wordfest finished up today by giving the Banff Centre National Arts Award to literary icon Margaret Atwood. I coffeed with Atwood on Friday and found her to be as formidible as her reputation suggests, yet surprisingly frail.we talked of many things, including her new book, The Penelopiad, a retelling of the myth of Penelope and Odysseus. It is witty, tragic and sometimes laugh out loud funny. Alas, there is an embargo on all things Penelopiad so my interview with la Atwood will not hit the author interview page until October 22.
Joan Clark (Latitudes of Melt), who I also met with Friday, is a truly lovely woman. Her newest, An Audience of Chairs is the story of Moranna MacKenzie, or Mad Mory, who lives alone in a Cape Breton farmhouse fighting madness and grief. It is quirky, funny and satisfyingly uplifting.Clark and I spoke of everything from eccentricity to speeding up time and I only wish she lived in my city so we could talk more often.
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