There’s something about the heat of summer that screams nostalgia. It lends itself so well to remembering those long days outdoors, nights by the campfire, ice-cream outings and other quintessentially summer pursuits that we wistfully wish for all these years later. In keeping, this week’s reading list plays into the historical theme, looking for books that may just induce a little bit of nostalgia all on their own.
Buying on Time
by Antanas Sileika
This will hit home with anyone who grew up in the suburbs during the 1950s and 60s. Humour, tragedy and personal embarrassments abound in this tale of an Eastern European immigrant family searching for the good life outside of Toronto.
Davy the Punk
by Bob Bossin
Toronto in the 1930s and 40s was nicknamed “the Good”, but the seedy underbelly of the city was tantalizingly bad—and full of bookies, mobsters and shady dealings. Bob Bossin’s memoir of his father paints a portrait of his dad’s colourful connections and offers a glimpse of the city’s history that not many remember.
Sailor Girl
by Sheree-Lee Olson
Looking at more recent history, Sailor Girl is the coming-of-age tale of a young woman looking for her calling in life amid the cargo boats of the Great Lakes in the summer of 1981. She gets first-hand experience of the hard life on the lakers—and finds that she might just belong after all.
Book of Hours
by George A. Walker
So many of us remember exactly where we were an what we were doing on 9/11. Book of Hours captures in narrative imagery what is too devastating for words: the individual moments of innocence and routine life that ended with the onslaught of 9/11.
If that isn’t a dose of nostalgia, I don’t know what is. Hope you enjoyed this edition of From the Vault. If you’re looking for more book recommendations, please get in touch!
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