Debut author still barking

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This article was published 16/11/2015 (3861 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Gerald M. Sliva’s new book is packed full of childhood memories as he takes a long walk down memory lane.

The Royalwood resident describes the self-published book, titled Barking From the Front Porch, as a humorous, nostalgic true story about growing up in a small town in the 1950s and 1960s. The book is a window into his childhood years at the Kuroki Hotel in Saskatchewan with a “wacky, fun-loving extended family,” providing a lot of the material for the book.

Whether it’s tales of home brew, overflowing chamber pots or sneaky smoking, there are plenty of shenanigans to keep readers entertained, Sliva said. As well as this, the story also has a spiritual side.

Electronic versions of the book are available through Amazon and Friesen Press and it’s also available at Chapters at St. Vital Centre (1225 St. Mary’s Rd.), McNally Robinson at Grant Park Shopping Centre (1120 Grant Ave.) and Prairie Sky Books at 871 Westminster Ave.

”A small town hotel is an interesting and entertaining place to grow up,” Sliva, 71, said.

“My dad and uncle formed a partnership and my dad eventually took it over and my uncle went to work in a gold mine. My mom and grandma were housekeepers and cooks and they also hired a bartender, who lived there.”

In terms of his writing process for the book — his first — Sliva said he would write for prolific periods when the inspiration came over him.

“When it struck me, I would write for two, three, four hours at a time. If an idea struck me at 3 a.m., I’d get up and attack it,” he said, adding he also writes a blog and is regularly on his Twitter feed.

”I tried to include incidents that have elements of humour, sadness and nostalgia. When a publisher asked me what I want to achieve with the book, I realized I wanted to make people laugh and cry and think about life and death,” Sliva said.

“Some people that have read the book say I’ve managed to achieve that.”

Sliva also plans to donate the total proceeds from the first 50 books sold in the city to the Winnipeg-based charity The Sierra Leone Action Mission. The volunteer-driven organization provides support to an orphanage in Koidu, Sierra Leone, that has been devastated by poverty, conflict and the Ebola virus.

For more information about the book, go online at www.barkingfromthefrontporch.com

simon.fuller@canstarnews.com

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