Algoma

A year after watching Leo go through thin ice, twelve-year-old Ferd is obsessed with the idea that he can persuade his dead brother to come home through a campaign of letters. Plaintive notes appear around the house—folded squares of paper in the rain reservoir, kitchen sink, and washing machine. Ferd’s mother, Algoma, is also unravelling; attempting to hide her son’s letters, reconnect with her increasingly distant husband, and rebuild her life. Algoma is a story of loss, obsession, giving up, and moving on.

Dani Couture is the author of two collections of poetry: Good Meat (Pedlar Press) and Sweet (Pedlar Press). Sweet won the ReLit Award and was nominated for the Trillium Book Award for Poetry. Couture also received an Honour of Distinction from The Writers’ Trust’s Dayne Ogilvie Grant in 2011. She resides in Toronto.

“Algoma is a strong debut novel with a haunting landscape, convincing characters and a vivid sense of the haphazard nature of our lives.” — National Post

“This debut novel by an emerging young Canadian poet has the texture and resonance of a mature work…The sense of loss is overpowering and Dani Couture brings a poet’s eye, if not always a poet’s ear, to this impressive debut.” — Globe and Mail

“A very good first novel from a refreshing new voice.” — Quill & Quire

“Dani Couture captures the starkness of Northern Quebec life, grief’s many forms and the idea that even in the midst of sorrow and upheaval there can be hope.” — Chatelaine

“Each entry begins with a descriptive note…with which Couture skillfully exposes her characters’ day-to-day lives. Ultimately, it’s those images and routines that make Algoma outstanding. Couture’s minimalist and frequently sharp prose places the smallest details above plot, focusing on the difficulty of living with what’s bene lost and the eventual bitter sweetness of unburdening.” — This Magazine

“Dani Couture’s background as a poet, and now a first time novelist, shines with finely tuned insights. She’s a line writer and builds on her sentences to form gorgeous paragraphs. Couture leaves readers with a gentle glimpse into the human condition.” — The Coast