Searching for Sam

One of Québec's hottest writers gives an intimate portrayal of life on the streets ... and the importance of animal companionship.

About the author

Sophie Bienvenu is an author and screenwriter. Her first novel, Et au pire, on se mariera, was published by La Mèche in 2011, and with France's Éditions Noir sur Blanc in 2014. It earned her the Prix des Arcades de Bologne in 2013 and the Prix du premier roman de Chambéry 2015, and she co-wrote the adaptation for the big screen by director Léa Pool in 2017. Chercher Sam, her second novel, published in 2014 by Cheval d'août, was well received by critics and readers, and was on Ici Radio-Canada's top 100 books. She likes: pit bulls, feminism, Montreal, the UFC, getting tattoos and wearing her boyfriend's clothes. She hates pineapple, but takes no issue if you like them.

Summary

Mathieu lives in the street by choice, eschewing drugs, cigarettes, and alcohol. His main companion is his dog Sam, a pitbull, who he says has helped keep him alive. When Sam disappears, Mathieu’s frantic search to find her brings him into confrontation with the secrets of his own past and the pain and grief that drove him onto the street. The novel is a monologue from Mathieu’s point of view, a sort of confessional in which Mathieu opens up to the reader. In flashbacks to his past, we discover the tragedies of his life and the people he has lost. In this book about survivors, Bienvenu takes a tender look at the underside of our cities, and the people that get left behind.

Product details

• Authors: Sophie Bienvenu
• Assisted by: Rhonda Mullins (Translation), Rhonda Mullins (Translation)
• Publisher: Ingram Publishers Services
• Languages: English
• Product format: Paperback / Softback
• Released: 21.07.2020
• EAN: 9781772012460
• ISBN: 978-1-77201-246-0
• Dimensions: 140 mm x 216 mm x 11 mm
• Weight: 200 g
• Subjects: Children's and young people's books > Non-fiction books / Non-fiction picture books > Mankind; Humanities, art, music > Education > Social education, social work; FICTION / General, SOCIAL SCIENCE / Poverty & Homelessness, FICTION / Animals, YOUNG ADULT FICTION / Social Themes / Homelessness & Poverty, FICTION / Urban & Street Lit, Poverty and precarity, Housing and homelessness, Children’s / Teenage: Social issues / topics