Crowsnest Pass makes the shortlist
Community
Posted By Joni MacFarlane, Editor
Posted 4 months ago
A book set partly in Crowsnest Pass has been shortlisted for the Alberta Readers' Choice Award, a new prize created to promote the work of Alberta authors and publishers.
"Fishing for Bacon" is the debut novel from Michael Davie, a coming-of-age romp about teenager Bacon Sobelowski.
Bacon has an absentee father, a neglectful mother and bad timing. All he wants is to find his special someone. The fun revolves around the novel's supporting cast of predatory women and sentimental old men.
Bacon lives in Bellevue with his mother and grandmother and the story follows him as he experiences the usual small-town angst and desperately pursues a series of hapless erotic adventures. These take Bacon from the Pass to Calgary to Waterton and back again to Bellevue.
While writer Davie is originally from Lethbridge, he spent much of his youth in Crowsnest Pass. It was his years in the small towns of the Rocky Mountains that most influenced his creative spirit. Davie's connections to the Pass are strong. A former illustrator, at one time he was the cartoonist for The Promoter.
According to Davie the Pass was the logical choice as a setting for the book for two reasons.
The first was a matter of familiarity.
"I spent all my summers hiking and camping in the Pass so I knew that it was perfectly catered to my character," said Davie. "A small town is somewhat removed and [Bacon] had to be sheltered from outside influences."
This may not have been as possible if the setting had been a big city, he said.
The second reason a small town was chosen was that it allowed Davie to explore a theme he knew well.
"There's a restlessness that comes out of youth," said Davie. "Usually when you're growing up in a small town, you can't wait to get out. You want to get out and experience things. After you do, you find things aren't as good as you thought. There are lots of reasons to come back."
Davie said he has received emails from people who are familiar with the Pass who recognize certain landmarks and want to tell him their stories.
"They identify with certain things in the book. It's been a lot of fun to hear from them," he added.
The Alberta Readers' Choice Award includes a shortlist of five titles and is determined by the public. Readers are encouraged to vote for their favourite until April 30 at www.albertareaderschoice.ca.
Much like CBC's popular "Canada Reads" competition, the public will determine the winner but jurors will attempt to sway the vote at a panel discussion at Edmonton's Stanley Milner Library.
The winner will be announced on May 14 with a $10,000 prize awarded.
Fishing for Bacon can be found at all Chapters bookstores or you can order a copy online at www.fishingforbacon.com.
