The second novel by Scotiabank Giller Prize finalist Michelle Winters teems with hot towel shaves and the steady thrum of female rage.
Spurred by adolescent trauma, Louise adopts a life of hardcore punk violence until she stumbles into a job at a mysterious men’s hair salon, where her unique relationship with her clientele shows her a more perfect world—or so it seems. When that world is overturned, she flees to a marina on the East Coast, where she lives free from reminders of her past—except the duffle-bagged ones she jettisons nightly in a forsaken cove. But on the day of the Tragically Hip’s 2016 farewell performance in Kingston, a man surfaces from the Bay of Fundy, rousing long-dormant urges and giving Louise an unexpected gift: the chance to make things right.
Funny, warm, and furious, Hair for Men is a subversive exploration of gender, forgiveness, and chucking convention.
The second novel by Scotiabank Giller Prize finalist Michelle Winters teems with hot towel shaves and the steady thrum of female rage.
Spurred by adolescent trauma, Louise adopts a life of hardcore punk violence until she stumbles into a job at a mysterious men’s hair salon, where her unique relationship with her clientele shows her a more perfect world—or so it seems. When that world is overturned, she flees to a marina on the East Coast, where she lives free from reminders of her past—except the duffle-bagged ones she jettisons nightly in a forsaken cove. But on the day of the Tragically Hip’s 2016 farewell performance in Kingston, a man surfaces from the Bay of Fundy, rousing long-dormant urges and giving Louise an unexpected gift: the chance to make things right.
Funny, warm, and furious, Hair for Men is a subversive exploration of gender, forgiveness, and chucking convention.
| Published By | House of Anansi Press Inc — Aug 20, 2024 |
| Specifications | 216 pages | 5.25 in x 8 in |
| Keywords | feminism; trauma; sexual harassment; I Am a Truck; barbershop; barber; millennial; Gen X; millennial rage; the good men project; |
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Excerpt |
| Written By |
MICHELLE WINTERS is a writer, painter, and translator born and raised in Saint John, NB. Her debut novel, I Am a Truck, was shortlisted for the 2017 Scotiabank Giller Prize. She is the translator of Kiss the Undertow and Daniil and Vanya by Marie-Hélène Larochelle. She lives in Toronto. |
| Written By |
|
MICHELLE WINTERS is a writer, painter, and translator born and raised in Saint John, NB. Her debut novel, I Am a Truck, was shortlisted for the 2017 Scotiabank Giller Prize. She is the translator of Kiss the Undertow and Daniil and Vanya by Marie-Hélène Larochelle. She lives in Toronto. |
Commended, Globe 100 Best Book of 2024, 2024
Commended, Indigo Best Book of 2024, 2024
“A solid entry into the 21st-century Canadian literary canon.” — Globe and Mail
“Revolutionary cuts and gendered introspection … Hair for Men is a reassuring, funny, sometimes tragic read that reminds us possibilities exist for as long as we do.” — Chicago Review of Books
“Dark, comic, strangely endearing.” — The Miramichi Reader
“Hair for Men features offbeat characters and a distinctly Canadian feel.” — The Seaboard Review
"A little book that feels like a major event. Smart, funny, and unapologetically feminist, Hair for Men explores the costs of patriarchy with unexpected panache. I didn't want it to end." — Sara Levine, author of Treasure Island!!!
”"Michelle Winters is one of the most exciting writers in Canada today, and I am her biggest fan." — Alison Pick, author of Strangers with the Same Dream
”"I love everything Michelle Winters writes. Nobody understands music, or masculinity, or the mosh pit battle of the sexes better. Hair for Men is furious, funny, and wise. Singing and screaming at the same time, it cuts to the hardest, most tender core of our abusive, apologizing world." — Alexander MacLeod, author of Animal Person
”"Every so often you read a book that makes you jealous—of the writer’s skill, yes, but also of future readers who haven’t yet discovered its wonders. This is one of those books. Irreverent, beautifully written, heartfelt, and humane, Michelle Winters’s Hair for Men is just as curious and charming as the title suggests. A true gift." — Andrew David MacDonald, author of When We Were Vikings
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