Little Fish - by Casey Plett (Paperback)

About the Book

A novel about memory, family, and identity in which a trans woman learns her grandfather may have been trans himself.

Book Synopsis

WINNER, Lambda Literary Award; Firecracker Award for Fiction; $60,000 Amazon Canada First Novel Award

In this extraordinary debut novel by the author of the Lambda Literary Award-winning story collection A Safe Girl to Love, Wendy Reimer is a thirty-year-old trans woman who comes across evidence that her late grandfather--a devout Mennonite farmer--might have been transgender himself. At first she dismisses this revelation, having other problems at hand, but as she and her friends struggle to cope with the challenges of their increasingly volatile lives--from alcoholism, to sex work, to suicide--Wendy is drawn to the lost pieces of her grandfather's life, becoming determined to unravel the mystery of his truth. Alternately warm-hearted and dark-spirited, desperate and mirthful, Little Fish explores the winter of discontent in the life of one transgender woman as her past and future become irrevocably entwined.

Review Quotes

"I have never felt as seen, understood, or spoken to as I did when I read Little Fish. Never before in my life. Casey remains one of THE authors to read if you want to understand the interior lives of trans women in this century." --Meredith Russo, author of If I Was Your Girl

"Plett has captured the multitude of emotions and decisions that can overwhelm our lives, from loneliness and self-destruction to the redemptive power of family and self-love." --The Advocate ("Best Books of the Year")

"There is a dark place most novels don't touch. If you've ever been there, maybe you know how exhilarating it can be to read a book like this, a book that captures the darkness so honestly, so accurately, that you can finally begin to let it go. Fearless and messy and oozing with love, Little Fish is a devastating book that I don't ever want to be without." --Zoey Leigh Peterson, author of Next Year, For Sure

"A confident, moving work that reports unflinchingly on the lives of trans women ... Little Fish is a powerful and important debut. Plett has masterfully painted her characters as both deeply complex and relatable." --National Post

About the Author

Casey Plett is the author of the Lambda Literary Award-winning short story collection A Safe Girl to Love and co-editor of the anthology Meanwhile, Elsewhere: Science Fiction and Fantasy from Transgender Writers. She wrote a column on transitioning for McSweeney's Internet Tendency and her reviews and essays have appeared in such venues as The New York Times ArtsBeat. She is also the publicity and marketing coordinator for the publishing house Biblioasis.