About

Sometimes things aren’t always what they seem. Join Clarissa Trinidad Gonzalez and Jess Taylor as they discuss imagination and the potential dangers they face in their novels. In Trinidad Gonzalez’s Celestina’s House, Celestina finds herself in Manila’s bohemian district and starts to question her new way of living and whether it was a good decision. In Play, Taylor explores the friendship between cousins who would escape to an imaginary world and how when the protagonist returns years later as she deals with her PTSD. Together, both authors will discuss how spaces act as a source of comfort during times of struggle.

Moderator: Sadaf Ahsan

This event is supported by Toronto Lit Up.

Celestina’s House

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Play

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Clarissa Trinidad Gonzalez

Clarissa Trinidad Gonzalez was born in the Philippines, rather aptly on Hallowe'en, and grew up in a world animated by spirits and even the occasional miracle. Celestina's House is her debut novel. She works as a communications professional, and cocoons in her west end Toronto home with her spouse and daughter in between bouts of wanderlust.

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Jess Taylor

Jess Taylor is a Tkaronto (Toronto) writer and poet. She is the author of Pauls, the title story of which won the 2013 Gold Fiction National Magazine Award, and Just Pervs, a finalist for the 2020 Lambda Literary Award in Bisexual Fiction.

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Photo credit: Angela Lewis.