PRESS & media
49TH SHELF"Writing fiction about the climate crisis is one of the strangest tasks a writer can take on. It demands walking the line between confrontation, acknowledgement, and entertainment. Metaphor might seem too gentle, and directness might alienate readers. Kathryn Mockler is so very good at it. This collection of stories does not care what you think a collection of stories should be. Mockler blends traditional form with conversation deconstructions, one liners, and flash fiction. “Past and future” is a reoccurring motif, and provides an organic pathway to explore the trajectory of the climate crisis in our lifetime, and the media’s all too common “how did we get here?” refrain. Mockler’s look at social nostalgia is particularly satisfying, with wildly relatable stories that offer the possibility for rosy recollection, and then yank it away with a grin. Discomfort as art, grimy realism without a glamour filter, part coming of age and part end times." —Carleigh Baker, author of Last Woman, 49th Shelf WHERE TO GET ANECDOTESYou can order directly from Book*hug Press or consider supporting your favourite independent bookstore.
Here are some of my favourite bookstores: Another Story Bookshop (Toronto) Flying Books (Toronto) Glass Bookshop (Edmonton) Librairie Drawn & Quarterly (Montreal) Librairie Saint Henri (Montreal) Librarie l’Euguélionne (Montreal) Massey Books (Vancouver) Munro's Books (Victoria) Novel Idea Bookstore (Kingston) Type Books (Toronto) Or you can put in a request for the book at your local library! |
THE AMPERSAND REVIEW"I highly recommend Anecdotes by Kathryn Mockler, a hybrid collection arranged in four parts. Particularly gripping is Mockler’s deep dive into autofiction, stories that span childhood to adulthood and those emotionally charged moments—first love, first crush, first period and more—that inform our growing identity and show us what it means to belong. In powerful, distilled prose, Mockler seamlessly blends dark humour with pain. Add in absurdist flash fiction, climate anxiety, micro-conversations—this is a book with existential bite." —Catherine Graham, The Ampersand Review
THE TORONTO STAR"Mockler has published four books of poetry, edited an anthology of climate stories, runs a literary newsletter and publishes a website. All to say, her writing range is wide, as exemplified in this new volume. Written in four parts with pieces — short stories, flash fiction, fictional conversations — that examine sexual violence, abuse and environmental collapse." —Deborah Dundas,Toronto Star
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WHITE WALL REVIEW"She thoughtfully exposes how content we are with embracing ourselves until someone tells us it’s wrong to do so. And she’s as brutal as she is unforgiving because holding onto that shame is exhausting. Mockler’s prose allows us to grieve our youth; to visit those parts of ourselves that felt powerless and give them somewhere to lay their head. “I don’t want to be a woman!” she puts indignantly. It’s that outrage born from shame as our sense of self shifts. When giving voice to negative emotions around experiences that reveal a great deal of pain – they’re often overridden by a paralyzing fear. Mockler teaches us to trust the transformative process, which reveals a commonality in our repression of these difficult emotions." —Mia Johnson, White Wall Review
THE BRITISH COLUMBIA REVIEW"While Anecdotes is certainly not encouraging subject-wise, the clarity and wit of the prose make it hard to put this book down. Mockler strips out the fluff and gets to the real heart of issues, whether they are individual or global." —Candice Fertile, The British Columbia Review
FRIEZE"This dark and profoundly relatable satire ... masterfully balances existentialism and humility. It is a quick, thought-provoking read divided into four distinct parts, with each section intertwining common themes that delve into the stark realities of girlhood, the consequences of a forced transition into adulthood and the perilous state of our world amidst the climate crisis. Mockler’s characters and personifications of time ponder the possibility of ‘things getting better’ – posed not merely as a question but a genuine source of encouragement."
—Kate Cunnington, Frieze |
press coverage
"Our Coming of Age: Period Shame and Ecological Disaster" by Mia Johnson, White Wall Review
Reframing Rage (climate & other) with Kathryn Mockler, Reframeables Podcast
Q&A with Kathryn Mockler, Girls to the Front
55 Books by past CBC Literary Prizes winners and finalists that came out in 2023, CBC
Michael Bryson on Anecdotes, Art / Life
A 'deliciously dark and clever experiment' by Candace Fertile, The British Columbia Review
An Interview with Kathryn Mockler, author of Anecdotes, All Lit Up
Power Q&A with Kathryn Mockler, River Street Writing
Books of the Month: September Edition, Vol. 1 Brooklyn
Our books Editor on the 30 (plus!) new reads we can't wait to cosy up with this fall, Toronto Star
What to Read this Summer, Frieze
Most Anticipated: Our 2023 Fall Fiction Preview, 49th Shelf
24 Books by Past CBC Poetry Prize Winners and Finalists Being Published in 2023, CBC Books
What We’re Reading: Staff Writers’ Picks, Spring 2023, Hamilton Review of the Books
Reframing Rage (climate & other) with Kathryn Mockler, Reframeables Podcast
Q&A with Kathryn Mockler, Girls to the Front
55 Books by past CBC Literary Prizes winners and finalists that came out in 2023, CBC
Michael Bryson on Anecdotes, Art / Life
A 'deliciously dark and clever experiment' by Candace Fertile, The British Columbia Review
An Interview with Kathryn Mockler, author of Anecdotes, All Lit Up
Power Q&A with Kathryn Mockler, River Street Writing
Books of the Month: September Edition, Vol. 1 Brooklyn
Our books Editor on the 30 (plus!) new reads we can't wait to cosy up with this fall, Toronto Star
What to Read this Summer, Frieze
Most Anticipated: Our 2023 Fall Fiction Preview, 49th Shelf
24 Books by Past CBC Poetry Prize Winners and Finalists Being Published in 2023, CBC Books
What We’re Reading: Staff Writers’ Picks, Spring 2023, Hamilton Review of the Books