Kamloops' library downtown found a new use for books over the holidays
(GLYNN BROTHEN / iNFOnews.ca)
December 21, 2015 - 4:30 PM
KAMLOOPS - Trends may come and go, but you can almost never go wrong when you give someone special a book for Christmas.
Choosing the right book for the right person can be a challenge. But if you'd like to make your gift unique, consider choosing a local author.
Whether the person you're shopping for enjoys fiction, non-fiction, memoirs or crime novels, here is a list of books by authors known to either live in or draw inspiration from Kamloops and surrounding areas.
All of the following titles are available either online or in local bookstores.
Teresa the Traveler, a Kamloops local, has five books to help you explore the backwoods of British Columbia — everything from waterfalls to hikes and hidden gems.
Image Credit: teresathetraveler.ca
Strings by Steven Hunter: Experiencing the musician’s form of writer’s block, a composer jets off to San Francisco to learn more about music from a charming instrument broker. But it all comes crashing down when the composer gets caught up in a scheme involving stolen goods.
Image Credit: stevenhunter.ca
Blood and Hunger by Stephanie Marks: A girl with a secret to hide finds an unlikely family in a group of vampires and sets forth to investigate the slew of bodies which keep showing up outside her front door.
Image Credit: http://stephaniemarksbooks.com
Vile Men by Rebecca Jones-Howe: A collection of dark, provocative short stories about several characters balancing good and evil.
Image Credit: http://rebeccajoneshowe.com/
No Bridge Left Unburned by M.A. Townsend: Five Canadian soldiers join the Americans in their war on terror in Afghanistan. After becoming elite fighters, the group works to overcome the horrors of war, which includes the post traumatic stress that follows it.
Image Credit: Friesen Press
Eye of Odin by Dennis Staginess: 15-year-old Grayle is forced to steal an exhibit from the Vancouver Museum during a school field trip. Soon, he learns the exhibit is one of the markers to help locate the Eye of Odin, an orb which gives the owner infinite knowledge.
Image Credit: http://www.dennisstaginnus.com/
After Alice by Karen Hofmann: A professor returns home to her roots in the Okanagan valley after the death of her sister, but faces doubt in her own identity.
Image Credit: goodreads.ca
Kootenay Justice by David Crouse: It’s the mid-1800s and several suspects have stolen a year’s worth of supplies from the Hudson Bay accounts at the Kootenay House. It’s up to Cody McVeigh and his three friends from Montreal to find who’s responsible.
Image Credit: amazon.ca
Lasera by Danielle Mathieson Pederson: A champion diver nearly drowns in her local swimming pool only to be saved by a shy merman named Wyn. After determining he’s real, it’s her turn to save him from his captors.
Image Credit: amazon.ca
LIST FROM 2014
Medicine Walk by Richard Wagamese: Award-winning Ojibway author Wagamese introduced Medicine Walk in 2014. The story follows a young man who is called to visit his dying father. The two learn more about each other as they trek into the mountains of BC's Interior. -Available at most bookstores.
Image Credit: amazon.ca
Betting Zoo by Cory Hope: In his first novel, Hope introduces Frank Heatley, a man who has discovered a conspiracy against him. With a rag-tag group, Heatley must find a way to escape his apartment. -Available on amazon.ca.
Image Credit: amazon.ca
Dipnetting with Dad by Willie Sellars: Hailing from the Williams Lake Indian Band, Willie Sellars shares his First Nations culture in his children's book. The story is set in the Cariboo-Chilcotin region and focuses on the importance of storytelling among family members. Dipnetting is a fishing method used in Secwepemc tradion. -Available at Chapters.
Image Credit: amazon.ca
In the Cleft: Joy Comes in the Mourning by Dana Goodman: Goodman shares her experience with grief after losing a husband, son and mother-in-law to cancer. In an exploration of the grieving process, Goodman discovered a celebration of life. -Available at most bookstores.
Image Credit: amazon.ca
Consider the Sunflowers by Elma Schemenauer: A fictional story set in Saskatchewan during the second world war, Schemenauer's character Tina Janz finds herself in a conflicted marriage after she chose a different suitor than the man her mennonite parents chose for her. -Available at Chapters.
Image Credit: amazon.ca
Low Glycemic Meals in Minutes by Laura Kalina and Cheryl Christian: If you or a friend is looking to lose some weight over the holidays and want healthy recipes, seek guidance from a local nutritionist and personal trainer. -Available at Chapters.
Image Credit: amazon.ca
Our Interrupted Fairy Tale by Megan Williams: Much like the fictionalized best-seller, The Fault in Our Stars, Williams tells her true life love story of when she met Chad Warren on a tennis court. A few days after meeting, Chad was diagnosed with cancer but the two continued getting to know one another. Williams' memoir is of how the two fought the battle against cancer as a new couple. -Available at Chapters.
Image Credit: amazon.ca
The Avalanche and the Executor by B.J. Doyle: A practical guide for those entering the foray of wills and estates. Doyle explains the process by telling the story of two friends acting as each others' executor. -Available online and in bookstores.
Image Credit: amazon.ca
Will Starling by Ian Weir: Playwrite, screenwriter and former reporter Weir transports his readers to nineteenth century England where his fictional character Will Starling avoids poverty by associating with graverobbers. -Available at most bookstores.
Image Credit: amazon.ca
Dog With a Bone by Rocky McAfee: McAfee's novel is a crime drama about Sunny Kruzik, a man who endured bullying as a child only to become a vigilante as an adult. The police are in search of a man who is doing their job, while Kruzik's family is unaware of his double life. -Available online and at most bookstores.
Image Credit: amazon.ca
The Bears by Katie Welch: Told from the viewpoints of bears and environmentalists, Welch's novel puts a new perspective on the continual dialogue about the oil industry's environmental impact. -Available online and in bookstores.
Image Credit: amazon.ca
Poachers, Polluters and Politics by Randy Nelson: A former fisheries officer turned author, Nelson shares stories from his 35-year-long career on how he devised several tricks to chase and catch those who poached or polluted in his community. -Available online and at most bookstores.
Image Credit: amazon.ca
Flight was in his Spirit: The life of Harry Burfield by Marion Ann Burfield: As a tribute to her father after his passing, Marion tells the story of his experiences as a ski-jumper, competitive skier and Canadian Air Force pilot. The biography is woven throughout photographs of the Burfield family in a hard-cover book perfect for coffee-tables. -Available online and in most bookstores.
Image Credit: Contributed
What other local authors and books can you recommend?
To contact a reporter for this story, email gbrothen@infonews.ca, or call 250-319-7494. To contact the editor, email mjones@infonews.ca or call 250-718-2724.
News from © iNFOnews, 2015