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The House of All Sorts
by
Emily Carr
Before winning recognition as an artist and writer, Emily Carr served as landlady to an apartment building where she bred English sheep dogs to supplement a meager income. A collection of stories about those hard-working days, The House of All Sorts features vividly portrayed tenants who frequently surprise Carr with their foibles, as well as the beloved canines who provid...more
Paperback, 160 pages
Published
June 28th 2004
by Douglas & McIntyre
(first published November 30th 1943)
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It's difficult for me to review this book... On one hand, Carr is a masterful stylist of the English language, who writes extremely poetically. Her book was a quick read and the anecdotes about "landladying" in the early 20th century were engaging, visceral and often quite poignant. On the other hand, I had a very difficult time relating to her, especially in the final third of the book, which is entirely consumed with describing her love of bobtail sheepdogs. I found it endlessly frus...more
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Emily Carr seems to have liked animals much more than people, and this book is about how horrible people are and how wonderful dogs are. I first bought this book years ago because I enjoyed reading Klee Wyck for a class, and I probably would have liked this more had I read it back then. But I lean more toward compassion and understanding than I used to, so it was difficult to enjoy this.
However, her style of writing can be quite refreshing, and there were a couple of memorable passages...more
However, her style of writing can be quite refreshing, and there were a couple of memorable passages...more
An interesting look at a dark period in the life of Emily Carr. In 1913, on her return to Victoria from Vancouver where she had been teaching art, she builds a house on land, inherited from her father. Her intent was to rent out the lower portion of the house and pursue her art in an upstairs studio. Before her house is finished the poor economy intervenes and Emily is forced to take in more renters than she had intended and to give up a portion of her own quarters. She becomes a slave to th...more
In House of All Sorts, Emily Carr, Canadian artist, tells of her time while she was a landlady in Victoria, British Columbia. She thought she would be able to earn money and paint as well. Instead for 22 years, she was busy taking care of the tenants' many complaints.
It has been said that there were those in Victoria that did not like Emily. They considered her rude. Reading this book, I can see why some would've thought so for in order to be a landlady she developed a tough exterior. Sh...more
It has been said that there were those in Victoria that did not like Emily. They considered her rude. Reading this book, I can see why some would've thought so for in order to be a landlady she developed a tough exterior. Sh...more
I read this book 20 years ago and I still think of these touching and entertaining stories often. Carr was not only an accomplished artist but also an excellent writer whose eccentric personality adds to the quality of the stories she tells. Anyone who has ever been a landlord can certainly relate to many of the adventrues she has in this role.
Emily Carr went onto become a renowned painter in British Columbia, but this book was written in the 40's before her fame. It's vignettes about the people who lived in her boarding house while she was trying to make ends meet with her painting. All the chapters are about 2 pages long so it's a great book to read in bed if you're too tired to read too much but you need to read something. Ms Carr is rather sharp and forthright about how she feels about her tenants (she's a reluctant landlord at...more
I think this was the first book that made me want to write. This book chronicles Emily's sad, withdrawn life as a boarding house maid in Victoria. The abuse and use she saw at the hands of her tenants, her mischeiviousness to subvert their gaze, and the passion for her art that went on in her attic room. It's amazing how she balances the narrative of her own yearning with the humor of her circumstances in this short book.
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Emily Carr (December 13, 1871 – March 2, 1945) was a Canadian artist and writer heavily inspired by the indigenous peoples of the Pacific Northwest Coast. One of the first painters in Canada to adopt a post-impressionist painting style, Carr did not receive widespread recognition for her work until later in her life. As she matured, the subject matter of her painting shifted from aboriginal themes...more
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