The stories in Vermin are linked by themes of loss, longing and music. Stories in this collection have appeared in Joyland, The Saturday Evening Post, Room, The Antigonish Review and other journals and anthologies.
Lori Hahnel is the author of two novels, Love Minus Zero and After You've Gone, as well as a story collection, Nothing Sacred, which was shortlisted for an Alberta Literary Award. Her work has been nominated for the Journey Prize three times and has appeared in over forty publications in North America, Australia and the U.K. Her credits include CBC Radio, The Fiddlehead, Joyland and The Saturday Evening Post. Lori teaches creative writing in Calgary.
"These are touching, gentle stories about the lives of women and girls who aren't lucky in their beginnings or backgrounds, nor particularly wise, and yet, their stories, with their rare and tiny triumphs, resonate." - Sharon Butala, author of Season of Fury and Wonder
"Vermin is a treasure from one of Alberta's bright lights." - Angie Abdou, author of Home Ice: Reflections of a Reluctant Hockey Mom
"In these stories, Lori Hahnel reimagines the subject of love... Writing with classical dispassion, she doesn't moralize, disapprove or romanticize. Instead, she sees and selects and exposes the wilderness of the human heart." - Cecelia Frey, author of Lovers Fall Back To Earth and recipient of the Golden Pen Lifetime Achievement Award
"...part of the strength in Hahnel's often funny, occasionally sad and always intriguing collection is that they take readers in all sorts of directions." - Calgary Herald
"Vermin is an immersive collection of short stories that demonstrate a notable breadth of talented writing." - Anne Logan, I've Read This