We are into the last week of the open nomination process for the next Canada Reads. As another incentive to help you nominate Marvellous Hairy, I have come up with a further four reasons why the novel is an “essential” Canadian novel. (For those of you who are counting, that comes to 13, one reason for each province and territory.) There are actual prizes for helping to achieve this feat of literary democracy.
Four more reasons why Marvellous Hairy should be on the Canada Reads longlist:
- every time a Canadian reads Marvellous Hairy, they have an uncontrollable urge to do one of three things:
- drink a beer
- eat some poutine
- have sex in the snow.
- on rare occasions Canadians are compelled to do all three, though not necessarily in that order.
- check out the Wikipedia entry under Traits of Canadian Literature; of the eleven traits, Marvellous Hairy has eight:
- failure as a theme (uncomfortable, but true)
- humour (naturally)
- nature (humourously)
- satire and irony (I think both are just great)
- self-deprecation (gosh, really, you thinks so?)
- self-evaluation by the reader (I’m thinking better about myself because of this list)
- search for self-identity (uncomfortable in some situations)
- the underdog hero (best cartoon ever).
Now, this is not mentioned by Wikipedia, but a strong Canadian trait in literature that is featured in Marvellous Hairy:
- stories about people being turned into monkeys.
- like Canadian identity itself, Marvellous Hairy resists an easy definition: is it satire? Gonzo speculative fiction? Humorous fabulism? We’re not sure. And nobody has any ideas about the novel either.
Now, high thee to the Canada Reads website, and nominate Marvellous Hairy for the long list. Be eloquent, but don’t forget to release your inner monkey.
Prizes:
I was not kidding. Every nomination gets $2 off your very own copy of Marvellous Hairy, or if you’ve already read it, I’ll send you a crudely drawn picture of your favourite Canadian celebrity as a regressed monkey-like version of themselves. You will note, I said crudely drawn. You should be warned that I have no talent at drawing (and poor penmanship to boot), so my rendering will not make nearly as much sense as the one below. That said, you are welcome to this offering. I will, of course, sign it. Just email me or send me a note via Twitter, or my Facebook page. (Also, everyone who helps gets entered in a draw for a disturbing t-shirt.)
Obviously, any actual Canadian celebrity who would like to see a crudely drawn rendering of them as a regressed monkey-like creature, need only send me their address, phone number, and blood type, and I will send it immediately.
Here’s something to give you a sense of how good this artwork will not be:
You can find the Wiki entry on Traits in Canadian literature here. Devolving tool here.
The original nine reasons why Marvellous Hairy is an essential Canadian novel are listed here.
