New Releases by John Busby

The first biography of Canada''s most enigmatic literary figure, a self-described "great practitioner of deceit."

A riveting true story of how one incident can turn a family''s life upside down. When Cylin Busby was 9 years old, an attack on her father meant her normal life was transformed to one of 24 hour armed guards, fences around the house, and no contact with friends.

This is a fully revised and updated new version of a popular RSPB handbook to the art and joy of drawing birds.John Busby beautifully conveys his own remarkable ability to capturethe grace and motion of living birds, illustrating his ideas andsuggestions with many examples of his own work. He also uses illustrations from over 45 other talented bird artists todemonstrate a variety of principles and techniques. The text covers awealth of topics, including choice of media, sketching from life,composition and different ways of interpreting the subject matter. Thisis a beautiful and inspiring book which will appeal to aspiring artistsand anyone who has ever been entranced by the beauty of birds.

Ever wondered where novelists get the inspiration for their characters? Why the hero or villain of your favourite book seems oddly familiar? Who inspired Mordecai Richler to create Bernard Gursky; Margaret Atwood to create Zenia in The Robber Bride? In which novel does Northrop Frye appear (as a character named Morton Hyland)? The answers can be found in Character Parts, Brian Busby’s irreverent yet authoritative guide to who’s really who in Canadian literature. The most original and entertaining reference book to be published in years, Character Parts is the behind-the-scenes look at CanLit we have all been waiting for. Brian Busby settles the suspicions that arise when a fictional character reminds you of a real-life one, listing the sources for characters from the whole of Canadian literature. His canvas stretches from the settlers who inspired 1852’s Roughing It in the Bush to Glenn Gould’s appearance as Nathaniel Orlando Gow in Tim Wynne-Jones’ The Maestro, and beyond. But Character Parts is also chock-full of fascinating, less famous people who have been immortalized in Canadian books: seductive Alberta politicians, British army generals, anarchists, models, aristocrats -- and, of course, parents, siblings and ex-spouses. Authoritative, but presented with a light touch, Character Parts is as at home in a university library as on a bathroom shelf. It’s that rare find: an exemplary reference book that is also an absolutely entertaining read in its own right.