Winner of the 2018 Alex Award (ALA Youth Media Award)
Longlisted for the 2018 Sunburst Award for Excellence in Canadian Literature of the Fantastic Adult Fiction
Honorable Mention at the 2018 Eric Hoffer Book Awards

“[A] sly and affecting novella.”— Wall Street Journal, Best New Fiction

“An immensely touching tribute to a very human struggle with mortality.” — Publishers Weekly

A precisely crafted, darkly humorous portrait of a family in mourning

Sunday’s father is dying of cancer. They’ve come home to Malagash, on the north shore of Nova Scotia, so he can die where he grew up. Her mother and her brother are both devastated. But devastated isn’t good enough. Devastated doesn’t fix anything. Sunday has a plan.

She’s started recording everything her father says. His boring stories. His stupid jokes. Everything. She’s recording every single “I love you” right alongside every “Could we turn the heat up in here?” It’s all important.

Because Sunday is writing a computer virus. A computer virus that will live secretly on the hard drives of millions of people all over the world. A computer virus that will think her father’s thoughts and say her father’s words. She has thousands of lines of code to write. Cryptography to understand. Exploits to test. She doesn’t have time to be sad. Her father is going to live forever.

Joey Comeau's profile page

• Long-listed, Sunburst Award
• Commended, Eric Hoffer Book Awards
• Winner, Alex Award

Joey Comeau is the author of four novels and the webcomic A Softer World. His work has been nominated for the ReLit and Shirley Jackson awards, has appeared in the Best American Non-Required Reading and the Guardian, has been profiled in Rolling Stone, and has recently been translated into French, Spanish, Turkish, and German. He lives in Halifax, Nova Scotia.

“Malagash is a poignant snapshot of the wonder, joy, sorrow, and reckless daring of being alive. With it, Joey Comeau cements his place among Canada’s most talented and original writers. I loved this cleverly tender and unforgettable heartbreak of a book and I know you will too. A Monster Calls for a plugged-in age.” — Courtney Summers, author of This Is Not a Test and All the Rage

“Comeau’s style is sparse but powerful.…Malagash is a darkly humored exploration of death, family, and grief, eloquent despite its short 183 pages, devastating despite its simplicity. Highly recommend.” — BumbleBookBee blog

“Known primarily for darkly comic novels and the webcomic A Softer World, Comeau effortlessly switches gears to expose the trauma, heartbreak, and humor in loss…an immensely touching tribute to a very human struggle with mortality.” — Publishers Weekly

“Comeau resists sentimentality, and, given his subject matter, that’s no small feat…” — Publishers Weekly

“Graceful images, scenes and dialogue blossom, meaning Malagash rings with authentic emotion…Comeau gives readers a spare novel that feels real when it counts.” — Toronto Star