Joanne Proulx.
Joanne Proulx is the author of the novel Anthem of a Reluctant Prophet, which won Canada's Sunburst Award in 2008 and is currently being adapted into a feature film. Her second novel, We All Love the Beautiful Girls, was just published by Viking Canada. She lives in Ottawa.
Why did you write your new book?
I was troubled by the seeming rise in violence against women, or perhaps it was just that conversation moving to the forefront, while at the same time 50 Shades of Grey became such a hit with women. That was something I struggled to reconcile. I wanted to explore the power dynamic between the sexes in a liberated Western setting, through a story, which hopefully feels familiar to many. Of course, once I started, my characters took over and had their own ideas about what direction the story would take.
What's the best advice you've ever received?
Andrew W.K., this intense, one-hit wonder of a rock star, had a show on MTV Europe called A to Z with Andrew W.K. More philosopher than musician, he advised carrying a note around in your wallet as a tangible mantra of sorts. As example, he took one out of his wallet and it read, "Don't be a f**king wimp." I put the same message in my wallet; my sister was very ill at the time, 9/11 had just happened and I was wading into my first novel. The note was a reminder to be brave.
Which book got you through the darkest period of your life?
My sister read David Sedaris's Me Talk Pretty One Day when she was in hospital suffering through a stem-cell transplant. Her roommates, who weren't normally feeling very chipper, used to narrow their eyes at her as she laughed. In her final month, the book was on the coffee table in her living room and I often picked it up as some nurse or other poked away at my sister and gave me dirty looks as I chuckled on the opposite couch. My sister would try to explain to the nurse, "It's okay. It's David Sedaris." I love this memory: my sister flapping her hand at me lazily, lovingly, giving me permission to laugh.
Which country produces literature that you wish more people read?
Here I'm going to give a shout-out to U.S. writers of colour. If we want to really understand the fiasco unfolding south of our border, I believe we'd be well-served by turning to the works of James Baldwin, Toni Morrison, Ta-Nehisi Coates, Roxanne Gay, Colson Whitehead, Paul Beatty, Junot Diaz and Octavia Butler. If poetry is more your thing, Ross Gay, Ethelbert Miller, Claudia Rankine, Maya Angelou, Major Jackson and Safiya Sinclair are all personal favourites.
What's the best death scene in literature?
The death of Anton Chekhov as imagined by Raymond Carver in his short story Errand. Complete with a visit from Tolstoy, musings on the immortality of the soul and Chekhov's mysterious refusal to acknowledge the severity of his illness, it is nonetheless the errant pop of a Champagne cork that forever twinned Chekhov and Carver in my mind. It is a story that speaks as much about life as it does about death. One can only hope Carver's own passing was filled with the same simple grandeur he captured so gracefully in this work.
Which books haven't you read that you feel you should?
The Bible … must read the Bible. Camus and Proust are also on my list.
What's your favourite bookstore in the world?
WHSmith in Paris. I used to read to my kids upstairs in the children's section, the three of them sprawled on the floor at my feet. It was a refuge where we could relax and bend the stiff rules of France a little, because obviously children lying on floors listening to unpaid-for stories was simply not allowed.