Author Nicole Brossard

Calgary has a sexy literary scene — you know it, I know it. But listen: the stars have aligned, the fates have collided and this is perhaps the most exciting week of literary excellence that has ever graced my humble Bookends column. I beg you — yes, you — to tear yourself away from the film festival for a night or two and enjoy some absolutely scorching literary talent.

M.G. Vassanji was born in 1950, in Nairobi. His first novel, The Gunny Sack, won a Commonwealth Writers Prize in 1990. He won the inaugural Giller Prize in 1994 for The Book of Secrets and then won another Giller in 2003 for The In-Between World of Vikram Lall. Now he’s got a new book, The Assassin’s Song. You can meet Vassanji at Pages Books on Kensington on September 20, 7:30 p.m.

It’s been less than a year since Angie Abdou launched her debut collection of short stories, Anything Boys Can Do, and now she’s back with a new novel, The Bone Cage. Join Abdou at Pages Books on September 21, 7:30 p.m.

Firefighters need good eatin’, and Jeff Derraugh is the man for the job. For 17 years, he’s kept fire halls stocked with decadent and cost-effective meals. Now you can eat like a firefighter with Fire Hall Cooking, freshly served at McNally Robinson on September 22, 11 a.m.

The Calgary MultiArts Variety Show is back for lucky number three. Host Laurie Fuhr has put together another evening of multidisciplinary mayhem featuring writers Shone Abet, Brea Burton, Möe Clark, Jill Hartman, Kirk Ramdath, Sabo, William Neil Scott and Natalie Zina Walschots; musicians Kara Keith & Your Dignity, ryan fitzpatrick and The Pine Tarts; DJ Leif Olsen; filmmaker Garth Whelan; and theatre from the Swallow-a-Bicycle Performance Co-op. Artistic action strikes The Soda on September 22, 7:30 p.m. Tickets are $8, benefiting the performers and Inn from the Cold.

She’s a two-time Governor General’s Award-winner, a legendary innovator in experimental poetry and a leading voice in contemporary feminism. This week, dANDelion magazine brings Nicole Brossard to Calgary for two heavy-hitting poetic events in celebration of her latest collection-in-translation, Notebook of Roses and Civilization. First, she’s joined by her translators, Robert Majzels and Erin Mouré, for a reading at the Nickle Arts Museum (University of Calgary) on September 24, 7:30 p.m. Then, she teams up with Robert Kroetsch for a Q&A in Science Theatres 147 (U of C) on September 25, 3 p.m.

Pauline Gedge is a master of genre fiction, leaping from historical fiction to sci-fi to fantasy to horror in her 20-year career. In her latest offering, The Eagle and the Raven, she follows the ancient British warrior, Boudicca, and the son of a Celtic king, Caradoc, in their impossible battle against the Roman armies. She hits Pages Books on September 25, 7:30 p.m.

Roy MacSkimming’s latest book, Macdonald, imagines the final days of Canada’s first prime minister as he faces down the threat of annexation by the United States, political scandal in Quebec and utter exhaustion. MacSkimming shares his work at Pages Books on September 26, 7:30 p.m.

Derek Walcott has published over 20 collections of poetry and over 20 plays. And, oh yeah, he won the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1992. He’s famous for his examinations of colonialism, notably in his epic poem Omeros that re-examines The Odyssey as a journey through the Caribbean islands, and in the play Pantomime, which reverses the master/slave dynamic of Robinson Crusoe and Man Friday. He’s the 2007 Markin-Flanagan distinguished visiting author at the University of Calgary, and he presents a reading and lecture at the Rozsa Centre (U of C) on September 26, 7:30 p.m.

According to Oprah Winfrey and Montel Williams, Lesley Scorgie is the lady with the answers to early fortunes. In Rich by Thirty: A Young Adult’s Guide to Financial Success, Scorgie lays out investment strategies to help young people lay the groundwork for financial comfort. She joins the Canadian Women’s Foundation for a special event at McNally Robinson on September 27, 5:30 p.m.

Monica Kidd has been a CBC reporter, a seabird biologist and a natural historian. With two novels under her belt, she now presents her debut poetry collection, Actualities. She’s joined by local poet Nancy Jo Cullen for an evening of wordplay at Pages Books on September 27, 7:30 p.m.

The Calgary Slam Team is gearing up for a trip to Halifax, where it will compete in the Canadian Festival of Spoken Word in October, but it needs funds. In that spirit, it organized a fundraising poetry event, hosted by Mookie Cornish and Sheri-D Wilson, that features performances by the whole team — Shone Abet, Möe Clark, Kirk Ramdath and Sabo — not to mention a brand-new chapbook, door prizes, a live auction and art by Brian Batista. Check out some smokin’ spoken word at the Auburn Saloon on September 27, 8 p.m. $5 at the door.