The Hungry Ghosts by Shyam Selvadurai (Doubleday, 2013). Click to buy this book from Amazon.ca: The Hungry Ghosts

Text of introduction by Joseph Planta:

I am Planta: On the Line, in Vancouver at TheCommentary.ca.

The acclaimed author Shyam Selvadurai joins me now. He’s just published his latest novel, his third: The Hungry Ghosts. In it, Shivan is a man in his early thirties, who has to bridge the gaps in his life. He’s got a dying grandmother in Sri Lanka, who one reviewer called one of “the most complex and believable Asian female characters” she’d read lately. They have a fraught relationship. He’s got to bridge the gap between his native Sri Lanka and his adopted homeland of Canada. Shivan also has to deal with his sexuality in the context of his family and their cultural background, and being a homosexual in 1980s Canada. I’ll get Mr. Selvadurai to tell us about this book, his characters, and perhaps to enlighten us to the two pressing questions that most interviewers might have for him: Why so long between this book and his previous one, Cinnamon Gardens? And how much of him is in this new book, as he perhaps was in his first book nearly twenty years ago, Funny Boy. The website for more is at www.shyamselvadurai.com. The Hungry Ghosts is published by Doubleday. Please welcome to the Planta: On the Line program, Shyam Selvadurai; Mr. Selvadurai, good morning.

Text of introduction by Joseph Planta:

I am Planta: On the Line, in Vancouver at TheCommentary.ca.

Bal Arneson joins me now. Also known as the Spice Goddess—it’s the name of her website at www.spicegoddess.com where you can buy her own blends of spices. She is well known for her two bestselling books, Everyday Indian and Bal’s Quick and Healthy Indian. She also has her show on Food Network Canada and the Cooking Channel. She joins me now to talk about her career thus far, her path to food celebrity fame, which has been eventful to say the least. She came to Canada at the age of twenty thanks to an arranged marriage, not speaking English. She later leaves her husband taking her child, cleaning houses to make a living and going to school. Now, she’s got a university degree in education, and has been teaching viewers and readers the continent over and beyond about Indian cuisine, showing them her modern take. Ms. Arneson will be headlining the 11th annual EAT! Vancouver Food + Cooking Festival, Friday, May 24th to Sunday, May 26th at BC Place Stadium. She is part of the Food Network Celebrity Stage, speaking and cooking, and sharing her love of Indian cuisine. Visit www.eat-vancouver.com for more information. Please welcome to the Planta: On the Line program, Bal Arneson; Ms. Arneson, good morning.

Text of introduction by Joseph Planta:

I am Planta: On the Line, in Vancouver at TheCommentary.ca.

Matthew Lazin-Ryder joins me now. He is an associate producer of CBC Radio One’s On the Coast with Stephen Quinn, which according to the latest ratings is the number one afternoon program here in Vancouver. He also hosted last summer’s The Invisible Hand, an economics program that was one of the most downloaded podcasts on iTunes, and that got a lot of attention online. I understand that its host got a lot of mail about the show. He is a graduate of the BCIT Broadcast Journalism program. You can find him on Twitter: @Lazin_Ryder is his handle. We’ll discuss his work at the CBC, what it’s like working for the public broadcaster, and more. On the Coast is on weekdays at 3.00pm to 6.00pm on 690 AM or 88.1 FM here in Vancouver. Though I don’t get to hear the show live, I follow Stephen and Matthew on Twitter, and frequently listen to the show off of the website. It’s a great program. The website is at www.cbc.ca/onthecoast. Please welcome to the Planta: On the Line program, in studio as it were, Matthew Lazin-Ryder; Mr. Lazin-Ryder, good morning.

Text of introduction by Joseph Planta:

I am Planta: On the Line, in Vancouver at TheCommentary.ca.

Sean Holman joins me again. He’s a legend amongst journalists in this province for his many years of dogged and relentless reporting from Victoria, which we’d all read on his website, the much-missed Public Eye Online. He covered provincial politics beginning in 2003 on his website, ending it in 2011. He was a syndicated columnist and a legislative reporter for 24 Hours here in Vancouver and the Vancouver Sun. He won a Jack Webster award for his work, and hosted a show on CFAX and taught journalism at the University of Victoria. Last year, he left British Columbia for Calgary, where he is now an assistant professor of journalism at Mount Royal University. He joins me now on the heels of last Tuesday’s remarkable election result, as well as following the premiere a few weeks ago of his documentary Whipped: An Investigation Into the Secret World of Party Discipline. It’s a must see, and a much needed view on the politics of recent years. Visit www.partydiscipline.ca for information on the film. Please welcome back to the Planta: On the Line program, in Calgary, Sean Holman; Professor Holman, good morning.

Miah by Julia Lin (Tsar Books, 2012). Click to buy this book from Amazon.ca: Miah

Text of introduction by Joseph Planta:

I am Planta: On the Line, in Vancouver at TheCommentary.ca.

Miah is a recent book from the author Julia Lin. It is the first Taiwanese-Canadian short story collection ever published. Ms. Lin joins me now, and I’ll ask her about the stories in this book, what compelled her to write it, and what of the author is reflected in this collection, what of the experience the Taiwanese have had is in this book, whether it’s the experience of being occupied, as well as those who leave there to come to Canada. From what I’ve read of the book so far, the writing is wonderful. It’s perceptive and poignant, and this is a wonderful insight into what life was and is like for a lot of people. It’s a great insight into the Taiwanese experience, as well as the Canadian one. Julia Lin was born in Taiwan, and grew up there and in Vietnam until her family immigrated to Canada when she was nine. She’s has graduate and post graduate degrees in immunology and computing education from the University of Toronto and the University of British Columbia. She has taught high school math, science and computing science for many years now. Her website is at www.julialinbooks.com. Miah is published by Tsar Books. There’ll be a launch for this book on Saturday, 18 May 2013 from 2.00 to 4.00pm at the Dr. Sun Yat-Sen Classical Chinese Garden, 578 Carrall Street. Visit www.vancouverchinesegarden.com for more information. Please welcome to the Planta: On the Line program, Julia Lin; Ms. Lin, good morning.

Text of introduction by Joseph Planta:

I am Planta: On the Line, in Vancouver at TheCommentary.ca.

Well, that election Tuesday night has left a lot of us stunned. We continue looking back at what happened. Mike Geoghegan joins me again. He was on just a week ago, and I don’t usually have guests on so soon after an appearance, but the unexpected election results make it necessary to talk to Mike. We’ll look at how the polls were wrong, how the Liberals pulled this off, and what happened to Adrian Dix. What happens now to the NDP, and what will Christy Clark be up to as she seeks a seat in the house, and governs with her own mandate. Mike Geoghegan is often seen on television as a pundit. He’s a government relations consultant. Visit www.bclobbyist.com. @bclobbyist is also his Twitter handle. He had a great Tweet Tuesday night, where he said that it was the first time he’d seen the winners and losers looking shocked. Please welcome back to the Planta: On the Line program, in Victoria, Michael Geoghegan; Mr. Geoghegan, good morning.

Text of introduction by Joseph Planta:

I am Planta: On the Line, in Vancouver at TheCommentary.ca.

Chuck Hughes joins me now. The star of Chuck’s Day Off, Chuck’s Week Off, and Chuck’s Eat the Street on Food Network Canada and The Cooking Channel will be appearing at the EAT! Vancouver Food + Cooking Festival Friday, 24 May to Sunday, 26 May 2013 at BC Place Stadium. We’ll talk now about food, being on television, his two restaurants in Montreal: Garde Manger and Le Bremner, as well as his recent book, Garde Manger (HarperCollins, 2012), and more. Chuck Hughes is thus far the youngest Canadian chef to win Iron Chef America. The website for more is at www.chuckhughes.ca. The website for EAT! Vancouver is at www.eat-vancouver.com. Please welcome to the Planta: On the Line program in Montreal today, Chuck Hughes; Mr. Hughes, good morning.

Text of introduction by Joseph Planta:

I am Planta: On the Line, in Vancouver at TheCommentary.ca.

Kai Nagata joins me now. We’re going to talk about politics and the press. The provincial election results of the last day or so seem like a good place to start, and then we’ll likely discuss what the polls were reporting, and then the reporting done by the media, both in the traditional forms and the social media that’s ubiquitous nowadays. Kai Nagata is a freelance writer and videographer. He also commits satire at Deep Rogue Ram. They’ve made some hilarious videos there. In July 2011, rather than report the news, he made it, with his very public resignation as the Quebec City Bureau Chief for CTV News. He had worked at the CBC prior to that, and was leaving daily journalism with a much-read 3,000 word essay on his blog at www.kainagata.com explaining his reasons. He proclaimed his faith in journalism to do good, but lamented that it wasn’t being practiced in the newsrooms across this country. Tomorrow, Thursday, 16 May 2013 he’ll be hosting Remix This: A Copyright Cabaret organised by FreshMedia. That’s at the Wise Hall on Adanac. And 01 & 02 June 2013, he and Dan Murphy will be hosting a video production master class at The Tyee. Visit The Tyee’s website for information on how to register. Please welcome to the Planta: On the Line program, Kai Nagata; Mr. Nagata, good morning.

Text of introduction by Joseph Planta:

I am Planta: On the Line, in Vancouver at TheCommentary.ca.

The election was last night, and we’ll look at what happened with David Schreck. The political pundit, economist and former MLA, joins me now to discuss the surprise BC Liberal victory, despite the Premier not winning her seat. Where will Christy Clark run? Why were the polls wrong? What happened with the NDP? What happens to Adrian Dix? We’ll figure out answers to those questions and more. www.strategicthoughts.com is the website for more. Please welcome back to the Planta: On the Line program, David Schreck; Mr. Schreck, good morning.

Text of introduction by Joseph Planta:

I am Planta: On the Line, in Vancouver at TheCommentary.ca.

Opening Wednesday, 15 May 2013 at the Stanley Industrial Alliance Stage at Granville & 12th is the Arts Club’s latest production: Dreamgirls. Loosely based on the rise to fame and backstage drama surrounding The Supremes, the 1980s musical inspired by 1960s Motown music, has taken on a new life with the 2006 film. The score was written by Henry Krieger and Tom Eyen. Joining me now is the actress and singer Karen Holness. She plays Deena Jones. I’ll ask her about the role, the show, and more. With this role, this marks Ms. Holness’s return to the musical theatre. She appeared in a touring company of Rent, as well as productions of Crazy For You and Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat. She also appeared in the movie adaptation of Chicago. She’s one of the stars of the television series Cashing In, which will shortly commence filming its fourth season. You can see that on APTN. Visit www.karenholness.com for more, and www.artsclub.com for tickets and information. The show runs until 07 July 2013. Please welcome to the Planta: On the Line program, Karen Holness; Ms. Holness, good morning.