Since we’re a big group of book lovers here at Cityline, we’re inviting our viewers to read along with us! For our very first book club pick, we read Will Ferguson’s 419 (Penguin Canada) – did you read it, too? Be sure to watch the video of our book club meeting to see what we thought of the book, and to enter for your chance to win a book prize pack courtesy of Penguin Books!
For our latest book pick, we’ll be reading Bone and Bread by Saleema Nawaz (House of Anansi), and once again, we hope you’ll read along with us! Here’s the book’s synopsis:
Beena and Sadhana are sisters who share a bond that could only have been shaped by the most unusual of childhoods — and by shared tragedy. Orphaned as teenagers, they have grown up under the exasperated watch of their Sikh uncle, who runs a bagel shop in Montreal’s Hasidic community of Mile End. Together, they try to make sense of the rich, confusing brew of values, rituals, and beliefs that form their inheritance. Yet as they grow towards adulthood, their paths begin to diverge. Beena catches the attention of one of the “bagel boys” and finds herself pregnant at sixteen, while Sadhana drives herself to perfectionism and anorexia.
When we first meet the adult Beena, she is grappling with a fresh grief: Sadhana has died suddenly and strangely, her body lying undiscovered for a week before anyone realizes what has happened. Beena is left with a burden of guilt and an unsettled feeling about the circumstances of her sister’s death, which she sets about to uncover. Her search stirs memories and opens wounds, threatening to undo the safe, orderly existence she has painstakingly created for herself and her son.
We’re so excited to start reading this beautifully written novel, and we hope you’ll read along with us! Want a copy? We have 5 copies to give away to some lucky readers, courtesy of House of Anansi! To enter for your chance to win, tell us about your last great read in the comments below!
Over the next six weeks, we’ll be sharing tons of great features about the novel and the author, as well as a behind-the-scenes look at our office discussion of the book! So go out and grab your copy, and get reading! We can’t wait to discuss with you!