FREEHAND BOOKS FALL 2 0 2 1 Message from the publisher
It’s a new chapter for Freehand! We send our heartfelt gratitude to our former owner, JoAnn McCaig, who was instrumental in developing Freehand’s publishing program and helping us grow into the bold, fearless publisher we are today. And we extend a warm welcome to our new owner, Glenn Rollans, a book publishing veteran who also owns Brush Education.
In our new chapter, we continue to present beautiful books with exceptional writing. Dawn Dumont brings us The Prairie Chicken Dance Tour, a delightful, laugh-out-loud about a group of Indigenous dancers who embark on a madcap tour of Europe. Sharon Butala has penned This Strange Visible Air, a moving, witty, and acerbic memoir about aging. Cary Fagan delivers another winner with his short story collection Great Adventures for the Faint of Heart, about ordinary people taking steps into the unknown. And we’re delighted to introduce Georgina Beaty with her debut, The Party Is Here, a collection of edgy short fiction about volcanoes and rare turtles and our place within the precarious natural world.
Thank you so much for supporting local Canadian authors and independent publishers like Freehand!
Kelsey Attard Managing Editor, Freehand Books sept 2021
The hilarious story of an unlikely group of Indigenous dancers who find themselves thrown together on a performance tour of Europe The Tour is all prepared. The Prairie Chicken dance troupe is all set for a fifteen-day trek through Europe, performing at festivals and cultural events. But then the performers all come down with the flu. And John Greyeyes, a retired cowboy who hasn’t danced in fifteen years, finds himself abruptly thrust into the position of leading a hastily-assembled group of replacement dancers. A group of expert dancers they are not. There’s a middle-aged woman with advanced arthritis, her nineteen-year-old niece who is far more interested in flirtations than pow-wow, and an enigmatic man from the U.S. — all being chased by Nadine, the organizer of the original tour who is determined to be a part of the action, and the handsome man she picked up in a gas-station bathroom. They’re all looking to John, who has never left the continent, to guide them through a world that he knows nothing about. As the gang makes its way from one stop to another, absolutely nothing goes as planned and the tour becomes a string of madcap adventures. The Prairie Chicken Dance Tour is loosely based — like, hospital- gown loose — on the true story of a group of Indigenous dancers who left Saskatchewan and toured through Europe in the 1970s. Dawn Dumont brings her signature razor-sharp wit and impeccable comedic timing to this hilarious, warm, and wildly entertaining novel.
praise for dawn dumont isbn 978-1-988298-87-0 $24.95 cdn “The sassy, spirited humour just keeps barrelling along. There 5.5 × 8.5 paperback 300 pages is nothing quite like laughter to erase intolerance and embrace canadian rights cultural differences, and this is one of the best antidotes to FIC059000 fiction / indigenous FIC016000 fiction / humorous racism on bookshelves to date.” — St. Albert Gazette FIC019000 fiction / literary
ISBN 978-1-988298-87-0 dawn dumont is a comedian and columnist for the StarPhoenix and Eaglefeather News, and is the award-winning novelist of Nobody Cries at Bingo, Rose’s Run, and Glass Beads. Dawn gives keynotes across the country on the power of humour to decolonize and disrupt stereotypes. From the Okanese First Nation, she lives in Saskatoon with her son. sept 2021
A collection of essays on women and aging from Canadian legend Sharon Butala In this incisive collection, Sharon Butala reflects on the ways her life has changed as she’s grown old. She knows that society fails the elderly massively, and so she tackles ageism and loneliness, friendship and companionship. She writes with pointed wit and acerbic humour about dinner parties and health challenges and forgetfulness and complicated family relationships and the pandemic — and lettuce. And she tells her story with the tremendous skill and beauty of a writer who has masterfully honed her craft over the course of her storied four-decade career. Butala gives us a book to be cherished — an elegant and expansive look at the complexities and desires of aging and the aged, standing in stark contrast to the stereotyped, simplistic portrayals of the elderly in our culture. This Strange Visible Air is a true gift.
praise for sharon butala “[Butala] addresses head-on the physical, emotional, and spiritual challenges of aging women. The protagonists in these stories to not just rage against the dying of the light; they grab it by the throat, forcing the reader to confront uncomfortable and revelatory truth concerning what it is to age in a female body . . . Poetic, flawless, and unflinching.” — 2019 Rogers Writers’ Trust Fiction Prize Jury “This is what we have come to expect from Sharon Butala. An articulation of love, hard and true and honest. A consistent also available: attempt to probe and comprehend the life and land around isbn 978-1-988298-96-2 her, the mystery of spirit, of nature, the meaning of grief. I was $24.95 cdn 5.5 × 8.5 paperback moved to tears by Butala’s strong, sure voice.” — Frances Itani 232 pages canadian rights sharon butala is an award-winning author of more than twenty LCO010000 literary collections / essays books, numerous articles and essays, poetry, and five published plays. SOC013000 social science / She has three times been a finalist for the Governor General’s Literary Award, gerontology ISBNBIO007000 978-1-988298-96-2 biography & and is a recipient of the Marian Engel Award, the Saskatchewan Order of autobiography / literary figures Merit, the Cheryl and Henry Kloppenburg Award for Literary Excellence, and the City of Calgary W.O. Mitchell Book Prize. In 2002 she became an Officer of the Order of Canada. She lives in Calgary. sept 2021
Masterful, hopeful stories about ordinary people taking small, bold steps into the unknown These ten compelling and delightful stories highlight ordinary people, introverts, mostly living quiet lives — until they take the chance to leap toward small, meaningful adventure. A young woman is given a painting by Picasso by her stepfather, and she must acquire a wall to hang it on. A hippie family picks up a cello-playing hitchhiker who convinces them to get a television. And a man winds up taking his girlfriend’s son on a road trip — an unexpected expedition for them both. Filled with a sense of hope, these stories explore the tangled bonds of family and the complex web that holds them together. Cary Fagan is an undisputed master of the short story, and Great Adventures for the Faint of Heart is a brilliant and warm collection that expands our acceptance of human frailty and our unpredictable capacity for change.
praise for cary fagan “Enchanting short stories of astonishing breadth.” — Publishers Weekly “Endearingly human. There is humour in these stories, pathos, and great yarn telling. Remarkable narrative gifts.” — Toronto Star “A natural storyteller.” — Quill & Quire “A reminder of what the sinews of short fiction are all about.” also available: — National Post isbn 978-1-988298-90-0 “Each story contains the emotional resonance of a novel. $22.95 cdn 5.25 × 8 paperback The best of what short fiction can do.” — Event 240 pages canadian rights FIC029000 fiction / short stories cary fagan is the author of six novels and four story collections (single author) for adults, as well as many award-winning books for children. His books FIC019000 fiction / literary include The Student (finalist for the Governor General’s Literary Award ISBN 978-1-988298-90-0 and the Toronto Book Prize), A Bird’s Eye (finalist for the Writers’ Trust Fiction Prize), and the story collection My Life Among the Apes (longlisted for the Giller Prize). Cary was born and raised in Toronto, where he lives with his family. sept 2021
A memorable, edgy debut exploring the climate crisis and young women on the verge of transformation These hip, thoroughly modern stories introduce us to young women grappling with the climate crisis and trying to make decisions that will affect the rest of their lives. Two admirers of Anne Carson decide the path to liberation is to “become men” and embark on a mythic journey; a graduate student reports on the progressively unhinged unravelling of her climate change research project; a park ranger goes to extreme lengths to save his beloved tortoises; a woman freezes her eggs and then finds she can get glimpses into each potential life. As we travel with our protagonists to places at once familiar and thrillingly strange, Georgina Beaty fearlessly probes the ambitions and confusions of her generation. Wholly unexpected yet wildly entertaining, The Party Is Here daringly announces the arrival of a writer who brings explosive energy and an unforgettable flair all her own.
isbn 978-1-988298-93-1 georgina beaty is a 2020–2022 Stegner Fellow in fiction at $22.95 cdn Stanford University. Her work has appeared in New England Review, 5.5 × 8.5 paperback 250 pages The Walrus, The New Quarterly, The Fiddlehead, and elsewhere. world rights She holds an MFA from the University of British Columbia and has been FIC029000 fiction / short stories (single author) supported by fellowships and residencies at MacDowell, the Canadian FIC044000 fiction / women FIC019000 fiction / literary Film Centre and The Banff Centre. She grew up in the Rockies and is now
ISBN 978-1-988298-93-1 based in Tkaronto/Toronto. featured titles
isbn 978-1-988298-81-8 $22.95 cdn isbn 978-1-988298-78-8 $22.95 cdn
“Susan Olding’s essays in Big Reader are soaring, “A vulnerable and vital memoir about the search searing love letters to the reading life. Profound, for identity and belonging outside the restrictive intimate, and breathtakingly beautiful.” masculine gender norms of 1950s America. — Helen Humphreys, author of Rabbit Foot Bill Novelist Keith Maillard’s journey to locate himself as nonbinary in ‘a narrative of gender’ that had “If these essays were glass bells and you struck them long excluded him is a valuable addition to one by one with your favourite pen, they would ring literature about the lives and histories of trans with the purest, clearest notes, each chapter in its and nonbinary people.” singularity contributing to the gorgeous orchestral — Rachel Giese, author of Boys: What It Means to music that this book is.” Become a Man — Lorna Crozier, author of Through the Garden: A Love Story (with Cats) backlist
isbn 978-1-988298-28-8 $19.95 cdn/us isbn 978-1-988298-68-9 $23.95 cdn
* Audience choice winner of Canada Reads, 2019 “What an enchanting world! Trailblazing artists, * OverDrive’s Big Library Read selection—April, 2019 smouldering sensuality, and the rare mind of a visual * Finalist for the 2018 Governor General’s Literary Award for Non-Fiction artist who changed the way we see. Every time I left * Finalist for the 2019 Shaughnessy Cohen Prize for Political Writing the book, I rushed to return, to be beguiled again by * Winner of the 2019 Wilfred Eggleston Award for Non-Fiction * Winner of the Alberta Book of the Year Award, Trade Non-Fiction Crane’s deft and painterly vision, and her penetrating exploration of a woman genius at work in a field “This extraordinary story is about the resilience of family in utterly dominated by men.” the face of profound terror; Yeung writes with a deceptively — Shaena Lambert, author of Petra simple, meticulously observing eye and novelistic attention to plot and character.” — 2018 Shaughnessy Cohen Prize for Political Writing Jury (André Picard, Angela Sterritt, and Chris Turner) isbn 978-1-988298-74-0 $24.95 cdn isbn 978-1-988298-54-2 $21.95 cdn
* Winner, City of Calgary W.O. Mitchell Book Prize Praise for Virginia Pesemapeo Bordeleau: * Finalist, Rogers Writers’ Trust Fiction Prize “Poetic and hauntingly beautiful.” “This fearless collection of short stories addresses head- — Canadian Notes and Queries on the physical, emotional, and spiritual challenges of aging women. The protagonists in these stories do not “Both raw and poetic . . . about healing and continuance just rage against the dying of the light; they grab it by . . . May more French Indigenous writing find its way the throat, forcing the reader to confront uncomfortable into English.” and revelatory truth concerning what it is to age in a — Globe and Mail female body. Inspired by canonical stories such as John Cheever’s The Swimmer, James Joyce’s The Dead, and Shirley Jackson’s The Lottery, Butala reinvigorates aging myths and the writing craft itself.” — 2019 Rogers Writers’ Trust Fiction Prize Jury the complete list fiction cdn usd
978-1-55481-265-3 Afterlife of Birds, The Elizabeth Philips 2015 21.95 21.95
978-1-988298-47-4 Agnes, Murderess Sarah Leavitt 2019 29.95
978-1-988298-34-4 All of Us In Our Own Lives Manjushree Thapa 2018 21.95
978-1-55481-054-3 And Me Among Them Kristen den Hartog 2011 21.95
978-1-55481-138-0 Are You Ready to Be Lucky? Rosemary Nixon 2013 21.95 21.95
978-1-55481-207-3 Between Clay and Dust Musharraf Ali Farooqi 2014 19.95
978-1-55481-016-1 Blue Sunflower Startle Yasmin Ladha 2010 21.95 21.95
978-1-55481-186-1 Boundary Problems Greg Bechtel 2014 19.95 19.95
978-1-55111-879-6 Buying Cigarettes for the Dog Stuart Ross 2009 19.95 19.95
978-1-55481-109-0 Crimes of Hector Tomás, The Ian Colford 2012 21.95
978-1-988298-18-4 Dazzle Patterns Alison Watt 2017 21.95 21.95
978-1-55111-730-0 Description of the Blazing World, A Michael Murphy 2011 21.95 21.95
978-1-55481-182-3 Dilettantes, The Michael Hingston 2013 21.95
978-1-55111-978-6 Doctrine of Affections, The Paul Headrick 2010 23.95 23.95
978-1-988298-56-6 End of Me, The John Gould 2020 22.95 22.95
978-1-988298-25-2 Figgs, The Ali Bryan 2018 21.95 21.95
978-1-988298-90-0 Great Adventures for the Faint of Heart Cary Fagan 2021 22.95
978-1-55481-139-7 Green and Purple Skin of the World, The paulo da costa 2013 21.95 21.95
978-1-55481-021-5 Hold Me Now Stephen Gauer 2011 21.95 21.95
978-1-988298-37-5 Hummingbird Devin Krukoff 2018 21.95 21.95
978-1-988298-71-9 If Sylvie Had Nine Lives Leona Theis 2020 22.95 22.95
978-1-988298-84-9 Lover, the Lake, The Virginia Pesemapeo Bordeleau, trans. by Susan Ouriou 2021 21.95
978-1-55481-318-6 Middenrammers John Bart 2016 21.95 21.95
978-1-55111-927-4 Mother Superior Saleema Nawaz 2008 23.95 23.95
978-1-55481-253-0 Mystics of Mile End, The Sigal Samuel 2015 21.95
978-1-55111-995-3 Not Anyone’s Anything Ian Williams 2011 21.95
978-1-55481-060-4 Not Being on a Boat Esmé Claire Keith 2011 21.95 21.95
978-1-988298-68-9 One Madder Woman Dede Crane 2020 23.95
978-1-55111-932-8 Open Arms Marina Endicott 2009 23.95
978-1-988298-93-1 Party Is Here, The Georgina Beaty 2021 22.95 22.95
978-1-55481-059-8 People Who Disappear Alex Leslie 2012 21.95 21.95
978-1-55481-286-8 Perfect World Ian Colford 2016 19.95 19.95
978-1-55111-925-0 postcard and other stories Anik See 2009 23.95 23.95
978-1-988298-87-0 Prairie Chicken Dance Tour, The Dawn Dumont 2021 24.95
978-1-55481-062-8 Reverse Cowgirl, The David Whitton 2011 21.95 21.95
978-1-55481-137-3 Roost Ali Bryan 2013 21.95 21.95
978-1-988298-09-2 Searching for Petronius Totem Peter Unwin 2017 21.95 21.95
978-1-988298-74-0 Season of Fury and Wonder Sharon Butala 2020 24.95
978-1-55481-079-6 Seen Reading Julie Wilson 2012 21.95 21.95 the complete list fiction continued cdn usd
978-1-988298-62-7 Speechless Anne Simpson 2020 22.95 22.95
978-1-988298-44-3 Student, The Cary Fagan 2019 21.95
978-1-55481-264-6 Swallows Uncaged, The: A Narrative in Eight Panels Elizabeth McLean 2015 21.95
978-1-988298-01-6 Teardown Clea Young 2016 19.95
978-1-988298-54-2 This Has Nothing to Do With You Lauren Carter 2019 22.95
978-1-988298-49-8 Towers of Babylon, The Michelle Kaeser 2019 22.95
978-1-988298-31-3 Twin Studies Keith Maillard 2018 24.95
978-1-988298-21-4 Two Roads Home Daniel Griffin 2017 21.95 21.95
978-1-988298-55-9 Universal Disorder Bernice Friesen 2020 22.95
978-1-988298-59-7 Watershed Doreen Vanderstoop 2020 22.95 22.95
978-1-988298-00-9 Weather Inside, The Emily Saso 2016 21.95 21.95
978-1-55481-228-8 Welcome to the Circus Rhonda Douglas 2015 19.95 19.95
978-1-55481-061-1 While the Sun Is Above Us Melanie Schnell 2012 21.95 21.95
978-1-55481-303-2 White Elephant Catherine Cooper 2016 21.95 21.95
978-1-988298-06-1 Winter Child Virginia Pesemapeo Bordeleau, 2017 21.95 trans. by Susan Ouriou and Christelle Morelli nonfiction
978-1-988298-81-8 Big Reader: Essays Susan Olding 2021 22.95
978-1-55111-928-1 Bitter Medicine: A Graphic Memoir of Mental Illness Clem Martini & Olivier Martini 2010 23.95 23.95
978-1-988298-78-8 Bridge, The: Writing Across the Binary Keith Maillard 2021 22.95
978-1-55481-206-6 Detachment: An Adoption Memoir Maurice Mierau 2014 21.95 21.95
978-1-55481-105-2 Every Wolf’s Howl Barry Grills 2012 21.95 21.95
978-1-988298-28-3 Homes: A Refugee Story Abu Bakr al Rabeeah with Winnie Yeung 2018 19.95 19.95
978-1-55481-195-3 One Hour in Paris: A True Story of Rape and Recovery Karyn L. Freedman 2014 21.95
978-1-55111-930-4 Pathologies: A Life in Essays Susan Olding 2008 23.95 23.95
978-1-988298-41-2 Seizure the Day: Living a Happy Life with Illness Brian Orend 2019 22.95 22.95
978-1-988298-96-2 This Strange Visible Air Sharon Butala 2021 24.95
978-1-55111-117-9 Tangles: A story about Alzheimer’s, my mother, and me Sarah Leavitt 2010 23.95
978-1-988298-15-3 The Unravelling Clem Martini & Olivier Martini 2017 23.95 23.95 poetry
978-1-55111-960-1 Harmonics Jesse Patrick Ferguson 2009 16.95 16.95
978-1-55111-851-2 Here Is Where We Disembark Clea Roberts 2010 16.95 16.95
978-1-55111-926-7 It’s Hard Being Queen: The Dusty Springfield Poems Jeanette Lynes 2008 16.95 16.95
978-1-55481-104-5 Personals Ian Williams 2012 16.95 16.95
978-1-55111-961-8 subUrban Legends Joan Crate 2009 16.95 16.95
978-1-988298-12-2 What the Soul Doesn’t Want Lorna Crozier 2017 16.95 16.95
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