From the Scotiabank Giller Prize-winning author of The Sentimentalists comes the story of a revolution on an imaginary island.

On an imaginary island, an insurrection is brewing. Over the course of a single day, the lives of two women-one a rebel, one a diplomat-will be forever changed.

Lota is a restless islander who works at a fish factory but is looking for a larger life. When she meets charismatic leader Kurtz and her band of insurgent misfits, her life comes into sharp focus. Rachel is an anxious diplomat who is counting down the final hours of her service on the island. Her family has fled to the capital, and she is eager to follow. But when she arrives at the embassy and hears gunshots ringing through the corridors, she knows this is no ordinary day. As the hours lengthen and Rachel is held captive, she begins to wonder if she'll ever see her loved ones again-and how complicit she's been in the sinister operations of her government.

Part fantasy, part parable, Island deftly explores essential questions of history and responsibility. Urgent, illuminating, and thought-provoking, it asks us how we can imagine a future that does not run along the exact same lines as the past.

Publication History: Penguin Canada, HC (09/19)