Click here to view the embedded video.

Ruth Buchanan

Al Buchanan

Parents first

My mother was raised on a farm in Burford, Ontario, and, despite parents who felt the university crowd was fast, she went to university, spent her summers waiting on tables clear across the country at Jasper Park Lodge, travelled alone to Europe, and married a fellow born and bred in the Dominican Republic, my father. Their courtship began in Toronto when one of my mother’s roommates and one of my father’s roommates arranged a sort of group blind date. According to family lore, my mother was only halfway down the staircase when my father, huddling in the entrance way with his pals, pointed at her and quite prophetically said, “That one’s mine.” They moved to Niagara Falls in 1962 (where both sets of my grandparents honeymooned) and got down to the business of starting a family.

Childhood

Me at 5 - Loved that mouse pin

Me

I am the second of five children, eldest daughter, almost Irish twin to the sister next in line. There was lots of squabbling growing up, plenty of me and my almost Irish twin rolling around, scratching and pulling hair. There was plenty of closeness, too, especially with the seven of us squeezing into a VW beetle Sunday mornings as we set out for church. Eventually there was a VW camper van, but that didn’t mean we got to spread out. With my father being a teacher and my mother a stay-at-home mom, we crammed into that camper van for two months every summer, accomplishing feats like driving from Niagara Falls to Belize and back, and camping in Mexico along the way. Not convinced it was a feat? Consider that it was 1973, that Mexico was not yet set up for tourism, that my youngest sister was still in diapers, and that the disposable sort were not available in Mexico.

I remember hundreds of picture books from my childhood, some that I can recite, others where the artwork is firmly set in my mind’s eye. The first novel I remember being crazy about was Anne of Green Gables, an obsession fed when the seven of us hopped back into the camper van and drove to Anne’s stomping grounds in Prince Edward Island.

Youth

Me at sixteen. Made the blazer myself!

I spent my teenage years sewing my own clothes, disgracing myself in English (often getting upward of 20 percent deducted for spelling mistakes on exams), and going “over the river” to Niagara Falls, New York, most every night. Weekdays I was headed to a reputable ballet school. Weekends, it was to one disreputable tavern or another, whichever was most lately rumoured to have barkeeps satisfied by the I.D. ordered from the back pages of a magazine.

Like every other kid in Niagara Falls, I’ve had my fair share of summer jobs─games attendant at an amusement park, where I mastered tossing a ball into a milk tin; waitress at steakhouse, where I learned to dodge the roving hands of the boss; waitress at a family restaurant, where I whisked away wailing babies, earning myself a fat tip; on the line at GM, where I figured out how to read and operate my machine at the same time.

University

At nineteen I headed off to the University of Western Ontario and spent four years studying biochemistry and thinking how cool it was that I understood exactly how the ham sandwich I swallowed became the carbon dioxide I exhaled and the adenosine triphosphate that let my muscles contract. All that changed in fourth year, when I discovered I didn’t much like working in a lab. I did my MBA after that, mostly because I met a cute guy in the library, complained to him about the lab, and he said he thought I’d like business school.

These were the years when I fell in love with Niagara River, visiting it most occasions when I was home, lengthening my running route from my parents’ house just so I could glimpse the gorge, whiling away afternoons in the Niagara Glen.

Love

I met my husband, Larry Cobb, at the Madison Avenue Pub in Toronto. He charmed me with tales of travel─he was just home from Southeast Asia and I was just home from Nepal─and by putting me in a cab without so much as a kiss goodnight. I called him before the week was through.

Work

I spent ten years at IBM, in finance and then selling to the banks, and then two years at Rogers Media, in sales and marketing. By this point, spell check had been invented, and I was taking creative writing courses at night school, selling the odd story to literary fiction magazines and wishing writing wasn’t something I crammed in before falling into bed.

Family

With Larry and me both from families of seven, the original plan was to have a brood of five. After the births of our wilder, louder, messier-than-expected boys─Jack, Charlie, and William─it came time to discuss a fourth.

“I’ll go insane,” I said.

“Quit your job,” Larry said. “Slow down. Write.”

“Really?”

“Yes.”

I quit my job, took to the writing life like my boys did to knocking out each other’s teeth (okay, only William is missing teeth), and never did get down to the business of that fourth kid.

Nice teeth, huh?

Siem Reap, Cambodia

Assisi, Italy

Mont-Sainte-Anne, Quebec

Xelha, Mexico

The Writing Life

Before putting pen to paper, I spent four months researching The Day the Falls Stood Still, a task that was pure pleasure for me. As I approached the end of the first draft, my much-loved father died. It was then that my own grief-ridden struggle with what I believe found a home in the character of Bess Heath. I completed the first draft in a year and a half and spent the next two rewriting it. I was once invited to my son’s class to give a talk on the writing life. Just about every question centered on rewriting, some incredulously asked version of “You mean that five days a week for two years you rewrote the same stuff over and over again?” I’d glance around sheepishly, fearing that the people with the straitjackets had been called, before answering, “Yes.”

At work on novel number two. Historical fiction, of course.

1. Stand at the brink of the falls Stand at Table Rock on the Canadian side of the river April 1 – September 15 (8:00 am to 10:00 pm) or September 15 – October 31 (8:00 am to 8:00 pm) to see the falls at its very best. During these “tourist flow” times, you’ll see about half the natural flow of the river plummeting over the falls rather than a quarter, with the rest being diverted around the falls for hydroelectricity.
2. Niagara Glen Hike one of the trails from the rim of the gorge to the spectacular Devil’s Hole Rapids of the Niagara River. One of my favourite places in the world. More about the Niagara Glen.
3. Maid of the Mist Stand on the right-hand side of the boat to get closest to the falls. More about the Maid of the Mist.
4. Goat Island and Cave of the Winds Take in the falls from Goat Island, wedged between the Horseshoe and Bridal Veil Falls on the American side. Feel like getting wet? Descend to the wooden walkways of the Cave of the Winds at the base of the falls. More about Goat Island and more about the Cave of the Winds.
5. Dufferin Islands These eight bridge-connected islands make a lovely, quiet picnic spot. More about the Dufferin Islands.
6. Butterfly Conservatory Disguise yourself as a flower (i.e., wear bright colours and cheap perfume) to get up close and personal with the butterflies. More about the Butterfly Conservatory.
7. Fort George Visit the reconstructed fort that played a key role in the War of 1812. More about Fort George.
8. Queenston Heights Park and Brock’s Monument Take a self-guided walking tour of the battleground of the War of 1812’s Battle of Queenston Heights or climb the 235-step narrow spiral staircase of the monument to an indoor platform with a view of Niagara Region and Lake Ontario. Now, with everyone tired and hot, cool off in the wading pool. More about Queenston Heights and more about Brock’s Monument.
9. Niagara River Recreation Trail Bike or run or stroll the paved path following the 60 km length of the Niagara River. Pick a section. All of it is scenic, though closest to the falls it’s too congested for more than a leisurely walk. More.
10. The Niagara Bruce Trail section covers the initial 80 km of the 850 km long trail. For a moderately strenuous wooded hike, try Queenston Heights Park to Fireman’s Park. More For a magnificent view of vineyards, orchards, and Lake Ontario from atop the escarpment, try the short Woodend Conservation Area hike. More.

“[The Day the Falls Stood Still] stands on its own elegant prose and the vibrant voice of its narrator.”
− USA Today

“This assured Ontario Gothic story deserves to take its place beside the best novels of the First World War.”
− National Post

“Buchanan weaves Niagara Falls’ history and her storytelling together masterfully.”
− Elle

“An ambitious, sweeping love story…. Put on your late-summer To Do List for sure.”
“The writing here is subtle and luminous.”
− Buffalo News

“Buchanan combines storytelling with reportage of a legendary riverman creating a story as mesmerizing as staring at the river as it plunges over the falls.”
− Publishers Weekly

“I grew up in this area and I know every whirlpool that is described. Buchanan is right-on in her description and the lore.”
─ Catherine Gildiner, acclaimed author of the bestselling memoir Too Close to the Falls

“Historical fiction readers will appreciate the excellent period detail, especially the depiction of the era’s social mores, and the romance between Bess and Tom is also a high point.”
─ Library Journal

“It is a novel to savor.”
─ Historical Novel Society

“Buchanan’s prose is elegant.”
─ Kirkus Reviews

I’m skyping into book clubs. To arrange for me to skype or call into your book club contact me here.

Best of 2009 Lists

Barnes & Noble ~ Best Book Club Selection as per the bloggers ~ Dallas Literature Examiner ~ Back to Books ~ Book Gazing ~ Dewey Divas and the Dudes ~ Historical Novels ~ Historical Tapestry ~ The Indextrious Reader ~ Jo-Jo Loves to Read ~ Lavender Lines ~ Reading, Writing and Retirement ~ Savvy Wit and Verse
Serendipitous Readings ~ The Written World

I’ve become a founding member of Friends of Niagara Falls, a non-profit organization working to preserve the environment and natural beauty of Niagara Falls. Just now we are focused on stopping the high-rise development planned for the green space of Loretto Academy, located atop the bluff adjacent to the Horseshoe Falls. Sign our petition here.

The Globe and Mail calls The Day the Falls Stood Still an “uncompromising tour-de-fierce in its dazzling brilliance”.

USA Today says The Day the Falls Stood Still captures the spirit of Niagara.

Big News! The Day the Falls Stood Still is a Barnes & Noble Recommends selection.

The Day the Falls Stood Still debuts at #31 on The New York Times best sellers list.

National Post calls The Day the Falls Stood Still an extraordinarily assurred first novel.

Elle includes The Day the Falls Stood Still in its September Readers’ Picks.

The Day the Fall Stood Still is an Indie Next pick.

Zoomer! selects The Day the Falls Stood Still as “Required Reading.” October issue, page 127.v

Elle Canada includes The Day the Falls Stood Still in its “Top 3 Books.” September issue, page 84.v

Buffalo’s Talking Leaves Books gives The Day the Falls Stood Still a nod in Publishers’ Weekly.

The Day the Falls Stood Still is a Historical Novels Society Editors’ Choice Title.

Have a listen to audio version of The Day the Falls Stood Still. Available from Amazon or Barnes & Noble or Tantor Audio.

Thumbs up for The Day the Falls Stood Still from the Library Journal.

Cathy interviews Edith Hill Powell, William “Red” Hill’s only surviving child.

Click here to view the embedded video.

My Powell’s Books essay on the Vulnerability of Niagara Falls.

A story about The Day the Falls Stood Still in my hometown newspaper, The Niagara Falls Review.

Pondering the Title
My Savvy Reader post on the significance of The Day the Falls Stood Still’s title.

How to be a Writer
My Globe and Mail essay on getting to the writing life via poor spelling, the science lab, and a stint at IBM.

National Post forecasts The Day the Falls Stood Still as a bestseller.

Vancouver Sun includes me in “Patriots You’ll Soon Love.”

Buffalo News includes The Day the Falls Stood Still in its “Beach Bag Books” picks.