Faculty of Arts
Culture
How Michel Tremblay became a Scottish sensation
Playwright Michel Tremblay is one of Quebec’s most revered artists, but his works have also been celebrated in Scotland, thanks to the Scots translations of his plays by Martin Bowman, BA’67, MA’69, and Bill Findlay. Those translations were recently collected in the two-volume Michel Tremblay: Plays in Scots.
Society
‘A million dimensions of inequality’
In her podcast series In/Equality, Debra Thompson, an associate professor in McGill’s Department of Political Science, interviews leading academic experts about different aspects of inequality. She wants to ‘create shortcuts’ to provide her audience with nuanced and accessible information about complicated issues.
Culture
An unconventional path to literary stardom
As an undergraduate, Kai Thomas, BA’16, examined old newspaper ads in the McGill Library about runaway slaves. That research helped inform In the Upper Country, his first novel, which won one of Canada’s top literary prizes last year.
Society
A new face for Canada’s top justice job
Canada’s justice minister and attorney general Arif Virani on tackling online hate, the importance of diversity in the judiciary, and how kicking around a soccer ball can break through partisan divisions even in a deeply polarized Parliament.
Discovery
Exploring the roots of the war in Ukraine
After Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022, Maria Popova became one of the media’s most popular go-to experts for providing context for the conflict. The McGill associate professor of political science has a new book out that examines the factors that led to the war.
Discovery
Taking stock of the state of English in Canada
Do English-speaking Canadians still say “chesterfield”? Are we more likely to opt for “Zee” or Zed”? These are some of the questions that McGill associate professor of linguistics Charles Boberg hopes to answer with a national survey that is looking at how English is being spoken in different parts of the country.
Culture
How one bad day led to a triumphant year
Anuja Varghese, BA’05, won two major Canadian literary awards in 2023, but she struggled in her first attempts to put her book Chrysalis together. “I was trying to write what I thought belonged in a literary short story collection.” Things got easier once she focused on the “the weird stuff, the ghost stories.”
Culture
How historical fiction became a literary juggernaut
Historical fiction, once dismissed as a second-rate genre, is now the dominant force in American literature and a magnet for top literary prizes. In a new book, McGill’s Alexander Manshel examines how that happened.
People
She’s a key ingredient in Top Chef’s huge success
When Gail Simmons began working as a judge on Top Chef, she had no way of knowing that she was about to become part of an enduring cultural phenomenon.
Culture
Adam Gopnik on mastery, Steve Martin, and his mother
Adam Gopnik, BA’80, DLitt’13, discusses three recent projects – a book about mastering new skills, an audiobook about his friend Steve Martin’s career, and his own star turn in the film Tár.
Culture
Some summer reading options
Summer is here and the beach (or your balcony or your backyard) beckons. If you are on the lookout for book suggestions, a number of McGill alumni have recently published new works that you might be interested in digging into.
People
The one and only Sheila Kussner
Sheila Kussner, BA’53, LLD’90, is the driving force behind Hope & Cope and its innovative approach to supporting cancer patients, an indispensable ally in McGill’s efforts to create a Department of Oncology, and now, the subject of a new book.