Hello, New Year

We have been enjoying 2014 for ten days already, but it is never too late to wish everybody a marvellous, prosperous new year, full of beauty, warmth, and of course beautiful books. It is also a good  time to remember what a good run we had last year, and confess our intention to outshine it.

Spring is our time for the Alcuin book design competition, and out of more than 200 submissions, our judges chose 41 outstanding winners. Those who did not have a chance to browse these well-designed, beautifully produced books, can settle for a peek here, here, and here. It is not the same as holding them and turning the fine pages, but at least you get the idea.

Not only was Will Reuter one of the judges in this competition, but we also celebrated his work by awarding him the Robert R. Reid award and medal. In return, he rewarded us by entertaining us with his knowledge and wit in a great interview.

While other society's AGMs are a yawn, ours was a sold-out event. No wonder, since our guest of honour, Scott McIntyre, provided a great talk about his experience in the publishing industry.

Fall was a great time for book lovers. October is not only the time for Vancouver Writers Fest, but at the beginning of the month, the Society was involved in quite a few book events. Wazygoose brought together printers and book artists who displayed their work and created some interesting demonstrations for the public. We also got to celebrate the winners of the Alcuin Book Awards, both in Vancouver and in Toronto. You can read more about the other fall events here.

We closed the year with the book auction, where we had a good time while purchasing books at a good price, and a meeting with David Zieroth at Vancouver Public Library.

A nod to our Amphora team who in 2013 worked around the clock to deliver four issues instead of the usual three. (Thank you, Peter Mitham!) Chances are you have just received the last one, hot out of the printing press.

And do not forget that our blog brought you in touch with all the book events in town and will continue to do so in the year to come.

While we hope you enjoyed some of these events, we are confident 2014 will be even more interesting and engaging. We are planning some of our traditional events, but at the same time, some new workshops and lectures are brewing, and there will be some surprise speakers and guests that hopefully you will be delighted to meet. All in all, a bookful year!