Intervals of Hope by Christopher Canniff - Book Launch

[Christopher]

Hi all, here's some info on my new book, Intervals of Hope. The Virtual Book Launch was November 10, 2021 (link below), and there is currently a Goodreads giveaway of 20 first edition, signed copies, which ends December 13, 2021, so enter now!

Nicholas Dixon lives with his mother and brother in London, England between the world wars. His father, Wilfrid, once with the First Battalion, First Canadian Regiment in the trenches of the Great War, now works in the coalmines of South Leeds and rarely returns to his family. Armed with his father’s wartime journal, a spirited imagination, and a taste for insurgency, Nicholas embarks on a quest to reunite the family. A journey that will forever alter his perception of his father, leading Nicholas to confront his own cowardice.
Inspired by multiple interviews with a former WWII British Commando, whose father was in the trenches of WWI, and through eighty-five letters sent home during WWI by the author’s great-grandfather, Intervals of Hope explores duty, responsibility, cowardice, abandonment, and the disparate paths to becoming a man of honour.

"Canniff's description is as powerful as any writer I have ever had in the Humber course.”
---David Adams Richards, Governor General’s Literary Award winner and co-winner of the Giller Prize.

“The constant interplay between father’s journal and son’s actions was brilliant. Full of human interest and emotion. Can’t praise it enough.”
--- Gordon Schottlander, Veteran, British Infantry, Royal Berkshire Regiment, WWII


www.intervalsofhope.com
www.christophercanniff.com
https://bluedenimpress.com/books/inte...
https://www.amazon.com/Intervals-Hope...


Here is a link to the video of the Virtual Book Launch, held November 10, 2021:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vFI4R...
You can watch the entire 47 minute video or skip ahead to the 33:17 mark, where a challenging question came in from the moderator (which I later discovered had come from my brother).
In my answer to this question, as this novel starts in London, England between the wars, I wanted to elucidate that there are not many books out there set in that time and place, with the British Union of Fascists hard at work in the city. And what further sets it apart is having a father who fought for the entire duration of WWI, and the effect this has on the main character who faces the prospect of having to fight in WWII. But the son's life between the wars has struggles of its own, and a father-son conflict that drives the novel at the outset.
I was also able to interview a veteran, Gordon, many times, who forms the basis for the main character. He was in WWII, trained as a British Commando and a Commissioned Officer who landed on Juno Beach in D-Day, and his father was in WWI. Gordon was at the Virtual Book Launch, and he was interviewed the day after the launch, with CHCH Television: https://www.chch.com/it-was-pretty-sc...

I am interested in whether anyone has read any stories set between or during the wars, whether anyone has relatives who fought in WWI or WWII and what they knew about that relative's time in the war if anything, etc.

And if you watch the video, please like it and leave a comment here or on the video. Thanks!

[Verena]

Your book sounds like a very interesting read. I wouldn't be too hard on your brother - the question is a legitimate one and it gave you the opportunity to explain what makes your book special. Maybe he should have given you an advanced warning - but maybe he had no idea he was going to ask the question at all, and it was a spontaneous decision. Anyway, you need to be prepared to answer questions out of a blue and stand your ground, which you did, and your reply was a good one. I wouldn't worry too much about that.

[Dale]

I agree with Verena. Probably he thought he was giving you a chance to tell the world what is special about your book. To be honest, every genre could be called "saturated" by now, given that over 2,700 new books are launched every day. What sets any book apart is not its genre but its characters and the writing. You gave a solid answer. Good job!

[Christopher]

Verena wrote: "Your book sounds like a very interesting read. I wouldn't be too hard on your brother - the question is a legitimate one and it gave you the opportunity to explain what makes your book special. May..."

Agreed Verena, the question was legitimate and did give an opportunity to explain what sets the book apart. Maybe that was his intention, and it could have been spontaneous. Thanks for your reply!

[Christopher]

Dale wrote: "I agree with Verena. Probably he thought he was giving you a chance to tell the world what is special about your book. To be honest, every genre could be called "saturated" by now, given that over ..."

Thanks Dale, interesting perspective that every genre could be called "saturated" by now. That's a lot of books coming out every day! And I have read that there are anywhere from 3 to 10 different types of stories too, so each one has been done countless times. Thanks for your comment!