This year's writers' festival is history. And what a festival it was. Events conspired to make this year's tribute to the written arts nearly perfect. And except for some mighty chilly moments in the pavilion on Friday morning, it hit the mark.
Highlight after highlight claimed the time from Thursday evening on. No one disappointed. In fact, I dare say most not only cleared the bar, they sailed over it.
First Nations author Joseph Boyden kicked the festival off in style. Along with an obvious talent for writing, Boyden possesses a canny, droll sense of humour. He had us laughing until we hurt.
Gil Adamson, author of the smash hit The Outland, achieved the almost impossible: she filled the pavilion on a cold, working day for many in the audience. The only thing left wanting when she finished is the date of her next book. She has an enormous talent and a correspondingly small ego. What fun!
All of Friday continued in the same vein. Well-known authors such as Steven Galloway, Andrew Nikiforuk and the Coast's own Andreas Schroeder preceded lesser-known scribes, Marina Endicott and Anthony De Sa. All with different writing styles, they had one thing in common - marvelous presentation skills. Every one of them managed to rivet the audience in their seats.
No surprise to anyone, Friday night's draw, Naomi Klein, managed to sell out and then some. There were probably over 200 folks on the grounds who hadn't managed to get tickets to this hot event, but even on this cool evening none of them left before Klein finished speaking. It was a delight to watch her obviously proud mom, Bonnie, introduce her famous daughter. And judging by Naomi's reaction, it's a love many times returned.
Saturday was a name-dropping repeat of Friday. Again the life the authors brought into their time on the podium was a marvel to behold. The absolute best part of the day and indeed the entire weekend for me was Richard Wagamese, the author who delivered the Bruce Hutchison Memorial Lecture this year. This First Nations speaker was astounding. He spoke for an hour with no notes and no hesitation. His message was sublime - anyone born in Canada is a native, and we all need to work together to make our country strong. What a speaker. What a writer. He is amazing.
On Sunday, the one author I most wanted to see was every bit as great as I thought she would be. Daphne Bramham filled the pavilion and earned a standing ovation for her diligence in covering the story of Bountiful, B.C. She gives journalists a good name. Another big treat later that day were emerging talents, Rebecca Hendry (from Gibsons) and Lily Hoy Price. What delights they both were.
After witnessing all this talent for four days, the news that library funding may be in jeopardy fills my heart with dread. An ability to read is the great equalizer in our society. And libraries provide more recreational bang for the buck than any other facilities in our area.
Let the B.C. government know you value this service. Go to the Gibsons Library website www.gibsons.bclibrary.ca and find out how to be heard.
Let the politicians know that in 2009 ignorance is not bliss. It's outrageous, and we support literacy.
