Customer Reviews (2)

Rest.In.Peace..
June 20th 2002- Timothy Fidley passed away.
Rest In Peace.

Another Beautifully Neurotic Collection of Stories
Timothy Findley has quickly become one of Canada's most prominent internationally writers. His ambiguous stories are always tinted with a twist of magical realism that leads his readers to believe there really arephenomenal elements left in the world. In this latest collection of works,"Dust to Dust," Findley brings back characters from past works,such as the beautiful but troubled couple Minna and Bragg and createsintriguing new ones like Evard and Erik Kelgard, the strange twins andtheir magic show. We can't help but be drawn in by the dicotomy Findleycreates between the magic of life and the secrets of death. I endorse thistor Findley fans and new comers alike. ... Read more

Product Description
This highly theatrical adaptation of Timothy Findley's classic novel traces the brutal coming of age of Robert Ross—a sensitive idealist who goes off to the Great War in 1915. Ross, who has a fondness for animals and shares a strong bond with his wheelchair-bound sister, trades his comfortable surroundings in Canada for the nightmare world of trench warfare. We watch Ross's slow unravelling as he moves from home to train to barracks and, finally, to the mud, smoke, and chlorine gas of the front line in France. With death and dying everywhere around him, Ross makes a desperate attempt to show his faith in life. Cruelty, heroism, terror and honour—The Wars takes us deep inside the mind of a soldier and straight onto the bloody battlefield. The Wars is one of Canada's most beloved novels, winner of the Governor General's Award for Fiction in 1977. This adaptation evokes the spirit, imagery, and heart of the novel, and adds the immediacy of the theatrical form. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

It's the script, not the book!
Now I understand why the price was so reasonable... but after discussing the book vs. the script at my bookclub, I think the latter was incredibly clear, and elucidated many confusing aspects in the book.Quick read.Very powerful.Highly recommended. ... Read more

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Narrated by Charlie Kilworth, whose birth is an echo of his mother's own illegitimate beginnings, The Piano Man's Daughter is the lyrical, multilayered tale of Charlie's mother, Lily, his grandmother Ede, and their family. Lily is a woman pursued by her own demons, "making off with the matches just when the fires caught hold," "a beautiful, mad genius, first introduced to us singing in her mother's belly." It is also the tale of people who dream in songs, two Irish immigrant families facing a new and uncertain future in turn-of-the-century Toronto. Finally, it is a richly detailed tribute to a golden epoch in our history and of a generation striking the last, haunting chord of innocence.

The Piano Man's Daughter is a symphony of wonderful storytelling, unforgettable characters, and a lilting, lingering melody that plays on long after the last page has been turned.

Customer Reviews (11)

interesting but lengthy
This writer is very adept at describing surroundings and different characters.I liked the story very much and yet I felt he left out key emotional responses to huge shifts in Lily's life.It is an interesting book and I was sad when it ended but I felt it would have been enhanced by more in-depth emotional descriptions.

I've read better...
This wasn't great but it wasn't that bad either. At times the constant jumping around was confusing. Timothy Findley does tell a good story but there were a lot of gaps that rather left me hanging.
It's a long, long story of a boy/man trying to find out who his father is. His mother suffers from various forms of maddness and the reader follows her mother's and then her life up to her death. I found the first part of the story better than the second. The part where Lily goes to Europe was vague and disjointed and none of the people she meets there were developed.
Having said that, I still quite enjoyed it.

the mystery and dread of fatherhood
The winner of numerous awards, Canadian author Findley shapes this 1996 novel around a young man's quest for his father and his dread of becoming a father himself.

Narrator Charlie Kilworth is the son of mad, beautiful, evervescent and tormented Lily Kilworth, who cannot or will not remember who Charlie's father is. It is her story Charlie tells, after her death in an asylum fire, a fire she may herself have set.

Lily's story begins before her birth, when her mother, Ede, meets an itinerant piano man. "The sight of him was like a match being struck," Ede recalls, beginning the incendiary allusions that punctuate the novel and haunt Lily's private world.

The piano man dies before he can wed Ede but eight years later she marries his brother, Frederick, an ambitious piano manufacturer whose one unorthodoxy is falling in love with Ede. He accepts Lily but without knowing of her affliction - severe epileptic seizures.

He is as repelled by Lily's epilepsy as Ede is frightened by it and becomes, for Lily, the demon of her childhood, the focus of rebellion and despair. But even though Frederick locks her in the attic whenever company is expected and finally banishes her to a school for difficult girls, Lily blossoms.

A beautiful, vibrant young woman, "hampered" not "handicapped" (the word makes her indignant) by her illness, she goes to England with a friend and it's there that Charlie is conceived. He knows only that the event occurred in January 1910 and he examines Lily's photos intently, imagining fathers, and questions her friends, adding pieces to the life she has already related to him.

Lily and Charlie return to Toronto before World War I but Frederick, outraged by Charlie's birth, refuses to see them. They begin a round of living in expensive hotels, going to dances where Charlie is always her partner, and seeing movies. For Charlie the life is a series of enchantments and nightmares as his mother's demons pursue her and drag him along. A child, he learns to watch over his mother although his dependency often renders him helpless.

When tragedy pushes Lily over the edge into madness, Charlie is liberated into normalcy - school, friends his own age, relatives. "It made a decent life - secure in ways I had never known." Lily emerges from the asylum but never permanently.

Charlie's voice is wistful, awed, admiring, impatient, petulant and wise. But it is Lily who colors and shapes the story, taking flight from her son's narration. Findley's writing is deeply atmosheric, enveloping the reader in the Canada of 1890 to 1920. He invites an intimacy with his characters (many not even touched on here) that creates a bond without violating their essential human secrecy.

A rewarding novel, which will linger in the mind.

By all views, a good book
You may think this story is only about Lily and her strange way of life, but it is so much more.It is also about her mother, her mother's empty life, although it would appear to be so full, her mother's loss of love, and other family wounds.Then , also woven into the story is the life and beliefs of her son, Charlie, who narates the tale of the strange legacy this family carries.

At times there are sad situations, sometimes a moment of joy and happiness also seems sad, because you realize how fleeting that moment will be for the characters involved.The madness of a woman so desperate to also be a mother and the way her needs all intertwine are very well written, and I think the author deserves huge kudos on this fact.the plot is interesting, the details are well written, and the story is intriguing.I love feeling like I am somewhere, for instance at a silent film, taking in the details Findley offers and so you also learn about a whole different time and way of life.

While some of the other reviews have criticised his over use of italics I found them so important to the book- for they usually revealed the true thoughts behind ones words and they showed how often we are not honest in what we say to what we are really thinking.All in all there is a lot to be learned from this book, whether it is a sympathetic moment, a new understanding of a different time, or the need to take what good you can from life at all times (a lesson we always need to be reminded of) you will not put this book down without thinking and enjoying some new and interesting thoughts.

Those fans of old time movies and the likes of Charlie Chaplan...etc. would probably enjoy many of the stories in the book even more, for these old time favorites may have been the only escape for some of the tragedy in these characters lives, and parts of the book revolves around them.I think for people who enjoy reading an interesting tale, especially one that touches on the need to break free from generational issues, this book would be a good additon to your reading list.

Beautiful Tale of a Mother's Madness
A very beautifully written tale narrated from the son's perspective. Findley's characters are very well developed though the use of italics becomes slightly annoying as the book progresses. ... Read more

Product Description
Canadian Fiction Studies are an answer to every librarian's, student's, and teacher's wishes. Each book, about 80 pages in length, contains clear, readable information on a major Canadian novel. These studies are carefully designed readings of the novels; they are not substitutes for reading them. Each book is attractively produced and follows the same format, so students will know exactly what to expect:

A chronology of the author's life The importance of the book Critical reception Reading of the text Selected list of works cited ... Read more

Customer Reviews (5)

The reality of war bound with love...
NOTE: This review may contain crucial spoilers.
The novel, The Wars, is as much a story about war as it is about a young man�s troubles with love. In fact, were it not for the dreary setting, this novel would still hold its own as a masterpiece. Whilst roaming the blooded fields, Robert Ross, a nineteen-year-old Canadian, struggles with the concept of love. This is truly an amazing story in that, although circumstances are tough, the predominant theme is still love, a quality that cannot fade away. The ugly truth of soldiers and war is brought about in a way that only parallels the love story, further confusing young Robert.
Being known as one of the greatest novels concerning World War I, the logical place to start is how the author, Timothy Findley, expressed his views of the war in the trenches. He details everything from the chlorine gas used, to the dreaded rifts that could collapse at any instant. �The ammonia in their urine would turn the chlorine into harmless crystals that could not be breathed.� (page 141) I thought it was actually educational to learn this; not for the fact that I would ever be presented with this challenge, but because it is an interested tidbit about the war, that made me appreciate to what great lengths soldiers undertook to stay alive. The toughest thing to deal with, was that dying by bomb was at times preferable than just sitting in the trenches. No one could stand watching their friends being torn apart by bullets, and the thought that if bombed they could all die together, was pleasing to them.
�He�d found a model he could emulate � a man to whom killing wasn�t killing at all but only throwing.� (page 32) This would have to be one of my favorite passages of the novel. Timothy Findley portrays Robert as a man who does not like to kill, as can be seen in the scene when he must shoot the horse. Therefore, he made an ingenious attempt to find a reason for the Canadian to kill. �Throwing� hardly sounded like a gruesome word, and if Robert stuck this term into his head, he could �throw� as much as he wanted. His mindset is shattered when an important event arises. �The sound of it would haunt him to the day he died.� Referring to a bird singing, this is said right after a German is spotted, seemingly unarmed, who lets them retreat. Robert thought he was safe, until the man was killed. Next to the German was a sniper rifle. The thought of knowing that he could have and would have been killed at any instant shattered Robert�s ideas of killing, leading him into madness later on.
Robert�s trouble with understanding women begins with this passage: �All because he wouldn�t fight a man she didn�t love and whom he�d never seen.� (page 13) He could not understand why he must �defend his honor� by fighting a man who was interested in his love. �Being loved was letting others feed from your resources��
Timothy Findley�s writing is filled with beautiful passages and a sense or realism is attained by his style of writing. Sometimes, the best way to clearly �show� something, is by writing in mixed words and unfinished sentences. The style of writing is not only unique to a few authors, but can convey the madness around the characters. For a novel of World War I, the style is used to its most powerful and intense extreme.

Simply wonderful
I guess I'll be the token American to review this work.

I first read Pilgrim in November of 2000. It easily became one of my "desert-island-dozen" choices. From that point, I made it a mission to read as much of Timothy Findley as I could. So I started with "The Wars".

Although this book seems short at first(my copy checks in at a mere 254 pages)don't be fooled, this book is much deeper than that. His Hemingway-esque approach keeps the pages turning quickly. It moves so quickly that by the time you've finished it, your left in awe as if hit by a truck you never saw coming.

The tale would definitely fall in the "coming of age" category. As it is set in France during World War One, the potential for making a man out of a boy is clearly evident. The protagonist, Robert Ross, surrounded my the madness of war reaches his breaking point and, in an act that would seem unjustly called treasonist, finds the essence of true humanity among fields of mortar fire, poison gas, and flame throwers.

As I said this book moves quickly (I read it in two days). With such a short time commitment and so much reward, you owe it to yourself to read this book.

This is one hell of a book
Thisbook was great.One of the few that I wish never ended.Plus it was written by a Canadian, a true bonus.His use of imagery and historical facts make a effective one-two punch for your imagination.A must read for any war enthusist.Much more to tell but I do not want to ruin it for you.

fred.

War is insane. TF leaves no doubt!
Timothy Findley puts you in the trenches of Franceand in the mind of his characters. This is the anti-war book of the solder in the mud. It is the grunt's story of the other side of Forrester's "The General".Timothy Findley is Canada's Gunter Grass. Try "Not Wanted on theVoyage" for a different read.

Read this book!
TM is a one of the worlds greatest writers. He is gay but you will not learn this from his books. You will have to ask Bill. If anyone wants to earn lots of money they would buy rights to publish his out of print books.The Wars is a gem! It was read on CBC Canda Booktime and I had to plan mySunday just to listen. ... Read more

Product Description
First Edition stated.Martin Press, NY 1967.Fair++/Fair++ dust jacket condition.This is the first American Edition of this Canadian author's exceedingly scarce first novel. ... Read more

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This digital document is an article from Yearbook of English Studies, published by Modern Humanities Research Association on January 1, 2001. The length of the article is 7023 words. The page length shown above is based on a typical 300-word page. The article is delivered in HTML format and is available in your Amazon.com Digital Locker immediately after purchase. You can view it with any web browser.

Citation Details
Title: Fraternizing with the Enemy: Constructions of Masculinity in the Short Fiction of Timothy Findley.
Author: Susan E. Billingham
Publication: Yearbook of English Studies (Magazine/Journal)
Date: January 1, 2001
Publisher: Modern Humanities Research Association
Page: 205

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This digital document is an article from World Literature Today, published by University of Oklahoma on July 1, 2003. The length of the article is 598 words. The page length shown above is based on a typical 300-word page. The article is delivered in HTML format and is available in your Amazon.com Digital Locker immediately after purchase. You can view it with any web browser.

Citation Details
Title: Timothy Findley. Spadework.(Book Review)
Author: Elin Elgaard
Publication: World Literature Today (Refereed)
Date: July 1, 2003
Publisher: University of Oklahoma
Volume: 77Issue: 2Page: 96(1)

Article Type: Book Review

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VHS tape. 57 minutes, 25 seconds. "Here, in this wryly intimate film, Timothy Findley, an actor who became one of Canada's finest novelists, gives the performance of his life." ... Read more

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Purchase includes free access to book updates online and a free trial membership in the publisher's book club where you can select from more than a million books without charge. Not illustrated. Excerpt: The Nestlé Children's Book Prize, also known as the Nestlé Smarties Book Prize, was an annual award given to children's books written in the previous year by a UK citizen or resident. The prize was administered by Booktrust, an independent charity which promotes books and reading, and sponsored by Nestlé, manufacturer of Smarties. It was one of the most respected and prestigious prizes for children's literature. The prize was discontinued in 2008 by what was described as a "mutual" decision from Booktrust and Nestlé, with "no hostility". Explaining their reasons for this decision, Booktrust stated it had "been reviewing the organisation's priorities and how prizes and awards fit in with its strategic objectives", while Nestlé was "increasingly moving its community support towards the company strategy of nutrition, health and wellness." Additionally, they said that it was a "natural time to conclude" and that were "confident that increased importance has been placed on children's books." The shortlist for the award was chosen by a panel of adult judges, and schoolchildren across the UK would then vote on the first, second and third place winners. ... More: http://booksllc.net/?id=571386 ... Read more

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Les achats comprennent une adhésion à l'essai gratuite au club de livres de l'éditeur, dans lequel vous pouvez choisir parmi plus d'un million d'ouvrages, sans frais. Le livre consiste d'articles Wikipedia sur : Timothy Findley, Norbert Spehner, Leonard Cohen, Liste Alphabétique D'écrivains Canadiens, Michaël La Chance, J. S. Woodsworth, Robertson Davies, Mary Balogh, Simon Harel, John Ralston Saul, Julie Turconi, Morley Callaghan, Françoise Lepage, Michael Ignatieff, Frederick Philip Grove, Scott Jeffrey Reid, Gary Klang, Douglas Coupland, Caroline Roe, Leroy K. May, Ross Macdonald, Joy Fielding, Alistair Macleod, Garth Turner, Vaclav Smil, Gérard Bessette, Joseph Doutre, Antonio D'alfonso, Suzanne Aubry, Jane Vance Rule, Alberto Manguel, Pablo Urbanyi, Rory Maclean, Yann Martel, Kelley Armstrong, Guy Gavriel Kay, James Huston, Charles de Lint, Edmond Lareau, Hugh Maclennan, Stephen Leacock, Sean Russell, Stephen Vizinczey, Marie-Colombe Robichaud, Elizabeth May, Bruce Labruce, Dominique-Ceslas Gonthier, Diane Boudreau, Mark Steyn, John Gallishaw, Nadia Nadege, Stanislas Drapeau, Carol Shields, Roger Léveillé, Bob Hunter, Richard Rohmer, Steve Paikin, Henry James Morgan, Brigitte Marleau, Michael Ondaatje, Robert Dickson, Daniel Poliquin, William Kirby, Joseph Royal, François Paré, Laure Berthiaume-Denault, Chantal Hébert, Hugh Kenner, Henry Makow, Arthur Hailey, Farley Mowat, Octave Crémazie, Auguste Achintre, Jean-Simon Desrochers, Mel Hurtig, Giles Blunt, Graham Fraser, Adam-Charles-Gustave Desmazures, Diane Francis, Michel Khalo, Margaret Laurence, Marguerite Maillet, Ernest Gagnon, Jean Féron, Thomas King, Jacques-Pierre Amée, Jean Éthier-Blais, Dave Duncan, Éric Charlebois, Monique Proulx, Jean René Baroux, Antonin Nantel, Robert Fulford, Paulette Bourgeois, David Adams Richards, Georges Bugnet, Marguerite Andersen, Jean Désy, Bruce Hutchison, Daniel Marchildon, Joe Schlesinger, Brian Moore, Guy Lizotte, Gilles Fortin,...http://booksllc.net/?l=fr ... Read more

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Chapters: Pierre Trudeau, Brian Mulroney, Neil Peart, John Diefenbaker, Robert Borden, Paul Shaffer, Timothy Findley, James Doohan, Paul Martin, Lester B. Pearson, William Guy Carr, Roger Caron, Emily Carr, Dan Hill, Denise Chong, Paul Joseph James Martin, Gene Lees, David Williams Higgins, James Mavor, Walter L. Gordon, Erik Nielsen, Ellen Fairclough, Pierre Sévigny, Michael Barry, Pedram Moallemian, Judy Lamarsh, Will Ferguson, Lily Hoy Price, Jack Pickersgill, Catharine Parr Traill, Penny Petrone, Hugh Llewellyn Keenleyside, Peter C. Newman, Rudy Wiebe, Harriet A. Roche, Christie Blatchford, David James Walker, Henry Duckworth, Philippe-Joseph Aubert de Gaspé, Gogo, Thomas Firbank, Elizabeth Goudie, Gregory Levey, Greg Malone, Elisabeth Eaves, Gordon Aiken, Kevin Patterson, Claude Charron, Ra Mcguire, John Stephen Willison, Paul Allen, Wayson Choy, John Glassco, Bob Ringma, Stephen Reid, Russell Wangersky, Alexander Carter, Devyani Saltzman, Mina Rosner, Rachel Manley. Source: Wikipedia. Pages: 336. Not illustrated. Free updates online. Purchase includes a free trial membership in the publisher's book club where you can select from more than a million books without charge. Excerpt: John George Diefenbaker, PC, CH, QC (September 18, 1895 August 16, 1979) led Canada as its 13th Prime Minister, serving from June 21, 1957 to April 22, 1963. He was the only Progressive Conservative (PC, or Tory) party leader between 1930 and 1979 to lead the party to an election victory, doing so three times, although only once with a majority of the seats in the Canadian House of Commons. Diefenbaker was born in southwestern Ontario in 1895. In 1903, his family migrated west to the portion of the Northwest Territories which would shortly thereafter become the province of Saskatchewan. He grew up in the province, and was interested in politics from a young age. After brief service in World War I, he became a lawyer. Diefenbaker contested electi...More: http://booksllc.net/?id=15915 ... Read more

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Chapters: Michel Tremblay, Timothy Findley, Bill Bissett, Geoff Ryman, David Rakoff, Dionne Brand, Douglas Coupland, Rinaldo Walcott, Irshad Manji, Mazo de La Roche, Robert Lepage, Alberto Manguel, Thom Fitzgerald, Daphne Marlatt, Tanya Huff, Jane Eaton Hamilton, Rita Wong, Daryl Hine, Enza Anderson, Jane Rule, Brad Fraser, Nalo Hopkinson, Orville Lloyd Douglas, Nina Arsenault, Mary Maclane, Bert Archer, Sky Gilbert, Tyler Brûlé, Sean Horlor, Robin Blaser, Daniel Macivor, Daniel Allen Cox, Marie-Claire Blais, Douglas Wilson, Stan Persky, Pierre Vallières, Douglas Lepan, Pierre Bourgault, Leah Lakshmi Piepzna-Samarasinha, Tomson Highway, Richard Burnett, Ian Iqbal Rashid, Meryn Cadell, Nicole Brossard, Bill Richardson, Paul Bellini, Sandra Alland, Jeffrey Round, Bruce Labruce, Kaj Hasselriis, Erin Mouré, Sinclair Ross, Ann-Marie Macdonald, Alexander Wilson, Sky Lee, Xavier Dolan, Roland Michel Tremblay, Chandra Mayor, Karen X. Tulchinsky, Betsy Warland, Joey Comeau, Michael Maclennan, Mark Kenneth Woods, Anne Fleming, D'bi Young, Derek Mccormack, R. M. Vaughan, Carol Philipps, Mary Meigs, Trey Anthony, Shyam Selvadurai, Elliott Hayes, Evan Adams, Charles Montgomery, Anne Cameron, Gary Kinsman, David Watmough, Scott Symons, Daniel David Moses, Wayson Choy, Gilles Marchildon, Gordon Stewart Anderson, Peter Mcgehee, Alec Butler, Rachel Zolf, Billeh Nickerson, Andy Quan, Aaron Devor, Kaushalya Bannerji, David Carpenter, Morris Panych, Pat Capponi, Elizabeth Ruth, Michele Clarke, Waawaate Fobister, Makeda Silvera, Ian Stephens, Lisa B, Greg Kramer, Todd Klinck, Shani Mootoo, Brett Josef Grubisic, Shaun Proulx, Anne-Marie Alonzo, Neil Smith, Fiona Patton, William Whitehead, Marnie Woodrow, Elspeth Cameron, Alisa Palmer, Trish Salah, Sina Queyras, Jay Scott, Shawn Syms, Michel Marc Bouchard, Matthew Hays, Candas Jane Dorsey, René-Daniel Dubois, Don Hannah, David Rayside, Tom Culligan, Shawna Dempsey and Lorri Millan, Brian Francis,...More: http://booksllc.net/?id=2508913 ... Read more

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This digital document, covering the life and work of Timothy Findley, is an entry from Contemporary Authors, a reference volume published by Thompson Gale. The length of the entry is 6980 words. The page length listed above is based on a typical 300-word page. Although the exact content of each entry from this volume can vary, typical entries include the following information:

• Place and date of birth and death (if deceased)
• Family members
• Education
• Professional associations and honors
• Employment
• Writings, including books and periodicals
• A description of the author's work
• References to further readings about the author

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Les achats comprennent une adhésion à l'essai gratuite au club de livres de l'éditeur, dans lequel vous pouvez choisir parmi plus d'un million d'ouvrages, sans frais. Le livre consiste d'articles Wikipedia sur : Timothy Findley, Mazo de La Roche, Alexander Knox, Gérald Leblanc, Herménégilde Chiasson, Brigitte Marleau, David Baudemont, Marc Prescott, Marshall Burton, André Paiement, Jean-Marc Dalpé, Jules Boudreau. Non illustré. Mises à jour gratuites en ligne. Extrait : Mazo De la Roche (15 janvier 1879 - 12 juillet 1961), née Mazo Louise Roche à Newmarket dans l'Ontario, est une romancière canadienne, auteur de Jalna, l'une des séries les plus populaires de son époque. Mazo de la Roche en 1927 Mazo De la Roche était l'enfant unique de William Roche, un représentant de commerce, et d'Alberta (Lundy) Roche. C'était une enfant solitaire ; sa famille déménagea à plusieurs reprises au cours de son enfance en raison du mauvais état de santé de sa mère et des emplois variés de son père. Elle devint une lectrice passionnée et développa son propre monde de fiction, qu'elle appelait « La Pièce » (The Play), et au sein duquel elle inventait des scènes et des personnages. Elle écrivit sa première nouvelle à l'âge de neuf ans. Au hasard des déplacements de la famille, celle-ci s'installa pour quelques années dans une ferme appartenant à un homme fortuné qui considérait son exploitation comme un hobby. C'est là que Mazo commença à développer son univers imaginaire de l'aristocratie rurale, qui allait devenir Jalna. Alors qu'elle avait sept ans, ses parents adoptèrent sa jeune cousine orpheline Caroline Clement, qui entra dans son jeu de monde imaginaire et allait devenir la compagne de toute sa vie. Elles menaient une vie très retirée et leur relation fut peu évoquée dans la presse. En 1931, elles adoptèrent deux enfants dont les parents décédés avaient été amis des Clement et des de la Roche. Avant de devenir célèbre, elle vécut pendant ...http://booksllc.net/?l=fr ... Read more