Overview
The playful and poignant novel Little Blue Encyclopedia (for Vivian) sifts through a queer trans woman's unrequited love for her straight trans friend who died. A queer love letter steeped in desire, grief, and delight, the story is interspersed with encyclopedia entries about a fictional TV show set on an isolated island.
The experimental form functions at once as a manual for how pop culture can help soothe and mend us and as an exploration of oft-overlooked sources of pleasure, including karaoke, birding, and butt toys. Ultimately, Little Blue Encyclopedia (for Vivian) reveals with glorious detail and emotional nuance the woman the narrator loved, why she loved her, and the depths of what she has lost.
Hazel Jane Plante
Hazel Jane Plante is a queer trans librarian, cat photographer, and writer. In a previous life, she co-founded a micro-press, co-edited a little literary journal, co-hosted a podcast, and released lo-fi albums under the name Sparse. Little Blue Encyclopedia (for Vivian) is her first novel.
She currently lives in Vancouver on the unceded ancestral territories of the Musqueam, Squamish, and Tsleil-Waututh Nations.
Awards
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Lambda Literary Award for Transgender Fiction 2020, Winner
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BC and Yukon Book Prize Jim Deva Prize for Writing that Provokes 2020, Short-listed
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Expozine Alternative Press Awards 2020, Winner
Reviews
https://mtlreviewofbooks. ca/reviews/27934/
https://www. thestar. com/entertainment/books/2019/12/05/vancouver-author-hazel-jane-plantes-quirky-queer-debut-destined-to-be-a-cult-classic. html
https://quillandquire. com/review/little-blue-encyclopedia-for-vivian/
https://ormsbyreview. com/2019/12/13/689-headrick-plante-little-blue-island-almanac/
https://www. lambdaliterary. org/2020/04/hazel-jane-plante-on-writing-a-weird-queer-book/
https://www. vox. com/culture/2020/5/13/21256187/little-blue-encyclopedia-for-vivian-review-hazel-jane-plante
https://www. thetemzreview. com/why-plante. html
http://roommagazine. com/reviews/little-blue-encyclopedia-vivian
Reader Reviews
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A playful and poignant novel
Little Blue Encyclopedia (for Vivian) (Metonymy Press) is a love letter narrated by a queer trans woman whose working through the unrelenting grief of losing her straight trans friend Vivian and the unrequited love she feels. Author Hazel Jane ... Read more