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For immediate release
December 2, 2003
The Banff Centre Press releases
Mary of Canada, The Virgin Mary in Canadian Culture, Spirituality,
History,
and Geography
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Mary of Canada, a compelling exploration of the Virgin Mary in Canada
that ranges widely through time and history, was released by the Banff Centre
Press this week. The 328-page book by author and journalist Joan Skogan includes
70 duotone illustrations.
Book launches will be held later this month in Calgary to celebrate the release
of Mary of Canada - there will be a signing on Thursday, December 18 at
12 noon at McNally Robinson Booksellers (main floor), and a formal launch on
Thursday, December 18 at 7 p.m. at Knox United Church (parlour).
Canada's culture is distinguished by the Virgin Mary's astonishingly frequent
presence - her roots in Canadian soil are deep. In the book, rich references
delve into literature, history, art, and geography. In locating Mary in this
country, Skogan observes the ways she transforms to answer Canadian needs. From
Virgin Mary sightings on frosted windows to thrift shop icons, from the Our Lady
Peace rock band to traditional prayer. Mary lives in Canada.
Dense, poetic, and lovingly hewn, Skogan's work, based on years of extensive
research, brings the Virgin Mary to Canadian shores. Illustrations, varying from
modern art to pop-culture presentations, offer visual context.
Skogan was born on the west coast and holds an MFA from the University of
British Columbia. She has written features for CBC Radio, Saturday Night,
Border Crossings, and Georgia Straight. She has also published
short stories and prose poems in Grain, Prairie Fire, West
Coast Review, and other magazines.
Her first novel, Moving Water, was published in 1998. Other works include
Voyages: At Sea with Strangers (1992) and Skeena: A River Remembered
(1983). Her books for children are The Princess & the Sea Bear and other
Tsimshian Stories (1991), Grey Cat at Sea (1991), and The Good
Companion (1998). Earlier this year she won Grain magazine's Long
Grain of Truth Prize for "Chimney Coulee Psalm."
Advance praise for Mary of Canada:
"In language original in structure and rich in imagery, and with meticulous,
far-reaching research, Skogan's unique vision reveals that the ancient,
worldwide idea of Mary has penetrated, sometimes unwittingly, into every nook
and cranny of Canada. This surprising book is one to be grateful for."
- Sharon
Butala, author of The Perfection of the Morning
"Skogan's particular genius has discovered in Mary of Canada a deep fondness for
irony and a joyous laughter at the antic human spirit."
- Kim
Echlin, documentary-maker, editor, and teacher,
whose most recent book is Inanna
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Review Copies contact: Jennifer Nault, Managing Editor
Banff Centre Press
Ph: 403-762-7532 - Fax: 403-762-6699
Media contact: Sarah Fabbri,
Media Manager
The Banff Centre
Ph: 403-762-6475
Mary of Canada book launch details:
Thursday, December 18, 12 noon
McNally Robinson Booksellers - main floor
120 8th Ave SW, Calgary
403-538-1797
and
Thursday, December 18, 7 p.m.
Knox United Church parlour
506 4 Street SW, Calgary
403-269-8382
Mary of Canada: The Virgin Mary in
Canadian Culture,
Spirituality, History, and Geography
ISBN 1-894773-03-9 $29.95 CDN $17.95 US
7.5 x 9 - 328 pages - paper
-70 duotone illustrations
Canadiana - Cultural Anthropology
- Religion History
Available to the trade from Lit DistCo
Available to the public at bookstores everywhere
Available in Banff at the Banff Book & Art Den
Cover artwork by Ted Bellis, Haida Gwaii, Queen Charlotte Islands, BC, Canada
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