Tag Archives: B.C.

An interview with author and poet Ian Williams

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Ian Williams at a coffee shop on Main, Vancouver in May 2019 (Photo: Alison Bate)

In his debut novel Reproduction, Vancouver-based poet and author Ian Williams tells the story of Felicia, a teenager and immigrant from an unnamed island.

“I not from anywhere,’ she tells Edgar, an older white guy from a wealthy German family. They meet in hospital where their mothers are seriously ill and their lives become intertwined over the generations.

Williams explores non-traditional family arrangements, racism and male entitlement in Reproduction, published by Random House Canada.

I met up with Williams in a cafe on Main Street, Vancouver recently and my Q. and A. interview is now online at Cascadia Magazine.

My Site C and Peace River story published

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Yvonne Tupper from Saulteau First Nation in front of beaver dam at Moberly Lake (Photo: Alison Bate)

My feature Fighting for Peace Valley is now online at  Cascadia Magazine.

In August 2018, I visited the Peace Region in northeastern B.C. with two friends and talked to long-time residents fighting against the controversial Site C dam project. These included Yvonne Tupper from Saulteau First Nations, farmers Arlene and Ken Boon, and horse breeder Esther Pedersen.

“I want all this industry to slow down and let the land heal. Then the people can heal and know they matter,” said Yvonne Tupper.

I also spoke with West Moberly chief Roland Willson, dropped in on the court case in Vancouver to hear B.C. Hydro’s arguments and finally, visited the dam site itself.

Read the feature, with some great photos by Jennifer O’Keeffe, at  Cascadia Magazine.

Gabriola Pass without an engine

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Sailing Pelegrin in the Gulf Islands (Pix: Alison Bate)

“You won’t get any thanks for this, you realize?”

My brother-in-law John is talking to Mickey, a Gabriola Island buddy with a 35-foot sailboat and the willingness to tow us home.

“Not the damsels-in-distress routine, you mean?”

“God, no, that’s not going to work. Won’t go over at all well.”

Sailing in Pelegrin in the Gulf Islands

Sailing in Pelegrin in the Gulf Islands, B.C., Canada (Pix: Alison Bate)

Gill and I are on her veteran Martin 29 sailboat, with a dead engine and limping in light to zero winds back to Degnen Bay after four nights in the Gulf Islands in Canada.

The rusty but usually reliable Volvo engine, circa 1974, had a couple of starting hiccups before we set sail. But nothing that Gill – my twin sister – didn’t think a good engine run wouldn’t solve.

The first day, we beat south on “Pelegrin” from Gabriola to Prevost, a quiet island opposite Saltspring.  A steady five-knot SE kept us sailing and happy all day, before dropping anchor in Glenthorne Passage around 7pm. The biggest decision of the day? How much carrot cake to eat.

Our engine woes began the second day. Continue reading →