Louise Penny's Canada-Tourism through the Lenses of the Inspector Gamache series

 [Notice:  This is a work in progress.  I will continue to add/refine.  I've just have a few requests to post as I go. I'll post a notice when it's final.]

If you've been reading my entries you probably know that I am a great fan of Louise Penny's novels.  As a result, for a number of years I've been hearing the call of Canada. I expect that many of her readers are from Canada, particularly the Quebec Province.  These readers have a distinct advantage.  They have a visual memory of the settings of her books.  I'm going to use this particular blog to share some of my "home photos" of the real locations of some of the land marks and settings of her novels.

I'm visiting during the early fall.  Fortunately I will not be showing frozen lakes or pine trees covered with snow.  If I've made mistakes as I selected places to photograph the error is mine alone.  In some cases a bit of a language problem may have led me to an incorrect location.

I'll begin in Montreal:

As a reader I really was drawn to the libraries.  I'm currently rereading The Nature of the Beast in which research in the national archives is an important element.  I hope I selected the correct library--"Grande Bibliotheque."  It appears as if there are national archive locations in many places throughout the country.  I had envisioned some grand old brick or stone building.  Instead is it very modern and uses yellow birch as the wood throughout.  It is a lovely contemporary building.  I did not take photos in the national archive section.  There is a guard going into the room and I was too self-conscious to take a lot shot in front of him.  (If I'm going to become a literary tourist I am going to have to become more bold!)

Musee de'Art Contemporain de Montreal

I think this was the museum in which Clara had her first show.  It seems right.  It's a little more "cold and modern" that I feel fits Clara and Peter.  But, I can see it being the setting of her successful first one-woman show.  I kept hoping to see a painting that might make me think of her work--but of course Clara is way ahead of the curve.  I was there as a new installation was going in.  It made me think more of Peter's work.Construction in the area made it impossible for me to see the statue out in front.  The entire city is being refreshed for its anniversary next year.  Construction everywhere.