So long, summer — it’s time to hit the books. Luckily, September’s slate is packed with CanLit stars.

Pick a Colour: A Novel

Souvankham Thammavongsa

Knopf Canada

In her exquisite short-story collection, How to Pronounce Knife, Giller Prize and O. Henry Award winner Souvankham Thammavongsa wrote about a failed boxer who discovered a hidden talent after his sister hired him to work at her nail salon. There are shades of that immigrant story in Thammavongsa’s debut novel, which examines the rich inner life of retired boxer and nail-salon owner Ning, who lives above the shop.

Class and privilege are in play as, for simplicity’s sake, the salon’s customers know Ning and all the other salon workers as Susan. Toiling in polite anonymity, 42-year-old Ning is profoundly self-aware, and equally

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