Welcome to the Sliced Bread web pages
About "Sliced Bread"
Book Review
Links to Bites of "Sliced Bread"
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Sliced Bread by Rosemary Phillips |
ABOUT "SLICED BREAD"
Originally published in 1999 through Loonbook, "Sliced Bread” is a metaphor for life. It is not a
cookbook – for the kitchen that is – I have been known
to burn boiled eggs and potatoes - frequently. It is a series of
biographical and autobiographical stories based on people and events
in my life, in slices and bites (see above for link to the Index of Bites of Sliced Bread and below for the list of Bites posted on this web site).
The SLICES - Each chapter is like a slice of life - like a slice from a loaf of bread. For example:
SLICE 1 - SEEN AND NOT HEARD. The first slice of a freshly baked loaf of bread is the most exciting slice, for when it is cut it identifies the success of the baking and releases the delicious aroma of freshness, tantalizing the taste buds, inviting us to devour it. The first slice can also be the most challenging as the knife shreds the crispy crust and slowly penetrates the delicate soft dough inside. Like the last slice, the first will be the smallest and have the most amount of crust, protecting a very small amount of soft tender dough. The cutting of that first slice will also determine how the rest of the loaf will be cut. Is the slice straight or crooked, thick or thin, or on an angle?
My first slice of life was very much like that first slice of a fresh loaf. From the moment I flew into the world in London, England, through to immigration to Canada with the family, at age thirteen, and my days of high school in Gananoque, Ontario, my outer shell protected my passionate thoughts of life, my deep questions on life, my crying for love. I had been raised with strict discipline, to be seen and not heard. So I withdrew into my crust alone to watch, question and wait.
I cannot give advice as to how another lives their life, for
I have not walked in their shoes. What I can give are slices from
my own life – sharing what I have experienced, the lessons
I have learned, and the influences I have received from so many
who have touched me in one way or another.
“I was reading your book Sliced Bread while sitting in bed. I laughed so hard I had to change my pyjamas.” - Anonymous Review |
“My teachers in life are many and have appeared, can appear, and will appear, in the most unexpected situations."
The title of the book was inspired by my search for, and discovery of, the tragic life of my grandfather, Ernest Harrison, an inventor, who once had the great idea in the 1920’s to design a machine that would slice bread.
Between the covers of the book (and now posted on this web site) are stories of humour with “Infinity at the Outhouse” or the “Condom Complaints Department,” and at the expense of Alex Trebek in “Doors”. There’s introspection with “The End of the Road to Skye,” and “The Cycle Continues.”. And there's the excitement and revelation with the story, “Whales and dolphins” about
dreams and communications with the other side of life (to be posted on the web site in 2019).
There is joy to share and laughter to spread like butter and honey
on a slice of bread.
When we describe something new, unique, profound and ingenious
we often say, “It’s the greatest thing since sliced
bread.” Well here it is – “Sliced Bread”.
BOOK REVIEW OF "SLICED BREAD"
For the Nanaimo Daily News, Dec. 3, 1999
By Melissa Walker
This autobiographical (and biographical) selection of stories,
at a spare and concise one-hundred-and-seventy-five pages offers
a diverting read as much for those of an intensely private nature
as for people who are extroverted explorers of humanity. The author, Rosemary Phillips, a seasoned writer and traveller, who has chosen Nanaimo as her present home, presents the eclectic “Sliced Bread” as her first solo book.
The author’s exploration of places located in the physical,
spiritual and emotional realm is described with great candour inviting us to share in events that have moulded her life. Her voice is clear and direct, even while describing situations more complex than the words on the page indicate at first glance. As bread is profoundly her metaphor for life, each chapter is a successive slice from the loaf and soon it becomes evident that Rosemary Phillips’ life is far from fibre-less, processed white bread.
She relates her physical travels beginning as a youth, with her
family’s emigration from England to Canada and continues the journey throughout adulthood, always seeking and questioning the status quo, in a way that many of us have forgotten or never known. The manner in which the author restlessly ferrets out deeper meaning, instead of settling for what easily lies on the surface, is refreshing. She illuminates the familiar and transcends the ordinary experiences of daily life. Sharing with her readers battles both intensely spiritual, as well as spirited and intense, she compels contemplation of the
slices from her bread of life. In fact, a considerable chewing over of every morsel is required in order to be fully savoured.
Whether searching out teapots as a researcher for CBC, taking in
a concert in the company of Welsh bell-ringers, or getting to know her grandfather after his death, nothing is taken for granted. Compromise or complacency seem to be unknown elements in the author’s varied life as a skilled writer, guerrilla interior designer, studio veteran, spiritual healer and book seller, to name a few of her parts. The incredible circumstances and chains of coincidences that appear to further leaven her experiences, as well as her philosophical,
beyond-the-box approach to life, make “Sliced Bread”
definite food for thought.
- 1999 - Melissa Walker was a member of the Federation of B.C. Writers
LINKS TO BITES OF "SLICED BREAD"
Here are the links to a few of the bites (stories) of "Sliced Bread" posted on this web site.
A Bite of Sliced Bread - A story from the book "Sliced Bread" with links to other stories.
All the Way Round the Track
Bread - the Staple of Life
The Condom Complaints Department
The Cycle Continues
The Dief
Doors
The End of the Road to Skye
From the Heart - John Denver's 'Leaving On A Jet Plane'
Infinity at the Outhouse
The Last Train
That Little Voice Inside
A Lone Seagull
Magic
Man From Mars
Sink or Swim - Advice from B.B. King
Women's Liberation and Crossfire
Watch this page for more stories to come.
The book is presently OUT OF PRINT. It is being revised and awaiting republication in paperback
and E-book format. Bites will be added to this web site as they are revised..
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