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Dear Friends,
Happy New Year! For our first newsletter of the year, we have great news to share with you. Plenty of exciting new deals and clients and a healthy round-up of acclaim and rave reviews for our latest titles follow.
If you missed our special announcement this week, we are proud to be welcoming
Carolyn Forde to Transatlantic Agency as Senior Agent. Previously Carolyn was at Westwood Creative Artists. For the last decade Carolyn has traveled to both the London Book Fair and the Frankfurt Book Fair and New York regularly, and she will continue to do so for her clients in her new role at Transatlantic Agency. See our
press release for more details.
Spring travel plans are shaping-up. For the London Book Fair, both Marilyn Biderman and Carolyn Forde will be attending and representing their authors and the adult division; and Fiona Kenshole for her clients and the Children's and YA division. And for the Bologna Book Fair, both Amy Tompkins and Tim Travaglini will be attending. Please reach out and book your appointments soon, if you haven't already. Catalogues will be available in the upcoming month.
We're looking forward to working together this year. Contact us individually with requests. We look forward to hearing from you!
Warmest wishes,
Marilyn Biderman,
Shaun Bradley,
Sandra Bishop,
Andrea Cascardi,
Jesse Finkelstein,
Rob Firing,
Carolyn Forde,
Samantha Haywood,
Fiona Kenshole,
Stephanie Sinclair,
Amy Tompkins,
Léonicka Valcius and
Trena White
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New Deal Announcements
CANADIAN AND NORTH AMERICAN DEALS
 Canadian rights to the stunning debut novel AFTERSHOCK by Alison Taylor, a compulsively readable story for fans of Gail Honeyman, about an opiate addicted mother and her millennial lesbian daughter and their charged relationship rooted in the painful emotional impact of the tragic and mysterious death of the baby sister, years prior, sold to Iris Tupholme at HarperCollins Canada. World rights ex. Canada available. Film/TV rights available. Contact: Samantha Haywood, [email protected].
 Canadian rights to Bernice Friesen's ISLAND UNIVERSE - the story of Charlie - a brilliant but failed astrophysicist, a sometimes stalker, and a mental ward runaway - When a phone number he hasn't seen in a decade, belonging to a woman he assumed dead, suddenly appears on his call display, Charlie is triggered into a downward spiral stalking the streets of Montreal in search of a lost love - to Freehand Books for publication in Fall 2020. Contact: Stephanie Sinclair, [email protected].
 Canadian rights to one of Canada's most widely acclaimed literary fiction authors, Shani Mootoo's POLAR VORTEX, a seductive and tension-filled new novel about a lesbian couple receiving an unexpected visit from an old male friend that throws questions of true intentions into the mix of their previously monogamous commitment, told with a Mrs. Dalloway stream-of-consciousness narration, for readers of Herman Koch and Rachel Cusk, sold to Jay and Hazel Millar at Book*hug Press for publication in early 2020. World rights ex. Canada available. Film/TV rights available. Contact: Samantha Haywood, [email protected].
 Canadian rights to USE YOUR IMAGINATION! - stories about stories, about the way we define and give shape to ourselves through all kinds of narratives, true or not. In six long stories, Kris Bertin examines the complex labyrinth of lies, delusions, compromise and fabrication that makes up our personal history and mythology. Sometimes funny, strange or frightening, these stories represent Bertin's follow-up to his critically-acclaimed, award-winning debut, Bad Things Happen - to Vagrant Press for publication in spring 2019 by Stephanie Sinclair and Samantha Haywood. World rights ex. Canada available. Film/TV rights available. Contact: Stephanie Sinclair, [email protected] and Samantha Haywood, [email protected].
 World English rights to Adnan Khan's THERE HAS TO BE A KNIFE - a debut novel that investigates themes of race, class and masculinity - both intimate and political - on brown men, exploring ideas of cultural identity and the tropes we use to represent them all the while telling a beautiful contemporary story about love - sold at auction to Arsenal Pulp Press for publication in Fall 2019. Contact: Stephanie Sinclair, [email protected].
 North American rights to ALL THE ANIMALS ON EARTH by Mark Sampson - when the majority of the world's population decides to be childless, scientists develop a process called "pullulation," which causes certain species of birds and mammals to transmogrify into human form; when an accident occurs turning billions of birds and mammals to humanoids, one man is about to find his quiet life turned upside down - to Paul Vermeersch at Buckrider Books, an imprint of Wolsak & Wynn, for Fall 2020. Contact: Stephanie Sinclair, [email protected].
 North American rights to Deborah Hemming's first novel, THROW DOWN YOUR SHADOWS - set in Nova Scotia's emerging wine region, the idyllic Annapolis Valley, the novel pivots around a mysterious and devastating fire at a local winery. Reminiscent of The Girls by Emma Cline and Sweetbitter by Stephanie Danler, this literary coming-of-age story is a candid and provocative portrayal of the young female experience. Sold to Vagrant Press for Spring 2020. Contact: Stephanie Sinclair, [email protected].
AUDIO NARRATION by Gail Shalan of Robyn Schneider's latest YA, to Chatterbox Audio for Audible Studios UK. Contact: Sandra Bishop, [email protected].
 Canadian audio rights to bestselling author Marissa Stapley's THE LAST RESORT, a gripping novel about marriage, loyalty, and the deadly secrets that unravel over the course of a two-week couples' therapy retreat in Mexico, sold to Jolise Beaton at Audible. World rights ex. Canada, U.S., A.N.Z., and Germany available. Film/TV rights available. Contact: Samantha Haywood, [email protected]
Non-Fiction
 Knopf Canada Publishing Director Lynn Henry has acquired Canadian rights to Giller Prize and GG Literary Award nominated Joshua Whitehead's next two books, at auction. The first, MAKING LOVE WITH THE LAND, is a braid of forms that ruminates on topics such as Indigeneity, queerness, mental health, body dysmorphia, and chronic pain through a variety of literary forms, including horror, speculative fiction, poetry, and confession-radically upending how we view Indigeneity. "It is a gift and a privilege to be able to work with Joshua, and I'm deeply moved by his words of reclamation and reinvention," says Henry. "Joshua not only represents one of the most thrilling young voices among Indigenous writers, but among writers anywhere who are reimagining literary forms in order to say something startling, vital and new." Contact: Stephanie Sinclair, [email protected].
 Canadian rights to Samra Zafar's A GOOD WIFE - one of the Washington Post's top books of 2019 - the story of how at fifteen, Samra Zafar had big dreams of going to university and forging her own path, but had her dreams snatched away from her with almost no warning, and was suddenly married to a stranger at seventeen and left Pakistan for Canada; her new husband and his family promised that the marriage and the move would be a fulfillment of her dreams, not a betrayal of them, but as the walls of their home slowly became a prison, Samra realized the promises were empty ones. Desperate to get out and refusing to give up, Samra hatched an escape plan for herself and her two daughters. Somehow, she found the strength not only to build a new future but to walk away from her past, ignoring the pleas of her family and risking cultural isolation by divorcing her husband - sold to Kate Cassaday, HarperCollins, for spring 2019 publication. World rights available ex. Canada. Film/TV available. Contact: Samantha Haywood, [email protected] and Stephanie Sinclair, [email protected].
 World English ex. Canada rights to Billy-Ray Belcourt's Griffin Poetry Prize Winning Collection - THIS WOUND IS A WORLD to Jason Weidemann at the University of Minnesota Press by Stephanie Sinclair on behalf of Frontenac House. World French rights previously sold to Groupe Nota Bene. Contact: Stephanie Sinclair, [email protected].
 World rights to Jason McBride's biography on leading post-modern provocateur Kathy Acker, KATHY ACKER: Her Revolutionary Life and Work, drawing on unprecedented access to her personal papers, manuscripts and letters, as well as extensive, exclusive interviews with Acker's family, friends, lovers and rivals, and chronicling a life of uncommon drama and cultural excitement, sold to Ira Silverberg at Simon & Schuster. Film/tv rights available. Contact: Samantha Haywood, [email protected].
 McClelland & Stewart publisher Jared Bland has acquired Canadian English rights to Griffin Poetry Prize winner Jordan Abel's non-fiction debut, NISHGA, a deeply personal and autobiographical book that attempts to address the complications of contemporary Indigenous existence. Drawing on autobiography, a series of interconnected documents (including pieces of memoir, transcriptions of talks, and photography), the book explores the ways in which the colonial violence originating at the Coqualeetza Indian Residential School impacted Abel's grandparents generation, then his father's generation, and ultimately his own generation. The deal was arranged Stephanie Sinclair, on exclusive submission. (Spring 2020). Contact: Stephanie Sinclair, [email protected].
 World rights to FAST EASY CHEAP VEGAN and an untitled vegan cookbook by bestselling cookbook author Sam Turnbull, that are filled with delicious, easy-to-make vegan dishes that can help vegans (both new and experienced) satisfy their craving for comfort food, sold in a two-book deal to Bhavna Chauhan and Robert McCullough at Appetite Random House. Film/tv rights available. Contact: Samantha Haywood, [email protected].
 World rights to Grant Lawrence's ADVENTURES IN SOLITUDE II, a follow up to the perennial bestseller ADVENTURES IN SOLITUDE, interweaving the fascinating history of the Desolation Sound, B.C. area with his own experiences and further exciting anecdotes featuring the colourful characters of the area, including the inimitable Cougar Lady, the phantom-like Spaghetti Bandit, and the doomed Mack the Knife. As well, Lawrence explores the generational shift of becoming a father and dragging his own young family to the cabin, sold to Anna Comfort O'Keeffe at Harbour Publishing. Film/tv rights available. Contact: Samantha Haywood, [email protected].
 World English rights to Andrea Bennett's LIKE A BOY BUT NOT A BOY - a series of essays that plumb interconnected themes: gender, creative work, death, faith, birth, parenting, and bike mechanics (you can learn a lot about yourself through truing a wheel), sold at auction to Arsenal Pulp Press for publication in Fall 2020. Contact: Stephanie Sinclair, [email protected].
 World rights to investigative journalist with the Toronto Star Moira Welsh's HAPPILY EVER OLDER: How Boomers are Bringing Life Back to Long Term Care, a book for readers of health and wellness greats such as Daniel J. Siegel or Oliver Sacks that shows a massive movement in the making in North America, a revelation in long term care techniques that provide happiness and contentment at the end of life, instead of loneliness and isolation, sold to Jack David with Susan Renouf editing at ECW Press. Film/tv rights available.
Contact: Samantha Haywood, [email protected].
 World rights to Toronto writer Dani Couture's WHAT LUCK IS LEFT, a memoir of one woman's sometimes complicated history of hunting and fishing with her ex-military father, to editor Bryan J. Ibeas at Invisible Publishing for Fall 2020 publication. Film/tv rights available. Contact: Samantha Haywood, [email protected].
 World English audio rights to award-winning author Helen Epstein's memoir, THE LONG HALF-LIVES OF LOVE, the story begins with the author, in mid-life, deciding to revisit her adolescent love, Robbie, and, as the daughter of Czech refugees from communism, she embarks on a journey to piece her story together, helping Epstein understand and come to terms with her intimate history, sold to Rena Ayer at Audible. Contact: Samantha Haywood, [email protected].
 Provisional World Rights to John Hinkley at Moody Publishing for Jill Savage's EMPTY NEST, FULL LIFE a book to help moms navigate the emotional roller coaster of letting go, learn how to untangle themselves from their children's lives, make a healthy transition into a new kind of relationship with their adult children, and identify what's important to hold on to and let go of as their children become adults. With practical and inspiring tips and suggestions to help moms successfully navigate one of life's biggest transitions and move into a new season of life with hope and anticipation. For publication in fall, 2019. Contact: Sandra Bishop, [email protected].
 Anna Comfort O'Keeffe, managing editor at Douglas & McIntyre, has acquired English rights in Canada and the United States to Anne Bokma's debut nonfiction book, MY YEAR OF LIVING SPIRITUALLY: One Woman's Secular Search for a More Soulful Life. Anne has been the monthly "Spiritual But Secular" columnist (Annebokma.com) for the past four years, reporting on the habits of the growing demographic known as the Spiritual-But-Not Religious (SBNR). MY YEAR LIVING SPIRITUALLY is based on her blog of the same name, which appeared biweekly in the Observer in 2017. It is scheduled for publication in fall 2019. Contact Amy Tompkins, [email protected].
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Foreign Rights
 Japanese rights to
1-PAGE MARKETING PLAN by
Allan Dib to Direct Publishing, Inc by Japan Uni Agency in association with Stephanie Sinclair on behalf of Page Two Strategies.
 Simplified Chinese rights to
EXACTLY WHAT TO SAY by
Phil M. Jones to China Youth Book by the Grayhawk Agency; Complex Chinese rights to Domain Publishing by Andrew Nurnberg Associates International Ltd; Japanese rights to PAN ROLLING by Japan Uni Agency Inc; Korean rights to The Wings of Thinking Publishing Co by the Greenbook Literary Agency; Turkish rights to Sola Yayinlari by the Kalem Agency; all in association with Stephanie Sinclair on behalf of Page Two Strategies.
Previous rights sold: Saudi Arabian rights to EXACTLY WHAT TO SAY by Phil M. Jones to Jarir Bookstore; Romanian rights to EXACTLY WHAT TO SAY to California Fitness; Complex Chinese rights to EXACTLY WHAT TO SAY to Domain Publishing by Andrew Nurnberg Associates International Ltd all in association with Stephanie Sinclair on behalf of Page Two Strategies.
 Polish rights to
EQ APPLIED by
Justin Bariso to Rebis by Literatura Agency; Spanish rights to Sirio by The Foreign Office; Turkish rights to Sola Yayinlari by the Kalem Agency all in association with Stephanie Sinclair on behalf of Page Two Strategies.
Previous rights sold: Russian rights to EQ APPLIED by Justin Bariso at auction to Bombora Publishers; Complex Chinese rights to EQ APPLIED to China Times by The Grayhawk Agency; Simplified Chinese rights to EQ APPLIED to United Creadion by Grayhawk Agency; Czech rights to EQ APPLIED to Metafora by Kristin Olson Literary Agency S.R.O; Vietnamese rights to EQ APPLIED to 1980 Books Ltd all in association with Stephanie Sinclair on behalf of Page Two Strategies.
 Israeli rights to
HOW TO BE SUCCESSFUL IN SPITE OF YOURSELF by
Ann Kaplan to S.Simson Ltd by The Book Publishers Association of Israel in association with Stephanie Sinclair on behalf of Page Two Strategies.
 Polish rights to
RADIANT SHIMMERING LIGHT by
Sarah Selecky to Wizard Media Limited by Book/Lab in association with Stephanie Sinclair and Samantha Haywood. Previous rights sold: North American (ex: Canada) Audio rights to Blackstone Audio, U.S. rights to Bloomsbury.
 Simplified Chinese rights to
I'M THINKING OF ENDING THINGS by
Iain Reid to Faces by The Grayhawk Agency. Previous rights sold: UK rights to I'M THINKING OF ENDING THINGS to Simon & Schuster; Italian rights to I'M THINKING OF ENDING THINGS to Rizzoli by Berla & Griffini Rights Agency; Greek rights to I'M THINKING OF ENDING THINGS to Patakis by JLM Literary Agency; Spanish rights to I'M THINKING OF ENDING THINGS to Alianza de Novelas by The Foreign Office all in association with Stephanie Sinclair on behalf of Samantha Haywood.
 French rights to
FOE by
Iain Reid to Presses de la Cite by the Anna Jarota Agency; Italian rights to FOE by Berla & Griffini Rights Agency. Previous rights sold: Turkish rights to FOE to Hep Kitap by the Kalem Agency; Brazilian rights to FOE to Editora Rocco by The Foreign Office; Czech rights to FOE to Leda by Kristin Olson Literary Agency; German rights to FOE to Droemer by the Liepman Agency; UK rights to FOE to Simon and Schuster all in association with Stephanie Sinclair on behalf of Samantha Haywood.
 Simplified Chinese rights to
REST, PLAY, GROW by
Dr. Deborah MacNamara to Dipper by The Greyhawk Agency. Previous rights sold Korean rights to REST, PLAY, GROW to Hanmunhwa Multimedia by Koleen Agency in association with Stephanie Sinclair on behalf of Page Two Strategies.
 Audio rights to
21 THINGS YOU MIGHT NOT KNOW ABOUT THE INDIAN ACT by
Bob Joseph to Audible by Stephanie Sinclair on behalf of Page Two Strategies.
 Korean rights to
THE CONNECTOR'S ADVANTAGE by
Michelle Tillis Lederman to UKNOWBOOKS by Korea Copyright Centre Inc in association with Stephanie Sinclair on behalf of Page Two Strategies.
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Film/TV Deals
Film/TV rights to
Sarah Selecky's
RADIANT SHIMMERING LIGHT - a nuanced satire - both hilarious and disconcerting - that probes the blurred lines between empowerment, spirituality, and consumerism in our online lives, that follows Lilian Quick, 40, single, and childless working hard to build her brand on social media and struggling to pay the rent. Her estranged cousin has become internet-famous as "Eleven" Novak, the face of a massive feminine lifestyle empowerment brand, and when Eleven comes to town on tour, the two women reconnect. Despite twenty years of unexplained silence, Eleven offers Lilian a place at The Temple, her Manhattan office. Lilian accepts, moves to New York, and quickly enrolls in The Ascendency, Eleven's signature program: an expensive, three-month training seminar on leadership, spiritual awakening, and marketing. In just three months, Lilian's life changes drastically: She learns how to break her negative thought patterns, achieves financial solvency, grows an active and engaged online following, and builds authentic friendships. She finally feels seen for who she really is. Success! . . . But can Lilian trust everything Eleven says? Optioned by of Muse Entertainment for television, in a deal by Dana Spector formerly of Paradigm on behalf of Samantha Haywood. World rights available excluding U.S., Canada, A.N.Z. and Poland. Contact: Samantha Haywood,
[email protected].
The exciting news that Brie Larson and Jesse Plemons will star in Charlie Kaufman's Netflix Original adaptation of
I'M THINKING OF ENDING THINGS by
Iain Reid has been revealed! Contact: Samantha Haywood,
[email protected].
Film/TV rights to Shani Mootoo's haunting debut CEREUS BLOOMS AT NIGHT, now a contemporary classic and past finalist for the Giller Prize, the Chapters/Books in Canada First Novel Award, and the Ethel Wilson Fiction Prize, an exquisite cross-generational history filled with thrilling passion and alluring mystery, set in the fictional Caribbean town of Paradise, and unveils the mystery surrounding Mala Ramchandin, an aging, notoriously supposedly crazy woman suspected of murdering her father, optioned by Aaron Barnett at Bitter Boy Productions. Contact: Samantha Haywood, [email protected].
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Drawn & Quarterly Deals
 German rights to
DEPT OF MIND-BLOWING THEORIES by
Tom Gauld to Edition Moderne; Spanish rights to Salamandra Graphic; Russian rights to Guprus; Canadian French rights to Alto; French rights to Editions 2024; Spanish rights to Salamandra; U.K. rights to Canongate by Stephanie Sinclair and Samantha Haywood on behalf of Drawn & Quarterly.
 Korean rights to
WOMAN WORLD to Rollercoaster Press by Icarias Agency; French rights to WOMAN WORLD to La Ville Brule both by Stephanie Sinclair and Samantha Haywood on behalf of Drawn & Quarterly.
 French rights to
DAYBREAK by
Brian Ralph to Delcourt by Stephanie Sinclair and Samantha Haywood on behalf of Drawn & Quarterly.
 Complex Chinese rights to
SABRINA by
Nick Drnaso to Faces by The Grayhawk Agency; Portuguese rights to Porto Editora; Croatian rights to SABRINA to V.B.Z.; Polish rights to SABRINA to Kultura Gniewu by Book Lab Literary Agency. Previous rights sold: Simplified Chinese rights to SABRINA to Grinkgo by Andrew Nurnberg Associates; Danish rights to SABRINA to Fahrenheit Forlag by Sebes & Bisseling Literary Agency; German rights to SABRINA to Aufbau Verlag; Italian rights to SABRINA to Coconino; Japanese rights to SABRINA to Hayakawa Publishing by Japan Uni Agency; Korean rights to SABRINA to Book21 by Sibylle Books Literary Agency; Spanish rights to SABRINA to Salamandra; U.K. rights to SABRINA to Granta. All in association with Stephanie Sinclair and Samantha Haywood on behalf of Drawn & Quarterly.
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Awards and Citations
 Congratulations to
Joshua Whitehead, whose debut novel
JONNY APPLESEED was longlisted for the Scotiabank Giller Prize!
Further,
Joshua Whitehead's
JONNY APPLESEED and
Billy-Ray Belcourt's
THIS WOUND IS A WORLD were both longlisted for The 2018 Governor General's Award. Each year, the Canada Council for the Arts honours the best in Canadian literature with its Governor General's Literary Awards (the GGs). As Canada's national literary awards, the GGs represent the rich diversity of Canadian literature.
Congratulations to
Billy-Ray Belcourt on being named a candidate for
the 2019 Indspire Awards! Billy-Ray is being honoured for his work as an award-winning poet and published author.
Indspire is a national Indigenous charity that supports and celebrates Indigenous education and achievement in Canada. The Indspire Awards honours extraordinary individuals from the Indigenous community. There will be a nationally-broadcast ceremony in which the recipients will receive their awards, to take place in Calgary, Alberta on February 22, 2019.
 Congratulations to
Sharon Bala whose novel,
THE BOAT PEOPLE (Doubleday Books), has been longlisted for the 2019 Aspen Words Literary Prize! This annual prize is awarded to "an influential work of fiction that illuminates a vital contemporary issue and demonstrates the transformative power of literature on thought and culture."
THE BOAT PEOPLE is Sharon Bala's bestselling debut that follows a group of refugees who survive a perilous ocean voyage only to face the threat of deportation amid accusations of terrorism.
The shortlist will be announced on February 20, 2019, and the winner will be revealed on April 11, 2019 at an awards ceremony in NYC.
 Atz Kilcher's
SON OF A MIDNIGHT LAND (Blackstone Audio) received a 2018 SOVAS Nomination in best voiceover/author performance for audiobook narration.
 Emma Teal Laukitis and
Claire Neaton - whose forthcoming cookbook
THE SALMON SISTERS featuring recipes they depended on while growing up on in the wilds of Alaska - make the 2019 list of Forbes 30 Under 30 which chronicles the brashest entrepreneurs across the United States and Canada. The entire list features trailblazers in 20 industries, with The Salmon Sisters among those
Forbes identified as "Social Entrepreneurs leveraging their business smarts to save the world."
 Rachel Macy Stafford,
NYT best-selling author of
Only Love Today made a recent appearance on
The Today Show to discuss how her health suffered as a result of the stress she placed on herself, sharing tips that helped her recover and reclaim her life. It was also pictured in the January 7th issue of
US Weekly as something supermodel and mother of two Miranda Kerr carries in their popular "What's in My Bag" feature.
Sarah Selecky's
RADIANT SHIMMERING LIGHT was named by
Real Simple as one of 5 books that won't disappoint and was featured in
Cosmo Magazine as a best December read!
Newday, Oakland Library,
Electric Literature,
EW included the novel on their lists of best books. It was also featured by
The Orange County Register as one of 5 books to read in December. It was recommended by
The New York Post as a best book of the week, and comes recommended by
Hello Giggles,
Bustle, and
Bust.
RSL is an Amazon Best of the Month selection for Dec in the fiction category! It was named as a best new book by
People Magazine.
FOE by
Iain Reid has been named as one of the best books of 2018 by
Chatelaine! It's also one of the four Holiday Book Picks by CBC
Q.
 STEAK REVOLUTION by
Rob Firing won the Gourmand World Cookbook Award in the meat category.
 HUNGOVER by
Shaughnessy Bishop-Stall was named in
Forbes' Holiday Gift Guide 2018. It was also named one of the best reviewed books of the week by
Literary Hub.
Paste Magazine called it one of 14 giftable books for drinkers.
 Target's September Book Club Pick was
Zoe Whittall's
THE BEST KIND OF PEOPLE.
HOME ICE was #10 on the Canadian non-fiction bestsellers list.
Congrats to all our authors chosen for the
Globe 100 2018 list:
Rachel Giese's
BOYS: What It Means to Become a Man
Elisabeth de Mariaffi's
HYSTERIA
Amy Stuart's
STILL WATER
Joshua Whitehead's
JONNY APPLESEED
Iain Reid's
FOE
 FIND YOU IN THE DARK by
Naben Ruthnum writing as Nathan Ripley is on
Crimereads' list of the best psychological thrillers of 2018!
THE LAST RESORT by
Marissa Stapely is included as one of The Most Anticipated Titles for Spring 2019 on
49thShelf!
Samra Zafar
's
A GOOD WIFE
was included in
The Washington Post
's list of 10 books to read in 2019!
 Zalika Reid-Benta's
FRYING PLANTAIN, a collection of linked stories, has been selected in
NOW Magazine's "10 books to get excited about in 2019",
Chatelaine's "Buzziest Books 2019" and
49th Shelf's "Most Anticipated: Our Spring 2019 Fiction Preview"!
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Rave Reviews
 Praise for NO GOOD ASKING by Fran Kimmel (World Rights Available Ex: World English, ECW Press, Fall 2018). Contact Stephanie Sinclair, [email protected]:
Featured in Canadian Living's October 2018 Book Club!
"What happens when a flailing family takes in an abused young girl? Fran Kimmel tells this moving story in her second novel, No Good Asking
. Through alternating points of view, Kimmel describes 11-year-old Hannah's impact on the Nyland family, who've recently relocated to dad Eric's childhood home to care for his aging father. The seemingly mundane scenes --a family dinner, for example--are the most powerful in the story and demonstrate out capacity to heal one another through compassion and kindness"
-Amanda Etty
"The humanity in Kimmel's
No Good Asking
is as big as the hearts of her arresting characters. In genuine, unaffected prose, this story builds from the first page to its satiating finale. The beauty of Fran Kimmel's second novel lies deep within the beating hearts of her imperfect characters in an achingly good story. This book has nowhere to go but up." -Lee Kvern, author of
7 Ways to Sunday
"Flawed, human and fully-realized, the cast of characters Fran Kimmel brings to life in
No Good Asking
will peak your interest, charm and frustrate you before capturing your heart. This is book that demonstrates, at a time when we all need it, that sometimes the whole is far greater than the sum of its parts." -Joan Crate, author of
Black Apple
"An inspiring tale of dramatic shifts in human dynamics, compressed into one week. Fran Kimmel compassionately challenges conventional takes on dysfunction, loss, ways to mend, and the definition of family." -Rona Altrows, author of
At This Juncture
"
No Good Askin
g is a complex, emotional exploration of the deeply personal aspects of existing within a family. With care and sensitivity, Kimmel excavates the hopes, dreams, secret desires and profound wounds of a winning cast of characters. This is a novel filled with poignant insights into the truth of human hearts. As I read it I kept it close--like a friend I wanted to get to know better. When it was over, I felt bereft for days. I look forward to what Kimmel writes next."
-Marissa Stapley, bestselling author of
Mating for Life
and
Things to Do When It's Raining
"Intimate and arresting, honest and profound. From one of Canada's finest voices in fiction,
No Good Asking
is a soaring read that explores the messy bonds of family life with humanity and heart." -Ali Bryan, award-winning author of Roost and The Figgs
"Quiet and honest,
No Good Asking
is deeply rooted in western community, and in the small virtues that have large significance for people's daily lives. With grace and clarity, Fran Kimmel shows how the ordinary milk of human kindness, given the minor catalyst of a child's despair, can generate new life." -
Marina Endicott
 Praise for A MIND SPREAD OUT ON THE GROUND by Alicia Elliott (World Rights Available Ex: Canada, Doubleday). Contact Samantha Haywood, [email protected] and Stephanie Sinclair, [email protected]:
Listed by
Maclean
's on their "books you need to read in 2019" list.
Alicia's A MIND SPREAD OUT ON THE GROUND was also selected by Chatelaine as one of the most anticipated books of 2019.
"The gifted Tuscarora writer, from the Six Nations of the Grand River reserve in Ontario, powerfully links larger questions of Indigenous life in North America-from the residential school legacy to the loss of native tongues-to the unfolding of her own life." -Maclean's
 Praise for THE QUINTLAND SISTERS by Shelley Wood (World Rights Available Ex: North America, William Morrow, Winter 2019). Contact Stephanie Sinclair, [email protected]:
A tour de force of imagination, readers are taken inside the devastating true story of the Dionne quintuplets, believed to be the first set of identical sisters born alive, told from the perspective of an aspiring young midwife witnessing her first delivery. Wood has received some exciting early endorsements!
"Whether or not you're familiar with the story of the Dionne quintuplets, you'll appreciate the meticulous attention to historical detail in this compelling reimagining of five famous lives, and find yourself immediately drawn into a world where fact and fiction are seamlessly blended and a beautiful, tragic mystery is unspooled. This gorgeously written novel about miracles, love and resilience is perfect for fans of Joanna Goodman."
-Marissa Stapley, bestselling author of
Mating for Life and
Things to Do When It's Raining
"
The Quintland Sisters is an impeccably researched historical novel that will enthrall you. From the moment Shelly Wood introduced the remarkable Dionne quintuplets, I was utterly captivated. Wood's vivid story-telling through the eyes of a young nursing assistant perfectly captures the astonishing birth and early days of the famous quintuplets' lives. Wood has masterfully brought the Quints' small Ontario farming community of the early 1930's to life, as well as all the characters that come in and out of their surreal and extraordinary world. I could not get this story out of my head long after I finished reading it."
-Joanna Goodman, author of The Home for Unwanted Girls
"THE QUINTLAND SISTERS is a stunning novel about five girls caught in the seam of history, at the intersection of dueling cultures, classes, languages, and faiths in the last years before World War Two. Through the eyes of the Dionne sisters' longest-serving nurse, Wood tells the heartbreaking story of how the miraculous survival of five identical sisters born to a poor family in Quebec devolved into a naked battle for money and fame that corrupted even those who loved them. Meticulously researched and sensitively told, this book is a journey not to be missed."
-Heather Young, author of
The Lost Girls
"Before the fishbowl world of reality television and carefully curated social media accounts, there was Quintland. In
The Quintland Sisters, Wood deftly captures the fascinating collisions between faith and science, powerful and poor, and the tensions that arise when a rural town and its inhabitants are cast under the relentless scrutiny of the public's obsession with one extraordinary family. The story of the Dionne quintuplets serves as a timely reminder of the humanity we all share, no matter our differences in social class, religion, or nationality."
-Elise Hooper, author of The Other Alcott and Learning to See
 Praise for DIRTY WORK: My Gruelling, Glorious, Life-Changing Summer in the Wilderness by Anna Maxymiw (World Rights Available Ex: Canada, McClelland and Stewart). Contact Stephanie Sinclair, [email protected]:
"Anna Maxymiw is a beautiful writer. She weaves her memories into a vibrant and spectacular narrative that makes it impossible to stop reading. I'm in awe of her willingness to be so open and candid and honest and warm, and we're all very lucky she lets us go with her on such an incredible and transformative adventure. She also achieved the impossible: she made me want to spend time outdoors." -Anne T. Donahue, author of Nobody Cares
"What a luminous and surprising book this is. Anna Maxymiw lands in the middle of the wilderness and turns her sharp and compassionate eye on everything she sees, whether it's a fish, bear, outhouse or fellow housekeeper. She finds them all fascinating, and through the gift of her storytelling so do we." -Elizabeth Renzetti, author of
Shrewed
 Praise for SONS OF BLACKBIRD MOUNTAIN by Christy- and Carol Award-winning author Joanne Bischof (The Lady and the Lionheart). Contact Sandra Bishop, [email protected]:
"...endearing characters and a heartwarming story line in this unforgettable novel about the power of family, love, and the true meaning of home." -Library Journal
Praise for Gail Shalan's Audiobook Performance. Contact Sandra Bishop, [email protected]:
Gail recently narrated Robyn Schneider's best-seller - Invisible Ghosts - for Chatterbox Audio (U.K. release) and the three-book Listen To Your Heart series by Margaret Lake (ACX/Audible, 2018) while earning her Master's in Acting at the world-renowned Bristol Old Vic Theatre School (U.K.).
5 star reviews from Audible.com listeners
"Gail's voice was more perfect than I expected... I found myself swept away in the story..."
"The narration was flawless."
"The most beautiful and sincere voice I've ever listened to... a wonderfully skilled voice actor."
"Gail has a beautifully smooth, and soothing voice... All and all a great audio book."
 Praise for Iain Reid's FOE (World Rights Ex: U.S., Scout Press; Canada, S&S; U.K., Scribner S&S; Germany, Droemer; Brazil, Rocco; Turkey, Hep Kitap; Czech, Leda; Italy, Rizzoli; and Film, Anonymous Content). Contact Samantha Haywood, [email protected]:
"The most successful book of Canadian fiction this fall has, so far, been Iain Reid's suspenseful sci-fi novel, Foe." -The Globe and Mail
Praise for Shaughnessy Bishop-Stall's HUNGOVER (World Rights Ex: Canada, HarperCollins, December 2018; U.S., Penguin Books; German, Dumont Verlag, August 2018; U.K., Blink Publishing; Korean, Cassiopeia Publisher; Polish, Bukowy Las). Contact Samantha Haywood, [email protected]:
"In his irreverent, well-oiled memoir, HUNGOVER, Shaughnessy Bishop-Stall sets out on a liver-punishing world tour in search of a cure for the condition. With a heavy pour of gonzo styling, the author samples the local culture not only through the bottle but by throwing himself into activities that only a madman would voluntarily do while hung over... Between accounts of pub crawls, Oktoberfest and meetings with the heads of hangover-cure companies, Mr. Bishop-Stall packs his book with humorous and enlightening asides about alcohol in literature (there's lots of it), athletes as accomplished at the bar as on the field (David Wells pitched a perfect game after a rager) and more."
-Brian Kelly, The Wall Street Journal
"Who knew hangovers could be so much fun? Evidently Shaughnessy Bishop-Stall, who brings us on an engrossing, hilarious, and sometimes painful tour through the history and science of the morning after."
-Bianca Bosker,
New York Times bestselling author of Cork Dork
"The Canadian writer and actor Shaughnessy Bishop-Stall is a fine person to write a book about hangovers, not only because he's a tenacious researcher but also because he's willing to get thoroughly torn up on a consistent basis in colorful circumstances. He gorges on single-malt Scotch in Las Vegas, swallows a dozen pints of ale in a series of English pubs, binges on tequila and collapses beside a cactus near the Mexican border, wears lederhosen to a German beer festival and so forth. Reading his chronicle, Hungover: The Morning After and One Man's Quest for the Cure has an effect not unlike recovering from food poisoning or slipping into a warm house on a frigid night. You turn the pages thinking, 'Thank God I don't feel like that right now.' Or maybe, 'Thank God I'm not this guy.'"
-The New York Times Book Review
"Wow. The writing in this book was so vivid, there were actually moments reading it that I started to feel like I was having the symptoms of a hangover, even if I'd had nothing to drink the night before." -Ari Schapiro, NPR
"Despite millennia of drinking, there is no consensus on a cure for excessive drinking. But a cure is exactly what Shaughnessy Bishop-Stall set out to find in his new book Hungover.
Drawing on a decade of research, and years more of informal research, Bishop-Stall's quest took him around the world: drink, suffer, repeat. As he points out in the book, and as anyone who has scoured the internet for a solution to their booze-fuelled hedonism can attest, there has been little scientific research into the hangover remedy."
-The Guardian
"Shaughnessy Bishop-Stall invests health, wealth and well-being in a wild Dionysian quest for a viable hangover cure. In the end he gets more than he bargained for,
and we do, too." -Linden MacIntyre, Scotiabank Giller Prize-winning author
"Shaughnessy Bishop-Stall serves up part travelogue and part confession here. At the outset, he pays some tribute to the hard-drinking English novelist and critic Kingsley Amis, who was no stranger to the hangover. Indeed, Hungover
is a tribute to working through what Amis himself once described as the two components of the dreaded 'morning after': the physical side (for which there are varied remedies about which he wrote in detail). And then the metaphysical side, which, as Bishop-Stall demonstrates in eleven chapters of often disarmingly personal prose."
-Forbes.com
"Bishop-Stall explores the history and treatment of hangovers with humor and amiable style." -Publishers Weekly
"Hangovers have haunted humans since the invention of beer and will follow us like a dirty, drunk shadow until the end of our days. But there are a few hopefuls among us who say we are not doomed to that fate. In Hungover, journalist Shaughnessy Bishop-Stall tests out hangover cures like polar bear swims and saline IV drips in an effort to figure out how to make Sunday mornings a bit more sufferable. He sorts through the fact and the fiction so you don't have to." -Inverse.com
"Fans of Mary Roach will delight in Bishop-Stall's similar knack for collecting stories and anecdotes from a quirky cast of experts, as well as his similar proclivity for fascinating tangents... Hungover is a world tour of a party, with a raucous cast of winos and experts, figures cultural and political... Reading Hungover is akin to watching The Hangover
... his sense of adventure and one-liners make for a similarly uproarious ride."
-Shelf Awareness
"Shaughnessy Bishop-Stall has risked life and liver to write this book, a perilous trip into many mornings after-historical, cinematic, literary and, of course, his own."
-Adam Rogers, author of Proof: The Science of Booze
"Shaughnessy Bishop-Stall has written a fresh, fascinating meditation on a mysterious affliction. The theater critic George Jean Nathan used to say, 'I drink
to make other people interesting.' The author has done one better - he drank (in spectacular excess) to make hangovers interesting." -Kathryn Borel, author of Corked
"Thick with witty anecdotes and hilarious asides. . . . A sharp, entertaining foray into one of civilization's most ancient and agonizing quandaries." -Kirkus
"A guy spends a year deliberately giving himself varying degrees of alcohol poisoning on a quest to find the definitive hangover cure. You gotta love that, man. Bishop-Stall's investigation into the mysteries of the hangover is funny, offbeat, authentic and eye-opening. It's a wide-ranging quest and vividly described (there is some drink writing that makes you really, really want a drink. This is not an example of that). Whether you're looking for this Holy Grail yourself or just looking for a good read, this is an engaging investigative journey into the nature of addiction, excess and (hopefully) getting up the next day. (If you're wondering if he finds a true cure... possibly!) This is a really fun book and more diligent and informative than I was expecting it to be." -Paste Magazine
 Praise for Joanne Proulx's WE ALL LOVE THE BEAUTIFUL GIRLS (World Rights Ex: Canada English, Viking, August 2017; US, Grand Central Publishing, 2018; Canadian Audio rights, Audible, 2018). Contact Samantha Haywood, [email protected]:
"...it's not hard to imagine 'We All Love the Beautiful Girls' being adapted for the screen...The novel's visuals are vivid and well realized, the characters and their dramas cinematic."
-The New York Times
Praise for Sarah Selecky's RADIANT SHIMMERING LIGHT (World Rights Available Ex: Canada, HarperCollins; U.S., Bloomsbury; Australia, Text; Poland, Wizard Media; English Canada and U.S. Audio, Blackstone Publishing; Muse Entertainment, Film). Contact Samantha Haywood, [email protected]:
"A funny, tender, gimlet-eyed dive into the cult of self-improvement." -Kirkus Reviews
"Selecky's biting, tragicomic first novel is an insider look at the intersection between the sincerity of belief and the commodification of aspiration . . . [Her] deadpan tone, punchy writing, and vivid characters transport readers to a specific, highly diverting world that hits close to the bone and sparks the self-reflection it's spoofing." -Booklist
"The author explores the power and distraction of social media, the paths to creativity, and how intense devotion to a cause can either consume one's identity or allow one to flourish, resulting in a searing look at mass market-oriented transformation." -Publishers Weekly
"Sarah Selecky's RADIANT SHIMMERING LIGHT introduces us to Lilian Quick, who is 40 years old and feeling stuck. She jumps at the chance to work for her estranged cousin Eleven Novak in New York City, eager to learn the ins and outs of Eleven's business, a self-help and leadership program. Selecky's sharp parody explores female friendship and questions the role of consumerism in women's empowerment and self-improvement trends." -Real Simple
"Selecky's vivid, smartly satirical tale will make you feel like you've fallen into an exquisite painting, a women's empowerment cult and a midlife crisis all at once." -People Magazine
"Radiant Shimmering Light is a sharp analysis of the multi-billion dollar self-help industry. Anyone who has ever raised an eyebrow at the healing power of crystals and self-styled empowerment gurus who say things like 'love is a verb, not a noun' will find much to enjoy in this funny debut from Canadian writer Sarah Selecky." -RadiaNZ
"[A] nuanced, satirical novel . . . incredible." -PopSugar
"Reflecting on the women's empowerment movement and pyramid schemes with wit, insight, and empathy, Selecky showcases the difficulties of having and achieving in the modern world, while questioning what successful womanhood-and adulthood-is all about."
-MindBodyGreen
"At once a satire of wellness bloggers, Instagram influencers, and self-care capitalism, and a heartfelt look at the things we do to cure loneliness and feel empowered."
-Electric Literature
Praise for Rachel Giese's BOYS: What it Means to Become a Man (World Rights Ex: Canada English, HarperCollins, May 2018; U.S., Seal Press, December 2018; World Japanese, Diskunion Company Limited). Contact Samantha Haywood, [email protected]:
"With an easy, candid tone reminiscent of good friends chatting over coffee, Rachel Giese takes readers on an insightful, balanced journey in Boys: What it Means to Become a Man. Giese uses case studies, research, anecdotes, history, and interviews to explore the concept of masculinity and what it means to be a boy in today's world. At times heartbreaking, but always hopeful and compassionate, Boys creates a thoughtful space that allows readers to consider how they and society defines boyhood, and how a culture of toxic masculinity impacts boys as they grow into men. More than a book for those who love boys, this is arguably a book for those who see boys as more than their gender, but as persons with an innate right to own their emotions and agency, and a book for readers who seek to understand how the act of uplifting boys is a rising tide that uplifts all."
-Natasha Deen,
Avenue Magazine
 Praise for Megan Gail Coles' SMALL GAME HUNTING AT THE LOCAL COWARD GUN CLUB (World Rights sold, House of Anansi Press, Feb 2019). Contact Samantha Haywood, [email protected]:
"Every character is rendered with such stunning details and unflinching insights that you can't leave its pages without being changed. To read Megan Gail Coles' masterful debut novel is to become obsessed with it."
-Alicia Elliott, author of
A Mind Spread out on the Ground
"Small Game Hunting is a singular, beautiful, burning story; not only a piercing page turner but a sharp and essential portrait of an island and its people in our times that will draw you in and then pull you under. It is an ocean of a book. Not to be missed."
-Elizabeth de Mariaffi, author of
Hysteria and
The Devil You Know
Praise for Marissa Stapley's THE LAST RESORT (World Rights Available Ex. US, Graydon House, June 18, 2019; Canada, S&S, June 4, 2019; Germany, Rowohlt, 2019; ANZ, Allen & Unwin) Contact Samantha Haywood, [email protected]:
"Marissa Stapley's writing is a gift."
-Pam Jenoff,
New York Times bestselling author of
The Orphan's Tale
"I devoured The Last Resort over 3 days. It is an example of a new kind of thriller; it is of our time. The book offers up a delicious plot while at the same time drawing quietly powerful and deeply relatable female characters whose experiences are echos of so many others on and off the page. Stapley's writing is fast-paced while still cutting deep. I burned through the book, but it will stay with me. The Last Resort is all of these things: a nail-biter, a page-turner, a thoughtful, powerful exploration into who we are in relationships and on our own. It's like literary fiction and killer suspense were left on an island together and the outcome was an incredible book." -Laurie Petrou, author of Sister of Mine
"Atmospheric and evocative, Marissa Stapley's THE LAST RESORT brings together a cast of characters with secrets as destructive as the hurricane threatening the island, and explores how far we'll go to keep the truth buried. Fast-paced, expertly plotted and highly entertaining, this novel is perfect for fans of Liane Moriarty!"
-Karma Brown, bestselling author of The Choices We Make
"Couples with secrets, people who tell lies-nothing is as it seems in Marissa Stapley's tense and tightly paced thriller, THE LAST RESORT. Fans of Agatha Christie will surely love this modern whodunit from the first to the very last page. One to add to your "to read" list now." -Hannah McKinnon, author of The Neighbours and Her Secret Son
"The Last Resort has all the ingredients for an impossible-to-put-down thrill ride of a read--but it's also got something more: well-developed characters who feel intensely real, polished prose that never descends into the trite or predictable, and authentic emotional heft. It will fascinate you, enlighten you, break your heart and mend it again. Read this book!"
-Jennifer Robson, internationally bestselling author of
Somewhere in France and
The Gown
"With artfully creative storytelling, THE LAST RESORT leads us down the dark rabbit warren of other people's marriages and asks the best question of all: How well do you really know the person you're living with? This novel is an exciting addition to the psych thriller world-with an emotionally complex twist." -Roz Nay, bestselling author of Our Little Secret
"A cult-like couples' retreat is an alluring backdrop for a cast of complex and damaged characters navigating their way through marital strife. The secrets, lies, and psychoses revealed will keep readers rapt as they hurtle toward a climax of biblical proportions. A rollicking thrill-ride!"
-Robyn Harding, internationally bestselling author of
The Party and
Her Pretty Face
"Stapley pulls off a tale that's both spine-chilling and heartwarming. How she does it is as intricate a mystery as The Last Resort's plot. You won't be needing a bookmark."
-Christina Dalcher, author of
Vox
"A gripping and compelling story that explores the dark secrets buried within three marriages. Deeply addictive and simmering with tension, THE LAST RESORT had me breathlessly turning the pages all the way through to its explosive conclusion."
-Lucy Clarke, author of
You Let Me In
"Deeply unsettling and emotionally resonant, The Last Resort is psychological suspense at its best, from the damaged couples seeking to repair their broken marriages, to the captivating backdrop of an island resort in the midst of a hurricane. Marissa Stapley delivers a twisty, expertly written mystery you can sink your teeth into." -Karen Katchur, author of River Bodies
 Praise for Katherine Ashenburg's SOFIE & CECILIA (World Rights Available Ex: Canada, Knopf, New Face of Fiction, Spring 2018). Contact Samantha Haywood, [email protected]:
"A wonderful book, full of exquisite moments, that cleverly reminds us how partial our understanding of every life-event is. I love Ashenburg's wisdom about women, about the evolution of a marriage, about how we reach a certain age and accumulate so much experience and yet life remains mysterious, even thrilling. A remarkable achievement."
-Rosemary Sullivan, author of
Stalin's Daughter
 Praise for Susan Swan's THE DEAD CELEBRITIES CLUB (World Rights Available Ex: English Canada, Cormorant Books, May 4, 2019). Contact Samantha Haywood, [email protected]:
"Swan's mendacious and charming Dale Paul is a character you will never forget. What drives this original novel is the need to understand how money has replaced meaning in our world. Swan invents a hedge fund manager and then puts his mendacious and vacuous Trumpian universe under the microscope. She's shrewd and funny and often moving but her novel is also a timely warning. The drawings that seed the book are a brilliant touch."
-Rosemary Sullivan, author of
Stalin's Daughter
"From the elite backrooms of high finance to the longs halls of New York State prisons,
The Dead Celebrities Club
brings us the news from both the powerful and the powerless. Dale Paul is the archetypal anti-hero of our era, and Susan Swan compelling and insightfully delivers his story and his message." -Jane Urquhart, author of
The Stone Carvers
 Praise for Catherine Porter's A GIRL NAMED LOVELY: One Child's Miraculous Survival and My Journey to the Heart of Haiti (World Rights Available Ex: North America, Simon & Schuster, publishing January 2019). Contact Samantha Haywood, [email protected]:
"
A Girl Named Lovely
is a graceful and moving memoir. Full of warmth and wisdom, it opens your eyes and your heart to those in need, invites you to step into their world, and, finally, inspires you to find a way to help."
-Amanda Lindhout, bestselling author of
A House in the Sky
"This is a beautiful and tenderly told story, at times shocking, always illuminating. Catherine takes us into the heart of Haiti but also into her own conflicted heart, where her professionalism collides with her humanity. Ultimately, it's a little Haitian girl who shows Catherine how she can be-at once-a compassionate person, a rigorous journalist, and a loving mother.
A Girl Named Lovely
is a book that will resonate with readers long after the final poignant pages." -Carol Off, bestselling author of
All We Left Behind
"As any good journalist knows-and Porter is as dedicated and enterprising as they come-there is the story you set out to write and the one you find on the ground when objectivity confronts reality. . . . In this absorbing account, Porter opens her heart as well as her notebook to walk the fine line between her job as a reporter and her soul as a compassionate human being. The result is a clear-eyed, unflinching narrative that will move even the flintiest and jaundiced of readers."
-Sandra Martin, award-winning journalist & author of
A Good Death
"We often do not appreciate how precious life is until we witness with our own eyes real human suffering.
A Girl Named Lovely
shows that each and every one of us has the power to help, and that sometimes, the simplest acts can plant the seeds for a new life for a person in need. This book needs to be heard. Read it, appreciate it, and let it inspire you to help."
-Tima Kurdi, bestselling author of
The Boy on the Beach
"Porter sums up Haiti in all its charm and complexity. An intimate and cautionary tale about the ethics of charity and development,
A Girl Named Lovely
is also an important story about love across cultural lines and what commitment to others really means."
-Amy Wilentz, award-winning author of
Farewell, Fred Voodoo
"
A Girl Named Lovely
is a must read. Catherine Porter provides us with understanding and hope about Haiti, free of platitudes and bromides. It's a story of compassion and resilience."
-Bob Rae, bestselling author of
What's Happened to Politics?
"Powerful and searching, Porter's book offers an unforgettable account of how one woman's humanitarian gestures not only changed her, but also made a difference in the lives of people living in unimaginable misery. A movingly candid memoir about finding some measure of hope in 'the poorest country in the western hemisphere.'" -
Kirkus Reviews
Praise for Samra Zafar's A GOOD WIFE: Escaping the Life I Never Chose (World Rights Available ex: HarperCollins Canada, March 5, 2019). Contact Samantha Haywood, [email protected] and Stephanie Sinclair, [email protected]:
"The shining result of a partnership between a sensitive writer and an indomitable survivor of domestic abuse, this memoir chronicles the ebbs and flows of Samra Zafar's courage as her
home life began to
control her every moment and shatter her spirit. To follow her descent into self-doubt and despair is to delve deeply into financial limitations, the requirements of assimilation into Canada, and constraints she faced as a parent. Whether you are trying to escape a life you never chose or the one you did, Samra's resolve and ingenuity will inspire you to honor every flicker of longing for freedom."
-Shauna Singh Baldwin, author of
The Tiger Claw
and
The Selector of Souls
"Samra Zafar's harrowing story of escaping her abusive marriage in Canada-arranged when she was just a teenager in Pakistan-might read like a taut domestic thriller, but
A Good Wife
is all too painfully real. I cried while reading this book, but I was also left in awe of Zafar's epic grit and bravery. Her story will stay with you long after the last hope-filled page is turned." -Lisa Gabriele, author of the bestselling novel
The Winters
"
A teenage girl is pressured to marry a much older man and move to a foreign land. If you think you know this story, that it is a stereotype, you are wrong. A GOOD WIFE is not the story of an abused woman. This is a memoir of ambition, how the very thing that lured Samra Zafar into an abusive marriage ultimately galvanized her escape and success. With unflinching candour, Zafar dissects the forces
constricting her:
culture, religion, her parents' difficult marriage, their uneasy complicity in hers, the intergenerational
expectations
that shackled her in-laws
,
even her own naivetè. Thorny and surprising, her story is all the more heartbreaking for its complexities. Zafar has penned a rare memoir, a life story worth reading, and an emotional rollercoaster that will leave you feeling empowered at the end. This is a modern day fairy tale where the heroine saves her own life."
-Sharon Bala, author of
The Boat People
 Praise for Angie Abdou's HOME ICE: Confessions of a Reluctant Hockey Mom (World Rights Available Ex: North America, ECW Press, September 2018). Contact Samantha Haywood, [email protected] and Jesse Finkelstein, [email protected]:
"The author brings a novelist's eye to the story, telling it in first-person present tense; with its sharp characterizations and dialogue in place of autobiographical exposition, the book is a first-rate memoir and a fine example of narrative nonfiction. It's also a must-read for parents with youngsters who play organized sports." -
Booklist
, starred review
"This is a lively, honestly written account of parenting that will resonate with readers who are fully involved in their children's sports." -
Publishers Weekly
"Home Ice is page-turning and compelling in a whole different way. It's about Abdou, her family, her relationships with her husband and two children, and her role as a parent; or, as Abdou said, consider it a 'voyeuristic peek into the writer's life.'"
-
Society for International Hockey Research
"You don't get to pick your kids' marriages or their sports, and he wants to play hockey."
-
CBC Radio Sunday Edition
"It's a unflinching and revealing account of the toll sports (especially hockey) can take on family dynamics and fortunes." -
CBC Radio Daybreak Alberta
"As much as Home Ice
skewers Canadian hockey for its escalating costs and obsession with competitiveness, that criticism is balanced by an athlete's appreciation for the heady benefits of training hard and excelling in a sport."
-
Active For Life
"[T]his is a memoir told with humility, and throughout the book, Abdou lets her happy and sensitive son shine through. We see his sense of fairness and justice, his quirky stick-handling, his love for the rowdy speed and sweaty camaraderie of the sport."
-
University of Texas Arlington Sports Literature Association
"...she leaves the reader with as much knowledge and information on both sides of the coin to allow the reader to make a decision on the game's safety rather than her imposing her decision onto the reader. One gets a sense that Miss Abdou did this with intent, and I feel it really opens the door to thoughtful and intelligent debate..." -
Hockey Blog In Canada
 Praise for Lee Airton's GENDER: Your Guide (World Rights Sold, Simon & Schuster). Contact Samantha Haywood, [email protected]:
"Airton offers a warm, inviting guide to a complicated area, and discusses their own transition in university from female to non-binary." -Harvey Schachter,
The Globe and Mail
 Praise for Bruce and Vicki Heyman's THE ART OF DIPLOMACY: Strengthening the Canada-US Relationship in Times of Uncertainty (World Rights Sold, Simon & Schuster Canada). Contact Samantha Haywood, [email protected]:
"With their warmth and openness, Bruce and Vicki Heyman laid their path for diplomacy. As you read this book, you will also get to know Bruce and Vicki, and realize that their true belief in tact and diplomacy deserves emulation."
-National Chief Perry Bellegarde and Valerie Bellegarde
"Bruce and Vicki Heyman were highly regarded envoys from the United States to Canada. As Ambassador, Bruce Heyman made a powerful contribution in the improvement of the Canada-U.S. relationship. The work he and Vicki undertook in communities across Canada will be favorably remembered by Canadians for years to come. This excellent book recounts significant moments in their Canadian odyssey." -Former Prime Minister Brian Mulroney
"In this insightful and heartfelt recollection of their years in Canada, Bruce and Vicki Heyman give us a behind-the-scenes look at what diplomacy is really about: relationships. In these tumultuous times,
The Art of Diplomacy
is testament to the importance of listening to and learning from our allies."
-David Axelrod, former Senior Advisor to President Barack Obama and CNN Senior Political Commentator
"Bruce and Vicki Heyman write beautifully of their time serving our nation as a true ambassadorial team to Canada--which they were in every sense of the word. With deeply personal anecdotes, they vividly demonstrate the fundamental importance of the special relationship between our two great countries. Combining Bruce's background as an accomplished entrepreneur and Vicki's as a skilled philanthropist and community builder, they share wonderful stories of their hands-on and tireless efforts to build bonds of friendship and partnership with our neighbors to the north. It's well worth a read."
-Penny Pritzker, former U.S. Secretary of Commerce
"A timely account of the importance of day-in/day-out foreign relations and the vital significance of America's relationship with Canada--our Northern friend, ally and partner."
-U.S. Senator Amy Klobuchar
"A very original and interesting read about partnership and the important relationship between Canada and the U.S. The Heymans model what it means to be progressive in politics." -Former Prime Minister Jean Chrétien, bestselling author of
My Stories, My Times
"This book is like a warm living room in a political world where winter seems to be coming. It reminds us that the fireplace keeps us warm and safe, not fences, walls or fists."
-Rufus Wainwright, singer and songwriter, and Jörn Weisbrodt, arts administrator
"Vicki and Bruce remind us how to be good neighbors and great friends. They are more than just ambassadors for America, they are an example for the entire world."
-Séan McCann, singer and songwriter
"An engaging account of the Heymans' sojourn in and beyond the Canadian capital, and a reminder that both politics and the personal touch matter in diplomacy. Their love of Canada, arts and the job (which they viewed as a joint assignment) shines through."
-Charlotte Gray, bestselling author of
The Promise of Canada
"There are no greater defenders of the Canada-United States relationship than Vicki and Bruce Heyman. Their stories remind us how we truly are each other's best friends.
The Art of Diplomacy
comes at a critical moment in the relationship, and exposes the connective tissue between our two countries in clear and at times surprising ways."
-Peter Mansbridge
"Not only is this book a primer on best practices in international diplomacy, it's equally a lesson on how to keep relationships rich, shared and alive, whether the relationship is between countries or a husband and a wife." -Edward Burtynsky, artist and photographer
"This book is a gift.... It comes from the Heymans' hearts and reflects their core belief that the work of an individual is the work of a couple, is the work of a family, is the work of a community, a country and beyond." -Eric Fischl, artist
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