Reviews - B&I
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On Falling from Grace – author and reader
This post includes my clarifications (in the guise of a response) to a few points/interpretations raised by Emanuel Melo regarding a few essays in Beyond Bullfights and Ice Hockey. I deemed the response necessary and relevant in light of his interpretations of my Canada Reads essay, and in particular, amid the present high-profile event of the Jian Ghomeshi trial. The original intent of the essays under discussion, and his interpretation on some details, were so unexpected and so far from my original intent that I needed to present my interpretation. This response was originally sent to Emanuel by email. He found the points valuable and suggested I included the response…
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A Reader’s Response to Beyond Bullfights and Ice Hockey
Beyond Bullfights and Ice Hockey: A Reader’s Response By Emanuel Melo I overheard a conversation between a father, his wife and daughter while at lunch at Le Petit Château in Quebec City the other day. “What are you planning to do this afternoon?” he asked. “We’re going to the Museum of Civilization.” “Great. That’ll give me time to watch the game and then we’ll meet up after.” I could say that I found it shocking that someone would take the time to come all the way to Quebec City to stay cooped up in a hotel room to watch a game while ignoring the charm of the city, but…
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Poetic & Lyrical – impressions by Irene Marques
Irene Marques on Beyond Bullfights & Ice Hockey (essays) Paulo da Costa has a poetic and lyrical voice that is beautiful. It is an appeasing murmur conducive to meditation putting into question the acceptance of the mundane or the fashions of the moment which are often guided by economic pressures that erase us all under a blanket of sameness. It is a voice that wants the power of the word to remain pure so that it can reach us at a deep level and have an impact that goes well beyond the facades of easy, cheap rhetoric. It is a writing that asks you to slow down, to pause, in order…
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The Guest who refuses to be polite – impressions by Emanuel Melo
I’m hanging out with paulo da costa these days. On the crowded subway ride to work in the morning and again in the evening on the way home I listen to him; those around me don’t. But I prefer listening to him when I get inside my solitude, sitting on my sofa, in the quiet of my library, where I can be attentive without the pull of people’s chatter. Even at four in the morning, when I cannot sleep, he is still talking. Non-stop. He is the guest who refuses to go home at a decent hour and so, to be polite, I let him speak his words. He gives…
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Obligatory reading for the North American Luso Diaspora – impressions by Diniz Borges
Diniz Borges on Beyond Bullfights & Ice Hockey (essays) Just began to read this new book of essays by paulo da costa. The first essay is amazing. Paulo is a great writer. The title of the book is great. Indeed, beyond some of these stereotypical cliches that we slap in the Portuguese experience in North-America. Paulo writes from a Portuguese-Canadian experience, not very different from ours here in the US. I will continue reading this great book of essays and it will be, I’m sure, one of future articles for the Portuguese language press in the US and in the Azores. Congrats to Boavista Press for the publication. Acabo de…