Raincoast Books
Available: 02/04/05
5 1/4 x 8 · 224 pages
978-1-55192-717-6
CDN $29.95 · cl

Canadian Title

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Gotta Find Me an Angel

A Novel

Brenda Brooks

Nick Hornby meets Jeanette Winterson in this compelling and surefooted fiction debut.

Our heroine, a 35-year-old woman who works as a film projectionist at a second-run cinema in Toronto, finds herself at an existential crossroads, haunted by the ghost of a friend who died long ago. During the course of one dark night, she addresses a passionate, wickedly funny lament to the ghost, recounting her failed attempts at finding true love. Secondary characters include erstwhile poet Billie Smart, who is addicted to I Claudius reruns on late-night television; Billie’s black-clad editor Claudia Shard, who has unconventional ideas about writing a “bestseller”; critically acclaimed novelist ffiona perks, the “songstress of her own mind”; and the unattainable object of everyone’s affection, artist Julia Riding. At the centre of everything is the ghost: a 15-year-old dead girl named Madeline with an unbearable secret and an icy grip on our heroine’s heart.

“A deliciously funny, dark swoon of a novel about love in all its guises.” —Emma Donoghue

“When a poet turns her attention to prose, something special can happen ... A heartfelt story told with precise and energetic language.” —Globe and Mail

“Love, longing and loss painted in vividly original language.” —Vancouver Sun

“Brooks writes with a soft, emotionally engaged voice ... An unusual, but delightful, read.” —The Georgia Straight

Brenda Brooks has published two books of poetry, Somebody Should Kiss You and Blue Light in the Dash (Polestar, 1996). She was born in Rivers, Manitoba, and for over 10 years worked at Canadian Press in Toronto. She now lives on Salt Spring Island, B.C. This is her first novel.