Penguin Canada Summer 2017
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Sales Rights
For sale with exclusive rights in: CA Not for sale in: ROW -
Supply Detail
Distributor: Random House, Inc. Availability: On Sale Date: Aug 29, 2017 Carton Quantity: 24 $24.95 CAD
Someone You Love Is Gone
By (author):
Gurjinder Basran
9780735233423
Paperback, Trade
English
General Trade
FICTION / Literary
Aug 29, 2017
$24.95 CAD
Active 5.8 x 8.3 x 0.7 in 256 pages Penguin Canada Viking
Active 5.8 x 8.3 x 0.7 in 256 pages Penguin Canada Viking
- Description
- Author Bio
- Reviews
Perfect for readers of Jhumpa Lahiri and Anne Tyler, Someone You Love Is Gone is a beautifully rendered, multi-generational story of secrets and ghosts that haunt a family and will affirm Gurjinder Basran’s reputation as one of Canada’s rising literary stars.
Grief is a creature of many faces as Simran discovers when her mother, the lynchpin of her family, dies. Faced with the disintegration of her marriage and her estrangement from her own daughter, she struggles to make sense of her world and how things have come to be. With her mother’s death, Simran is haunted by memories and questions for which she has no answers. As the life she has carefully constructed begins to unravel around her, she is forced to confront one of her most painful memories—her parents sending her younger brother away when they were children. As the past comes flooding back, she wonders what could compel her parents to turn their backs on their only son. Was it his strange obsession with collecting poetry on scraps of paper? Or the fact that he talked about having memories that couldn’t possibly be his? Could he be the reincarnation of her long-dead uncle? Even her mother, who had always been very protective of her son, agreed with her husband to send him away; a decision that would have lasting consequences. Now with her mother gone, Simran must face up to these disturbing memories, and perhaps finally put her ghosts to rest.
Someone You Love Is Gone skillfully explores the ties that bind family together as well as the secrets that drive them apart. In beautifully rendered prose, award-winning author Gurjinder Basran weaves a mesmerizing tale of love and heartbreak that crosses continents and spans generations.
Story Locale: Lower mainland BC and New Delhi, India
Grief is a creature of many faces as Simran discovers when her mother, the lynchpin of her family, dies. Faced with the disintegration of her marriage and her estrangement from her own daughter, she struggles to make sense of her world and how things have come to be. With her mother’s death, Simran is haunted by memories and questions for which she has no answers. As the life she has carefully constructed begins to unravel around her, she is forced to confront one of her most painful memories—her parents sending her younger brother away when they were children. As the past comes flooding back, she wonders what could compel her parents to turn their backs on their only son. Was it his strange obsession with collecting poetry on scraps of paper? Or the fact that he talked about having memories that couldn’t possibly be his? Could he be the reincarnation of her long-dead uncle? Even her mother, who had always been very protective of her son, agreed with her husband to send him away; a decision that would have lasting consequences. Now with her mother gone, Simran must face up to these disturbing memories, and perhaps finally put her ghosts to rest.
Someone You Love Is Gone skillfully explores the ties that bind family together as well as the secrets that drive them apart. In beautifully rendered prose, award-winning author Gurjinder Basran weaves a mesmerizing tale of love and heartbreak that crosses continents and spans generations.
Story Locale: Lower mainland BC and New Delhi, India
CRITICAL ACCLAIM: Despite being published by a small press with limited distribution, Gurjinder’s debut novel won much critical acclaim and several awards. When Penguin acquired second format rights, Everything Was Good-bye garnered national recognition, becoming a Chatelaine book club pick.
ASCENDING STAR: CBC named Gurjinder as one of “Ten Canadian women writers you need to read” and the Vancouver Sun listed her as “One to Watch.” Someone You Love Is Gone is sure to cement her reputation as a rising literary star.
EXCEPTIONALLY PROMOTABLE: Gurjinder is a media savvy gem. An experienced interviewee, she’s articulate, poised, and attractive, and would be willing to do what it takes to promote her new novel.
AWARDS CONTENDER: Her new novel shares many award-winning characteristics that are attractive to juries—emotionally resonant themes such as family truths, straddling two cultures, and lost love—packaged in elegant and accessible prose.
UNIVERSAL APPEAL: This story has fantastic international selling potential with settings in both Canada and abroad. HarperCollins US has recently picked up rights.
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Publicity: Author Tour
National Media Attention
National Review Mailing
Advance Praise for Someone You Love Is Gone:
“A beautiful, haunting story of one family, spanning generations and continents, as they face life’s inevitable losses, struggle with grief, and reach for redemption.”—Shilpi Somaya Gowda, New York Times bestselling author of Secret Daughter and The Golden Son
“In this brave and beautifully written novel, Gurjinder Basran shines a light into the darkest corners of one family’s emotional inheritance. Grief has the power to remake us, and for Simran and her mother, Amrita, it proves truly transformative, blurring the lines between self and other, home and history—even life and death.”—Alissa York, author of Fauna and The Naturalist
