GIFT GUIDE
B.C. publishers set the table for book lovers on your list
CONTENTS
December 2-9 / 2021
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COVER
Mother Nature has sent a signal that old engineering standards aren’t sufficient when the climate is going haywire.
by Charlie Smith
By Charlie Smith Cover photo by Dale Klippenstein
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REAL ESTATE
Property owners usually appeal assessments because they’re too high, but one homeowner sought a review because he wanted a higher figure. By Carlito Pablo
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ARTS
Artistic director Aaron Craven founded Mitch and Murray Productions so he could present plays that are relevant and timely, like Snowflake. By Steve Newton
We’ve all heard the term “shop local”, but it’s also possible to read local over the holiday season, thanks to the bounty of books produced by publishers in B.C. Photo by Mel Poole/Unsplash.
M
aybe we can attribute it to the pandemic, which has kept writers at home for longer periods. But for whatever reason, there’s been an onslaught of intriguing books from B.C. publishers in advance of the holiday season. That makes things a little easier for those looking for gifts for people who would rather keep their noses in a novel than guzzle booze, make use of new cookware, or listen to the latest box sets from the Beatles or the Rolling Stones. People interested in gift-buying in those areas will have to look elsewhere in this newspaper. In this article, the focus is on the printed word and, in the case of Anvil Press’s Heroines Revisited, some controversial photographs. And for climate keeners, there’s a feature article on page 13 about how rising greenhouse-gas emissions are disrupting hydrological cycles, leading to massive floods. This topic came to our attention via Victoriabased Rocky Mountain Books, which has been publishing the works of water expert Robert William Sandford for many years. It’s not the first Georgia Straight cover story that has been inspired by a book, and it most certainly won’t be the last.
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THE GEORGIA STR AIGHT
With all of that in mind, here are some worthwhile B.C. books listed in no particular order. VANCOUVER VICE: CRIME AND SPECTACLE IN THE CITY’S WEST END
by Aaron Chapman, Arsenal Pulp Press Vancouver’s West End was once one of Canada’s sex-trade capitals until local residents, including a future councillor named Gordon Price, decided that wasn’t how they wanted their neighbourhood to evolve. In Vancouver Vice, Aaron Chapman delves into a colourful history of the thriving prostitution scene, uncovering secrets along the way about a controversial “chicken book” allegedly kept by a high-profile local resident named John Michael Lewis. It’s a rollicking read populated by well-known Vancouverites, just like Chapman’s other books. HEROINES REVISITED: PHOTOGRAPHS BY LINCOLN CLARKES
by Lincoln Clarkes, Anvil Press Vancouver photographer Lincoln Clarkes caused a huge stir with his original photographic series Heroines, which was released in book form by Anvil Press in 2002. These portraits of marginalized women in Vancouver’s Downtown Eastside were criticized by
DECEMBER 2 – 9 / 2021
see page 6
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AQUACULTURE BOOK GIFTS CLASSIFIED ADS DANCE HEALTH KITCHEN GIFTS LIQUOR GIFTS MUSIC GIFTS SAVAGE LOVE THEATRE
Vancouver’s News and Entertainment Weekly Volume 55 | Number 2807 #300 - 1375 West 6th Avenue, Vancouver, B.C. V6H 0B1 T: 604.730.7000 F: 604.730.7010 E: gs.info@straight.com straight.com
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EDITOR Charlie Smith GENERAL MANAGER (ACTING) Sandra Oswald SECTION EDITORS Mike Usinger (ESports/Liquor/Music) Steve Newton SENIOR EDITOR Martin Dunphy STAFF WRITERS Carlito Pablo (Real Estate) SOLUTIONS ARCHITECT Jeff Li ART DEPARTMENT MANAGER Janet McDonald
e Online TOP 5
Here’s what people are reading this week on Straight.com.
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Designer explains how hot housing market killed middle-class flipping. Site near Broadway subway station up for sale at double assessed value. NDP government imposes $10 fee on freedomof=information requests. Florence Ashley: Don’t TERFs have better things to do? Canucks’ slump isn’t as bad as when Bill LaForge coached the team. @GeorgiaStraight
GRAPHIC DESIGNER Miguel Hernandez PRODUCTION SUPERVISOR Mike Correia ADVERTISING REPRESENTATIVES Glenn Cohen, Luci Richards, Catherine Tickle, Robyn Marsh (On-Leave), David Pearlman (On-Leave) MANAGER, BRANDED CONTENT AND MARKETING LEAD Rachel Moore CONTENT AND MARKETING SPECIALIST Alina Blackett CREDIT MANAGER Shannon Li ACCOUNTING SUPERVISOR Tamara Robinson
