Quill & Quire Books of the Year

Q&Q has released its December Books of the Year issue, giving fifteen books the spotlight for a brief moment. Unfortunately the articles are not available online, so everyone must rush out to newsstands after reading this post. Here's the six fiction titles that made the list:


Blackstrap Hawco by Kenneth J. Harvey
Once by Rebecca Rosenblum
The Gargoyle by Andrew Davidson
Cockroach by Rawi Hage
Stunt by Claudia Dey
Everybody Knows This Is Nowhere by John McFetridge


Q&Q picks some obvious ones (Cockroach was nominated for every major Canadian award this year), but Everybody Knows is a relative unknown, published by tiny ECW Press. Still, I like Q&Q's reasons, and they know how to sell a title. For instance, Blackstrap Hawco is "brawling, aggressive, and raucous" and Gargoyle is a "fat Gothic romance." It's not as momentous as I initially thought, but the list is solid and worth reading. Get 'em before they run out!