Book Launch:
A Hungry Fire by Élyssa Marcoux-Bissoondath

There will be a reading, a Q&A portion, and a book signing, with refreshments and drinks included.

Save your spot to help us prepare the refreshments!

Credit: Antoine Dumont

The Author

Élyssa Marcoux-Bissoondath is a bilingual, biracial author who has worked as a production editor for both CBC and Radio-Canada. She holds a Masters of Fine Arts in Creative Writing from the University of British Columbia and undergraduate degrees in Classical Studies and Ancient Oriental Languages from Université Laval. She resides in Québec City, QC.

The Book

This debut novel—inspired by personal experience—is an honest portrayal of a young woman who seeks to pursue a fulfilling life while navigating a healthcare system which, despite the best intentions of many of its practitioners, consistently fails to take women’s health
seriously.

Offbeat and humorous, this is the story of Dido who strives to be as fearsome as her mythological namesake, the legendary Queen Dido of Carthage. Entering her second decade of unexplained chronic pelvic pain, she processes her life through the filter of the Aeneid. Through the ages, the muses have sung of the rage of Achilles and the cunning of Odysseus. Now, with acerbic humour, they bear witness for a modern audience to the wrath of Dido as she waves a wonky speculum aloft.

Polyendocrine metabolic ovarian syndrome (PMOS), formerly polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) and endometriosis affect one in ten Canadian women each, yet the diagnosis can take an average of five and ten years, respectively. This book hopes to offer catharsis and companionship to those searching for answers, regardless of diagnosis.

This book launch is presented in partnership by the Morrin Centre, Cormorant Books, and La Maison Anglaise.