I offer my immeasurable gratitude to the friends who helped give birth to this novel. Amy, Christopher, Erin, Ilana, Jennifer, Johnnie, Jon, Kristina, Nina, and Will. You nurture and inspire me. To the entire team at House of Anansi who believed in me and this book: Sarah MacLachlan, Maria Golikova, Alysia Shewchuk, and my extraordinary editor Janie Yoon. Further thanks to Colin Rivers, Michael Levine, and the Chalmers Foundation. To all the readers and champions of Canadian fiction. To my loving parents and grandparents. To Andrew. And to my co-conspirator in life and love, James.

About the Author

Jordan Tannahill is an award-winning playwright, director, and author. His plays have been translated into multiple languages and honoured with prizes including the Governor General’s Literary Award for Drama and several Dora Mavor Moore Awards. Jordan’s films and multimedia performances have been presented at festivals and galleries such as the Toronto International Film Festival, the Art Gallery of Ontario, and the Tribeca Film Festival. From 2012 to 2016, Jordan and William Ellis ran the alternative art space Videofag out of their home in Toronto’s Kensington Market. In 2017, his play Late Company transferred to London’s West End, while his virtual reality performance Draw Me Close, a co-production between the National Theatre (U.K.) and the National Film Board of Canada, premiered at the Venice Biennale. Jordan’s most recent debuts include his play Declarations, at Canadian Stage, and Xenos, a collaboration with dancer-choreographer Akram Khan, at the Onassis Cultural Centre in Athens. Born in 1988 in Ottawa, he currently lives in London, U.K.

About the Publisher

House of Anansi Press was founded in 1967 with a mandate to publish Canadian-authored books, a mandate that continues to this day even as the list has branched out to include internationally acclaimed thinkers and writers. The press immediately gained attention for significant titles by notable writers such as Margaret Atwood, Michael Ondaatje, George Grant, and Northrop Frye. Since then, Anansi’s commitment to finding, publishing and promoting challenging, excellent writing has won it tremendous acclaim and solid staying power. Today Anansi is Canada’s pre-eminent independent press, and home to nationally and internationally bestselling and acclaimed authors such as Gil Adamson, Margaret Atwood, Ken Babstock, Peter Behrens, Rawi Hage, Misha Glenny, Jim Harrison, A. L. Kennedy, Pasha Malla, Lisa Moore, A. F. Moritz, Eric Siblin, Karen Solie, and Ronald Wright. Anansi is also proud to publish the award-winning nonfiction series The CBC Massey Lectures. In 2007, 2009, 2010, and 2011 Anansi was honoured by the Canadian Booksellers Association as “Publisher of the Year.”