Yutaka Dirks

'Evicted' probes the multiple dimensions of the housing crisis

mgregus — Thu, 27 Oct 2016 14:48:59 +0000

October 27, 2016

Once bursting with well-paying jobs in the brewing and manufacturing industries, Milwaukee, Wisconsin is now the second-poorest city in America. Over 170,000 people, including 41 per cent of the city's African-American and 32 per cent of the city's Hispanic residents, are living in poverty.

Between 2009 and 2011, one in eight Milwaukee residents were forced from their homes by eviction or foreclosure. Evicted: Poverty and Profit in the American City tells their stories. Written by Matthew Desmond, now a Harvard sociologist, the book follows eight families, Black and white, who struggle to keep a roof over their heads.

In "Evicted: Poverty and Profit in the American City" sociologist Matthew Desmond offers a critical examination of urban poverty and homelessness told through the stories of eight families.

'Your Heart is a Muscle the Size of a Fist' captures the spirit of protest

rabble staff — Wed, 13 Apr 2016 17:23:25 +0000

April 14, 2016

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Sunil Yapa's new book has been making waves in the literary world. Yutaka Dirks relates his own experience at the "Battle of Seattle" and spoke with the author about his inspiration.

Dreaming of the unknown: The startling realities of migrant workers

rabble staff — Tue, 21 Jul 2015 12:55:25 +0000

July 23, 2015

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Three pages into Meet Me in Venice the reader learns that there are more than 214 million migrants worldwide: a startling one of every 33 people in the world alive is a migrant. Author Suzanne Ma, an experienced journalist based in Vancouver, is concerned with these facts, however, she's just as interested in the people behind the numbers.

Why do people migrate and what is it like when they do? This question frames 'Meet Me In Venice' by Suzanne Ma as we follow the journey of a young girl from Qingtian, China.

Searching for salvation: 'Binary Star's' journey across addiction, disease and abuse

rabble staff — Mon, 25 May 2015 13:42:21 +0000

June 18, 2015

"Sickness is reciprocal," says the unnamed narrator of Binary Star, Sarah Gerard's feverish debut novel. The narrator is anorexic and involved in a long-distance relationship with an abusive alcoholic who has latched onto a blurred vision of anarchist veganism.

"It's a symbiotic relationship of sickness," says Gerard. "It's something that the narrator shares with her culture, also shares with her boyfriend. She's battling within herself this desire to stay sick and this desire to live."

Sarah Gerard's 'Binary Star' casts a necessary, burning light. "A razor-sharp depiction of addiction and an unflinching look at our misogynist culture," says Yutaka Dirks; this book is a must-read.

'Nothing Looks Familiar' asks: 'What does it mean to live in a body today?'

rabble staff — Tue, 10 Feb 2015 14:02:47 +0000

February 12, 2015

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"I won't go out with another man on the killing floor," says Wanda, the narrator of 'On the Line,' in the opening line of Shawn Sym's debut collection Nothing Looks Familiar. "I can't stand the smell of them, or their attitudes."

Wanda's potential suitors work with her in a meat-packing plant, and carry the smell of dead flesh on their skin. Her preoccupation with their bodies' scent is understandable. It is also emblematic of the author's thematic concerns.

Acts of sex. Acts of violence. Raw physicality. Shawn Syms' 'Nothing Looks Familiar' explores bodies and sexuality of today's flawed beings.

In conversation with author Doretta Lau

rabble staff — Thu, 19 Jun 2014 01:52:23 +0000

Yutaka Dirks interviews author Doretta Lau and reviews her debut collection of short stories 'How Does A Single Blade of Grass Thank the Sun?'

Doretta Lau sets a new standard in Canadian literature

rabble staff — Tue, 17 Jun 2014 03:13:23 +0000

June 19, 2014

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Doretta Lau examines the experiences of Asian-Canadians in her debut collection "How Does A Single Blade of Grass Thank the Sun?" and expands on her motivations for the collection.

Free the Cuban Five! Lies, conspiracy and hypocrisy fuel 'What Lies Across the Water' to deliver the truth

Kaitlin McNabb — Wed, 11 Sep 2013 19:56:27 +0000

September 12, 2013

On September 12, 1998, the FBI mounted coordinated raids in locations across the state of Florida, arresting ten people. The FBI alleged that they were members of a Cuban spy network, sent by Castro to undermine the security of the United States of America.

They were also accused in the deaths of four Cuban exiles from Miami, who had been shot down by the Cuban Air Force in 1996.

'What Lies Across the Water' by Stephen Kimber discusses the hypocrisy behind the Cuban Five arrests, the courage of the five Cuban men and what really happened.

Interview: Literary leftist thriller: Pulp fiction with a twist of solidarity and social justice

Kaitlin McNabb — Tue, 04 Jun 2013 16:54:28 +0000

June 13, 2013

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Someone is affixing pink pages to the light poles on Warren's street, each containing a small fragment of text. One sentence at a time, the mysterious notes tell a dark tale of familial love and loss.

Yutaka Dirks interviews author Stephen Law about his debut novel 'Tailings of Warren Peace' and how he balanced social justice with magical realism.

Review: Power grab: Examining gender dynamics through prose and allegory

Kaitlin McNabb — Wed, 15 May 2013 15:00:49 +0000

May 24, 2013

The 11 stories in Elisabeth de Mariaffi's debut story collection, How to Get Along With Women, take place in locales as diverse as Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario, and Marseille, France. The stories are intimately linked to their particular settings; in each, de Mariaffi explores how the characters' actions are shaped by their geographical, historical or political place in the world.

'How to Get Along With Women' by Elisabeth de Mariaffi is a sharp and inventive romp through the intertwining aspects of power, identity and sexuality in relationships in supremely real backdrops.

The Time We All Went Marching spins tales from On to Ottawa

alex — Thu, 17 May 2012 00:05:49 +0000

May 17, 2012

The last spike was driven in the transcontinental railway in 1885, satisfying a commitment made to British Columbia by the Canadian federal government. The railway would unite the Confederation, open up new lands for colonization, and provide greater access for industry and trade. Fifty years later, in June 1935, hundreds of unemployed men took to those same rails in what was dubbed the On to Ottawa Trek.

The Time We All Went Marching brings the struggle of working-class men and women in the 1930s and 1940s to life through luminescent prose.