A “surrealist and bizarre” (and hallucinatory) debut novella—set in a cheerless, labyrinthine bunker—shows great appeal in concept. Yet, the book’s realization and editorial slackness limit the book’s overall credibility. —Zoe McKenna reviews The Firmament, by Adam Parker (Middletown: Alien Buddha Press, 2025) $16.99 / 97898287359348
“In fewer than ninety pages, Dobie has produced an incredibly nuanced, eminently readable novel full of insights on being unhoused, a disappearing middle class, and the difficulties of romantic relationships, particularly when both parties have differing communication styles.” —Jessica Poon reviews The Tenants, by Pat Dobie (Vancouver: Anvil Press, 2024) $18.00 / 9781772142297
A debut novella, in “some ways a mini-version of the classic Great Canadian Novel,” is “also a haunting subversion of that same overdone CanLit subgenre.”—Daniel Gawthrop reviews Yellow Barks Spider, by Harman Burns (Regina: Radiant Press, 2024) $22.00 / 9781998926190
Highly recommended novella presents “a humane vision from an imagined future, of the potential that arises from valuing connection and collaboration in and with place.” —Dana McFarland reviews Arboreality, by Rebecca Campbell (Hamilton: Stelliform Press, 2022) $19.00 / 9781777682323
Useless Things: Redacted A novella. By Charles Tidler Victoria: Ekstasis Editions $19.95 / 9781771712002 Reviewed by John Moore First published October 4, 2017 * Jazz riffs from a leaky lifeboat. Last seen nine years ago in Charles Tidler’s novel, Going to New Orleans (Anvil Press 2004), the itinerant, deranged horn-player named Lewis King is now pursuing…
Read more #176 Sexual treachery vs. friendship