Salon .ll.

Welcome to Salon .ll.

Salon .ll. publishes book reviews, interviews, essays on writers, books, everything that books are about, and the world at large. We look for writing that is smart, succinct and timely. If you would like to contribute to Salon .ll., please send a query to info [a] lindaleith [dot] com with your proposal.

Photo: Contributing editors Annabelle Moreau and Marie-Andrée Lamontagne (left), with directrices littéraires Annie Heminway and Ève Pariseau (right), April 2012. 

Origin Stories: Christmas Weekend By Monique Polak

Monique Polak
13 August 2025

There’s a story behind every book. For Christmas Weekend by Monique Polak, that story is especially personal. Inspired by her own life, this heartwarming tale of a blended family over the holidays shows how real experiences can become unforgettable fiction.

Origin Stories: Sentence By Mikhail Iossel

Mikhail Iossel
12 August 2025

Ever wondered how a story finds its way into the world? Here’s your chance. Discover how Sentence: Stories by Mikhail Iossel took shape, from an idea on the page to a book readers can now call their own.

Gripped by Felicia Mihali’s A Ramshackle Home, Part II

Kenneth Radu
26 August 2024

Kenneth Radu’s reflections on his family history and a poignant photograph from the past enrich his engagement with Felicia Mihali’s A Ramshackle Home, deepening his understanding of its themes of memory, cultural roots, and the complexities of returning to one’s origins.

Gripped by Felicia Mihali’s A Ramshackle Home, Part I

Kenneth Radu
26 August 2024

Kenneth Radu’s reflections on his family history and a poignant photograph from the past enrich his engagement with Felicia Mihali’s A Ramshackle Home, deepening his understanding of its themes of memory, cultural roots, and the complexities of returning to one’s origins.

Where They Stood: The Publishing Story

Linda Leith
31 March 2023

Our recent title, Where They Stood: The Evolution of the Black Anglo Community in Montreal, came about thanks to a phone call from the Black Community Resource Centre.

Second-Hand Glory: Reading Undersong

Kenneth Radu
15 March 2022

Kenneth Radu's visit to Dorothy and William Wordsworth's cottage informs and enlightens his reading (and rereading) of Kathleen Winter's exquisite Undersong.

Matrix: the early years

Philip Lanthier
21 February 2022

Matrix Magazine has a long and varied history as one of Quebec's more prominent English-language literary magazines. Philip Lanthier tells its origin story. 

Translate ... or transcreate?

Sophie Voillot and Leila Marshy
16 September 2021

The Philistine translator Sophie Voillot had a daring idea about how the novel needed to be translated. She and author Leila Marshy sat down to discuss their approach.

My Hockey Sweater (after Roch Carrier)

Endre Farkas
20 June 2021

Habs fever hit Endre Farkas as a small boy in Communist Hungary with the surprise arrival of a red wool sweater with a CH in the middle. 

The French Connection

Norman Ravvin
18 June 2021

Jack Kerouac wrote several unpublished works in French. Norman Ravvin explores the seminal author's Quebec roots.

Living Elsewhere

Kenneth Radu
21 April 2021

Kenneth Radu dives into the layers of memory and displacement that is the story of Alina Dumitrescu's childhood in Communist Romania.

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