Treasa Levasseur on touring Canada through the pages of a classic collection

Musician and singer Treasa Levasseur has been crisscrossing the country as a performer. She's also put on a lot of (figurative) mileage as a reader, visiting Canadian cities and towns in the pages of books. In this segment of her literary road trip, she travels from coast to coast to coast inside the pages of From Ink Lake, an anthology of Canadian stories selected by Michael Ondaatje and published in 1990. This interview originally aired on March 7, 2016.

HOW SHORT STORIES ARE LIKE TOUR DATES

I chose this collection because it's a very Canadian journey that takes you to a lot of different places. I was also struck by how an anthology of Canadian short stories is very much like going on tour, in the sense that you just drop into places for a night or a day or a show, and you just get a little moment in that place. You might have a connection with a person, you have a story to tell, and then you're on to the next place.

GLENN GOULD ON THE BEATLES

I really loved the Glenn Gould piece called "In Search of Petula Clark." I don't know if it's because I've done that stretch of Highway 17, the north shore of Lake Superior, so many times in my life, but I really felt rooted in the place he was talking about. But the whole piece is about Petula Clark's career, and his analysis of the Beatles' music in this essay is honestly worth the price of the book. It is hilariously arrogant and wonderfully astute at the same time.

SEEING HOW FAR WE'VE COME

This book is, for its time, quite an advanced portrait of an evolving Canada. But it also really underlines how far we have come in terms of the establishment embracing a diversity of perspectives. I would love to see a follow-up book! It's almost like a cocktail party, this book! Like, if Michael Ondaatje threw a party, who would come? Who would be invited now and how would that change the dynamic feel of things?

Treasa Levasseur's comments have been edited and condensed.