Books and Backroads: Small-town N.B. book clubs build summer reading list

CBC New Brunswick and the New Brunswick Public Libraries have been partnering this summer for a series called Books and Backroads. 

Readers in six small communities in rural parts of the province took part in book clubs, reading books from all genres — and all with a connection to New Brunswick.

On a tour of libraries, CBC hosts and producers connected with the readers and librarians in each community, bringing their voices and discussions to the air Fridays on Information Morning in the Summer.

Here's what the book clubs were reading this summer:

• Chipman book club: The Nine Lives of Charlotte Taylor by Sally Armstrong
• Sackville book club: Getting out of Town By Book and Bike by Kent Thompson
• Doaktown book club: Birdspell by Valerie Sherrard
• Neqotkuk book club: Running Down a Dream: A Memoir by Candy Palmater
• Sussex book club: Une journée poney! A Pony Day! Pemkiskahk'ciw ahahsis! by Hélène desVarennes, illustrated by Paul Lang, translated by Imelda Perley
• Sussex book club: F is for Fiddlehead: A New Brunswick Alphabet by Marilyn Lohnes
• Florenceville-Bristol book club: The Town that Drowned by Riel Nason

Have books, will travel 

Michael Cumming, Dan Haartman and Carol Cooke are all avid readers and cyclists.

They read the 2001 book Getting out of Town By Book and Bike by Kent Thompson, who was a professor at St. Thomas University. 

The book is a collection of essays that is part travelogue and part literary exploration. 

"Two things that I love doing — I love reading and I love cycling, and if a New Brunswicker is in that camp, they will definitely love this book," said Cooke.

Blending fact and fiction

Members of the book club in Chipman read Sally Armstrong's The Nine Lives of Charlotte Taylor. It blends fact and fiction to craft the story of an incredibly resourceful woman who left England for northern New Brunswick.

Debra Lloyd said going back to the late 1700s, and reading about one of the first female settlers on the Miramichi, reminded her of the importance of storytelling in her own small town.

"One thing I find interesting is when you talk to people — they're telling you stories about Chipman," she said. "If you drop into our coffee shop, there's a group of men sitting there sharing stories of their ancestors all the time."

Lloyd said Armstrong's novel is an example of how important it is to gather the history of communities, and share it.

A trilingual choice

At the Sussex Regional Library parents and children read two books, including one that is trilingual. 

Une journée poney! A Pony Day! Pemkiskahk'ciw ahahsis! by author Hélène desVarennes was illustrated by Paul Lang and translated by Imelda Perley. 

It is the story of a young girl and her grandfather as they celebrate her sixth birthday with a pony ride. 

The young families also read a storybook called F is for Fiddlehead: A New Brunswick Alphabet, by Marilyn Lohnes. Lohnes, a former librarian, highlights everything from A for Acadian culture, to Z of zinc production.

All ages have been reading N.B. books

In Doaktown, Grade 5 students at the Doaktown Community School Library read Birdspell by New Brunswick author Valerie Sherrard.

The young adult novel is told from the vantage point of a Grade 6 student named Corbin. It deals with poverty, mental illness and the struggle of a single mother trying to do the best she can for her son.

Patty Beek, the library assistant at Doaktown Community School Library, said she was initially concerned the story would be too complex for her students, but they were enthralled.

Beek said it evoked empathy, and is a testament to how reading can help us develop and grow.

"Because my brother suffered from mental illness, I was able to compare his story to the students so they could relate to the book. And I feel that they are much more aware now of the impact that mental illness has on everyday people."

Beek witnessed her students become more compassionate toward one another as they read the story.

'She lived her truth'

Readers in Neqotkuk read Candy Palmater's memoir, Running Down a Dream. When Palmater died in December 2021, at the age of 53, her memoir was nearly complete.

Palmater was a well known Indigenous writer, actor and comedian, who described herself as a queer Mi'kmaw lawyer-turned-comic, raised by bikers in rural New Brunswick. 

She created and hosted the award-winning The Candy Show on APTN, was a regular co-host on CTV's afternoon talk show The Social and acted in various shows, including Trailer Park Boys.

"Even though she was cut short in her life, she lived to fullest," said book club member Karen Perley, who describes Palmater as fearless and unapologetic.

"She lived her truth. And good, bad and ugly — she put it in there, which I liked."

Fellow reader Katie Russell said she was sad when she read the last page of the book and appreciated "the teachings" she found in Palmater's writing. Russell was inspired by Palmater's bravery at many junctures in her life, including her decision to leave a career in law to pursue comedy.

"It just made me feel like, just listen to your own self and the beat of your own drum, and just keep going and don't care what anybody else thinks — as long as it makes you happy."

Deana Sappier was inspired by Palmater, who admitted in her memoir that she wasn't perfect.

"I think every woman deals with their body image and nobody's perfect, but it was a positive thing to read that she learned to embrace it."

Story rooted in small town

The final Books and Backroads stop was in Florenceville-Bristol at the Andrew and Laura McCain Public Library.

Book club members read The Town that Drowned by Riel Nason. The novel, about a fictional New Brunswick town, follows the life of a 14-year-old girl and the dam that threatens their community.

Angie Giggie grew up in Florenceville-Bristol, but moved to a city when she went to university and never intended to return. The birth of her son however changed her mind.

"My family was still here, the roots are still here, and my son has such a strong community," she said.

"So I felt that there was a really good depiction of that community, flawed as I found this one to be. It still was a really good depiction of what you get in rural — the good and the bad.

Even though the novel is set in the 1960s, librarian Julie Craig said it perfectly depicts life in New Brunswick's St. John River Valley. 

She said basing it on the building of the Mactaquac Dam spurred many interesting conversations for her and her family.

"Having it based on a real part of our New Brunswick history that changed the course of this province, really, you know, it's a thing that more people should learn about."

Want to read the Books and Backroads books?

If you're interested in reading any or all of Books and Backroads book selections, many of the provincial libraries have bookmarks listing all of the featured books.

And although the summer's nearly over, we'd still love to hear from you if you have a book to recommend. You can email infoamnewbrunswick@cbc.ca or call 1-800-561-4222.

Books and Backroads has been part of CBC's Library Partnerships Program.