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4.4 AVERAGE
4.4 AVERAGE
emotional
reflective
I found this set of essays very compelling - serious, difficult topics and experiences, told with grace and a sprinkle of humour. Very good read.
A fantastic collection of personal essays. Lively, honest, intelligent, and surprisingly measured and charitable. The opening essay in particular, on playing the role of Alice through the Looking Glass on stage in Stratford as an adolescent, in the context of absent parents, stage fright, and a debilitating health condition, is a masterclass on essay writing.
What an amazing book by a remarkable person. Polley can't help but be interesting and articulate, but there is so much more here.
Of course most of us don't get to have breakdowns on the Stratford Stage, get blown up by Terry Gilliam and so on. But many of us have suffered with pain, tragedy, loss, and trauma. Few of us though are able to articulate it so very well and with such care and grace.
Of course most of us don't get to have breakdowns on the Stratford Stage, get blown up by Terry Gilliam and so on. But many of us have suffered with pain, tragedy, loss, and trauma. Few of us though are able to articulate it so very well and with such care and grace.
June 16, 2022 Update On the occasion of the UK publication of Run Towards the Danger, the Guardian/Observer published an extended excerpt on June 12, 2022 from the book which you can read here.
From Child Actor to Film Screenwriter/Director
Review of the Penguin Press hardcover edition (March 1, 2022)
Sarah Polley as Alice and Michelle Fisk as the Red Queen in a publicity still for the Stratford Festival's 1994 production of "Alice Through the Looking Glass." Image sourced from Pinterest.
From there she went on to work on many Canadian independent films, with a final on-screen appearance in Bruce McDonald's rock'n'roll movie Trigger* (2010) (a cameo appearance as the stage manager, glimpsed at 0'19" to 0'20" in the linked trailer).
In the last decade or so she has written, produced and/or directed her own films "Take This Waltz" (2011) and the family memoir/documentary "Stories We Tell" (2012), as well as adapting for the screen the works of several iconic Canadian writers with "Away From Her" (2006) (based on a short story by [a:Alice Munro|6410|Alice Munro|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1494056984p2/6410.jpg]), "Alias Grace" (TV mini-series 2017) (based on the novel by [a:Margaret Atwood|3472|Margaret Atwood|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1282859073p2/3472.jpg] and the upcoming "Women Talking" (late 2022 release?) (based on the novel by [a:Miriam Toews|8359|Miriam Toews|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1322022303p2/8359.jpg]). This all while raising 3 children in the past decade as well.
While all of that might sound idyllic and extremely accomplished, behind the scenes the journey was often fraught with the inordinate pressures and terrors of childhood acting, the loss of a mother at a young age, various childhood diseases and conditions: one which required major spinal surgery, an [alleged - have to be careful] traumatic pedophilic sexual assault by a now notorious and disgraced Canadian radio broadcaster and an accidental brain concussion which took years to overcome.
Polley approaches these most difficult periods and events in her life in 6 extended memoir essays in this recently published collection, some sections of which she mentions that she has been writing and editing for 20 years, as she has worked to overcome their psychological and physical effects. The result is an empowering and triumphal statement of her dedication, perseverance and survival.
Trivia and Links
There are excellent Sarah Polley mini-biographies / career overviews at Northern Stars and Wikipedia.
* The rather insanely catchy (to me anyway) song in the "Trigger" trailer is "Standing Alongside Gone" by the Canadian indie-band Cookie Duster and you can hear their original version here, and watch the song's full sequence from the "Trigger" movie here [language content warning if you click on the latter] (For context, the movie deals with a feuding fictitious rock duo with the band name of Trigger and their reuniting for a reunion concert, the duo are portrayed by Canadian actors Molly Parker and Tracy Wright, for the latter, the film was her final screen appearance prior to her death from cancer).
From Child Actor to Film Screenwriter/Director
Review of the Penguin Press hardcover edition (March 1, 2022)
When I first met concussion specialist Dr. Michael Collins, after three and a half years of suffering from post-concussive syndrome, he said, “If you remember only one thing from this meeting, remember this: run towards the danger.” - Sarah Polley.I don't know how well Sarah Polley (1979-) is known internationally, but in Canada she is pretty iconic. This popularity has its roots in her childhood with a starring role in Terry Gilliam's film "The Adventures of Baron Munchhausen" (1988), the popularity of the Canadian TV-series "Road to Avonlea" (1990-1996) based on the stories of [a:Lucy Maud Montgomery|20369871|Lucy Maud Montgomery|https://s.gr-assets.com/assets/nophoto/user/u_50x66-632230dc9882b4352d753eedf9396530.png], and a theatrical debut at the age of 15 in the lead role of our Stratford Festival's stage adaptation of Lewis Carroll's [b:Through the Looking-Glass and What Alice Found There|83346|Through the Looking-Glass and What Alice Found There (Alice's Adventures in Wonderland, #2)|Lewis Carroll|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1359299332l/83346._SY75_.jpg|45962572] (titled as "Alice Through the Looking Glass").
Sarah Polley as Alice and Michelle Fisk as the Red Queen in a publicity still for the Stratford Festival's 1994 production of "Alice Through the Looking Glass." Image sourced from Pinterest.
From there she went on to work on many Canadian independent films, with a final on-screen appearance in Bruce McDonald's rock'n'roll movie Trigger* (2010) (a cameo appearance as the stage manager, glimpsed at 0'19" to 0'20" in the linked trailer).
In the last decade or so she has written, produced and/or directed her own films "Take This Waltz" (2011) and the family memoir/documentary "Stories We Tell" (2012), as well as adapting for the screen the works of several iconic Canadian writers with "Away From Her" (2006) (based on a short story by [a:Alice Munro|6410|Alice Munro|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1494056984p2/6410.jpg]), "Alias Grace" (TV mini-series 2017) (based on the novel by [a:Margaret Atwood|3472|Margaret Atwood|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1282859073p2/3472.jpg] and the upcoming "Women Talking" (late 2022 release?) (based on the novel by [a:Miriam Toews|8359|Miriam Toews|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1322022303p2/8359.jpg]). This all while raising 3 children in the past decade as well.
While all of that might sound idyllic and extremely accomplished, behind the scenes the journey was often fraught with the inordinate pressures and terrors of childhood acting, the loss of a mother at a young age, various childhood diseases and conditions: one which required major spinal surgery, an [alleged - have to be careful] traumatic pedophilic sexual assault by a now notorious and disgraced Canadian radio broadcaster and an accidental brain concussion which took years to overcome.
Polley approaches these most difficult periods and events in her life in 6 extended memoir essays in this recently published collection, some sections of which she mentions that she has been writing and editing for 20 years, as she has worked to overcome their psychological and physical effects. The result is an empowering and triumphal statement of her dedication, perseverance and survival.
Trivia and Links
There are excellent Sarah Polley mini-biographies / career overviews at Northern Stars and Wikipedia.
* The rather insanely catchy (to me anyway) song in the "Trigger" trailer is "Standing Alongside Gone" by the Canadian indie-band Cookie Duster and you can hear their original version here, and watch the song's full sequence from the "Trigger" movie here [language content warning if you click on the latter] (For context, the movie deals with a feuding fictitious rock duo with the band name of Trigger and their reuniting for a reunion concert, the duo are portrayed by Canadian actors Molly Parker and Tracy Wright, for the latter, the film was her final screen appearance prior to her death from cancer).
Fabulous, honest and brave. Polley has an important message for anyone (all of us) who have experienced any kind of trauma(s) in our lives; own it, see it, look it in the eye and talk about it. Only then can one stand on top of it and get on with life... and with any luck, your best life.
An easy 5 stars. I loved every single section of this book, and was fasincated/horrified by everything Sarah Polley has had to go through in her life. I didn’t know much about her background, or her negative acting experiences. I was especially interested in her concussion recovery. The strategies used were unlike any I’ve ever heard recommended before, and now I want to do further reading. I’m really glad I did the audiobook, because I have always loved her voice, and it made me feel like she was personally telling me her stories. I can tell this is one I will revisit in the future!
I know that I will go back to this audiobook later, just like I know that I will watch Stories We Tell again, and not just because she has a great voice, but because I love to hear people when they've finally figured out what they want to say.
The joys and survival of a Canadian talent.
A compilation of beautiful narrative essays on some of the more heartbreaking experiences in Polley’s life, dotted with people who genuinely cared.
A compilation of beautiful narrative essays on some of the more heartbreaking experiences in Polley’s life, dotted with people who genuinely cared.