FFWD interviews Andrew Wedderburn

From Calgary’s FFWD Weeky:<!--newline--><!--newline-->A strange Alberta tale<!--newline-->Andrew Wedderburn’s Milk Chicken Bomb<!--newline--><!--newline-->The kid is 10 years old. He has a lemonade stand with his best friend, Mullen. Mullen lives across the street from a houseful of sketchy Russians, who have a curling team that never loses. Mullen’s neighbour is Deke Howitz, who’s saving up to buy a surplus Soviet submarine from a guy in Uzbekistan for only $400,000, which is a really good price, but he can’t get a bank loan. They live in Marvin, Alberta, a town that does not exist – except in Andrew Wedderburn’s debut novel from Coach House Press, The Milk Chicken Bomb.<!--newline--><!--newline-->The book represents six years of work and a lifetime of ambition. "Ever since I first read a book, I wanted one," says Wedderburn. "I didn’t know how it was done, but I wanted one of those things to have my name on it." In 2001, he took a manuscript class at the University of Calgary with Aritha van Herk. "Leading up to the class, I had nothing but bad ideas," he remembers. "The week before class started, I wrote this paragraph about kids and a garden hose. I thought, ‘Kids can do anything! There are no rules!’ Then it turned out there was a whole different set of rules that made for a difficult six years to get the book done, but that initial freedom was really exciting."<!--newline--><!--newline-->"There’s lots of slapstick in the novel," adds Wedderburn. "Curling accidents, gambling problems, fireworks fights, people falling into vats of boiling animal fat, journeys to the centre of the Earth, giant ant people – everything a book can be!" Underlying the various encounters and anecdotes is the kid’s ongoing quest to find out: what is the milk chicken bomb? "It’s too awful for anyone to tell him what it is," says Wedderburn. "All he knows is that it’s the worst thing in the world."<!--newline--><!--newline-->Rather than launching at a bookstore or café, Wedderburn went the rockstar route and booked Broken City. For the launch, he’s gathered together three other local writers, including fellow Coach House authors Chris Ewart, Julia Williams and Jason Christie. Topping off the evening are performances by local rock bands, including Wedderburn’s own Hot Little Rocket.<!--newline--><!--newline-->To join in on the action, head to Broken City on April 20. The readings start at 8:00 p.m., the bands kick off at 10:00 p.m. And if you can’t make it, or if you can’t get enough, Wedderburn will also be at McNally Robinson on May 17.