On the morning of my book launch, a storm threatened. A few anxious texts and emails populated my coffee-drinking, saying (ish), I’m so sorry, but we have to miss your event as the sky is falling, which I completely understood.
It was not a morning to head outside.
But the storm hadn’t quite begun.
So.
The kids and I stepped out into the quiet world, soft flakes hinting at what was to come. After. But first, it's time for books.
We drove downtown, parked in a silent street, and met with bookseller, Peter, from Turning The Tide.
It was a hustle and rush from there. Putting out books, adjusting chairs, gazing anxiously at the clouds.
Then you arrived. Lots of you. Together, with brilliant authors, Arthur Slade, Kristy Jackon and Khodi Dill, we ate pastries, enjoyed a yoghurt bar, drank coffee, and more coffee, then chatted together about the joy and mystery of writing books.
Thank you!
Thank you for coming, thank you for messaging, thank you for supporting my book and local authors. It was such a pleasure to be there with those of you who made it. You made the magic and I’m so grateful.
We all got home before the storm before the weather became wild. Snow on snow, as Christina Rosetti writes in my favourite hymn, In The Bleak Midwinter, which she wrote in January 1872, ten years after her most famous poem, The Goblin Market.
The next morning the snow continued as we dug and shovelled for hours. The earth stood hard as iron, as the song goes, water like a stone, snow on snow, snow on snow.
My little boys and I took a walk, searching for goblins, but finding instead a coyote tangled visually in the trees, symbolizing cunning and curiosity in some cultures. Awed, we watched the beast, licking its tender paws, commanding the path we’d recently walked, the river below steaming in the frigid air.
With the book launch and all the magic in the world, as well as the darkness, which is also everywhere, I’ve loved finishing The Salt Path.
What did you think of the end?
My next newsletter, on Friday, December 6th (the first Friday of the month!), will share with you the book we’ve picked for December, and a gathering of my thoughts and yours on The Salt Path. I’ve worked hard behind the scenes to make this book club lovely for you.
I can’t wait for what’s upcoming in 2025, too.
I’m sending this with love, gratitude, and the ‘find the coyote’ photo. Please share with me a book that changed your life, or tell me how you are, what you’re reading, what your December looks like, or a Substack you’ve enjoyed recently.
Love,
Alice
xoxox
I was lucky to be on CBC’s The Current this week. Listen in to explore how Saskatoon punches above its weight.
If you’re new here, my name is Alice Kuipers and I’m a writer, mother and dog-owner transplanted twenty years ago to the Canadian prairies from England. I’ve published fourteen books in 36 countries and my writing has been described as: “For storytellers and story lovers,” by Kirkus Reviews; ‘Gorgeous, heart-ripping, important,” by VOYA; and “Intense and wonderful” by Bif Naked. Join me for coffee breaks to look at lines from great writers.
Xoxo
Share this post