Melody Newcombe
Operations Support Word
Currently reading: Sweetland by Michael Crummey
Favourite book as a young adult: A Tree Grows in Brooklyn by Betty Smith
I read this book when I was about 15 years old, I loved this book. It’s a “coming of age story with a girl being the main character.” The story takes place in a poor immigrant neighbourhood in Brooklyn, New York in the early twentieth century.
The story centres on the Nolan family. It is told through the eyes of Francie who is a very smart young girl growing up in extreme poverty in a tough tenement in Brooklyn. Her father, Johnny, is a charming singing waiter and an alcoholic. Her mother Katie is very hard-working, practical, no-nonsense person. Cornelius (commonly known as Neeley) is Francie’s younger brother who is the favourite of her stern mother. Surrounding Francie’s family are a host of characters from the neighbourhood that add warmth, laughter, violence, love and much more to the Nolans’ story.
Francie’s vivid imagination and her love of reading help her escape the poverty, her father’s alcoholism and her mother’s tough love. Francie’s thirst for knowledge and her desire for higher education help her become strong and thrive in very hard times.
Betty Smith describes what life was like for poor immigrants in America with such detail it is easy to understand the sights and sounds of Francie’s childhood.
I remember when I read this book cheering for Francie. This is an American classic, I would recommend reading this book today.
Lory Rochon
Literacy Outreach Coordinator
Currently reading: Chaos: I Bring the Fire (A Loki Story part 3) by C. Gockel
Favourite book as a young adult: Stephen King – Firestarter
As a young adult (in the early 1980s) I quickly became enthralled by the works of Stephen King (a lot of mystery, but with a horror component). Initially, it was the movie version of Carrie that inspired me to read Stephen King’s books. The movie and the book both terrified me, but, I enjoyed the story and found it to be thrilling. I continued reading Stephen King books and short stories throughout the 1980’s.
After reading many of his stories and books, I can say that my favorite book by Stephen King was Firestarter. In this story, a man and his future wife participate in a government agency’s drug experiments. Both the man and his wife develop some psychic abilities, but they suffer debilitating migraines and brain bleeds when they use their powers. Their daughter however, develops magnificent pyrotechnical abilities without any side-effects. When the agency finds out, they try to kidnap the daughter. The story revolves around the family running from the agents while using their powers to defend themselves. The family is hunted mercilessly by the agency. Eventually, after a lot of tragedy and tired of running, they work on a plan to expose the government for their crimes.
A final note about Firestarter: This book was also adapted into a movie. Unlike many films, I found that this movie came very close to portraying events the same as they were written in the book. I found both to be exceptionally enjoyable.
Donna Barnett
Cariboo Chilcotin MLA
Currently reading: Hockey Towns by Ron MacLean.
Favourite childhood book: Bambi a classic story.
Beverly Marks
Constituency Assistant
Currently reading: Cranberry Bluff by Deborah Garner
Favourite childhood book: Read all the Nancy Drew mysteries. She still loves reading mysteries.
Both Donna and Bev enjoy reading and their work has them reading all the time. In their free time, they read to relax.