ANNOUNCING
This Report is Strictly Confidential
Published by Caitlin Press, Dagger Editions, Fall 2024
Part exposé, part memoir, all heart—critically-acclaimed novelist Elizabeth Ruth’s poetry debut is an act of love and commemoration, inspired by real life events that have left a lasting imprint on generations of family.
“I am greatly impressed with Elizabeth’s care and tenderness, her generosity, the sheer tenacity and, overall, the skill of her work in presenting this personal and social history.”
—Maureen Hynes, author of Take the Compass
“Presented in four parts, This Report Is Strictly Confidential sets fire to what’s been hidden and blazes with beauty and cutting truths. Brimming with grace, acuteness and musical precision, these poems are both intimate and exact, and ‘like gold, weigh more than water.’ Dedicated to the memory of Ruth’s aunt—who spent thirty years in an institution—this debut collection honours, reveals, nourishes and sustains.”
—Catherine Graham, author of Put Flowers Around Us and Pretend We’re Dead: New and Selected Poems
“These unflinching poems explore the ways in which human beings survive and bond with each other despite betrayal by institutions, family, lovers, and even our own bodies. Elizabeth Ruth understands that what makes us human is our shared experiences: love, heartache, rage, an irrational search for hope, and even, occasionally, the ability to find humour in the deepest despair.”
—Emily Pohl-Weary, author of Ghost Sick and How to Be Found
“rather than writing about folx as outside normal Elizabeth Ruth gathers & centres them \ understands differences as iridescent jewels & gaudy crowns \ her poems repeatedly ask the reader to consider what it is not to belong \ they establish a path acknowledging that a lifetime trying to be herself requires that we share language & build stories directed by Amelia Earhart arms \ her poems resist normative attempts at cure & treatment moving the reader to remember : our best measure is compassion”
—nancy viva davis halifax, author of act normal, associate professor in critical disability studies in the Faculty of Health at York University
“What a captivating collection! Elizabeth Ruth cracks open the vault of confidentiality—of institutionalization, letters, absent fathers, cancer, well-wishes, family. These poems are fierce and playful and full of love.”
—Anne Fleming, author of Curiosities
IN THE NEWS
PRESS FOR SEMI-DETACHED
CBC Radio One - Here and Now Toronto
Tuesday Book Club - Semi-Detached by Elizabeth Ruth
Listen to Elizabeth's interview on CBC Radio One - aired September 19, 2023
Open Book -
Elizabeth Ruth on Exploring Coincidences in Her Mesmerizing, Icy New Novel
"Semi-Detached is urgent and deeply human storytelling from a writer whose singular voice transports readers from the first page."
All Lit Up-
Homegrown: Locally Produced Reads
We’re back with an all-new batch of Fall releases from your favourite independent Canadian literary presses.
photo credit: Erin Rielly Clarke
49th Shelf -
Craving Connection
A recommended reading list by the author of the new novel, Semi-Detached.
Toronto Star -
Our books editor on the 30 (plus!) new reads we can’t wait to cosy up with this fall
Novels from heavy hitters such as Stephen King and Zadie Smith, non-fiction from Ken Dryden, and a bevy of short stories, biographies and more.
CBC Books -
74 works of Canadian fiction to read in fall 2023
Here are the Canadian novels and short story collections we are excited to read in the second half of 2023.
The Globe and Mail-
Sixty-two books to read this fall
Clear your nightstands for autumn’s best reads, including fiction from Canadian stars Waubgeshig Rice and Mona Awad, and non-fiction tales of political intrigue and tech gone awry.
The Hamilton Review of Books-
Semi-Detached on the Independent Booksellers Bestsellers List
The Hamilton Review of Books' Independently Published Bestsellers List: October 2023
“
"Ruth describes the choreography of bullfighting with as much grace and sophistication as one might find in a history of ballet or tango dancing. Readers will find themselves absolutely unable to look away. This searing, sensual novel is an adventure not to be missed."
THE GLOBE AND MAIL
“
"(Elizabeth) Ruth is an innovative storyteller, full of quirky surprises, who has the courage to confront basic preconceptions about self-identity....so full of vitality, so drawn to so many things simultaneously, so alive, reading her is always likely to be more of a D.H. Lawrence rollercoaster than a Virgina Woolf Ferris wheel. Whenever the ills of this book's characters intersect with the culling and curing of tobacco leaf, Ruth is utterly compelling."
T.F. Rigelhof,
THE GLOBE AND MAIL
“
"Every once in a while a novel splashes to the surface of the slush pile like a big orange Koi in a pool of minnows. Such a novel is Ten Good Seconds of Silence. This is a powerful debut with echoes of Dickens, some John Irving and a little Timothy Findley scattered throughout."
W.P. KINSELLA, BOOKS IN CANADA
BOOKS
Click on the book cover for information about each book.
Semi-Detached
"Part love story, part ghost story, part murder mystery – Elizabeth Ruth's Semi-Detached is all heart. Fiercely compelling and beautifully nuanced. A modern novel for the ages. Just brilliant."
Helen Humphreys, author of The Lost Garden & Leaving Earth
"Semi-Detached will cast a spell over you. Elizabeth Ruth has crafted a beautiful and tender tale of the shelters we all need to house our love and our yearning. Sheer magic and a joy to read."
Lynne Kutsukake,
author of The Translation of Love
Click on the book cover for information about each book.
MATADORA
SMOKE
TEN GOOD SECONDS OF SILENCE
BIO
Elizabeth Ruth is the author of the novels, Ten Good Seconds of Silence, Smoke, Matadora, and Semi-Detached. Her debut poetry collection, This Report Is Strictly Confidential, is forthcoming in 2024. Elizabeth's work has been recognized by the Writers’ Trust of Canada Fiction Prize, the City of Toronto Book Award, the Amazon.ca First Novel Award, and One Book One Community. CBC named her “One of the Ten Canadian Women Writers You Must Read.” She is also the author of a plain language novella for adult literacy learners entitled Love You to Death and the editor of the anthology Bent on Writing: Contemporary Queer Tales.
Before publishing, Elizabeth worked with homeless women and children, counselling in the areas of violence, trauma and recovery. She holds a BA in English Literature, an MA in Counselling Psychology, and an MFA in Creative Writing. Elizabeth Ruth teaches creative writing at the University of Toronto and lives in the city with her family.
photos by Samuel Engelking
CONTACT
photo by Violet Pettigrew-Olliffe
Contact Elizabeth Ruth directly at eruth100@hotmail.com
Agent Representation
Hilary McMahon of Westwood Creative Artists, ph. 416 964-3302
For Film and Television inquiries: WCA Film & Television Ltd., email: wca_office@wcaltd.com
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