Finalist, ReLit Award (2012)

Shag Carpet Action is Matthew Firth's boldest and brashest collection of stories to date. These are absurd, raunchy, funny stories whose sharp, salty characters are boldly credible and wonderfully rendered by one of Canada's most adventurous and courageous fiction writers.

Firth's gimlet-eyed, deep mining of the bowels of contemporary Canadian life is unwavering. Here are tales of some of Canada's forgotten people - strivers who are down, but not quite out - surviving by their wits and guts during these harsh times.

Praise for Shag Carpet Action:

"Firth's strength lies not simply in provocatively deploying overt sexuality, but rather the way he leverages bald carnality to make broader, potent statements about the human condition." (Quill & Quire)

"Short stories work best when they're memorable, and Firth's gift is to lodge a vivid image in the reader's numb brain to keep him from nodding off and perhaps linger on. This gift is clever, concise writing – no superfluous flowery shit. To the point, bold, matter of fact." (OttawaXpress)

"Firth's stories remind us of the realities of being human; what we think, feel, and do. The writing is easy to read, raw-to-the-bone honest, and refreshingly real. And that's why I highly recommend you forget about your clean-cut CanLit filler and get your knees dirty with something a little more to the floor - Shag Carpet Action." (Jerrod Edson, blog)

Matthew Firth has run his own independent micro press, Black Bile Press, since 1993. He edits/publishes the literary magazine Front&Centre, and he's had a regular books column in the Ottawa Xpress since April 2002. Previous publications include the short story collections Can You Take Me There, Now?; Fresh Meat; and most recently Suburban Pornography & Other Stories (Anvil Press, 2006).

Matthew Firth's profile page