• Age: 16
• Grade: 11

One of the Toronto Star's top books of the year

A year after watching Leo go through thin ice, twelve-year- old Ferd is obsessed with the idea that he can persuade his dead brother to come home through a campaign of letters. Plaintive notes appear around the house-folded squares of paper in the rain reservoir, kitchen sink, and washing machine. Ferd’s mother, Algoma, is also unravelling; attempting to hide her son’s letters, reconnect with her increasingly distant husband, and rebuild her life.

“Algoma is a strong debut novel with a haunting landscape, convincing characters and a vivid sense of the haphazard nature of our lives.”—National Post

“A very good first novel from a refreshing new voice.”—Quill & Quire

Dani Couture is the author of several collections of poetry and the novel Algoma (Invisible Publishing). From 2012 to 2016, she was the Poetry and Fiction Editor at This Magazine. Couture’s work has been nominated for the Trillium Book Award for Poetry, received an honour of distinction from the Writers’ Trust of Canada’s Dayne Ogilvie Prize for Emerging LGBTQ Writers, and won the ReLit Award for Poetry. Her poems have appeared in publications in Canada, the US, and the UK, and several editions of Best Canadian Poetry in English.

Dani Couture's profile page

“Dani Couture captures the starkness of Northern Quebec life, grief’s many forms and the idea that even in the midst of sorrow and upheaval there can be hope.”—Chatelaine

“Algoma is a strong debut novel with a haunting landscape, convincing characters and a vivid sense of the haphazard nature of our lives.”—National Post

“This debut novel by an emerging young Canadian poet has the texture and resonance of a mature work…The sense of loss is overpowering and Dani Couture brings a poet’s eye, if not always a poet’s ear, to this impressive debut.”—Globe and Mail

“A very good first novel from a refreshing new voice.”—Quill & Quire

“Each entry begins with a descriptive note…with which Couture skillfully exposes her characters’ day-to-day lives. Ultimately, it’s those images and routines that make Algoma outstanding. Couture’s minimalist and frequently sharp prose places the smallest details above plot, focusing on the difficulty of living with what’s bene lost and the eventual bitter sweetness of unburdening.”—This Magazine

"Dani Couture’s background as a poet, and now a first time novelist, shines with finely tuned insights. She’s a line writer and builds on her sentences to form gorgeous paragraphs. Couture leaves readers with a gentle glimpse into the human condition."—The Coast

Reviewers

Yearning story of family coping with loss

by bookgaga