The Lelarge family quietly runs its little seafood empire from Quebec’s North Shore. But when an elegant visitor is dispatched by a mysterious Japanese conglomerate to their isolated fishing village, things will never be the same again. Because Mori Ishikawa has a secret invention: Ori. And it’s destined to change the course of human history.

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Winner, Robert-Cliche Award for best first novel
Winner, Prix d’excellence des Écrivains francophones d’Amérique
Finalist, Governor General’s Award for French-language fiction
Finalist, Prix des libraires du Québec
Finalist, Prix littéraire des collégiens
Finalist, Radio-Canada’s Combat des livres
Longlisted, Prix Orange du Livre (France)

“The most daring reading experience of the year.”
“One of the best Quebec novels of the past ten years.”

A mysterious Japanese visitor to a Quebec seafood plant changes the course of human existence.


Written by Paul Serge Forest
Translated by David Warriner
438 pages • 978-1-77186-317-9 • 7¾” x 5¼”
FICTION / Literary Fiction
FICTION / Magical Realism
$29.95
AVAILABLE IN ALL FORMATS
Publication Date: May 1, 2023


“Do you think I don’t know what that colour is, huh? Do you take your father for a complete idiot?

Do you just figure, ‘There’s a new colour in Baie-Trinité and my dad doesn’t know about it,’ eh? Well, have I got news for you: I know everything that’s going on. Everything.”


PRAISE FOR EVERYTHING IS ORI

One of the best Quebec novels of the past ten years . . . already a must-read in Quebec literature. The first thing that struck me when I finished Everything is Ori was how polished it was. I could barely believe a debut author could steer such a solid novel to completion, a novel that features the most tightly woven of intrigues driven by a remarkably complex cast of surprising characters.” (Annabelle Moreau, Prix Robert-Cliche jury member, editor Lettres québécoises magazine)

The most daring reading experience of the year.” (Le Devoir)

Everything is… mindblowing!” (Josée Boileau, Journal de Montréal)

“a page-turning read… intriguing!” (Tony Malone, Tony’s Reading List)

“Everything Is Ori is a mind-bending, offbeat exploration of the worth and true nature of human life.” (Eileen Gonzalez, ★★★★★ Foreword Reviews)

Wow! The Prix Robert-Cliche is awarded to a debut novel . . . and for once this year the jury was unanimous in voting Everything is Ori the winner. Reading this irresistible, indefinable game-changer of a story, you can see why.” (Iris Gagnon-Paradis, ★★★★ La Presse)

“Paul Serge Forest’s dazzling debut novel crushes the competition . . . This book is a rare and precious literary happening . . . Well written, impressively put together, and remarkably inventive.” (Thomas Dupont-Buist, ★★★★★ Lettres québécoises magazine)

“a playful, absurd world, somewhere between the Coen brothers, John Irving, and 1990s Japanese video games.” (Anne-Frédérique Hébert-Dolbec, Le Devoir)

Buckle up for a wild read! This unexpected novel is a breath of fresh air. It’s intelligent, surprising, delicious (and sometimes a little gross). Ori gets under your skin… and changes everything. A real treat!” (Shannon Desbiens, Les Libraires magazine)


ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Paul Serge Forest was born in 1984. He grew up on Quebec’s North Shore and now lives in Montreal, where he practices medicine. Everything is Ori is his first novel. The French version of the novel won the Prix Robert-Cliche in 2021, Quebec’s most prestigious first-novel award.

 

 

ABOUT THE TRANSLATOR

David Warriner grew up in the UK and escaped to Quebec right after graduating from Oxford. A professional translator for nearly two decades, David nurtures a healthy passion for Quebec fiction and has translated a range of fiction, nonfiction, and children’s fiction titles by Quebec authors for Canadian and UK publishers.

 

 


OUR COMMITMENT TO DOING THINGS DIFFERENTLY

✓ An absurd and wholly original debut novel, translated by a young literary translator