Argo Bookshop

Monday, January 16th!:

Poets Zachariah Wells, Kasper Hartman, John Eric Bennett and Jesse Eckerlin will be the featured writers for the Argo’s second Featured Reading Series.

Zach has been so gracious as to take time from freelancing, editing and acting as a passenger train attendant in Halifax to drop in and… read from his latest book of poems, Track & Trace. It’s a great collection of poems based around our notions of legacy and nature, and including personal work of a sincere and visceral quality. He is also the author of the poetry collection Unsettled, and editor of both Jailbreaks: 99 Canadian Sonnets and The Essential Kenneth Leslie. Originally from PEI, he has lived in many parts of the country, including Montreal. Check out Argo co-owner Jesse Eckerlin’s interview with Zach on the subject of his latest book here… Oh, and here’s Zach’s blog.

Preceding Zach, there’s Kasper Hartman, recent first place winner of the QWF’s Quebec Writing Competition for his short story Someone Has to Save Us From This, which is available to read on Maisonneuve magazine’s website.  Aside from his prose and poetry, he is a Montreal-based translator, and editor of the Encore Literary Magazine. Apparently, he is an extraordinary poker player.

As for our emerging introductory poets, firstly we’ll have John Eric Bennett, a good friend of the Argo. An undergraduate student at Concordia University, Eric has been living and writing in Montreal for the last five years, calling London, Ontario home before that. For now, we’re wishing him the best of luck to see his work in print soon, but we think it fantastic enough to kick off the night.

We’ll also have Jesse Eckerlin, co-owner of the Argo, read some of his work as well. Aside from his current work in poetry (with pieces published in Existere Magazine, killauthor, Willowswept Review), reviews and editing for our very own Argo Press (more on that later), he writes for his blog Rusty Allegations and has forthcoming work/work appearing in The Antigonish Review, Prairie Fire, and the Wascana Review.

Now, as per usual:

The reading is free and open to all.
Doors @ 8PM, and the reading will begin shortly afterwards.
Space is limited, so we stress you come on time if you’d like a place to sit.

Coffee, tea, and those little cookies with red gelatin sugar-coated centres will be served.

For more information, please call: 514-931-3442

ps. If you can’t make it, invite your friends!

Hello y’all,

Your friendly neighbourhood bookstore would like to remind you and everyone you know to forget whatever academic, familial and/or professional obligations you may have on January 11th @ 8PM, because the Argo Open Mic is back up and running for its second reading! We hope to see old faces alongside new ones; November’s turn-out was so spectacular, we here at the Argo hope to not just match the last attendance rate, but double it! We want people hanging off the shelves! Climbing on top of each other! Pressing against the display window, all to get an ear-and-eyeful of great local emerging and professional authors!

So, let’s get some orderly anarchy in motion. Single-file, please: Bring your poetry, your prose, your scripts and screenplays, your essays and lectures, your musical talent. Bring your best, bring your worst. I (JP) am personally aiming for fun times with Fetish 23′s Cut-Up Machine, which “[works] along similar principles to those used by Burroughs in his own work”.

As per usual, there’ll be the option to check out some of Concordia and Montreal’s jazz musicians jam at Grumpy’s on Bishop Street afterward.

Remember, that’s January 11th. Doors at 8, readings begin not long afterwards. Make sure you sign the reading list if you want to perform!

Born in Montreal’s NDG borough, Kathryn Dawn O’Brien, now a certified hypnotherapist of San Fernando Valley and a multifaceted writer for stage, film, television and radio (among other forms) will be returning to her hometown to read at the Argo this Thursday, December 22nd @ 8PM from her novel, Murder Has a Memory, the debut installation in her Roberta Law Mystery series. Here’s the synopsis from O’Brien’s website:

“Hypnotherapist Roberta Law gets a fast pass to the twilight zone when a ten-year-old client, suffering from acute insomnia, appears to spontaneously regress into a past life and witness her own murder. In order to help her client, Roberta must turn detective and try to solve a crime that may prove to be nothing more than a child’s overactive imagination at work.

When the investigation leads her into the recluse world of folk-rock icon, Lori Taylor, whose recent reunion with her long-lost daughter seems to be the source of something much more sinister – Roberta is soon to discover that murder has a memory. . .”

Come on by the shop before the time of the reading if you’d like, make yourself comfortable and peruse our selection.

We’ll be selling a limited amount of copies of Kathryn’s book ($19.95 CAN), and she’ll be available to sign copies afterwards. Come get one while you can!

Hope to see you there!

If you need directions to the shop, or have any questions about the reading, don’t hesitate to call the shop at 514-931-3442

Turkish-born and Toronto-based author Loren Edizel will be coming to read from her second novel Adrift at the Argo on Saturday, December 3rd as a follow-up to her book’s launch the Gladstone Hotel in Toronto. Adrift was published by TSAR Books. It’s a novel that will challenge the reader to confront their capacity to engage with a stranger through that stranger’s actions and thoughts, social circles and intimacies. Here’s the low-down on Adrift from TSAR Books:

“John arrives in a Montreal airport with a suitcase in hand. We do not know where he is from, or who he is. The novel sets out to explore his identity by following his daily movements and intimate thoughts, as well as his connections to those coming into contact with him. He writes his own reflections and impressions in a notebook which he carries with him at all times.

The story unfolds through non-linear narrative connections that flow across city blocks, continents and oceans, and meander in and out of characters’ minds, dealing with questions of displacement, identity and meaning.”

And here’s Loren’s bio from TSAR & her website:

“One of her novels, Izmir Hayaletleri (The Ghosts of Smyrna), was published in Turkey in 2008 by Senocak Yayinlari (trans. Roza Hakmen) and a short story “The Conch” appeared (Nov 2009) in Turkish translation as part of an anthology entitled Kadin Öykülerinde Izmir (Izmir in Women’s Stories). “The Imam’s Daughter” was published in Montreal Serai. She has recently completed a collection of short stories under the working title ‘The Confession.’”

The doors will open at 5PM.

Loren will be available to sign copies of her book after the reading.

edit:

Hey everyone,

We’ll change this in the future, sorry you’ve all had to deal with the confusion.
As Loren stated, call the shop (514-931-3442) if you’re confused.

This Wednesday, November 30th!

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Hello everyone,

As previously announced, we are on schedule for our nigh-monthly Featured Reading Series. This month, throw aside your plans and obligations and come listen to Encore Literary Magazine editor Marko Sijan (She-yan), who will be reading from his critically-acclaimed debut novel ‘Mongrel’, published by Mansfield Press. We currently have a limited amount of copies available at the store, so come and grab a copy before they’ll all disappear at the reading! Here’s a sample of Marko reading on Mansfield’s website.

Alongside Marko, we have poet and editor of Branch Magazine Gillian Sze, author of two books of poetry: ‘Fish Bones’ and ‘The Anatomy of Clay’, the latter published in April 2011 by ECW Press. Here’s (1) a sample of her reading and (2) a preview of her work.

We’ll also get to hear from Jaime Bastien, whose short stories have been shortlisted for the Irving Layton, Eric Hoffer and Great Blue Heron awards.

Free, and open to all.
Doors @ 8PM, and the reading will begin shortly afterwards.
Space is limited, so we stress you come on time if you’d like a place to sit.

For more information, please call: 514-931-3442

ps. If you can’t make it, invite your friends!

The Argo’s first Open Mic night was a great success. A big thank you to everyone who came out to share their work! We had a great turn-out of 25 people, half of which were readers, varied in voice and consistent with quality. We’ll be holding the next open mic a month from the last. Here’s the inaugural speech that kicked off the readings:

“A stiff breeze is blowing, the sun is shining: A sinner’s paradise.”

- Commentator, Kenora Centennial Regatta Newsreel, 1966

“Hello to you all.

I’m pleased as pink to hit restart on the Argo Open Mic, and to see you all here, patrons and patience alike. It seems to me that open forums like this are either difficult to go to, for lack of time or will, or just falling out of favor. My hope is that you all disagree with that preposterous supposition.

Whether many will read tonight, or a select few, here’s to the act of. Let’s keep our most biased valuations to ourselves, and let the dialogue of level-headed criticism play out. That is, after all, what poets do in a sense: Have a conversation with you.

Everyone here has been tremendously supportive, and knowing there are at least this many people willing to come out reassures me (albeit only slightly) that running a bookshop with two good friends wasn’t the most foolhardy decision I could have possibly made…

…That was my poem, by the way. Welcome!”

Hey everyone,

We want to ring in the new year with an open mic! Firstly, it’s been a while since I’ve been able to hear/read from any one of you who I’ve known to be writers, so I hope you’ll consider coming to share with myself, the other owners and good friends.

Otherwise, if you’re not at home watching True Blood or foolishly polishing off a bottle of Ballantine’s next to the phone with your old black book set out in front of you, come to our open mic and be a supportive philanthropist of the emerging and polished writers of the city! Afterwards, there will be the option to check out some of Concordia and Montreal’s jazz musicians jam at Grumpy’s on Bishop Street.

Poetry is good, prose is good, pulling up an audience member to read your script with you is good, giving us a lecture is good… Bring your best, and your worst, it doesn’t matter. Playing a song is always nice too.

Doors at 8, readings begin not long afterwards.

ps. Keep an eye out for our featured author readings in the near future!

- JP

Hello dear friends and book-lovers,

For those of you who may have wondered if the store was closing, have no fear. J.P. is here, one of the new co-owners of the Argo alongside Jesse and Meaghan. If you’ll have a look at our history, you’ll get the whole story. For now, I want to reassure all of you that we will do our best to carry the mantle John George had forged back in 1966, and continue to give all of you the same great service and book selection the Argo has always had; if anything, we’ll try to improve it.

With the recent change in ownership, we’ve collectively decided to sell off selected titles to bring in new editions of old favorites and some great titles you may not have seen in stock before. So, here’s the low down:

Select New Titles @ 25%!

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Loads of remaindered titles available @ $5!

Whether you’re an old customer and friend of the store, or a newly-arrived aficionado of literature, drop on by and say hello, and have a look at the sale! Any support can help us not only stay in the community, but improve what’s already here.

Much love,

JP

Friday, Oct. 29 L.S. Cattarini speaks on What Is Future Therapy?, 8 p.m. This event is free. His book will be on sale for only 10$ during the event.

On Wednesday July 14th at 7:30 P.m. Argo will be hosting David Starkey. His bio is bellow. We hope the city welcomes him.

The City of Santa Barbara’s Poet Laureate for 2009 – 2010 is David Starkey.