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Subject to Change (Talonbooks $18.95)
I enter the old Billy Bishop Legion Hall in Vancouver being somewhat uncertain as to where the book launch will take place, making my way towards the bar to ask an employee. Instead, I am greeted by Renee (pronounced 'Ree-knee') Rodin warmly shaking my hand and introducing herself, as if she is simply helping with the event rather than being the feature of it.
Born and raised in Montreal, where she gained a Bachelor of Arts degree from Sir George Williams University, Rodin moved to Vancouver during the 1960s, later operating R2B2 Bookstore in the '80s and '90s.
As much of her writing concerns family, it's pertinent to note she is a mother of three. Her children are shown with her on the cover of her new book, Subject to Change, an autobiographical sampling that is dedicated to her sister.
Her previous books are Ready for Freddy (2005), a memoir reflecting the period of her life when she moved back to Montreal to care for her sick father, and Bread and Salt (1996), a collection of prose poems about her childhood experiences in Montreal.
With its intriguingly subtle title, Subject to Change has a much broader wing span. These are sophisticated reflections, without being showy about it. As Stan Persky puts it, "The intensity, care and wit that Renee Rodin brought to years of cultural and other activisms is now honed into a distinctive voice-funny, relaxed, passionately intelligent, deeply attentive to reality.";
The Billy Bishop Legion Hall is a past and present meeting ground for war veterans. Today it's a meeting ground for literary veterans. At the legion, most of the attendees seem to know each other quite well. The atmosphere is cozy and familiar, like the bar itself.
I talk to poet Maxine Gadd, author of Subway Under Byzantium (2008), who tells me how Kitsilano is much different now than it once was, and how happy she is to see that the Billy Bishop Legion Hall is still up and running.
Before Renee starts reading excerpts from Subject to Change, she informs us that it is her dear friend Vera Slyomovics' birthday, and there Vera is nodding and smiling back at her from her seat. Renee then reads us a poem titled "The Real Deal,"; which is both dedicated to, and about, Vera and her husband Josef. Vera was awarded the Order of Canada in 2005 for travelling across the country conducting talks about her experiences during the Holocaust. Renee recalls that Vera came into her life as one of the few people that she remembers her mother giving instant respect to.
Renee demonstrates her affinity for Kitsilano through the poems she chooses to read. It's refreshing to be able to mentally engage with the sights she is speaking of, even if it is the thrift store on Broadway and MacDonald.
She closes with "A Naif's Story,"; a poem that reflects upon the eight years (1986-1994) she spent running the R2B2 bookstore on West 4th avenue in Kits. That bookstore was dedicated to keeping the Vancouver literary scene both alive and personal. She admits to her audience that R2B2 was more about the books, and those who read the books, than the business itself.
As literary den mother, past and present, Renee Rodin has concluded Subject to Change with a list of more than one hundred writers and artists who participated in events at her bookstore. That list is preceded by an update on the lives of 31 infants who have, between 1968 and 2010, been raised in the same beautiful wicker basket that she bought for her daughter Joey, on Portobello Road, in London, in 1968. 9780889226449
[BCBW 2011]
Born and raised in Montreal, where she gained a Bachelor of Arts degree from Sir George Williams University, Rodin moved to Vancouver during the 1960s, later operating R2B2 Bookstore in the '80s and '90s.
As much of her writing concerns family, it's pertinent to note she is a mother of three. Her children are shown with her on the cover of her new book, Subject to Change, an autobiographical sampling that is dedicated to her sister.
Her previous books are Ready for Freddy (2005), a memoir reflecting the period of her life when she moved back to Montreal to care for her sick father, and Bread and Salt (1996), a collection of prose poems about her childhood experiences in Montreal.
With its intriguingly subtle title, Subject to Change has a much broader wing span. These are sophisticated reflections, without being showy about it. As Stan Persky puts it, "The intensity, care and wit that Renee Rodin brought to years of cultural and other activisms is now honed into a distinctive voice-funny, relaxed, passionately intelligent, deeply attentive to reality.";
The Billy Bishop Legion Hall is a past and present meeting ground for war veterans. Today it's a meeting ground for literary veterans. At the legion, most of the attendees seem to know each other quite well. The atmosphere is cozy and familiar, like the bar itself.
I talk to poet Maxine Gadd, author of Subway Under Byzantium (2008), who tells me how Kitsilano is much different now than it once was, and how happy she is to see that the Billy Bishop Legion Hall is still up and running.
Before Renee starts reading excerpts from Subject to Change, she informs us that it is her dear friend Vera Slyomovics' birthday, and there Vera is nodding and smiling back at her from her seat. Renee then reads us a poem titled "The Real Deal,"; which is both dedicated to, and about, Vera and her husband Josef. Vera was awarded the Order of Canada in 2005 for travelling across the country conducting talks about her experiences during the Holocaust. Renee recalls that Vera came into her life as one of the few people that she remembers her mother giving instant respect to.
Renee demonstrates her affinity for Kitsilano through the poems she chooses to read. It's refreshing to be able to mentally engage with the sights she is speaking of, even if it is the thrift store on Broadway and MacDonald.
She closes with "A Naif's Story,"; a poem that reflects upon the eight years (1986-1994) she spent running the R2B2 bookstore on West 4th avenue in Kits. That bookstore was dedicated to keeping the Vancouver literary scene both alive and personal. She admits to her audience that R2B2 was more about the books, and those who read the books, than the business itself.
As literary den mother, past and present, Renee Rodin has concluded Subject to Change with a list of more than one hundred writers and artists who participated in events at her bookstore. That list is preceded by an update on the lives of 31 infants who have, between 1968 and 2010, been raised in the same beautiful wicker basket that she bought for her daughter Joey, on Portobello Road, in London, in 1968. 9780889226449
[BCBW 2011]
Submitted on June 3, 2011 in By David.
