The Bittlemores

Finalist for the Crime Writers of Canada Best Crime First Novel Award

“Get ready to add this novel to your canon of beloved growing-up tales, because if there’s anyone who can take on the vulnerability and determination of the young adult years with a perfect combination of heart and humour, it’s our national treasure, Jann Arden.” —Canadian Living

“Arden’s take on poverty, alcoholism and the long-term impact of neglect, isolation and abuse occasionally recalls the work of Southern Gothic writer Flannery O’Connor or New Brunswick’s David Adams Richards. On the other hand, it is also comical. It has an endearing coming-of-age story at its centre, told in snappy first-person narration by a wise-beyond-her-years 14-year-old girl named Willa.” —Calgary Herald

“Jann Arden’s stunning debut novel, The Bittlemores, is the story of a family farm in the Backhills of Canada. Told through the generations, and full of struggle, secrets and brutality, one shining light emerges through the darkness. Willa is 14, at a crossroads and full of questions. Her coming of age is part mystery and suspense, but always heartfelt and real. There is humor, and a longing beneath the pain, as Willa hopes to build a life worth living on her own terms. With grace notes from classic literature, animals talk and scheme, children are empowered by their own questions, and forgiveness is the seed of a new way of life. This is great storytelling from a glorious master craftsman.” —Adriana Trigiani, New York Times bestselling author of Big Stone Gap and The Good Left Undone