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Critically acclaimed short fiction from Canadian and international authors.
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{"id":6812116156475,"title":"Watermark","handle":"watermark","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eFrom Christy Ann Conlin, the critically acclaimed and award winning author of \u003ci\u003eHeave,\u003c\/i\u003e comes a breathtaking and unforgettable collection about how the briefest moment can shape us forever.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eIn these evocative and startling stories, we meet people navigating the elemental forces of love, life, and death. An insomniac on Halifax’s moonlit streets. A runaway bride. A young woman accused of a brutal murder. A man who must live in exile if he is to live at all. A woman coming to terms with her eccentric childhood in a cult on the Bay of Fundy shore. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eA master of North Atlantic Gothic, Christy Ann Conlin expertly navigates our conflicting self-perceptions, especially in moments of crisis. She illuminates the personality of land and ocean, charts the pull of the past on the present, and reveals the wildness inside each of us. These stories offer a gallery of both gritty and lyrical portraits, each unmasking the myth and mystery of the everyday.\u003c\/p\u003e","published_at":"2022-03-22T16:49:49-04:00","created_at":"2022-03-22T11:19:21-04:00","vendor":"House of Anansi Press Inc","type":"","tags":["Adult Short Stories","Astoria","Book Club Pick","By (author) Conlin Christy Ann","Feminist Reads","pub date: 2019-08-13"],"price":1695,"price_min":1695,"price_max":1995,"available":true,"price_varies":true,"compare_at_price":null,"compare_at_price_min":0,"compare_at_price_max":0,"compare_at_price_varies":false,"variants":[{"id":40195600154683,"title":"trade paperback","option1":"trade paperback","option2":null,"option3":null,"sku":"9781487003432","requires_shipping":true,"taxable":true,"featured_image":null,"available":true,"name":"Watermark - trade paperback","public_title":"trade paperback","options":["trade paperback"],"price":1995,"weight":320,"compare_at_price":null,"inventory_management":null,"barcode":"9781487003432","requires_selling_plan":false,"selling_plan_allocations":[]},{"id":40195602972731,"title":"epub","option1":"epub","option2":null,"option3":null,"sku":"9781487003449","requires_shipping":false,"taxable":true,"featured_image":null,"available":true,"name":"Watermark - epub","public_title":"epub","options":["epub"],"price":1695,"weight":0,"compare_at_price":null,"inventory_management":null,"barcode":"9781487003449","requires_selling_plan":false,"selling_plan_allocations":[]},{"id":40195604152379,"title":"mobi","option1":"mobi","option2":null,"option3":null,"sku":"9781487003456","requires_shipping":false,"taxable":true,"featured_image":null,"available":true,"name":"Watermark - mobi","public_title":"mobi","options":["mobi"],"price":1695,"weight":0,"compare_at_price":null,"inventory_management":null,"barcode":"9781487003456","requires_selling_plan":false,"selling_plan_allocations":[]}],"images":["\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0264\/3374\/9051\/products\/BNCImageAPI_f212acb1-5303-4305-8403-01b03ae6a423.jpg?v=1654445285"],"featured_image":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0264\/3374\/9051\/products\/BNCImageAPI_f212acb1-5303-4305-8403-01b03ae6a423.jpg?v=1654445285","options":["Title"],"media":[{"alt":"Scales follow a colour gradient from teal at the top to gold at the bottom. Both colours have an iridescent and metallic sheen. Text: Watermark. Christy Ann Conlin. “This is the best short story collection I’ve read in years.” – Annabel Lyon, author of The Golden Mean.","id":22170976616507,"position":1,"preview_image":{"aspect_ratio":0.656,"height":2400,"width":1575,"src":"https:\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0264\/3374\/9051\/products\/BNCImageAPI_f212acb1-5303-4305-8403-01b03ae6a423.jpg?v=1654445285"},"aspect_ratio":0.656,"height":2400,"media_type":"image","src":"https:\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0264\/3374\/9051\/products\/BNCImageAPI_f212acb1-5303-4305-8403-01b03ae6a423.jpg?v=1654445285","width":1575}],"requires_selling_plan":false,"selling_plan_groups":[],"content":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eFrom Christy Ann Conlin, the critically acclaimed and award winning author of \u003ci\u003eHeave,\u003c\/i\u003e comes a breathtaking and unforgettable collection about how the briefest moment can shape us forever.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eIn these evocative and startling stories, we meet people navigating the elemental forces of love, life, and death. An insomniac on Halifax’s moonlit streets. A runaway bride. A young woman accused of a brutal murder. A man who must live in exile if he is to live at all. A woman coming to terms with her eccentric childhood in a cult on the Bay of Fundy shore. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eA master of North Atlantic Gothic, Christy Ann Conlin expertly navigates our conflicting self-perceptions, especially in moments of crisis. She illuminates the personality of land and ocean, charts the pull of the past on the present, and reveals the wildness inside each of us. These stories offer a gallery of both gritty and lyrical portraits, each unmasking the myth and mystery of the everyday.\u003c\/p\u003e"}
{"AlsoRecommendedISBN_2":"9781770893085","AlsoRecommendedISBN_3":"9781770893719","AlsoRecommendedISBN_4":"9781770898332","BASICMainSubject":"FIC019000","BASICMainSubjectLiteral":"FICTION \/ Literary","BiographicalNote":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eCHRISTY ANN CONLIN\u003c\/strong\u003e is the author of two acclaimed novels, \u003cem\u003eHeave\u003c\/em\u003e and \u003cem\u003eThe Memento\u003c\/em\u003e. She is also the author of the short-fiction collection \u003cem\u003eWatermark\u003c\/em\u003e, which was a finalist for the Danuta Gleed Literary Award and the Forest of Reading Evergreen Award. \u003cem\u003eHeave\u003c\/em\u003e was a national bestseller, a \u003cem\u003eGlobe and Mail \u003c\/em\u003eTop 100 Book, and a finalist for the Amazon.ca First Novel Award, the Thomas H. Raddall Atlantic Fiction Award, and the Dartmouth Book Award. Her work has appeared in numerous literary journals including \u003cem\u003eBest Canadian Stories\u003c\/em\u003e, \u003cem\u003eBrick\u003c\/em\u003e, \u003cem\u003eGeist\u003c\/em\u003e, \u003cem\u003eRoom\u003c\/em\u003e, and \u003cem\u003eNuméro Cinq\u003c\/em\u003e. Her short fiction has also been longlisted for the Commonwealth Short Story Prize and the American Short Fiction Prize. Her radio broadcast work includes co-creating and hosting CBC \u003cem\u003eFear Itself\u003c\/em\u003e, a national summer radio series. Christy Ann studied theatre at the University of Ottawa and screenplay writing at the University of British Columbia. She was born and raised in seaside Nova Scotia, where she still resides.\u003c\/p\u003e","BISACSubjectLiteral_0":"FICTION \/ Literary","BISACSubjectLiteral_1":"FICTION \/ Short Stories (single author)","BISACSubject_0":"FIC019000","BISACSubject_1":"FIC029000","ContributorBio_0":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eCHRISTY ANN CONLIN\u003c\/strong\u003e is the author of two acclaimed novels, \u003cem\u003eHeave\u003c\/em\u003e and \u003cem\u003eThe Memento\u003c\/em\u003e. She is also the author of the short-fiction collection \u003cem\u003eWatermark\u003c\/em\u003e, which was a finalist for the Danuta Gleed Literary Award and the Forest of Reading Evergreen Award. \u003cem\u003eHeave\u003c\/em\u003e was a national bestseller, a \u003cem\u003eGlobe and Mail \u003c\/em\u003eTop 100 Book, and a finalist for the Amazon.ca First Novel Award, the Thomas H. Raddall Atlantic Fiction Award, and the Dartmouth Book Award. Her work has appeared in numerous literary journals including \u003cem\u003eBest Canadian Stories\u003c\/em\u003e, \u003cem\u003eBrick\u003c\/em\u003e, \u003cem\u003eGeist\u003c\/em\u003e, \u003cem\u003eRoom\u003c\/em\u003e, and \u003cem\u003eNuméro Cinq\u003c\/em\u003e. Her short fiction has also been longlisted for the Commonwealth Short Story Prize and the American Short Fiction Prize. Her radio broadcast work includes co-creating and hosting CBC \u003cem\u003eFear Itself\u003c\/em\u003e, a national summer radio series. Christy Ann studied theatre at the University of Ottawa and screenplay writing at the University of British Columbia. She was born and raised in seaside Nova Scotia, where she still resides.\u003c\/p\u003e\r\n","ContributorRole_0":"By (author)","Contributor_0":"Conlin, Christy Ann (CA)","Description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eFrom Christy Ann Conlin, the critically acclaimed and award winning author of \u003ci\u003eHeave,\u003c\/i\u003e comes a breathtaking and unforgettable collection about how the briefest moment can shape us forever.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eIn these evocative and startling stories, we meet people navigating the elemental forces of love, life, and death. An insomniac on Halifax’s moonlit streets. A runaway bride. A young woman accused of a brutal murder. A man who must live in exile if he is to live at all. A woman coming to terms with her eccentric childhood in a cult on the Bay of Fundy shore. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eA master of North Atlantic Gothic, Christy Ann Conlin expertly navigates our conflicting self-perceptions, especially in moments of crisis. She illuminates the personality of land and ocean, charts the pull of the past on the present, and reveals the wildness inside each of us. These stories offer a gallery of both gritty and lyrical portraits, each unmasking the myth and mystery of the everyday.\u003c\/p\u003e","EAN":"9781487003432","excerpt_0":"https:\/\/biblioshare.org\/BNCservices\/BNCServices.asmx\/Samples?token=fcf85c1c1b298e99\u0026amp;ean=9781487003432\u0026amp;SAN=\u0026amp;Perspective=excerpt\u0026amp;FileNumber=0","Height":"8","HeightCode":"in","Imprint":"Astoria","MetaKeywords":"Book clubs","NumberOfPages":"232","OtherText_Accolades_0":"Christy Ann Conlin’s stories achieve a dizzying balance of light and dark — the magical with the murderous. Over and over again, Conlin masterfully depicts the lush, somehow uncanny splendour of high summer only to chill us with a counterbalancing night world of hidden creatures and terrible human secrets. The results make for mesmerizing reading.","OtherText_Accolades_0_Auth":"Lynn Coady, author of The Antagonist and Hellgoing","OtherText_Accolades_1":"Watermark is propulsive. These linked stories are gothic dark and sparking with brilliant twists. Characters so vivid you can hear their voices, feel their pulse. Here are deep psychological fractures and betrayals, loss and longing. Adventure and abandon. Conlin’s characters are a splendidly complex; they are sometimes prisoners, and sometimes breaking free. This book is a dangerous joyride.","OtherText_Accolades_1_Auth":"Lisa Moore, author of Caught and Something for Everyone","OtherText_Accolades_2":"Watermark takes us beyond mere appearances, offering intimate portraits of characters you quickly realize you only think you know. These are powerful stories that tell secrets — that are interested in, and unafraid of, all the messy details that make up a person, a life.","OtherText_Accolades_2_Auth":"Johanna Skibsrud, author of Quartet for the End of Time and The Sentimentalists","OtherText_Accolades_3":"Conlin’s characters are fierce, lonely, dangerous, and wild. This is the best short story collection I've read in years.","OtherText_Accolades_3_Auth":"Annabel Lyon, author of Oxygen and The Golden Mean","OtherText_Back_cover_copy_0":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eACCLAIMED AUTHOR:\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\r\n\u003cul\u003e\u003cli\u003eThis is the first collection of stories by this highly acclaimed writer of literary fiction. Her debut novel, \u003cem\u003eHeave\u003c\/em\u003e, was shortlisted for the Amazon.ca First Novel Award and also received two very prestigious Canadian fiction awards: the Thomas H. Raddall Atlantic Fiction Award and the Dartmouth Book Award. It was also named a \u003cem\u003eGlobe and Mail\u003c\/em\u003e Top 100 Book, one of the most widely distributed Canadian newspaper.\u003c\/li\u003e\r\n\u003c\/ul\u003e\r\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eWELCOMING A TALENTED MID-CAREER AUTHOR TO THE ANANSI LIST:\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\r\n\u003cul\u003e\u003cli\u003eChristy Ann left her previous publisher, Doubleday Canada, to come to Anansi in a two book deal — this collection plus a novel. She is a huge talent, and we believe we can best serve her as a publisher.\u003c\/li\u003e\r\n\u003c\/ul\u003e\r\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eSTRONG SUPPORT:\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\r\n\u003cul\u003e\u003cli\u003eChristy Ann teaches writing and is well connected in the literary scene, so we expect blurbs from some big names.\u003c\/li\u003e\r\n\u003c\/ul\u003e","OtherText_Description_for_R_0":"\u003cp\u003eWe moved to the North Mountain the summer I was four and my mother was pregnant with my little sister, Morgaine. My father made the house himself and we lived in a tent pitched in a meadow surrounded by forest while he built it. My mother told me this. I remember the tent was green and there was a path through the meadow to the house. I loved this path, which cut through the tall grasses. In the meadow, purple vetch threaded up through the grass stems and touched my mother’s round belly. The grasses grew so high they were taller than me, but I could look up and see how they touched my mother’s breasts. I drew pictures on her stomach with icing coloured with beet and carrot juice. Then she’d let me lick it off. The acreage was mostly forest, except for the clearing around a large, rickety barn. They put a sandbox in the clearing where I played with my pail and shovel.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThere was also a path through the woods. It was a twisting path my father had cut through the pines to the clifftop jutting out from the trees over the Bay of Fundy. He called the path “the labyrinth of life.” It snaked through the forest to the perilous brink of the cliff. The path was difficult and winding, with sharp turns where you had to slow down. My father said this was the main purpose of his pathway: everyone was forced to stop hurrying and consider their journey as it unfolded. People needed to be open to sudden turns and trust the way ahead. Being in the moment would take over and time would lose meaning. Before you knew it, you would arrive at your destination, and le voilà, enlightenment, or éclaircissement, as the French Acadians say, when you reached the bench of wisdom! Every age had an awakening, her father said, with those like him, who were called to be its prophets, ushering in the awakening. On a clear day you could stand at the edge of the cliff and see all the way down the bay toward Maine, which was four exhilarating hours away by boat as the crow flies or a long, boring two-day drive by car, as my father explained.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe bench at the edge of the crumbling cliff my father had made from driftwood, which the elements had cast to a silvery white. He encouraged us to sit on the bench and look for water nymphs. He insisted people had been spotting them in the bay for generations. They swam in with the tide, he proclaimed, as though he were a marine biologist with a peculiar specialization.\u003c\/p\u003e","OtherText_Previous_review_q_0":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eREVIEW COPIES:\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\r\n\u003cul\u003e\u003cli\u003ePublishers Weekly\u003c\/li\u003e\r\n\u003cli\u003eBooklist\u003c\/li\u003e\r\n\u003cli\u003eKirkus Reviews\u003c\/li\u003e\r\n\u003c\/ul\u003e","OtherText_Review_0":"A sometimes-mystical Gothic in which the horror arises from those closest to us . . . Watermark is taut, sharp writing.","OtherText_Review_0_Src":"Globe and Mail","OtherText_Review_1":"Eerie and haunting stories.","OtherText_Review_1_Src":"Toronto Star","OtherText_Review_2":"Rich with humanity and atmosphere.","OtherText_Review_2_Src":"Booklist","OtherText_Review_3":"These stories are deliciously discomfiting … Suspenseful excavations of family secrets, as smart as they are creepy.","OtherText_Review_3_Src":"Kirkus Reviews","OtherText_Review_4":"Riveting, disturbing tales … Watermark has enough to fascinate and scare throughout.","OtherText_Review_4_Src":"Winnipeg Free Press","OtherText_ShortDescription_0":"From Christy Ann Conlin comes a breathtaking and unforgettable collection about how the briefest moment can shape us forever.","PrizeCodeText_0":"Winner","PrizeCodeText_1":"Short-listed","PrizeCodeText_2":"Short-listed","PrizeCode_0":"01","PrizeCode_1":"04","PrizeCode_2":"04","PrizeName_0":"Gold Medal, The Miramichi Reader’s “The Very Best!” Book Awards: Best Short Fiction","PrizeName_1":"Danuta Gleed Literary Award","PrizeName_2":"Forest of Reading Evergreen Award","PrizeYear_0":"2019","PrizeYear_1":"2019","PrizeYear_2":"2019","ProductFormDescription":"trade paperback","PublicationDate":"2019-08-13","Publisher":"House of Anansi Press Inc","ShortDescription":"From Christy Ann Conlin comes a breathtaking and unforgettable collection about how the briefest moment can shape us forever.","Width":"5.25","WidthCode":"in"}
Watermark
From Christy Ann Conlin comes a breathtaking and unforgettable collection about how the briefest moment can shape us forever.
Quick View
{"id":6811321663547,"title":"We Two Alone","handle":"we-two-alone","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eWinner, 2021 Danuta Gleed Award \u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\r\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eA masterful collection of stories that dramatizes the Chinese diaspora across the globe over the past hundred years, \u003cem\u003eWe Two Alone \u003c\/em\u003eis Jack Wang’s astonishing debut work of fiction.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\r\n\u003cp\u003eSet on five continents and spanning nearly a century, \u003cem\u003eWe Two Alone \u003c\/em\u003etraces the long arc and evolution of the Chinese immigrant experience. A young laundry boy risks his life to play organized hockey in Canada in the 1920s. A Canadian couple gets caught in the outbreak of violence in Shanghai during the Second Sino-Japanese War. The consul general of China attempts to save lives following Kristallnacht in Vienna. A family aspires to buy a home in South Africa, during the rise of apartheid. An actor in New York struggles to keep his career alive while yearning to reconcile with his estranged wife.\u003c\/p\u003e\r\n\u003cp\u003eFrom the vulnerable and disenfranchised to the educated and elite, the characters in this extraordinary collection embody the diversity of the diaspora at key moments in history and in contemporary times. Jack Wang has crafted deeply affecting stories that not only subvert expectations but contend with mortality and delicately draw out the intimacies and failings of love.\u003c\/p\u003e","published_at":"2022-03-21T17:17:03-04:00","created_at":"2022-03-21T12:52:24-04:00","vendor":"House of Anansi Press Inc","type":"","tags":["Adult BIPOC Voices","Adult Short Stories","Astoria","Book Club Pick","By (author) Wang Jack","pub date: 2020-09-01"],"price":1695,"price_min":1695,"price_max":3499,"available":true,"price_varies":true,"compare_at_price":null,"compare_at_price_min":0,"compare_at_price_max":0,"compare_at_price_varies":false,"variants":[{"id":40191046680635,"title":"trade paperback","option1":"trade paperback","option2":null,"option3":null,"sku":"9781487007461","requires_shipping":true,"taxable":true,"featured_image":null,"available":true,"name":"We Two Alone - trade paperback","public_title":"trade paperback","options":["trade paperback"],"price":1995,"weight":308,"compare_at_price":null,"inventory_management":null,"barcode":"9781487007461","requires_selling_plan":false,"selling_plan_allocations":[]},{"id":40191140397115,"title":"epub","option1":"epub","option2":null,"option3":null,"sku":"9781487007478","requires_shipping":false,"taxable":true,"featured_image":null,"available":true,"name":"We Two Alone - epub","public_title":"epub","options":["epub"],"price":1695,"weight":0,"compare_at_price":null,"inventory_management":null,"barcode":"9781487007478","requires_selling_plan":false,"selling_plan_allocations":[]},{"id":40191140462651,"title":"mobi","option1":"mobi","option2":null,"option3":null,"sku":"9781487007485","requires_shipping":false,"taxable":true,"featured_image":null,"available":true,"name":"We Two Alone - mobi","public_title":"mobi","options":["mobi"],"price":1695,"weight":0,"compare_at_price":null,"inventory_management":null,"barcode":"9781487007485","requires_selling_plan":false,"selling_plan_allocations":[]},{"id":40191140560955,"title":"Digital Audio, MP3","option1":"Digital Audio, MP3","option2":null,"option3":null,"sku":"9781487008826","requires_shipping":false,"taxable":true,"featured_image":null,"available":true,"name":"We Two Alone - Digital Audio, MP3","public_title":"Digital Audio, MP3","options":["Digital Audio, MP3"],"price":3499,"weight":0,"compare_at_price":null,"inventory_management":null,"barcode":"9781487008826","requires_selling_plan":false,"selling_plan_allocations":[]},{"id":40191140790331,"title":"Lossless Format Audio, WAV","option1":"Lossless Format Audio, WAV","option2":null,"option3":null,"sku":"9781487008833","requires_shipping":false,"taxable":true,"featured_image":null,"available":true,"name":"We Two Alone - Lossless Format Audio, WAV","public_title":"Lossless Format Audio, WAV","options":["Lossless Format Audio, WAV"],"price":3499,"weight":0,"compare_at_price":null,"inventory_management":null,"barcode":"9781487008833","requires_selling_plan":false,"selling_plan_allocations":[]}],"images":["\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0264\/3374\/9051\/files\/BNCImageAPI_ee4597b2-f40b-4dcc-aaf7-ef474639ec23.jpg?v=1684072674"],"featured_image":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0264\/3374\/9051\/files\/BNCImageAPI_ee4597b2-f40b-4dcc-aaf7-ef474639ec23.jpg?v=1684072674","options":["Title"],"media":[{"alt":null,"id":23467520393275,"position":1,"preview_image":{"aspect_ratio":0.656,"height":2400,"width":1575,"src":"https:\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0264\/3374\/9051\/files\/BNCImageAPI_ee4597b2-f40b-4dcc-aaf7-ef474639ec23.jpg?v=1684072674"},"aspect_ratio":0.656,"height":2400,"media_type":"image","src":"https:\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0264\/3374\/9051\/files\/BNCImageAPI_ee4597b2-f40b-4dcc-aaf7-ef474639ec23.jpg?v=1684072674","width":1575}],"requires_selling_plan":false,"selling_plan_groups":[],"content":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eWinner, 2021 Danuta Gleed Award \u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\r\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eA masterful collection of stories that dramatizes the Chinese diaspora across the globe over the past hundred years, \u003cem\u003eWe Two Alone \u003c\/em\u003eis Jack Wang’s astonishing debut work of fiction.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\r\n\u003cp\u003eSet on five continents and spanning nearly a century, \u003cem\u003eWe Two Alone \u003c\/em\u003etraces the long arc and evolution of the Chinese immigrant experience. A young laundry boy risks his life to play organized hockey in Canada in the 1920s. A Canadian couple gets caught in the outbreak of violence in Shanghai during the Second Sino-Japanese War. The consul general of China attempts to save lives following Kristallnacht in Vienna. A family aspires to buy a home in South Africa, during the rise of apartheid. An actor in New York struggles to keep his career alive while yearning to reconcile with his estranged wife.\u003c\/p\u003e\r\n\u003cp\u003eFrom the vulnerable and disenfranchised to the educated and elite, the characters in this extraordinary collection embody the diversity of the diaspora at key moments in history and in contemporary times. Jack Wang has crafted deeply affecting stories that not only subvert expectations but contend with mortality and delicately draw out the intimacies and failings of love.\u003c\/p\u003e"}
{"AlsoRecommendedISBN_0":"9781487001469","AlsoRecommendedISBN_1":"9781487002299","AlsoRecommendedISBN_2":"9781487006563","BASICMainSubject":"FIC029000","BASICMainSubjectLiteral":"FICTION \/ Short Stories","BiographicalNote":"\u003cp\u003eJACK WANG received a B.Sc. from the University of Toronto, an M.F.A. from the University of Arizona, and a Ph.D. in English with an emphasis in creative writing from Florida State University. In 2014–15, he held the David T. K. Wong Creative Writing Fellowship at the University of East Anglia in Norwich, England. Stories in his debut collection, \u003cem \u003eWe Two Alone\u003c\/em\u003e,\u003cem \u003e \u003c\/em\u003ehave been shortlisted for the Commonwealth Short Story Prize and longlisted for the Journey Prize, and have appeared in \u003cem \u003ePRISM International\u003c\/em\u003e, the \u003cem \u003eMalahat Review\u003c\/em\u003e, the \u003cem \u003eNew Quarterly\u003c\/em\u003e, the \u003cem \u003eHumber Literary Review\u003c\/em\u003e, and \u003cem \u003eJoyland\u003c\/em\u003e. Originally from Vancouver, Jack Wang is an associate professor in the Department of Writing at Ithaca College in Ithaca, New York, where he lives with his wife, novelist Angelina Mirabella, and their two daughters.\u003c\/p\u003e","BISACSubjectLiteral_0":"FICTION \/ Short Stories (single author)","BISACSubjectLiteral_1":"FICTION \/ Literary","BISACSubjectLiteral_2":"FICTION \/ Asian American","BISACSubject_0":"FIC029000","BISACSubject_1":"FIC019000","BISACSubject_2":"FIC054000","ContributorBio_0":"\u003cp\u003eJACK WANG received a B.Sc. from the University of Toronto, an M.F.A. from the University of Arizona, and a Ph.D. in English with an emphasis in creative writing from Florida State University. In 2014–15, he held the David T. K. Wong Creative Writing Fellowship at the University of East Anglia in Norwich, England. Stories in his debut collection, \u003cem \u003eWe Two Alone\u003c\/em\u003e,\u003cem \u003e \u003c\/em\u003ehave been shortlisted for the Commonwealth Short Story Prize and longlisted for the Journey Prize, and have appeared in \u003cem \u003ePRISM International\u003c\/em\u003e, the \u003cem \u003eMalahat Review\u003c\/em\u003e, the \u003cem \u003eNew Quarterly\u003c\/em\u003e, the \u003cem \u003eHumber Literary Review\u003c\/em\u003e, and \u003cem \u003eJoyland\u003c\/em\u003e. Originally from Vancouver, Jack Wang is an associate professor in the Department of Writing at Ithaca College in Ithaca, New York, where he lives with his wife, novelist Angelina Mirabella, and their two daughters.\u003c\/p\u003e\r\n","ContributorRole_0":"By (author)","Contributor_0":"Wang, Jack (CA)","Description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eWinner, 2021 Danuta Gleed Award \u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\r\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eA masterful collection of stories that dramatizes the Chinese diaspora across the globe over the past hundred years, \u003cem\u003eWe Two Alone \u003c\/em\u003eis Jack Wang’s astonishing debut work of fiction.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\r\n\u003cp\u003eSet on five continents and spanning nearly a century, \u003cem\u003eWe Two Alone \u003c\/em\u003etraces the long arc and evolution of the Chinese immigrant experience. A young laundry boy risks his life to play organized hockey in Canada in the 1920s. A Canadian couple gets caught in the outbreak of violence in Shanghai during the Second Sino-Japanese War. The consul general of China attempts to save lives following Kristallnacht in Vienna. A family aspires to buy a home in South Africa, during the rise of apartheid. An actor in New York struggles to keep his career alive while yearning to reconcile with his estranged wife.\u003c\/p\u003e\r\n\u003cp\u003eFrom the vulnerable and disenfranchised to the educated and elite, the characters in this extraordinary collection embody the diversity of the diaspora at key moments in history and in contemporary times. Jack Wang has crafted deeply affecting stories that not only subvert expectations but contend with mortality and delicately draw out the intimacies and failings of love.\u003c\/p\u003e","EAN":"9781487007461","excerpt_0":"https:\/\/biblioshare.org\/BNCservices\/BNCServices.asmx\/Samples?token=fcf85c1c1b298e99\u0026amp;ean=9781487007461\u0026amp;SAN=\u0026amp;Perspective=excerpt\u0026amp;FileNumber=0","Height":"8","HeightCode":"in","Imprint":"Astoria","MetaKeywords":"canadian history; hockey; immigration; refugees; marriage; asia; Madeleine Thien; Pachinko; A Tale for the Time Being; David Chariandy; London; Lunar New Year; WWI; WWII; world war; holocaust; asian literature; post colonial; creative writing; canlit; Holman; Cozy Classics; Star Wars Epic Yarns; Great Job Dad; Frying Plantain; Kim's Convenience; Asian Americans PBS; book club","NumberOfPages":"296","OtherText_Accolades_0":"\u003cp\u003eThese moving stories are both global and intimate as they span the continents where the Chinese diaspora has settled. With ingenuity and impeccable craft, Jack Wang gives us an utterly remarkable collection that zeroes in on the emotional texture of utterly unique lives.\u003c\/p\u003e","OtherText_Accolades_0_Auth":"Viet Thanh Nguyen, Pulitzer Prize–winning author of The Sympathizer","OtherText_Accolades_1":"\u003cp\u003eThis impressive and vibrant collection of stories takes the reader by the hand, leading us across the world and back in time. But they’re all unified by the gentle sensitivity of Jack Wang’s prose and his ability to inhabit characters who long for freedom, connection, and fulfillment. Deeply humane and beautifully wrought, these stories stay in the heart and the mind.\u003c\/p\u003e","OtherText_Accolades_1_Auth":"Alix Ohlin, author of the Scotiabank Giller Prize finalists Dual Citizens and Inside","OtherText_Accolades_2":"\u003cp\u003eOne of the best books I’ve read this year and one of my all-time favourite short-story collections.\u003c\/p\u003e","OtherText_Accolades_2_Auth":"Sharon Bala, bestselling author of The Boat People","OtherText_Accolades_3":"\u003cp\u003eJack Wang’s \u003cem\u003eWe Two Alone\u003c\/em\u003e is not only a penetrating examination of the Chinese diaspora, it also brilliantly renders its subject in the most deeply resonant universal way, as the yearning for personal identity that drives us all in our shared humanity. This is a remarkable collection of stories, a remarkable work of art.\u003c\/p\u003e","OtherText_Accolades_3_Auth":"Robert Olen Butler, Pulitzer Prize–winning author of A Good Scent from a Strange Mountain","OtherText_Accolades_4":"\u003cp\u003eJack Wang’s dazzling first collection of stories, \u003cem\u003eWe Two Alone\u003c\/em\u003e, moves through decades and across continents with rare ease, telling not \u003cem\u003ethe\u003c\/em\u003e story but some of the many stories of the Chinese diaspora in the last century. These stories are so elegantly shaped, so satisfying as individual stories, that their collective power sneaks up on you. There is a quiet and building intensity to the storytelling here, a commitment to chronicling — with deep compassion and a refusal of easy answers — the dignity of human experience against the broader indignities of history. I was moved, heartbroken, and thrilled.\u003c\/p\u003e","OtherText_Accolades_4_Auth":"Emily Fridlund, author of the Booker Prize finalist History of Wolves","OtherText_Description_for_R_0":"\u003cp\u003eFrom “The Night of Broken Glass”\u003cbr \/\u003e A finalist for the 2014 Commonwealth Short Story Prize, whose jury included Booker Prize winner Marlon James\u003cbr \/\u003ePublished in \u003cem\u003eLet’s Tell This Story Properly: An Anthology of the Commonwealth Short Story Prize\u003c\/em\u003e\u003cbr \/\u003eNominated by the \u003cem\u003eNew Quarterly\u003c\/em\u003e for a 2016 National Magazine Award \u003cbr \/\u003e\u003cbr \/\u003e I met my mother for the first time when I was six. I say “mother” because that was what I was expected to call her, and did, though in fact she was my stepmother. My real mother died of tuberculosis when I was five. A year later my father came home with a new wife. He had been studying international law in Chicago despite already having a Ph.D. in political economics from the University of Munich. While he was gone I received a series of brightly coloured linen postcards of the World’s Fair: the Hall of Science, the Avenue of Flags, the iron lattice towers of the Sky Ride. The theme of the fair was A Century of Progress. That’s where my father met Grace.\u003cbr \/\u003e\u003cbr \/\u003eIt was a windless, thick-aired summer day in Changsha when a motorcar saddled with steamer trucks pulled up in front of our house and a woman in a white blouse, wide-legged trousers, and large round sunglasses climbed out. She was beautiful, which made me sad for my mother and scornful of my father, and she looked too fair to be Chinese. As it turned out, she was half Chinese, born of a Chinese father and a German-American mother. That, along with her clothes and her beauty, made her unlike any woman I had ever seen. My father had secured a large two-storey house on the outskirts of town and staffed it with half a dozen servants, all in an effort to make his new wife comfortable, but as soon as they arrived he was stricken by all he had not foreseen. The house had no running water, and despite the need Grace refused to use the privy, which had no seat and emitted at that time of year an audible drone. After pleading with Grace in hushed tones, my father ordered Old Chao into town for a portable commode, a trip of at least three hours. For the rest of the afternoon my new mother paced the courtyard, smoking one Lucky after another, which made her seem feral and caged. \u003cbr \/\u003e\u003cbr \/\u003e[…] \u003cbr \/\u003e\u003cbr \/\u003eNeedless to say, Grace was unhappy in China. Though my father had no particular desire to leave, he began to eye the foreign service. When the Governor for whom he worked recommended the post of First Secretary in the Chinese legation in Austria, my father accepted for Grace’s sake. We arrived in Vienna in June of my tenth year, after a three-week voyage on the \u003cem\u003eConte Verde\u003c\/em\u003e through Saigon, Singapore, Madras, Bombay, Aden, and Port Said, and at first everything did seem better. The city was glorious with summer, and everywhere open air orchestras paid homage to the old masters, which made our lives seem set to music. Many nights my parents put on tails and gown and went to balls and receptions, living at last the life for which they were meant. \u003cbr \/\u003e\u003cbr \/\u003eBut it wasn’t long before Grace again felt stranded. She could no more distinguish der, die, and das than she could first and second tones. Then, in the spring, German troops goose-stepped through the Ringstrasse, just blocks away from our townhouse. The crowds that greeted them were lusty, adoring, as was I, my schoolboy fantasies of soldiers and guns come to life. My father did not raise his arm but he didn’t stop me from raising mine. That night, in a scene that would soon become commonplace, hoodlums took to the streets, smashing the windows of certain homes and shops. Thereafter, walking to and from school, I passed storefronts marked \u003cem\u003eJude\u003c\/em\u003e and \u003cem\u003eNicht arisches Geschaeft\u003c\/em\u003e and blocked by baby-faced men in jackboots and flared helmets. As a visible foreigner and part of the diplomatic corps, my father felt undeterred and often went into these stores despite the piercing glares — and once, an arm held stiffly against his chest. For my mother, annexation was yet another rung of descent in a private tragedy. She chided my father for bringing her to a Nazi-occupied country. His answer: Better the Germans than the Japanese. \u003cbr \/\u003e\u003cbr \/\u003eAt the end of October, thousands of Polish-born Jews were rounded up and sent back to Poland. When a seventeen-year-old boy learned that his family was among those languishing at the border, unwanted by either side, he walked into the German Embassy in Paris and pumped five bullets into the viscera of a minor German diplomat. Two days later, Ernst vom Rath died of his wounds. The seething of the Germans, checked so long as their countryman clung to life, would now be unleashed. This was what my father knew when he came home that afternoon.\u003c\/p\u003e","OtherText_Review_0":"\u003cp\u003eA collection that announces an important new voice in contemporary fiction … Beyond Vancouver, Shanghai, Vienna, Port Elizabeth, and London, the stories in \u003cem\u003eWe Two Alone\u003c\/em\u003e encompass Tallahassee, Los Angeles, and Boston. Wang is committed to rendering his backdrops accurately; with perfectly presented details, he showcases the disharmony of the Chinese diaspora, as individuals endure salient moments in twentieth-century history and more recent times … \u003cem\u003eWe Two Alone\u003c\/em\u003e shows that Jack Wang is a master of the short story, a writer who has mapped his own space, neither Canadian nor American, nor anywhere else. Each episode in this collection is a moving tribute to its characters as well as an indictment of the ostracism that remains when racist taunts and human failures continue to bedevil the modern world.\u003c\/p\u003e","OtherText_Review_0_Src":"Literary Review of Canada","OtherText_Review_1":"\u003cp\u003eRich and poignant … History lovers and literary buffs will sink joyfully into his moving collection … Wang manages to underscore the importance of cultural heritage while stressing humanity’s common ties … His ability to create vivid and believable settings, in beautiful and readable prose, will deeply move readers.\u003c\/p\u003e","OtherText_Review_1_Src":"Winnipeg Free Press","OtherText_Review_2":"\u003cp\u003eJack Wang is a welcome new voice in Canadian letters … [\u003cem\u003eWe Two Alone\u003c\/em\u003e] is serious, engaging, well crafted, thought-provoking. Wang clearly has something to say, and this accomplished collection not only says it but also promises a great deal more to come.\u003c\/p\u003e","OtherText_Review_2_Src":"Ormsby Review","OtherText_Review_3":"\u003cp\u003eJack Wang’s extraordinary debut book of stories, \u003cem\u003eWe Two Alone\u003c\/em\u003e, weaves a path across the world, following the Chinese diaspora over nearly a hundred years. It’s the kind of collection that comes along only once in a while, to be savoured by readers for its sharp, smart portraits of longing, connection, and identity.\u003c\/p\u003e","OtherText_Review_3_Src":"Open Book","OtherText_Review_4":"\u003cp\u003eIn \u003cem\u003eWe Two Alone\u003c\/em\u003e, Jack Wang has written an instantly engaging and achingly poignant collection of stories about people struggling to preserve their way of life and seeking stability, connection, and meaning. Focusing on Chinese immigrant experiences, Wang’s stories range freely and easily across many decades and a dizzyingly assortment of geographies. All of Wang’s characters are vividly rendered, their struggles and agonies richly conceived and indelibly portrayed. The writing throughout is atmospheric, highly visual, and peppered with startling and persuasive detail. Long after finishing it, \u003cem\u003eWe Two Alone\u003c\/em\u003e lingers in the mind as a compassionate work by a profoundly talented writer who cares deeply about what it means to be human in turbulent times.\u003c\/p\u003e","OtherText_Review_4_Auth":"Danuta Gleed Literary Award Jury Citation","OtherText_ShortDescription_0":"A masterful debut collection of stories that dramatizes the Chinese diaspora across the globe over the past hundred years.","PrizeCodeText_0":"Winner","PrizeCodeText_1":"Long-listed","PrizeCode_0":"01","PrizeCode_1":"05","PrizeName_0":"Danuta Gleed Literary Award","PrizeName_1":"CBC Canada Reads","ProductFormDescription":"trade paperback","PublicationDate":"2020-09-01","Publisher":"House of Anansi Press Inc","ShortDescription":"A masterful debut collection of stories that dramatizes the Chinese diaspora across the globe over the past hundred years.","Width":"5.25","WidthCode":"in"}
We Two Alone
A masterful debut collection of stories that dramatizes the Chinese diaspora across the globe over the past hundred years.
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In the subversive “The Brooks Brothers Guru,” Amanda drives to upstate New York to rescue her gawky cousin from a cult, only to discover clean-cut, well-dressed men living in a beautiful home, discussing the classics and drinking cocktails, moving her to wonder what freedoms she might be willing to trade for a life of such elegant comfort. And in “The Universal Particular,” Tamar welcomes her husband’s young stepcousin into her home, only to find her cool suburban life knocked askew in ways she cannot quite understand. \u003c\/p\u003e\r\n\u003cp\u003ePopulated with imperfect families, burned potential, and inescapable old flames, the stories in \u003cem\u003eWe Want What We Want\u003c\/em\u003e are, each one, diamond-sharp — sparkling with pain, humour, and beauty.\u003c\/p\u003e","published_at":"2022-03-21T12:08:22-04:00","created_at":"2022-03-21T09:49:12-04:00","vendor":"House of Anansi Press Inc","type":"","tags":["Adult Short Stories","Astoria","By (author) Ohlin Alix","Literary Fiction","pub date: 2021-07-27"],"price":1895,"price_min":1895,"price_max":2295,"available":true,"price_varies":true,"compare_at_price":null,"compare_at_price_min":0,"compare_at_price_max":0,"compare_at_price_varies":false,"variants":[{"id":40190667554875,"title":"trade paperback","option1":"trade paperback","option2":null,"option3":null,"sku":"9781487004897","requires_shipping":true,"taxable":true,"featured_image":null,"available":true,"name":"We Want What We Want - trade paperback","public_title":"trade paperback","options":["trade paperback"],"price":2295,"weight":358,"compare_at_price":null,"inventory_management":null,"barcode":"9781487004897","requires_selling_plan":false,"selling_plan_allocations":[]},{"id":40190667980859,"title":"epub","option1":"epub","option2":null,"option3":null,"sku":"9781487004903","requires_shipping":false,"taxable":true,"featured_image":null,"available":true,"name":"We Want What We Want - epub","public_title":"epub","options":["epub"],"price":1895,"weight":0,"compare_at_price":null,"inventory_management":null,"barcode":"9781487004903","requires_selling_plan":false,"selling_plan_allocations":[]}],"images":["\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0264\/3374\/9051\/products\/BNCImageAPI_075628f5-e7f9-4334-8c94-0f324fda864b.jpg?v=1678596377"],"featured_image":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0264\/3374\/9051\/products\/BNCImageAPI_075628f5-e7f9-4334-8c94-0f324fda864b.jpg?v=1678596377","options":["Title"],"media":[{"alt":null,"id":23324486664251,"position":1,"preview_image":{"aspect_ratio":0.683,"height":2475,"width":1690,"src":"https:\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0264\/3374\/9051\/products\/BNCImageAPI_075628f5-e7f9-4334-8c94-0f324fda864b.jpg?v=1678596377"},"aspect_ratio":0.683,"height":2475,"media_type":"image","src":"https:\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0264\/3374\/9051\/products\/BNCImageAPI_075628f5-e7f9-4334-8c94-0f324fda864b.jpg?v=1678596377","width":1690}],"requires_selling_plan":false,"selling_plan_groups":[],"content":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eThirteen glittering, surprising, and darkly funny stories of people testing the boundaries of their lives, from two-time Scotiabank Giller Prize finalist Alix Ohlin.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\r\n\u003cp\u003eIn the mordantly funny “Money, Geography, Youth,” Vanessa arrives home from a gap year volunteering in Ghana to find that her father is engaged to her childhood best friend. Unable to reconcile the girl she went to dances with in the eighth grade and the woman in her father’s bed, Vanessa turns to a different old friendship for her own, unique diversion. In the subversive “The Brooks Brothers Guru,” Amanda drives to upstate New York to rescue her gawky cousin from a cult, only to discover clean-cut, well-dressed men living in a beautiful home, discussing the classics and drinking cocktails, moving her to wonder what freedoms she might be willing to trade for a life of such elegant comfort. And in “The Universal Particular,” Tamar welcomes her husband’s young stepcousin into her home, only to find her cool suburban life knocked askew in ways she cannot quite understand. \u003c\/p\u003e\r\n\u003cp\u003ePopulated with imperfect families, burned potential, and inescapable old flames, the stories in \u003cem\u003eWe Want What We Want\u003c\/em\u003e are, each one, diamond-sharp — sparkling with pain, humour, and beauty.\u003c\/p\u003e"}
{"AlsoRecommendedISBN_0":"9781487001162","AlsoRecommendedISBN_1":"9781487002961","AlsoRecommendedISBN_2":"9781487004835","BASICMainSubject":"FIC019000","BASICMainSubjectLiteral":"FICTION \/ Literary","BiographicalNote":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong \u003eALIX OHLIN\u003c\/strong\u003e is the author of six books, including the novels \u003cem \u003eInside\u003c\/em\u003e and \u003cem \u003eDual Citizens\u003c\/em\u003e, which were both finalists for the Scotiabank Giller Prize and the Rogers Writers’ Trust Fiction Prize. Her work has appeared in \u003cem \u003eThe New Yorker\u003c\/em\u003e, \u003cem \u003eTin House\u003c\/em\u003e, \u003cem \u003eBest American Short Stories\u003c\/em\u003e, and many other publications. Born and raised in Montreal, she lives in Vancouver, where she chairs the creative writing program at the University of British Columbia.\u003c\/p\u003e","BISACSubjectLiteral_0":"FICTION \/ Literary","BISACSubjectLiteral_1":"FICTION \/ Short Stories (single author)","BISACSubjectLiteral_2":"FICTION \/ Women","BISACSubject_0":"FIC019000","BISACSubject_1":"FIC029000","BISACSubject_2":"FIC044000","ContributorBio_0":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong \u003eALIX OHLIN\u003c\/strong\u003e is the author of six books, including the novels \u003cem \u003eInside\u003c\/em\u003e and \u003cem \u003eDual Citizens\u003c\/em\u003e, which were both finalists for the Scotiabank Giller Prize and the Rogers Writers’ Trust Fiction Prize. Her work has appeared in \u003cem \u003eThe New Yorker\u003c\/em\u003e, \u003cem \u003eTin House\u003c\/em\u003e, \u003cem \u003eBest American Short Stories\u003c\/em\u003e, and many other publications. Born and raised in Montreal, she lives in Vancouver, where she chairs the creative writing program at the University of British Columbia.\u003c\/p\u003e\r\n","ContributorRole_0":"By (author)","Contributor_0":"Ohlin, Alix (CA)","Description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong \u003eThirteen glittering, surprising, and darkly funny stories of people testing the boundaries of their lives, from two-time Scotiabank Giller Prize finalist Alix Ohlin.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\r\n\u003cp\u003eIn the mordantly funny “Money, Geography, Youth,” Vanessa arrives home from a gap year volunteering in Ghana to find that her father is engaged to her childhood best friend. Unable to reconcile the girl she went to dances with in the eighth grade and the woman in her father’s bed, Vanessa turns to a different old friendship for her own, unique diversion. In the subversive “The Brooks Brothers Guru,” Amanda drives to upstate New York to rescue her gawky cousin from a cult, only to discover clean-cut, well-dressed men living in a beautiful home, discussing the classics and drinking cocktails, moving her to wonder what freedoms she might be willing to trade for a life of such elegant comfort. And in “The Universal Particular,” Tamar welcomes her husband’s young stepcousin into her home, only to find her cool suburban life knocked askew in ways she cannot quite understand. \u003c\/p\u003e\r\n\u003cp\u003ePopulated with imperfect families, burned potential, and inescapable old flames, the stories in \u003cem \u003eWe Want What We Want\u003c\/em\u003e are, each one, diamond-sharp — sparkling with pain, humour, and beauty.\u003c\/p\u003e","EAN":"9781487004897","Height":"9","HeightCode":"in","Imprint":"Astoria","NumberOfPages":"256","OtherText_Description_for_R_0":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003efrom\u003c\/em\u003e THE BROOKS BROTHERS GURU\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eJohn Lorimer wants to be friends on Facebook.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eAmanda isn’t sure whether to accept. It’s a long night like any other, her bedroom blue-lit by devices, laptop and phone and iPad scattered on the comforter, earbuds nestled as she listens to Songwriters\/Folk on Pandora; this is how she goes to sleep. She has three or four windows open on the computer; she’s watching a movie and reading reviews of it at the same time.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThey have zero mutual friends.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eIn his profile picture, John stands, left knee bent, hands on hips, on a rock rising jaggedly from the ocean like a broken tooth. His short haircut looks military, his posture commendably rigid. He smiles like he’s never been happier. Amanda’s own picture shows a cartoon cat with its back rounded, fur up. She doesn’t like to give too much away. In John’s square jaw and dark brown hair she can barely make out traces of the gawky cousin she last saw — when, exactly? It would have been that summer in Virginia, when they were sixteen, both of their mothers sucking down gin-and-tonics as if alcohol were oxygen — years ago. Then John’s mother died, then hers, sisters so close they succumbed to the same disease within a year. The funerals were blurred and washy to her; when she tries to remember them, she can summon only feverish sweat and a churn in her stomach, no visuals at all.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eNow she spends summer vacations with her father’s family in Delaware, those cheerful extended relatives with healthy genetic history and aged grandmothers and aunts, a family where nobody knows what BRCA stands for, where nobody has been getting yearly mammograms since they were twenty.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eShe doesn’t think they look alike. She confirms his request.\u003c\/p\u003e","OtherText_Review_0":"The collection explore[s] desire and grief through a finely drawn and eclectic cast of characters ... Ohlin’s sly irony leavens the aching plights of characters for whom closure is unattainable.","OtherText_Review_0_Src":"New York Times Book Review","OtherText_Review_1":"Glittering ... Shot through with dark humor and keen powers of observation, this collection probes our contradictions with incisive clarity.","OtherText_Review_10":"Ohlin’s characters are so genuine you’ll be reminded of people you know, love and hate. For better or worse, you may even see yourself in the pages.","OtherText_Review_10_Src":"Marie Claire","OtherText_Review_11":"\u003cp\u003eAnother rich collection full of insights and sticky contradictions … Ohlin reveals the depth of her characters with empathy and precision … More than worth the price of admission.\u003c\/p\u003e","OtherText_Review_11_Src":"Publishers Weekly","OtherText_Review_12":"\u003cp\u003eEvery story in this exquisite collection is a gem full of startling surprises and insights into human nature. The collection demands and rewards repeated readings, the better to savour Ohlin’s near magical ability to achieve such depth with seemingly plain language and plotting. Ohlin packs entire lives into mere pages, allowing readers to join the flow of fully realized, complex scenarios whose key moments exude the inevitable open-endedness of real life. These stories bring us into the company of people who want what we all want: to connect, to matter, to heal, and to cross into unfamiliar territory, hoping that the risk will be worthwhile.\u003c\/p\u003e","OtherText_Review_12_Src":"Atwood Gibson Writers’ Trust Fiction Prize Jury Citation","OtherText_Review_1_Src":"Esquire","OtherText_Review_2":"Ohlin’s slyly humorous and devastatingly sensuous collection of short fiction shines a brilliant light on women’s inchoate desires.","OtherText_Review_2_Src":"O Magazine","OtherText_Review_3":"\u003cp\u003eAlix Ohlin is a magician. It’s not just that the stories are — individually and collectively — stunning; it’s that she makes it look so easy.\u003c\/p\u003e","OtherText_Review_3_Src":"Toronto Star","OtherText_Review_4":"\u003cp\u003eThere’s no shortage of phrases, sentences, and paragraphs to savour on every page … The elegant stories are delectable, electric, and clever … An exceptional, satisfying reading experience.\u003c\/p\u003e","OtherText_Review_4_Src":"Vancouver Sun","OtherText_Review_5":"Calling all fans of Lorrie Moore, Deborah Eisenberg, and Robin Black: You have a new favourite writer.","OtherText_Review_5_Src":"Newark Star-Ledger","OtherText_Review_6":"[Ohlin] has a rare gift for examining the confusions of the 21st century, exploring the ways in which addictions, afflictions, attractions, and random impulses shape our lives.","OtherText_Review_6_Src":"Boston Globe","OtherText_Review_7":"\u003cp\u003eOhlin’s stories have a quiet elegance to them and a restraint, although they’re filled, too, with grief and with loss … The book is a pleasure to behold … A wry and moving collection that supplies no easy, unearned endings.\u003c\/p\u003e","OtherText_Review_7_Src":"Kirkus Reviews","OtherText_Review_8":"With language intensely evocative and keenly focused on the nuances that define each of us as individuals, Ohlin delves into the lives of her characters — even in her shortest pieces — and reveals a depth to them, a poignancy, that is deeply affecting.","OtherText_Review_8_Src":"Baltimore Sun","OtherText_Review_9":"This cunning writer yanks you inside her world.","OtherText_Review_9_Src":"San Francisco Chronicle","OtherText_ShortDescription_0":"Thirteen glittering and darkly funny stories of people testing boundaries, from two-time Scotiabank Giller Prize finalist Alix Ohlin.","PrizeCodeText_0":"Short-listed","PrizeCodeText_1":"Short-listed","PrizeCode_0":"04","PrizeCode_1":"04","PrizeName_0":"Atwood Gibson Writers' Trust Fiction Prize","PrizeName_1":"Lambda Literary Award for Bisexual Fiction","ProductFormDescription":"trade paperback","PublicationDate":"2021-07-27","Publisher":"House of Anansi Press Inc","ShortDescription":"Thirteen glittering and darkly funny stories of people testing boundaries, from two-time Scotiabank Giller Prize finalist Alix Ohlin.","Width":"6","WidthCode":"in"}
We Want What We Want
Thirteen glittering and darkly funny stories of people testing boundaries, from two-time Scotiabank Giller Prize finalist Alix Ohlin.
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{"id":6818368290875,"title":"What Becomes","handle":"what-becomes","description":"\u003cp\u003eA. L. Kennedy's remarkable new collection of stories shows us exactly what becomes of the broken-hearted. She reveals the sadness, violence, hurt, and terror, but also the redemption of love, and she does so with enormous human compassion, wild leaps of humour, and the brilliantly original linguistic skill that distinguishes her as one of the world's finest writers. \u003c\/p\u003e\r\n\u003cp\u003eAlways attuned to the moment of epiphany, these twelve stories are profound, intimate observations of men and women whose lives ache with possibility. Each story is a dramatization of the instant in a life that exposes it all; love and the lack of love, hope and the lack of hope. These men and women are perfectly ordinary people whose marriages flounder; who sit on their own in a cinema watching a film with no soundtrack; who risk sex in a hotel with an anonymous stranger. They conceal tenderness and disappointment, vulnerability and longing, griefs and wonders. \u003c\/p\u003e\r\n \u003cp\u003eDevastating and funny, intimate and profound, the stories in \u003cem\u003eWhat Becomes\u003c\/em\u003e are further proof that Kennedy is one of the most dazzling and inventive writers of her generation.\u003c\/p\u003e","published_at":"2022-03-29T16:14:53-04:00","created_at":"2022-03-29T14:22:27-04:00","vendor":"House of Anansi Press Inc","type":"","tags":["Adult Short Stories","Astoria","By (author) Kennedy A.L.","pub date: 2010-03-01"],"price":1695,"price_min":1695,"price_max":2295,"available":true,"price_varies":true,"compare_at_price":null,"compare_at_price_min":0,"compare_at_price_max":0,"compare_at_price_varies":false,"variants":[{"id":40232238448699,"title":"trade paperback with flaps","option1":"trade paperback with flaps","option2":null,"option3":null,"sku":"9780887842412","requires_shipping":true,"taxable":true,"featured_image":null,"available":true,"name":"What Becomes - trade paperback with flaps","public_title":"trade paperback with flaps","options":["trade paperback with flaps"],"price":2295,"weight":272,"compare_at_price":null,"inventory_management":null,"barcode":"9780887842412","requires_selling_plan":false,"selling_plan_allocations":[]},{"id":40232637530171,"title":"epub","option1":"epub","option2":null,"option3":null,"sku":"9780887843051","requires_shipping":false,"taxable":true,"featured_image":null,"available":true,"name":"What Becomes - epub","public_title":"epub","options":["epub"],"price":1695,"weight":0,"compare_at_price":null,"inventory_management":null,"barcode":"9780887843051","requires_selling_plan":false,"selling_plan_allocations":[]},{"id":40232641036347,"title":"mobi","option1":"mobi","option2":null,"option3":null,"sku":"9781770897984","requires_shipping":false,"taxable":true,"featured_image":null,"available":true,"name":"What Becomes - mobi","public_title":"mobi","options":["mobi"],"price":1695,"weight":0,"compare_at_price":null,"inventory_management":null,"barcode":"9781770897984","requires_selling_plan":false,"selling_plan_allocations":[]}],"images":["\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0264\/3374\/9051\/products\/BNCImageAPI_19e2ba04-986b-4078-8560-1b8ecb946b62.jpg?v=1678598324"],"featured_image":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0264\/3374\/9051\/products\/BNCImageAPI_19e2ba04-986b-4078-8560-1b8ecb946b62.jpg?v=1678598324","options":["Title"],"media":[{"alt":null,"id":23324534177851,"position":1,"preview_image":{"aspect_ratio":0.625,"height":2550,"width":1595,"src":"https:\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0264\/3374\/9051\/products\/BNCImageAPI_19e2ba04-986b-4078-8560-1b8ecb946b62.jpg?v=1678598324"},"aspect_ratio":0.625,"height":2550,"media_type":"image","src":"https:\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0264\/3374\/9051\/products\/BNCImageAPI_19e2ba04-986b-4078-8560-1b8ecb946b62.jpg?v=1678598324","width":1595}],"requires_selling_plan":false,"selling_plan_groups":[],"content":"\u003cp\u003eA. L. Kennedy's remarkable new collection of stories shows us exactly what becomes of the broken-hearted. She reveals the sadness, violence, hurt, and terror, but also the redemption of love, and she does so with enormous human compassion, wild leaps of humour, and the brilliantly original linguistic skill that distinguishes her as one of the world's finest writers. \u003c\/p\u003e\r\n\u003cp\u003eAlways attuned to the moment of epiphany, these twelve stories are profound, intimate observations of men and women whose lives ache with possibility. Each story is a dramatization of the instant in a life that exposes it all; love and the lack of love, hope and the lack of hope. These men and women are perfectly ordinary people whose marriages flounder; who sit on their own in a cinema watching a film with no soundtrack; who risk sex in a hotel with an anonymous stranger. They conceal tenderness and disappointment, vulnerability and longing, griefs and wonders. \u003c\/p\u003e\r\n \u003cp\u003eDevastating and funny, intimate and profound, the stories in \u003cem\u003eWhat Becomes\u003c\/em\u003e are further proof that Kennedy is one of the most dazzling and inventive writers of her generation.\u003c\/p\u003e"}
{"AlsoRecommendedISBN_1":"9780887847455","AlsoRecommendedISBN_2":"9781487005221","AlsoRecommendedISBN_3":"9781770892088","BASICMainSubject":"FIC029000","BASICMainSubjectLiteral":"FICTION \/ Short Stories","BiographicalNote":"\u003cp\u003eA. L. Kennedy is the critically acclaimed author of multiple award-winning novel \u003cem\u003eDay\u003c\/em\u003e and several other works of fiction and nonfiction. She has twice been selected as \u003cem\u003eGranta\u003c\/em\u003e's Best Young British novelists. She lives in London, U.K.\u003c\/p\u003e\r\n\r\nVisit A.L. Kennedy's website:\r\nhttp:\/\/www.a-l-kennedy.co.uk\/\r\n\r\nFollow A.L. Kennedy on Twitter:\r\nhttp:\/\/www.twitter.com\/writerer","BISACSubjectLiteral_0":"FICTION \/ Short Stories (single author)","BISACSubjectLiteral_1":"FICTION \/ Literary","BISACSubject_0":"FIC029000","BISACSubject_1":"FIC019000","ContributorBio_0":"\u003cp\u003eA. L. Kennedy is the critically acclaimed author of multiple award-winning novel \u003cem\u003eDay\u003c\/em\u003e and several other works of fiction and nonfiction. She has twice been selected as \u003cem\u003eGranta\u003c\/em\u003e's Best Young British novelists. She lives in London, U.K.\u003c\/p\u003e\r\n\r\nVisit A.L. Kennedy's website:\r\nhttp:\/\/www.a-l-kennedy.co.uk\/\r\n\r\nFollow A.L. Kennedy on Twitter:\r\nhttp:\/\/www.twitter.com\/writerer","ContributorRole_0":"By (author)","Contributor_0":"Kennedy, A.L.","Description":"\u003cp\u003eA. L. Kennedy's remarkable new collection of stories shows us exactly what becomes of the broken-hearted. She reveals the sadness, violence, hurt, and terror, but also the redemption of love, and she does so with enormous human compassion, wild leaps of humour, and the brilliantly original linguistic skill that distinguishes her as one of the world's finest writers. \u003c\/p\u003e\r\n\u003cp\u003eAlways attuned to the moment of epiphany, these twelve stories are profound, intimate observations of men and women whose lives ache with possibility. Each story is a dramatization of the instant in a life that exposes it all; love and the lack of love, hope and the lack of hope. These men and women are perfectly ordinary people whose marriages flounder; who sit on their own in a cinema watching a film with no soundtrack; who risk sex in a hotel with an anonymous stranger. They conceal tenderness and disappointment, vulnerability and longing, griefs and wonders. \u003c\/p\u003e\r\n \u003cp\u003eDevastating and funny, intimate and profound, the stories in \u003cem\u003eWhat Becomes\u003c\/em\u003e are further proof that Kennedy is one of the most dazzling and inventive writers of her generation.\u003c\/p\u003e","EAN":"9780887842412","excerpt_0":"https:\/\/biblioshare.org\/BNCservices\/BNCServices.asmx\/Samples?token=fcf85c1c1b298e99\u0026amp;ean=9780887842412\u0026amp;SAN=\u0026amp;Perspective=excerpt\u0026amp;FileNumber=0","guide_0":"https:\/\/biblioshare.org\/BNCservices\/BNCServices.asmx\/Samples?token=fcf85c1c1b298e99\u0026amp;ean=9780887842412\u0026amp;SAN=\u0026amp;Perspective=guide\u0026amp;FileNumber=0","Height":"8.5","HeightCode":"in","Imprint":"Astoria","NumberOfPages":"232","OtherText_Review_0":"Even when the best short-story writers tackle the subject of people failing to connect, there is always a danger that the stories will become inert, but Kennedy avoids this by inhabiting her characters so fully that the reader feels the keenness of each new rejection...Buy it.","OtherText_Review_0_Src":"National Post","OtherText_Review_1":"Twelve stories from the manic mistress of comically vitriolic observation. No insecurity or sense of alienation is left unturned in Kennedy's tales of estranged couples, fleeting intimacy and overwhelming disappointment.","OtherText_Review_1_Src":"Financial Times","OtherText_Review_2":"Every story in What Becomes is a stand-alone gem, presented with a sensibility that goes to Kennedy's Glasgow roots. She is a writer's writer, and deserves to be a reader's read.","OtherText_Review_2_Src":"Denver Post","OtherText_Review_3":"True, and mercilessly human. There is nothing idealized about Kennedy's characters or the situations they find themselves in; instead, every story serves as a magnifying glass, revealing darker impulses and truths that we, as readers, often prefer to keep concealed.","OtherText_Review_3_Src":"Edmonton Journal","OtherText_Review_4":"Kennedy is that rarest kind of writer who combines wry emotional intelligence with technical impeccability.","OtherText_Review_4_Auth":"Jessica Schagerl","OtherText_Review_4_Src":"Matrix Magazine","OtherText_Review_5":". . . [a] harrowing collection . . . [A. L. Kennedy] can go from darkness to humor in a heartbeat.","OtherText_Review_5_Auth":"Ihsan Taylor","OtherText_Review_5_Src":"New York Times","OtherText_ShortDescription_0":"Twelve remarkable stories show us what becomes of the broken hearted.","ProductFormDescription":"trade paperback with flaps","PublicationDate":"2010-03-01","Publisher":"House of Anansi Press Inc","ShortDescription":"Twelve remarkable stories show us what becomes of the broken hearted.","Width":"5.312","WidthCode":"in"}
What Becomes
Twelve remarkable stories show us what becomes of the broken hearted.
Quick View
{"id":6811321761851,"title":"When He Was Free and Young and He Used to Wear Silks","handle":"when-he-was-free-and-young-and-he-used-to-wear-silks","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eNow available after over four decades, the first collection of short fiction from bestselling author and Barbadian-born Canadian luminary Austin Clarke — winner of the Scotiabank Giller Prize, the Commonwealth Writers’ Prize, and the Trillium Book Award for his novel \u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003ci\u003eThe Polished Hoe\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e — is a vital, lyrical, and provocative exploration of the Black immigrant experience in Canada. \u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eOriginally issued in 1971, Austin Clarke’s first published collection of eleven remarkable stories showcases his groundbreaking approach to chronicling the Caribbean diaspora experience in Canada. 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Characters move through the mire of working life, of establishing a home for themselves, of reconciling with what and who they left behind — all the while contending with a place in which their bone-chilling reception is both social and atmospheric. In lyrical, often racy, and wholly unforgettable prose, Clarke portrays a set of provocative, scintillating portraits of the psychological realities faced by people of colour in a society so often lauded for its geniality and openness.\u003c\/p\u003e"}
{"AlsoRecommendedISBN_0":"9781487001889","AlsoRecommendedISBN_1":"9781487005344","AlsoRecommendedISBN_4":"9781770893108","BASICMainSubject":"FIC019000","BASICMainSubjectLiteral":"FICTION \/ Literary","BiographicalNote":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eAUSTIN CLARKE\u003c\/strong\u003e (1934–2016) was one of Canada’s foremost authors, whose work includes ten novels, six short-story collections, three memoirs, and two collections of poetry. His novel \u003cem\u003eThe Polished Hoe\u003c\/em\u003e won the 2002 Giller Prize. Clarke was appointed to the Order of Canada, held four honorary doctorates, and was awarded the Commonwealth Writers’ Prize, the W. O. Mitchell Prize, the Casa de las Américas Prize, and the Martin Luther King Jr. Award for Excellence in Writing, among others. In his fifty-year career he worked as a journalist, a professor, and a cultural attaché in Washington, D.C.\u003c\/p\u003e","BISACSubjectLiteral_0":"FICTION \/ Literary","BISACSubjectLiteral_1":"FICTION \/ Cultural Heritage","BISACSubjectLiteral_2":"FICTION \/ Short Stories (single author)","BISACSubject_0":"FIC019000","BISACSubject_1":"FIC051000","BISACSubject_2":"FIC029000","ContributorBio_0":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eAUSTIN CLARKE\u003c\/strong\u003e (1934–2016) was one of Canada’s foremost authors, whose work includes ten novels, six short-story collections, three memoirs, and two collections of poetry. His novel \u003cem\u003eThe Polished Hoe\u003c\/em\u003e won the 2002 Giller Prize. Clarke was appointed to the Order of Canada, held four honorary doctorates, and was awarded the Commonwealth Writers’ Prize, the W. O. Mitchell Prize, the Casa de las Américas Prize, and the Martin Luther King Jr. Award for Excellence in Writing, among others. In his fifty-year career he worked as a journalist, a professor, and a cultural attaché in Washington, D.C.\u003c\/p\u003e\r\n","ContributorRole_0":"By (author)","ContributorRole_1":"Introduction by","Contributor_0":"Clarke, Austin","Contributor_1":"Walcott, Rinaldo (CA)","Description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eNow available after over four decades, the first collection of short fiction from bestselling author and Barbadian-born Canadian luminary Austin Clarke — winner of the Scotiabank Giller Prize, the Commonwealth Writers’ Prize, and the Trillium Book Award for his novel \u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003ci\u003eThe Polished Hoe\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e — is a vital, lyrical, and provocative exploration of the Black immigrant experience in Canada. \u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eOriginally issued in 1971, Austin Clarke’s first published collection of eleven remarkable stories showcases his groundbreaking approach to chronicling the Caribbean diaspora experience in Canada. 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He boasted a career that spanned fifty years and saw his writing — nearly a dozen novels, several story collections, as well as memoirs and poems — break the mould of North American literature by exposing the realities faced by immigrants, predominantly from the Caribbean, in white society. His fiction chronicles the outer challenges of colonialism, racism, and economic hardship, as well as the psychological challenges of colonial mentality and racial shame — all the while showcasing the diaspora community’s wit and resilience through a vibrant and signature use of Bajan vernacular.\u003c\/li\u003e\r\n\u003c\/ul\u003e\r\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eA PROVOCATIVE LEGACY:\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\r\n\u003cul\u003e\u003cli\u003eIn 1963, the CBC sent Clarke to interview the writer James Baldwin, and while that interview never panned out, Clarke did land an extended interview with civil rights leader Malcolm X, which was incorporated into a two-hour CBC documentary called \u003cem\u003eAustin Clarke’s Harlem\u003c\/em\u003e. His involvement in the civil rights movement south of the border and his criticism of Canada’s purported openness and tolerance earned him the title of “Canada’s angriest black man” — the implications of which rankled him for the majority of his working life.\u003c\/li\u003e\r\n\u003c\/ul\u003e\r\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eCELEBRATED WORKS:\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\r\n\u003cul\u003e\u003cli\u003eClarke’s most famous book, \u003cem\u003eThe Polished Hoe\u003c\/em\u003e (2002), won the Commonwealth Writers’ Prize, the Scotiabank Giller Prize, and the Trillium Book Award. His novel \u003cem\u003eMore\u003c\/em\u003e (2008) was longlisted for the Giller and won the Toronto Book Award. In 2012, at the Toronto International Festival of Authors, Clarke was awarded the $10,000 Harbourfront Festival Prize “on the merits of his published work and efforts in fostering literary talent in new and aspiring writers.” His body of work has also been honoured with the Martin Luther King Jr. Achievement Award for Excellence in Writing and the W. O. Mitchell Literary Prize.\u003c\/li\u003e\r\n\u003c\/ul\u003e\r\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eHANDSOME A LIST EDITION:\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\r\n\u003cul\u003e\u003cli\u003eThe title is receiving the full A List treatment, including a beautiful new cover and introduction.\u003c\/li\u003e\r\n\u003c\/ul\u003e\r\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eAN ACCESSIBLE ENTRY POINT:\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\r\n\u003cul\u003e\u003cli\u003eAnansi’s A List reissues have demonstrated a unique ability to revive interest in house classics, bringing them to both collectors and new readers discovering the works afresh.\u003c\/li\u003e\r\n\u003c\/ul\u003e","OtherText_Review_0":"Tremendously versatile in what he expresses, and exhilarating to read.","OtherText_Review_0_Src":"Globe and Mail","OtherText_Review_1":"Powerful and probing. Situations may be cruel, reactions vulgar, but the vitality of the characters is mirrored by the style which shapes and moulds and becomes, from time to time, the theme itself.","OtherText_Review_1_Src":"London Free Press","OtherText_Review_2":"Funny, sad, boisterous, virile, vigorous.","OtherText_Review_2_Src":"Queen’s Quarterly","OtherText_Review_3":"Gives a convincing and compassionate picture of the life of these immigrants in Toronto set against the varied backgrounds of their West Indian life.","OtherText_Review_3_Src":"Windsor Star","OtherText_ShortDescription_0":"The first collection of short fiction from bestselling author Austin Clarke is a provocative exploration of the Black immigrant experience in Canada.","ProductFormDescription":"trade paperback","PublicationDate":"2020-10-06","Publisher":"House of Anansi Press Inc","ShortDescription":"The first collection of short fiction from bestselling author Austin Clarke is a provocative exploration of the Black immigrant experience in Canada.","Width":"5.5","WidthCode":"in"}
When He Was Free and Young and He Used to Wear Silks
The first collection of short fiction from bestselling author Austin Clarke is a provocative exploration of the Black immigrant experience in Canada.
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The sky is filled with a geometric pattern of triangles in pink, yellow, and blue. Text: You Are Not What We Expected. Sidura Ludwig. “Gorgeous, highly visceral, deeply felt.” Jami Attenberg, author of All This Could Be Yours.","id":21748951973947,"position":1,"preview_image":{"aspect_ratio":0.656,"height":2400,"width":1575,"src":"https:\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0264\/3374\/9051\/products\/BNCImageAPI_49fa98f8-6849-4419-a4ae-8ab218235f75.jpg?v=1647885506"},"aspect_ratio":0.656,"height":2400,"media_type":"image","src":"https:\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0264\/3374\/9051\/products\/BNCImageAPI_49fa98f8-6849-4419-a4ae-8ab218235f75.jpg?v=1647885506","width":1575}],"requires_selling_plan":false,"selling_plan_groups":[],"content":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eThis stunningly intimate collection of stories is an exquisite portrait of a Jewish community\u003c\/strong\u003e —\u003cstrong\u003e the secular and religious families who inhabit it and the tensions that exist there \u003c\/strong\u003e—\u003cstrong\u003e that illuminates the unexpected ways we remain connected during times of change. \u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eWhen Uncle Isaac moves back from L.A. to help his sister, Elaine Levine, care for her suddenly motherless grandchildren, he finds himself embroiled in even more drama than he would like in their suburban neighbourhood. Meanwhile, a nanny miles from her own family in the Philippines, cares for a young boy who doesn’t fit in at school. A woman in mid-life contends with the task of cleaning out the house in which she grew up, while her teenage son struggles with why his dad moved out. And down the street, a mother and her two daughters prepare for a wedding and transitions they didn’t see coming. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eSpanning fifteen years in the lives of a multi-generational family and their neighbours, this remarkable collection is an intimate portrait of a suburban Jewish community by a writer with a keen eye for detail, a gentle sense of humour, and an immense literary talent. \u003c\/p\u003e"}
{"AlsoRecommendedISBN_0":"9781487002961","AlsoRecommendedISBN_3":"9781770894693","AlsoRecommendedISBN_4":"9781770894747","BASICMainSubject":"FIC000000","BASICMainSubjectLiteral":"FICTION \/ General","BiographicalNote":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eSIDURA LUDWIG\u003c\/strong\u003e is the author of the widely successful novel \u003cem\u003eHolding My Breath\u003c\/em\u003e. Her short fiction has been published in numerous literary journals and anthologies. She works as a communications specialist and creative writing teacher, and her creative nonfiction has appeared in several newspapers and on CBC Radio. She is currently working on her M.F.A. in Writing for Children and Young Adults through the Vermont College of Fine Arts. Originally from Winnipeg, Manitoba, she now lives in Thornhill, Ontario, with her husband and three children.\u003c\/p\u003e","BISACSubjectLiteral_0":"FICTION \/ General","BISACSubjectLiteral_1":"FICTION \/ Jewish","BISACSubjectLiteral_2":"FICTION \/ Short Stories (single author)","BISACSubject_0":"FIC000000","BISACSubject_1":"FIC046000","BISACSubject_2":"FIC029000","ContributorBio_0":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eSIDURA LUDWIG\u003c\/strong\u003e is the author of the widely successful novel \u003cem\u003eHolding My Breath\u003c\/em\u003e. Her short fiction has been published in numerous literary journals and anthologies. She works as a communications specialist and creative writing teacher, and her creative nonfiction has appeared in several newspapers and on CBC Radio. She is currently working on her M.F.A. in Writing for Children and Young Adults through the Vermont College of Fine Arts. Originally from Winnipeg, Manitoba, she now lives in Thornhill, Ontario, with her husband and three children.\u003c\/p\u003e\r\n","ContributorRole_0":"By (author)","Contributor_0":"Ludwig, Sidura","Description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eThis stunningly intimate collection of stories is an exquisite portrait of a Jewish community\u003c\/strong\u003e —\u003cstrong\u003e the secular and religious families who inhabit it and the tensions that exist there \u003c\/strong\u003e—\u003cstrong\u003e that illuminates the unexpected ways we remain connected during times of change. \u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eWhen Uncle Isaac moves back from L.A. to help his sister, Elaine Levine, care for her suddenly motherless grandchildren, he finds himself embroiled in even more drama than he would like in their suburban neighbourhood. Meanwhile, a nanny miles from her own family in the Philippines, cares for a young boy who doesn’t fit in at school. A woman in mid-life contends with the task of cleaning out the house in which she grew up, while her teenage son struggles with why his dad moved out. And down the street, a mother and her two daughters prepare for a wedding and transitions they didn’t see coming. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eSpanning fifteen years in the lives of a multi-generational family and their neighbours, this remarkable collection is an intimate portrait of a suburban Jewish community by a writer with a keen eye for detail, a gentle sense of humour, and an immense literary talent. \u003c\/p\u003e","EAN":"9781487007348","excerpt_0":"https:\/\/biblioshare.org\/BNCservices\/BNCServices.asmx\/Samples?token=fcf85c1c1b298e99\u0026amp;ean=9781487007348\u0026amp;SAN=\u0026amp;Perspective=excerpt\u0026amp;FileNumber=0","Height":"8","HeightCode":"in","Imprint":"Astoria","MetaKeywords":"marvelous mrs maisel; Scarborough Catherine Hernandez; A Tale of Love and Darkness; Seinfeld; Forest Dark; seder masochism; mothers day","NumberOfPages":"192","OtherText_Accolades_0":"I fell more and more in love with the people in these linked stories as I read. Each story reveals a striking new facet of experience, a shift in perspective, an unexpected complication. Layers of assumption lift away as you turn the pages. Written with warmth, clarity, and compassion, You Are Not What We Expected is surprising, engrossing, and heartbreaking.","OtherText_Accolades_0_Auth":"Sarah Selecky, author of Radiant Shimmering Light","OtherText_Accolades_1":"Every single character is deeply rendered, every experience detailed beautifully, every story crafted with lucidity and poise. With tenderness, humour, sharp intelligence, and a vibrant grasp of family and community, Ludwig peels back the tensions of the Jewish experience. The Levine family and Ludwig’s incandescent writing will stay with readers for a very long time.","OtherText_Accolades_1_Auth":"Jennifer Manuel, author of The Heaviness of Things That Float","OtherText_Accolades_2":"A gorgeous, highly visceral, deeply felt collection of linked stories about how families work — and don’t work — together. The Levine family is unforgettable.","OtherText_Accolades_2_Auth":"Jami Attenberg, author of All This Could Be Yours","OtherText_Review_0":"This volume can claim kinship with Sherwood Anderson’s Winesburg, Ohio, Alice Munro’s Who Do You Think You Are?, and Margaret Laurence’s A Bird in the House, works in which interconnected stories provide a vessel for examining the human comedy in its often-troubling complexity … Ludwig doesn’t sentimentalize … and she has an eye for the absurdities of human behaviour in even the most poignant of circumstances. But there’s compassion in her intimate examination of these lives.","OtherText_Review_0_Src":"Vancouver Sun","OtherText_Review_1":"All readers can enjoy Ludwig’s writing. She shows great empathy for her characters, even when they behave badly.","OtherText_Review_1_Src":"Library Journal","OtherText_ShortDescription_0":"This collection is a portrait of a Jewish community and the secular and religious families who inhabit it and the tensions that exist there.","PrizeCodeText_0":"Short-listed","PrizeCode_0":"04","PrizeName_0":"Vine Awards for Canadian Jewish Literature: Fiction","ProductFormDescription":"trade paperback","PublicationDate":"2020-05-05","Publisher":"House of Anansi Press Inc","ShortDescription":"This collection is a portrait of a Jewish community and the secular and religious families who inhabit it and the tensions that exist there.","Width":"5.25","WidthCode":"in"}
You Are Not What We Expected
This collection is a portrait of a Jewish community and the secular and religious families who inhabit it and the tensions that exist there.
