Some of the pitches I’ve made-to review or discuss these new and forthcoming works-will likely land after I publish this, but I would be pleased to review all of these books; if we’ve worked together previously, let me know your time-frame, and if you’re interested in working together for the first time, please share your rate information and specifics about your revision schedule. This is only the second time I’ve posted a list like this: it worked well, but I’m not considering it a regular feature here yet.)
J. D. Kurtness’ Aquariums from Dundurn Press. This 2019 novel, in a fresh translation by Pablo Strauss (whose work with Christiane Vadnais’ Fauna knocked off my proverbial socks), confronts the climate crisis in the context of marine biology. A trusted reading friend has urged me to push this one to the top of my stack.
ANY EDITOR SEEKING COVERAGE, please reach out.
Also from Dundurn (their pocket-sized Rare Machines imprint), Eve Lemieux’s Like Animals (also translated from the French, this time by Cayman Rock) is a debut novel with a Montreal setting, inspired by “people who haven’t learned to love gently”.
ANY EDITOR SEEKING COVERAGE, please reach out.
Another novel in translation from the French, this time from QC Fiction, Vincent Brault’s The Ghost of Suzuko (translated by Benjamin Hedley), also considers love and loss in an urban setting, this time Tokyo. There’s a mention of taxidermy, which has great symbolic potential (along with a squirm factor, of course).
ANY EDITOR SEEKING COVERAGE, please reach out.
Elise Levine’s Say This, from Biblioasis, has strong appeal because I really enjoyed her debut stories and debut novel, years ago (Driving Men Mad and Requests & Dedications). I’m curious to see how her style and voice have developed since then. Lisa Moore blurbs this volume, two novellas, as “immersive, hyper-vivid and true.”
ANY EDITOR SEEKING COVERAGE, please reach out.
Updated September 1/22: Review space secured
And speaking of shorter forms, Alex Pugsley’s Shimmer is out now from Biblioasis. I’m interested to see how much of his previous book was Aubrey and how much was the author (I reviewed Aubrey McKee for PRISM international a couple of years ago.) It’s a challenge that I particularly enjoy, capturing the flavour and intent of a collection of short stories.
ANY EDITOR SEEKING COVERAGE, please reach out.
Dawn Promislow’s Wan is published by Freehand Books and blurbed by Kathryn Kuitenbrouwer, which immediately piques my interest. “A masterpiece…beautiful, painterly, sublime, and sonically exquisite.” That’s high praise. I’ve read few South African writers, so I am keen to explore Promislow’s writing in that context.
ANY EDITOR SEEKING COVERAGE, please reach out.
Bookish memoirs: I love the idea of them. Marius Kociejowski’s A Factotum in the Book Trade, from Biblioasis, is no exception. This is one that I’ve pitched and, if it doesn’t land, I’m determined to try again and find a match. I’ve read widely in this sector and excited to see how this particular memoir fits into the puzzle of antiquarian bookselling narratives.
ANY EDITOR SEEKING COVERAGE, please reach out.
From Goose Lane, Margaret Sweatman’s sixth book, The Gunsmith’s Daughter, is a coming-of-age story set in 1970s Manitoba. Based on Mr. Jones, I’m anticipating carefully selected historical details in combination with strong storytelling and emotional heft.
ANY EDITOR SEEKING COVERAGE, please reach out.
Because I have followed her career closely, from earliest days, I was immediately interested to hear that Farzana Doctor has published a book of poems, You Still Look the Same, with Freehand Books. Viewed in the broader context of her writing, I’m eager to explore the way that familiar themes and preoccupations surface in a different form; I’m not equipped to analyze or contemplate this work as a volume of verse. That’s for the poets!
ANY EDITOR SEEKING COVERAGE, please reach out.
Phew, you can hear the recoil of many of a reviewer in response to the summary of K.S. Covert’s debut novel from Dundurn, The Petting Zoo: all the talk of vaccines and masks, gloves and isolation. But in the context of post-apocalyptic CanLit and post-pandemic lit, there’s much to discuss.
ANY EDITOR SEEKING COVERAGE, please reach out.
Len & Cub: A Queer History by Meredith J. Batt and Dusty Green, from Goose Lane, immediately appeals. It’s partly because of the abundance of visual material: there are so many expressive and evocative photographs in this volume. It’s also because the New Brunswick setting caught my eye; as much as I’ve tried to increase the amount of Atlantic Canadian reading in my stacks, New Brunswick’s stories remain in the minority, and here is an historical volume to address that gap.
ANY EDITOR SEEKING COVERAGE, please reach out.
Everything about Sharon English’s novel Night in the World, from Freehand, intrigues me. I really loved Uncomfortably Numb back in 2002: authentic and heartfelt, with a particular way of bridging the specific and universal that spoke to me. Just leafing through this volume, I want to start reading right away, as a reader. But my experience with this setting and these themes makes it irresistible as a reviewer.
ANY EDITOR SEEKING COVERAGE, please reach out.
Updated September 1/22: Review space secured
Another which excites me tremendously, too, is Andrew Hunter’s It Was Dark There All the Time: Sophia Burthen and the Legacy of Slavery in Canada, from Goose Lane, because last year I read a few dozen books about the legacy of slavery in the U.S. and Canada, none of which took quite the same approach as this volume. The cover blurb from Lawrence Hill increases my interest too: “Thoroughly researched, self-reflexive, soulful.”
ANY EDITOR SEEKING COVERAGE, please reach out.
Updated September 1/22: Review space secured