The Seaboard Review of Books September 24, 2025
Volume 2, Issue 39 of The Seaboard Review of Books, September 24, 2025
In this issue:
Terminal Solstice by Sean Minogue
Looking for Cornelius: a Novella by Diana Hayes
Mad Dog and the Sea Dragon by Lisa de Nikolits
Children’s Books:
Earhart: The Incredible Flight of a Field Mouse Around the World by Torben Kuhlmann
Fiction
Terminal Solstice by Sean Minogue
Terminal Solstice is a light sci-fi, apocalyptic novel, set in a Canadian city that is not named but appears to be Toronto, begins with Emma. She is a young woman who has been institutionalized to help reshape her attitude and understanding of the strange events during frozen time and provide her with “temporal clarity”. She was mysteriously unaffected …
Mad Dog and the Sea Dragon by Lisa de Nikolits
Of Lisa de Nikolits’ eleven novels, I’ve read all but three. I have been a fan (fanboy?) of her stories for about a decade now, and so I was happy to see her latest novel, Mad Dog and the Sea Dragon see the light of day by the newly reinvented (resurrected?) Inanna Publications, her longtime publisher. I should also make a disclaimer that Ms. de Nikolit…
Children’s Books
Earhart: The Incredible Flight of a Field Mouse Around the World by Torben Kuhlmann
On the evening of May 20th, 1932, in Harbour Grace, Newfoundland, facing strong winds and icy conditions, Amelia Earhart set out in her modified single-engine Lockheed 5B Vega for Paris, France, with the goal of becoming the first woman to complete a transatlantic flight. Not an easy flight by any stretch of the imagination, she endured challenging flig…
Beverley, Bat Your Service by Kelly Collier
Beverley the bat lives by himself in a big old house and dreams of having visitors. He’s read all the books on how to host guests and knows he is the “host with the most”. He’s stocked up on appetizers (grubs, anyone?) and toilet paper, and the house is a delightful mess, all set for visitors. One day, his dreams come true when a family of “people guest…
Hot Takes: Brief Notes on Books Present & Past
(Note: clicking on the underlined link takes you to the book’s publisher page or Amazon.ca for more information or for purchasing purposes. Support your local bookseller or independent publisher if you can.)
Open Heart, Open Mind, by Clara Hughes
Like many people, I was already familiar with some of the cyclist and speed skater Clara Hughes’ athletic achievements before I read her memoir, Open Heart, Open Mind. Hughes represented Canada at the Summer and Winter Olympics, as well as World Championships and other events, winning numerous medals along the way.
In Open Heart, Open Mind, Hughes provides a look at the behind-the-scenes work required to excel at the highest levels of sport. She shares her high points and her lows, her injuries, and her efforts to push through fatigue and pain. Hughes also discusses her dysfunctional upbringing and her struggles with mental health issues, including depression and self-loathing. In later chapters, we learn about Hughes’ involvement with Right to Play, the Bell Let’s Talk initiative, and other ways of giving back to the community.
When I’ve watched high-performance athletes in the past, I’ve had some basic understanding of the amount of effort and dedication required. Hughes’ book shows that there may be much more than we know going on beneath the surface. In discussing mental health issues, as well as life stages like adjusting to retirement, Hughes transcends sport, moving into territory we can all identify with. Hughes is very up-front about her struggles and vulnerabilities. It’s this forthrightness that makes Open Heart, Open Mind an interesting and compelling read. (Contributed by Lisa Timpf)
Bon Voyage, Heather!
Heather McBriarty, a TSR co-admin and her husband have just set sail from Saint John for the Caribbean on her boat, Kismet 2.0! We wish them “fair winds and a following sea”!
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Thanks for reading this issue of The Seaboard Review of Books!
James M. Fisher, editor-in-chief