticulously guides the reader through the paradigm shift of seeing oneself as a corporation. This book offers you, the reader, powerful new insights on how to dramatically increase effectiveness and fast-track whatever career path you've chosen. With real case studies, you'll learn how becoming the CEO of your own personal corporation will revolutionize your personal and professional life.

As a soon-to-be financially savvy woman, your corporation would not be complete without working capital and cash flow. This book delves into the relevant and essential financial information that you need to know. Chock full of tips, examples, exercises, and timely information, She Inc. is a must-have for any woman to empower and fortify herself in this ever changing economic environment.

She Inc.: A Woman's Guide to Maximizing Her Career Potential

International Social Work: Canadian Perspectives

International Social Work outlines the ways in which Canadian social workers are, or have been, involved in international work.

Since the early days, Canadian social work practitioners and educators have played a leading role in the international development of their profession. Their work has been encouraged by the Canadian Association of Social Workers and the Canadian Association of Schools of Social Work. Both Canadian associations have affiliated status with IFSW and IASSW, and, in turn, enjoy consultation status with the United Nations and its various agencies.

Each of the contributors to this book has been involved in international social work ­practice­—some in developing countries, some in developed countries, some in both.

International Social Work: Canadian Perspectives

Trapped in Zero Gravity

“Vancouver is a spiritual destination” says one of the characters who Katherine meets shortly after arrival. In “The Cosmic Elfs,” the story that opens Sharon English’s Giller long-listed Zero Gravity, Katherine flees Toronto to find herself in Vancouver—in the end she meets individuals who are even more lost than she.

Recently I travelled to the West Coast on my first real vacation in about two year. It seemed quite appropriate that I was given the opportunity to review a collection of stories linked together by Vancouver, a city portrayed in popular culture as made up of ex-pats. Zero Gravity is very preoccupied with notions of “home” and “away.” Not surprisingly, the author herself was born in London, Ontario, spent six years in Vancouver, and now lives in Toronto.

English’s characters are runaways in one way or another; all have ghosts from their pasts to contend with. In “The Flying Woman,” Claire is reminded of a night that changed her life forty years earlier when a specter, taking the form of an elderly woman in a leotard, intrudes on her dance-fit class.

When not dealing with those freshly arrived to Vancouver, English looks to people on vacation. What is interesting about English’s writing is that, much like a child’s perspective, the viewpoint of a tourist can also be channeled to offer us a glimpse the world around us with a set of fresh eyes. In “The Road to Delphi” a university professor gains a new insight into his marriage on a Greek vacation meant to rekindle the romance. In “In the Woods” after receiving an unexpected request from his estranged father, Cal falls asleep in a hot spring and has a nap that will change his life.

English’s characters all seem to be in a state of transition—they long for what was or what will be. They all have plenty of ghosts around reminding them that the life they have now is far from perfect. It is the spectrum of characters present in English’s stories, however, that remind us that we are all in a state of zero gravity and that, eventually, we will just have to accept it.

Aside from one exception, English's collection is very consistent. ("Nine Outtakes from the Life of Mark T." seemed a bit out of place.) Overall I enjoyed Zero Gravity and am very excited to see what is to come from this emerging author.

Check out Zero Gravity's publisher, Porcupine's Quill. They print their books in house—how cool is that?

This review was done as part of Mini Book Expo for Bloggers.

Gillian with a G

As a little girl I loved Lucy Maud Montgomery's Anne of Green Gables. I read the books, watched the made for CBC movie, went to the musical, and even dressed up like her for Halloween...twice.

That being said, all of this centennial hoopla is getting to be a bit much. Thank goodness I've outgrown my Anne Shirley resemblance. On the other hand though, I could have been big in Japan.

Why can't we all just get along?

Since deciding to go freelance I find I get a lot of questions about my day to day schedule. "Don't you find working from home difficult? How do you get stuff done? I would just sleep all day."

In truth, I don't especially find it difficult, but sorting out my schedule and figuring out when I'm going to work has forced me into embracing my inner old lady. Since going out on my own, I've discovered that I work best pretty early in the morning. There is nothing more satisfying than crossing a couple of items off of the "to do" list before everyone else in the working world arrives at their desk. The downside to this is that that I sometimes feel like a wet blanket—especially when I'm excusing myself at 11 pm on a Saturday night to get to bed.

I've always fantasized about being one of those reckless creative minds who can't be held back by "schedules." I picture myself at a big table at 3 am, frantically scribbling on a page—pot of coffee to my left, overflowing ashtray to my right. There is something very sexy and important about ignoring the world's rhythms for the sake of one's work. Sadly, that's not the case for me.

Here's a confession: I've never pulled an all-nighter. By the time 1 am rolls around there is not a force on earth that could keep me at work. In truth, I'm not sure that I've ever cared enough about a project to put myself through the grueling late hours. I'd much rather get up at 5:30 in the morning to work than trade in a sweet second of my late night pillow time.

So can we change? Can we adjust? Can a night owl become a morning person?

One of my oldest friends constantly laments that he just can't get up early to start work. Lately, I've been thinking that he should count his blessings. Currently, I'm trying to adjust to being a part-time night owl. You see, the mister works until all hours of the night and loves it that way. We're trying to meet half way, but it does lead to some sleep deprivation. It is one of those frustrating scenarios when there are just no right answers.

The Future of Reference Books

I was really draw to an article published by Slate.com about a month ago Thesaurus Unbound: If Roget's is becoming a relic, what lies ahead? I have always been interested in the spaces where language and scientific method overlap. This explanation of what makes Roget's thesaurus unique is something that I find particularly engaging:

It was precisely that scientific bent that was his book's distinction. The organization of Piozzi's and Girard's, as well the handful of others that were published before Roget's 1852 thesaurus, was scattershot by comparison. Roget's, which was remarkably successful in its author's lifetime, was a comprehensive system of synonyms and antonyms. Roget built a numbered inventory of 1,000 fundamental ideas, like "existence," which appeared with a set of related words, ens, entity, being, existence. Later, he came up with a series of six nested classes, which were inspired by the Linnaean classification of animals. Thus, Kendall writes, " 'Perfection' falls under Class V, 'Words relating to the Voluntary Powers,' Division I, 'Individual Volition,' and Section i, 'Volition in General.' " The higher the level, the more abstract the idea; the lower the level, the more specific. Roget considered his book the opposite of the dictionary: You started with the idea and then found the word. His project was so original and so immense in scope that it has taken not just time but the connectivity, the huge databases, and the broad online access of modern information architecture even to begin to outstrip it.

While I have never been a big fan of using thesauruses, I have to admit that the work that goes into creating one is very fascinating. The Slate article goes on to talk about how the way that people use reference materials is changing. Often when I pick up the dictionary I'm struck by how out of date this action is, and certainly how out of date it will become ten years from now. Encyclopedias have already become a thing of the past now that Wikipedia has taken over. At the risk of sounding resistant to chance, I have to admit that the retirement of some of my favourite reference books does make me a little sad.

ISBN tagging

This made me smile.

Nominations for Insomniac Poets!

I was very pleased this morning to hear of David McFadden making the short-list for the Griffin Poetry Prize.

Check out Paul Vermeersch's blog for the details about McFadden and Olive Senior's recent nominations.