Mary Soderstrom
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marysoderstrom.bsky.social
Mary Soderstrom
@marysoderstrom.bsky.social
Montreal-based writer of non-fiction and fiction. Last book: Against the Seas: Saving Civilizations from Rising Waters (Dundurn Press, 2023) Next book: Thanks to the Memories: How Remembering Can Get Us through the Next 75 Years (Dundurn Press, 2026)
@booktastersauthors.bsky.social
News that was worth waiting for: The Last Bridge, my 20th book and seventh novel, will be published in May 2027 by Dundurn. Yay!
September 14, 2025 at 3:18 PM
It finally came, the Summer Queen's Quarterly with my story Ketamine. And this is only the beginning: shortly I'll be able to post news about the novel in which this story has its roots. The old gal still has a yarn or two in her!
July 23, 2025 at 5:38 PM
Started the big edit of my next book. Always a little stressful to learn what the editor thinks. Good questions asked: must get to work answering them. (The book will come out in March 2026)
July 15, 2025 at 5:30 PM
Had some hellp making the bed this morning from Evvie AKA Evlampia Siberian Glory, the newest member of the family. She's a Siberian cat, supposedly hypoallergenic (so far so good) and very sweet. First animal since the long-lamented Calie departed 15 years ago.
July 8, 2025 at 5:59 PM
To spjr tourism-at-home and to encourage visitors to choose Canada, Canadian National Parks, historic sites and some museums will be free from June 20 to September 2. Compare that with the Trump trolls in the US who are cutting support for national parks there. parks.canada.ca/voyage-trave...
June 16, 2025 at 3:18 PM
Paul Krugman today on what is happening in Los Angeles:
"This is the moment. Everything is on the line, right now."
For more of today's Substack, google "This Is Not a Drill
American democracy is on the line right now"
June 12, 2025 at 1:42 PM
Suddenly we have roses! Hadn't even noticed the buds, but a couple of warm days after a stretch of cool weather seemed to have triggered this burst of colour.
June 7, 2025 at 9:02 PM
Located in an abbey that dates from the 12th century, the Suzanne-Martinet library in Laon, France, houses not only manuscripts and documents relating to local history, but also a section for younger readers that you get to by climbing this elegant staircase. #libraries #france
May 29, 2025 at 8:54 PM
Back from 10 days in France. Among the memories, this plaque in honour of Jewish girls swept up by Nazies in July 1944. May 8 is a holiday in France marking the end of World War II in Europe, and the city decorates plaques like this.
May 13, 2025 at 6:57 PM
Even the Survivalist fringe is getting the message: Trump's policies are a recipe for disaster. Let's hope this cry from his base will get through to him.... #Trump #China #recession #tariffs
April 22, 2025 at 11:32 PM
Bravo!
April 8, 2025 at 5:21 PM
NY Times: "President Trump’s team is selectively stripping away the public record, reconstructing his preferred vision of America ... something foundational is also at risk: Americans’ ability to access and evaluate their past, and with it, their already shaky trust in facts."
April 5, 2025 at 3:26 PM
The Hudson's Bay Company, founded in 1670 and still going today, is in the middle of legal proceedings that may see it disappear, including archives which include the original charter, signed by King Charles II, the first page of which is seen here. To be continued, even if HBC doesn't
April 4, 2025 at 1:54 PM
Looks pretty sad, doesn't it ?

But that's what happens when the ice finally melts. Spring (maybe) is on its way.
March 30, 2025 at 5:59 PM
A bad day for libraries in general, and for the neutrality of information in general: U.S. blocks Canadian access to iconic Stanstead border-straddling library, local officials say.
#archives #libraries #canadavsusa Check out Ben Shingler's story on the CBC website
March 21, 2025 at 1:17 PM
Strange when a book you wrote several years ago gets a second life. Of course it's because the topic was relevant then and even more relevant now. Check out the chapter about the US and Canada. Elbows up, as they say up here! uofrpress.ca/Books/F/Fren...
March 17, 2025 at 11:13 PM
Thought about going to visit family and friends in the US this year, but decided I didn't want to spend our leisure dollars in the US. So we'll change them in to Euros and go to France. It's been a while....
March 12, 2025 at 3:35 PM
The year advances! Sun shines in the back bedroom for the first time right about now! A sort of Stonehenge in Montreal.

Printemps s'en vient... Le soleil entre la chambre en arrière chez nous pour la première fois de l'année au commencement du mois de mars. Stonehenge à Montréal ?
March 2, 2025 at 6:06 PM
Would like to say that I was once upon a time on that edge, high above Yosemite valley on El Capitan. I wimped out, though, and didn't quite make it to the top, so I admire the folks who did this a lot. Upside down flag is a sign of distress and certainly the situation merits this.
February 25, 2025 at 3:22 PM
What a difference a few centimetres of glass make between inside and out!

Quel différence font quelques centimetres de vitre entre le dedans et le dehors !
February 18, 2025 at 6:57 PM
The pleasure of a snow day! Interesting how people seem to be really enjoying this bit of winter weather, as if it’s a reassurance that not everything is changing. ( Photo taken through upstairs window with screens in the way. I'm inside, recovering from a successful hip replacement operation.)
February 16, 2025 at 6:29 PM
It was cold Saturday morning at the Parc des Rapides de Lachine, and the going was treacherous. I made it this far, leaning on my walking stick, but decided this was far enough. Going to have my right hip replaced on Tuesday after all. Would have been terrible to break a leg before hand.
February 9, 2025 at 8:39 PM
Today is the day I tackle BlueSky. Been a member for some time, but haven't really explored it because I've been busy finishing up Thanks to the Memories: How Remembering Can Get Us through the Next 75 Years. All's good....
February 4, 2025 at 2:49 PM
Okay, en avant! This morning I sent off the completed (but unedited) manuscript of my next book Thanks to the Memories: How Remembering Will Get Us through the Next 75 Years. Here's one of the photos that I'm suggesting for reasons that will become clear as the book's production progresses.
January 31, 2025 at 4:43 PM
Before I start making more cookies with the help of my grandaughter, let me wish you all the very for this holiday season and for a 2025 that is full of GOOD surprises. Here's the link to my end-of-year blog, in case you're interested soderstromyule.blogspot.com
December 23, 2024 at 3:01 PM