Alison Pick

Parry Sound Books presents Alison Pick

Alison Pick is most recently the author of Far to Go, published by House of Anansi Press. Rights have also been sold to Harper in the US, Headline in the UK, Sperling & Kupfer in Italy, and Orlando in the Netherlands.

Alison’s first novel, The Sweet Edge, was a Globe and Mail Top 100 Book of 2005, and was optioned for film by Four Seasons Productions.

Her first collection of poetry, Question & Answer, was short-listed for the Gerald Lampert Award for best first book of poetry in Canada, and for a Newfoundland and Labrador Book Award. The title poem of her second collection, The Dream World, appeared in the Best Canadian Poetry of 2008.

Alison Pick’s writing has also appeared in publications including The Globe and Mail, The Walrus, and enRoute Magazine. She was the winner of the 2005 CBC Literary Award for Poetry, the 2003 National Magazine Award for Poetry, and the 2002 Bronwen Wallace for most promising writer under the age of 35.

Born in Toronto in 1975, Alison grew up in Kitchener, Ontario and in Quebec’s Eastern Townships. She has a BA in Psychology from the University of Guelph and an M Phil from Memorial University of Newfoundland and Labrador. Currently on faculty at the Banff Centre for the Arts Wired Writing Studio, Alison Pick lives with her family in Toronto.

Far to Go tells the story of an affluent Czech Jewish family at the onset of the Second World War. The lives of Pavel and Anneliese Bauer are observed through the adoring but misguided eyes of their son’s governess, Marta. A second, unnamed voice addresses the reader from the present. Part mystery, part love story, Far to Go asks questions about the legacy of secrecy and answers them with incredible heart. It is a beautifully written book that appeals not only to the history buff but to anyone who has loved deeply and lost.

Tickets: $10