The annual Wild Writers Literary Festival is just around the corner, bringing with it a selection of celebrated books by Canadian authors. Founded by The New Quarterly, the Balsillie School of International Affairs, and Words Worth Books, it took place from Oct. 27 to 29 right here in Waterloo. Readers and writers can gather for book readings, workshops with authors, and panel discussions. Here are a few of the novels that will be featured at this year’s festival.
On The Ravine by Vincent Lam
Lam’s latest novel On The Ravine explores opioid addiction and draws from his own experience as a physician. It tells the story of a doctor and his violinist patient, both of whom are impacted by the opioid crisis.
Scotiabank Giller Prize-winning author Vincent Lam will be one of the authors featured at the festival’s opening showcase entitled “Urgent Care Required,” where Lam will read from On the Ravine. The discussion, moderated by UW associate professor Vinh Nguyen, will explore how fiction uniquely allows us to make sense of crisis.
And Then She Fell by Alicia Elliott
And Then She Fell follows Alice, a young Mohawk woman who has recently moved into a wealthy Toronto neighborhood with her husband and daughter. After Alice begins to experience strange occurrences, like unexplained voices and lost bits of time, she can’t rid herself of the feeling that something is very wrong.
Author Alicia Elliott, who won gold in the essay category at the 2017 National Magazine Awards, will be reading from And Then She Fell at the festival’s opening showcase. The Wild Writers website describes the novel as an exploration of “inherited trauma, womanhood, denial, and false allyship.”
A Death at a Party by Amy Stuart
Set over the course of a single day, Amy Stuart’s latest novel A Death at a Party depicts devoted family woman Nadine preparing for a party that goes “dreadfully wrong” when she finds herself in the basement, standing over a dead body.
At the festival event entitled “A Deadly Invitation,” bestselling author Stuart will discuss her approach to writing suspense and dive further into her latest thriller with David Worsley, co-owner of Words Worth Books..
Fire Monster by Pauline Conley and Anita Lahey
Set in a fictional version of Main-à-Dieu, Nova Scotia, Fire Monster explores the 1976 wildfire which caused catastrophe within the local community. It explores “the aftermath of tragedy, the frayed bonds of friendship and family, and redemptive power.”
Co-authors Pauline Conley and Anita Lahey will attend the festival to discuss the construction of their graphic novel Fire Monster. Moderated by UW professor Lamees Al Ethari, the discussion will explore how the authors included visuals and verse within their work.
Landbridge by Y-Dang Troeung
Landbridge moves through time to tell the stories of Troeung’s parents and brothers, who lived through the Cambodian genocide, her grandparents and extended family, her childhood in refugee campus and rural Ontario, her young son’s illness, and Troeung’s own diagnosis with a terminal disease.
A collective discussion at the festival will celebrate the life and work of Y-Dang Troeung, whose 2023 memoir Landbridge was published posthumously after her death in 2022. The festival discussion will “explore what it means to write about genocide, race, migration, illness, and motherhood.”
For more information about the festival schedule and books listed, visit wildwriters.ca.
