A funny, boisterous, and deeply moving novel about aging hairstylist Roland’s childhood friendship with Birdy O’Day, whose fevered quest for pop music glory drives them apartRoland Keener is an aging hairstylist who’s lived and worked in the same town all his life. He’s more or less content with the quiet and predictable days he shares with his partner of twenty-five years, Tony. That is, until he hears that Birdy O’Day—washed-up music icon and Roland’s ch...

From loss, illness, and addiction to spooky offspring, dry skin, and inexplicable hope, this collection of "pretty" stories demonstrates how decidedly average people can be mortified—if not devastated—by new circumstances. A middle-aged, HIV-positive gay man, deformed by the side effects of protease inhibitors, is savaged by the flippant small talk of canny young men. A fundamentalist Christian housewife thrills from her newfound carnality, only to be saddled with the homeschooling of her ...

Finalist for the Stephen Leacock Memorial Medal for HumourA funny, boisterous, and deeply moving novel about aging hairstylist Roland’s childhood friendship with Birdy O’Day, whose fevered quest for pop music glory drives them apartRoland Keener is an aging hairstylist who’s lived and worked in Winnipeg all his life. He’s more or less content with the quiet and predictable days he shares with his partner of twenty-five years, Tony. That is,...