Dandelion Daughter by Gabrielle Boulianne-Tremblay

Dandelion Daughteris an intimate, courageous portrait of what it's like to grow up having been assigned the wrong sex at birth. Set against the windswept countryside of the remote Charlevoix region some five hours north of Montreal,Gabrielle Boulianne-Tremblay's autobiographical novel immortalizes her early years as an alienated boy trapped in a world of small-town values and her parents' dissolving marriage, through complex adolescent years of self-discovery and first loves, to the harrowing episodes that fuel the growing realization that she must transition and give birth to her new self if she is to continue living at all. One of the first novels of its kind to appear in Qubec, this inspiring story has already connected with a wide readership, and has been adopted by many schools to help expand worldviews and curriculums. (From Esplanade Books)

• 86 works of Canadian fiction to read in the first half of 2023

Gabrielle Boulianne-Tremblayis a writer, actress, modeland trans activist. Her other booksinclude the poetry collectionsLe Ventre des volcansandLes secrets de l'origami, andLa voix de la nature, a book for young adults.

Eli Tareq El Bechelany-Lynch is a mixed-race Arab poet from Montreal. Their work has appeared inThe Best Canadian Poetry,The Puritan and The New Quarterly. They werelonglisted for the 2019 CBC Poetry PrizeforNancy Ajram Made Me Gay.