Carolyn Morris

The Best Canadian Essays

admin — Sat, 04 Dec 2010 20:53:29 +0000

Some shameless self-promotion here. You should pick up a copy of The Best Canadian Essays 2010. My article “The Illegals,” first published in Toronto Life last fall, made the cut. There are also articles by Ira Basen, Elizabeth Hay and Jason McBride.

Chris Jones profiles Roger Ebert

admin — Sat, 20 Feb 2010 06:00:28 +0000

If you haven’t read Chris Jones’ profile of Roger Ebert in Esquire, you really should. Jones is a great writer — he won a national magazine gold in 2009 for “The Things That Carried Him,” in which he follows the path of an American soldier killed in Iraq, starting with his funeral.

In his profile of Ebert, he describes in telling detail how the famous movie critic has adjusted to his new life, since a series of surgeries to get rid of a cancer also took away most of his lower jaw and his ability to talk, to eat and to drink. What Jones was able to do with two days spent with the subject is impressive and the writing is powerful. The theme of how Ebert has rediscovered his voice through his writing — “His new life is lived through Times New Roman and chicken scratch.” — is backed up by the way Jones moves from describing Ebert’s daily life and his habits at the beginning, and then, letting Ebert’s voice come out more and more toward the end. It brings the reader close to the prolific writer who has become even more so since losing his voice.

It’s a great read. And Ebert wrote a response to it on his blog, which was positive overall. He was only a little upset at the suggestion he was dying in increments (everybody’s dying in increments). He says he’s very much alive.

Esquire, March 2010
Roger Ebert: The Essential Man
by Chris Jones

http://www.esquire.com/features/roger-ebert-0310#ixzz0g0gDGUrF

Darwin and Kentucky’s Creation Museum

admin — Sat, 23 Jan 2010 06:00:56 +0000

In “Roll Over, Charles Darwin,” published in Vanity Fair, A.A. Gill takes us on a visit to a “museum” trying as hard as it can to make up for huge gaps in logic (Dinosaurs — albeit of the smallish type — among the animal couples populating Noah’s ark, for example). It reminded me of a bible session I was once invited to in which we were asked to sign our name if we agreed to a number of “truths” about the essence of God. (Ones that we had just “learned” by finding the chapter in the bible that corresponded with each question in our learning guide.) Yikes!

Gill’s article is smart and snarky and a great read. Thanks to @longreads for the tip. (It’s not all that long.)

Vanity Fair Feb. 2010
Roll Over, Charles Darwin
by A.A. GILL

http://www.vanityfair.com/culture/features/2010/02/creation-museum-201002?printable=true¤tPage=1