26th Sep 2009
They wouldn’t much like our clothing
Banner day in K-W: Margaret Atwood was here to promote her new book and kick off Word on the Street, and Cory Doctorow was here being Cory.
The KPL was quite a flurry of activity for Ms Atwood. Her trademark wit came through, and her dry (arid) delivery certainly added to the merriment. Apparently, Kitchener will forever be in her heart associated with spinach salad, since this was the first place that she ever tasted one (long before it was de rigueur, or so she told us).
The reading was interesting. The first passage she read described Toby’s apartment over the meat processing shop and subsequent foray into furries. The second passage was about Ren’s early life with Lucerne and Zeb in the God’s Gardeners quarters. The third was a bit of a sermon from Adam One (Mole Day, a very auspicious day indeed). And then she must have been feeling a little feisty or something, because she actually sang the Mole Day hymn for us.
Atwood was funny and very warm and just this side of absent-minded professor in her embracing of the tweets of twitter. Though with a rapier in her gown (burnished with velvet) for the “host/interviewer” they dragged out from a local tv station who shall remain nameless because that’s how bad he was.
He started off with a fair lob, I suppose – i.e. why is future fiction “so negative” (I’m not sure “dystopia” was within his reach). Atwood gave a little history lesson in both utopic and dystopic world views, touching on 1895, the first half of the 20th century and so on.
So when he asked her what she thought 18th Century people would think about us, she cut him to the quick (we are assuming he thought 1895 was in the 18th Century). Very entertaining for those of us in the room who were not him. And, of course, the only good random answer would be “They wouldn’t much like our clothing.”
After a valiant attempt by him to get in the game, and some more <gentle> mockery from her, he was more than happy to move on to the Q&A.
Can’t say the questions were all that inspired, but Atwood did her best to turn each one into the kernel of an interesting observation or anecdote. Then just like that, it was time for book signings.
Kindly, Melle and Melissa stuck around with me while I waited. Dana and Ashley were a ways ahead of us, so we made them wait too. Though lots of people were getting pictures and such, I was content to tell her it was a pleasure and then move on.
Unfortunately, I wasn’t able to go listen to Cory …yet, but Melle did. AND, of course, I will see him in a few weeks at Perimeter’s q2c Festival.
JEALOUS MUCH?
Yes!