The Boreal Gourmet: Adventures in Northern Cooking by Michele Genest. (Lost Moose, 2010) Click to buy this book from Amazon.ca: The Boreal Gourmet

Text of introduction by Joseph Planta:

I am Planta: On the Line. This is THECOMMENTARY.CA.

A delightful book that’s out now is The Boreal Gourmet: Adventures in Northern Cooking. It’s a really great recipe book, as well as a bit of a memoir about living and eating in the North. Michele Genest is the author and she joins me from her home in the Yukon to talk about life up north and northern cuisine. The Boreal Gourmet is published by Lost Moose, an imprint of Harbour Publishing. Michele Genest will be in Vancouver this Thursday, 03 June 2010 at 6.00pm. They’ll be serving up food from the book at Barbara-Jo’s Books to Cooks, and with the price of admission you’ll get a signed copy of the book. Go to http://www.bookstocooks.com for more information. Please welcome to the Planta: On the Line program, Michele Genest; Good morning, Ms. Genest.

Still Fishin’ The BC Fishing Industry Revisited by Alan Haig-Brown. (Harbour Publishing, 2010) Click to buy this book from Amazon.ca: Still Fishin’

Text of introduction by Joseph Planta:

I am Planta: On the Line. This is THECOMMENTARY.CA.

As a sort of ‘state of the industry’ report, Alan Haig-Brown looks at the west coast’s once prominent commercial fishing industry in a new book, Still Fishin’ The BC Fishing Industry Revisited. It’s a timely book looking at how this industry is faring in these less than stable economic waters, and other exigencies such as corporate consolidation, closing processing plants, and the downsizing of fleets. The book from Harbour Publishing, also looks to the future, with profiles of unique people who continue to fish commercially, hopefully preserving an industry that’s been so much a part of British Columbia. Alan Haig-Brown joins me now. He is a long time journalist and writer. He seined salmon and herring through the 1960s and 1970s, and founded the Westcoast Mariner and Westcoast Logger. His previous books include Fishing for a Living, and the Fraser River. His website is at www.haig-brown.com. Please welcome to the Planta: On the Line program, Alan Haig-Brown; Good morning, Mr. Haig-Brown.

The Shores We Call Home by Carol Evans. (Harbour Publishing, 2010) Click to buy this book from Amazon.ca: TITLE

Text of introduction by Joseph Planta:

I am Planta: On the Line. This is THECOMMENTARY.CA.

Carol Evans joins me now. She’s is a master watercolourist, who’s just published her third collection, The Shores We call Home: The Art of Carol Evans. I think I saw it on a bestseller list the other day. It has a foreword by Arthur Black. It’s a gorgeous book of her paintings which depict British Columbia’s coastal landscape. I have a limited sense of art, and thought for a second after glancing at the book, that it was a book of photographs. Carol Evans is an internationally acclaimed artist, who’s exhibited worldwide. Her previous books were West Coast: Homeland of Mist, and Releasing the Light. Her website is at www.carolevans.com. She lives on Salt Spring Island where she joins me from now. The Shores We Call Home is from Harbour Publishing. Please welcome to the Planta: On the Line program, Carol Evans; Good morning, Ms. Evans.

Off the Beaten Path: A Hiking Guide to Vancouver’s North Shore by Norman D. Watt. (Harbour Publishing, 2010) Click to buy this book from Amazon.ca: Off the Beaten Path

Text of introduction by Joseph Planta:

I am Planta: On the Line. This is THECOMMENTARY.CA.

A new resource out now is Off the Beaten Path: A Hiking Guide to Vancouver’s North Shore. It’s written by Norman Watt, who is an experienced hiker and the author of the ‘Off the Beaten Path’ column in the North Shore News. In the book, he takes us on some 31 hikes across the North Shore—15 in West Vancouver, 16 in North Vancouver. They’ve got some photographs, maps, descriptions of what one can see, as well as approximate times. There are long hikes, taking up a good part of the day, or ones a couple of hours long. It’s useful if you want to explore a little bit of the area, as you’ve never experienced before. The book is published by Harbour. Norman will be signing copies of the book Saturday, March 20th at Black Bond Books in North Vancouver, as well as at the Park & Tilford Save-On-Foods Sunday, March 21st—both days from 1.00 to 3.00pm. Please welcome to the Planta: On the Line program, Norman D. Watt; Good morning, Mr. Watt.

The Expanded Reilly Method: Or Have a Great Day, Forever by Mike McCardell. (Harbour Publishing, 2009) Click to buy this book from Amazon.ca: The Expanded Reilly Method

Text of introduction by Joseph Planta:

I am Planta: On the Line. This is THECOMMENTARY.CA.

It is such a delight to have Mike McCardell on again. I’ve been fortunate to have him on every year around this time, as he’s publishing another book. There’s another one this year, another wonderful collection of essays about the unique people and situations he runs into in the course of filing his special human interest stories at the end of the highly rated News Hour on Global. It’s already a bestseller, and like the previous four books, it’s raised tens of thousands of dollars for Variety—The Children’s Charity. In the last book, Mike tells us about a young autistic boy he saw at Vancouver’s Trout Lake. Young Reilly sits like Mike does on the cover of this book, with a stick with a string on it, and at the end of the string is a safety pin. Meeting this remarkable boy, Mike changes his view of life and the world around him. Like he told us last year, he hasn’t had a bad day since. The essays here are often funny, sometimes poignant, sometimes inspiring, always thoughtful. They give us a view onto ourselves, and they’re just wonderful to read. The book is called The Expanded Reilly Method: Or Have a Great Day, Forever. It’s from Harbour Publishing. Please welcome back to the Planta: On the Line program, Mike McCardell; Good day, Mr. McCardell.

Bravo! The History of Opera in British Columbia by Rosemary Cunningham. (Harbour Publishing, 2009) Click to buy this book from Amazon.ca: Bravo!

Text of introduction by Joseph Planta:

I am Planta: On the Line. This is THECOMMENTARY.CA.

Appropriately timed for the 50th anniversary of the Vancouver Opera and the 30th anniversary next year of the Pacific Opera Victoria, comes a new book from Harbour Publishing: Bravo! The History of Opera in British Columbia. It’s a lavishly laid out book, with exquisite photographs, and a history of the opera that’s not academic and dry, rather accessible and fascinating. If you’re like me and have never been to the opera, this is a great entry point into this form of artistic endeavour that’s around for well over a century. You have behind-the-scenes accounts of the production companies and the shows they’ve mounted and the stars they’ve brought to town. The author of Bravo! Rosemary Cunningham joins me now. She’s a long time season ticket holder of the Vancouver Opera, which just last Friday opened its season with a 50th anniversary gala concert. Following her retirement as a librarian, Rosemary Cunningham began a second career as a writer, and Bravo! is her first book. Please welcome to the Planta: On the Line program, Rosemary Cunningham; Good morning, Ms. Cunningham.

One More Time! The Dal Richards Story by Dal Richards with Jim Taylor. (Harbour Publishing, 2009) Click to buy this book from Amazon.ca: One More Time!

Text of introduction by Joseph Planta:

I am Planta: On the Line. This is THECOMMENTARY.CA.

The long-time columnist and author Jim Taylor is back. He’s always great to have on. A year ago when he was on for his memoir, “Hello, Sweetheart? Gimmie Rewrite!” My Life in the Wonderful World of Sports, he mentioned that he was fulfilling a lifelong ambition in writing a book with Dal Richards. Well, that book has just been published. We’ve talked to Dal, but I couldn’t pass up an opportunity to talk to Jim Taylor. He’s written a number of books already, biographies with Rick Hansen, Matt Dunigan, Wayne Gretzky, and more. This time, it’s One More Time! The Dal Richards Story, and it’s a great book. It’s a wonderful view on to Vancouver as it once was, and all the evidence you’d need on why Dal is such a legend, and such beloved figure in this town. The book is published by Harbour, and its co-author joins me now. Please welcome back to the Planta: On the Line program, Jim Taylor; Good morning, Mr. Taylor.

One More Time! The Dal Richards Story by Dal Richards with Jim Taylor. (Harbour Publishing, 2009) Click to buy this book from Amazon.ca: One More Time!

Text of introduction by Joseph Planta:

I am Planta: On the Line. This is THECOMMENTARY.CA.

Last year, when Jim Taylor was on the program to talk about his memoir, he mentioned that he was working on my guest now, Dal Richards’s own memoir. Dal was one of the first guests on the program when we first started five years ago, and now he’s back as his book One More Time! has just been published. It’s a wonderful book, filled with wonderful remembrances of his storied career as a musician here and across Canada on the radio and elsewhere. The book has some wonderful photographs, and is also a wonderful view onto this city, Vancouver, taking us to those great places that once were, Isy’s, The Cave, the Panorama Roof at the Hotel Vancouver and more. He was born in 1918, and he’s been honoured by nearly every institution in this country. He has the Order of Canada, the Order of BC, he’s got honorary degrees. He will be a Torch Bearer in the 2010 Winter Olympic Games. He plays regularly gigs throughout the area, so check out his website www.dalrichards.com for dates. You can also hear his program, Dal’s Place, Sundays on radio station AM 650. He maintains a calendar that’d tire someone half his age, but at 91, it doesn’t seem to faze him. This is such a great book, and you ought to go out and get it: One More Time! The Dal Richards Story, written by Mr. Richards with Jim Taylor. It’s published by Harbour. Please welcome once again to the Planta: On the Line program, Dal Richards; Good morning, Mr. Richards.

The Encyclopedia of Raincoast Place Names: A Complete Reference to Coastal British Columbia by Andrew Scott. (Harbour Publishing, 2009) Click to buy this book from Amazon.ca: The Encyclopedia of Raincoast Place Names

Text of introduction by Joseph Planta:

I am Planta: On the Line. This is THECOMMENTARY.CA.

A few years ago, the folks at Harbour Publishing put together an indispensible book, the Encyclopedia of British Columbia. A very fine companion is the new The Encyclopedia of Raincoast Place Names: A Complete Reference to Coastal British Columbia, now out also from Harbour. It’s a very fine book bringing together stories and details about the province’s history, people and culture. One hundred years ago, Captain John T. Walbran’s British Columbia Coast Names was published, and this is an apt inheritor of that tradition. Andrew Scott joins me now. He has had the task of putting this book together and as a result he’s done a great service and given all of us a wonderful resource. Andrew Scott is a veteran journalist who’s appeared in sundry publications. Please welcome to the Planta: On the Line program, Andrew Scott; Good morning, Mr. Scott.

Getting to the Bubble: Finding Magic Amid the Urban Roar by Mike McCardell. (Harbour Publishing, 2008) Click to buy this book from Amazon.ca: Getting to the Bubble

I am Planta: On the Line. This is THECOMMENTARY.CA.

Once again, I am joined by Global BC’s Mike McCardell. He has a new book out, Getting to the Bubble: Finding Magic Amid the Urban Roar. It is his fourth book and full of wonderful stories about the people he meets every day in the course of filing his regular reports on Global’s News Hour, which he’s reported for since 1976. His previous books, Chasing the Story God, Back Alley Reporter, and The Blue Flames That Keep Us Warm, have all been bestsellers, as has this one I might add, and all four have raised money for the Variety Club. Retailing for $32.95, it is a delightful book, and is from Harbour Publishing. Please welcome back to the Planta: On the Line program, Mike McCardell; Good morning, Mr. McCardell.

Mike McCardell Global BC microsite: http://www.canada.com/globaltv/bc/microsites/McCardell/index.html