Seasonally, it’s barely fall, but we’re forward thinking here at PQL, so naturally we’re turning our thoughts to spring.

We’re proud to bursting to announce our Spring 2017 lineup, consisting of a delightful mix of fiction, poetry and a little bit of visual history. We just can’t keep these fantastic books under wraps any longer, so consider these bookish 5 Ws your official sneak peek!
 

1. The Essential Jay Macpherson

• What: A selection of Jay Macpherson’s poetry, including early unpublished verses, some of her most famous poems, and later, little-known works
• Who: Jay Macpherson was an author, publisher and educator known for frequent allusion to myth; volume editor Melissa Dalgleish is a writer and researcher specializing in mythopoeic modernism
• Where: Both tied to Toronto, ON
• Why: Macpherson’s work was central to the development of Canadian poetry from the mid-century on, influencing writers like Margaret Atwood
• When: Coming February 2017

2. The Museum of Possibilities

• What: A collection of darkly comic short stories that focus on pivotal moments of intense longing
• Who: Barbara Sibbald is an author, editor and health journalist
• Where: Sibbald lives in Ottawa, ON
• Why: These stories present delightfully creepy, sharply satirical and eminently relatable “shadow-box narratives” which present a singular, vivid scene
• When: Coming March 2017

3. Dysphoria

• What: Heart-rending poetry on the pain, anxiety and dissatisfaction of mental illness
• Who: Shane Neilson is a poet, physician and editor
• Where: Nielson lives in Oakville, ON, but has strong ties to rural New Brunswick
• Why: This book is intensely emotional, intellectually stimulating and will have great meaning for anyone with an invisible disability
• When: Coming March 2017

4. Plastic

• What: A series of interconnected short stories about a former beauty queen whose comfortable existence is threatened by her own relentless quest for perfection
• Who: Margaret Gracie is a writer and editor for the federal government
• Where: She lives in Victoria, BC
• Why: Plastic is a commentary on the modern erosion and distortion of the American Dream
• When: Coming April 2017

5. Daddy Hall

• What: A wordless novel telling the true story of Daddy Hall, a man of Mohawk and African-American descent who survived war, capture and slavery to become a pillar of the community in nineteenth-century Owen Sound, Ontario
• Who: Tony Miller is an artist whose work explores the effects of the past and the present on the human race
• Where: Miller lives in Owen Sound, ON
• Why: This unique historical narrative tells the story of a cultural icon who epitomizes resilience and reinvention
• When: Coming April 2017

 
So are you as excited as I am? I sure hope so! Be sure to check out all these new books in-depth. We’ve linked to their product pages so you can read full descriptions, bios and even excerpts of these upcoming books. And as always, feel free to chime in with your impressions.

Cheers,