Book Scene: Can Lit Under the Gun

Douglas Coupland complained about Canlit (in New York Times Select - an online, subscribers-only thing). Apparantly, the Canadian government pays people to write "about life in small towns and/or the immigrant experience". Of course, maybe the rant is just further literary/web performance art tied to jPod.

The Globe and Mail has a overview of the fall releases. Prefaced, of course, by the consistent complaint that there are few real readers in Canada. What's the the constant Chicken-Little-ing? You read books, right? (That Dan Brown book does not count) Keep an eye out for reviews here to see which ones are worth the hype.

The Toronto Women's Bookstore is accepting submissions for their series When the Rainbow isn't Enough - so if you're a trans or queer writer of colour interested in presenting your work in a reading series, well, look no farther. Check out the TWB website or email Dianah Smith. Maybe Coupland should visit Toronto.