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Book reviews for "Gaston,_Bill" sorted by average review score:

The Good Body : A Novel
Published in Paperback by Regan Books (2002)
Author: Bill Gaston
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What a gem!
It's rare in these busy times to stumble upon a novel worthy of the glorious yet exhausting all-night read. But within the first few pages of "The Good Body," I knew that a good night's sleep was not in the cards. It's 5AM in the morning; my work day is doomed, yet my mind still reels from the poetic beauty and honesty that is this novel. Can a mere book still move a jaded reader to tears? The answer, thanks to Lewis Nordan's "Sharpshooter Blues", Jonathan Franzen's "The Corrections," and now Bill Gaston's "The Good Body," is a resounding YES! What a triumph!


Sex Is Red
Published in Paperback by Cormorant Books (1998)
Author: Bill Gaston
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Not ABC, but EFG: Englightened, Funny and Gritty
Three of these excellent stories by Bill Gaston stand out in my mind: the tale of a soused would-be Lothario on vacation in Prince Edward Island with his ailing wife and 4 grubby kids, a story about taking the possibilities of sexual intimacy in marriage to a new level and a story (written almost in the form of letter or newspaper report) about a man obsessed with saving the world by destroying TVs (literally).

I appreciate this author's wry view of life in smalltown Canada (Fredericton, New Brunswick was the locale for many of the stories). It's good to see a man writing about the daily struggle withfamily & intimacy, in all its forms; one character's nerves are jangled by the sounds of his family chewing their food (hey, I can relate to that!).

Gaston is a fine writer whose work pulses with humour and emotional honesty. His men may be loners, husbands or fathers. (Some of them are all 3--living the existential truth that we are ALL alone.) They are also fallible andthus loveable. The fact that they seem to like to play hockey is truly unfortunate (as I said, they're fallible!)

Many of the stories resonate with the foibles of small-town Canada: the guy with long hair who works in a record store, lives alone in a dirty bungalow and has never given up smoking pot--YES, that's what happens when you never leave home!

Gaston was born in 1953--so was I!--and his sensibilities speak to Baby Boomers like me who grew up in small towns, tuned in and turned on, then dropped out for awhile before going to university, getting a job, and now--as Daniel Lanois wrote (and Emmylou Harris sang) in one of his haunting tunes:-- we're "raising kids, from raising hell". This is where Gaston's characters find themselves: in middle age, having been part of the 60s, 70s, 80s and 90s. Along the way, they've played with sex, drugs, rock & roll and Buddhism! It all figures into the lives Gaston paints in the pages of this excellent collection of short stories. He is one of Canada's gems!

I also highly recommend 2 of Gaston's novels, Tall Lives and Inviting Blindness.


Bella Combe Journal
Published in Paperback by Cormorant Books (1996)
Authors: William Allen Gaston and Bill Gaston
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The Cameraman
Published in Hardcover by MacMillan of Canada (1994)
Author: Bill Gaston
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Deep Cove Stories
Published in Paperback by Oolichan Books (1989)
Author: Bill Gaston
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Imaginary Portraits: With the Child in the House and Gaston De Latour
Published in Paperback by DIANE Publishing Co (1997)
Authors: Walter Horatio Pater and Bill Beckley
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Inviting Blindness
Published in Unknown Binding by Oolichan Books ()
Author: Bill Gaston
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Mount Appetite
Published in Paperback by Raincoast Books (2002)
Author: Bill Gaston
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North of Jesus Beans
Published in Paperback by Cormorant Books (1994)
Author: Bill Gaston
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San Diego On Foot
Published in Paperback by Carol Mendel Pubns (1994)
Authors: Carol Mendel, Gaston Lokvig, Bill Duke, and Bob Fassett
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Related Subjects: Author Index Reviews Page 1 2

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