Yann Martel reads from his latest book “What is Stephen Harper Reading?”
Man Booker Prize winner Yann Martel launched his latest book What is Stephen Harper Reading? at an intimate gathering at Patrick Gordon Framing Monday night.
Martel read passages from his novel and answered questions from the audience during the two-hour event organized by Octopus Books.
“In the arts, in the sciences, in commerce, creativity is highly valued, while in politics, I would venture, its value is lower,” he said in his recital.
To highlight the importance of art the event was accompanied by a showcase of works by 29 local artists with the theme of Messages to the Government.
The idea for his novel began with Martel’s frustration at the Harper government’s funding cuts to the arts.
Every second Monday since April 16, 2007, Martel has mailed a novel with an attached letter to Stephen Harper detailing what he hopes the Prime Minister will take away from the literature.
To date, Martel has only received five responses. The novel is based on the mostly one-sided literary correspondence.
“I suspect he is the kind of man who hasn’t read fiction since he left high-school and I suspect he is the kind of man that feels it is a bit of a waste of time,” Martel said. “I suspect he has never responded to me because he hasn’t read them and he is kind of embarrassed.”
Following his recital audience members questioned Martel about his motive behind this project and what genres he is yet to send Harper, such as teen-focused literature.
Attendees lined up for around 20 minutes following the presentation to have the author sign copies of his novels.
Martel is well-known for his award winning novel, Life of Pi. He continues to send novels to the prime minister biweekly. Documentation of his correspondence can be found at www.whatisstephenharperreading.com .