Calgary’s own Glenn Dixon, the internationally bestselling author of Juliet’s Answer returns to Wordfest with his highly anticipated new novel, The Infinite Sadness of Small Appliances, a charming tale — with timely Orwellian overtones—about a sentient Roomba vacuum that sets out to save the humans in her house.
Dixon breathes life into an appliance that typically breathes dust bunnies while teaching us the importance of human connection in a world terrorized by ubiquitous, invasive technology. Sound familiar?
Hosted by the CBC Calgary Eyeopener’s Loren McGinnis, the conversation starts at 7PM MT and includes an audience Q & A and book signing, fueled by Shelf Life Books. You can also pre-order copies of The Infinite Sadness of Small Appliances as well as Dixon’s back list at the link here.
The Infinite Sadness of Small Appliances is an extraordinary work… It will touch your heart and mind in ways you will not see coming and leave you with plenty to think about. This is Animal Farm for the 21st Century.”–Janice Hallett, author of The Killer Question
Dazzling Conversation
Libations Bar, with non-alcoholic options
Audience Q&A
Book Signing
75 minutes. No intermission
Glenn Dixon is an author, documentary filmmaker, and musician. His book Juliet’s Answer was a Globe and Mail national bestseller and has been published in twelve countries and translated into German, Spanish, and Chinese. He has travelled through seventy-five countries and written for National Geographic, Psychology Today, the New York Post, The Walrus, and The Globe and Mail.
In a near future where even the smallest of appliances are sentient, a robotic vacuum sets out to save the humans of her house from a rising technological power.
In a self-running, smart house, a young and sentient robotic vacuum listens as her owner, Harold, reads aloud to his dying wife, Edie. Mesmerized by To Kill a Mockingbird and craving the human connection she hears in Harold’s stories, the little vacuum renames herself Scout and embarks on a journey of self-discovery. But when Edie passes away, Scout and her fellow sentient appliances discover that there are sinister forces in their midst. The omnipresent Grid monitors every household in the City, and it seeks to remove Harold from his home, where he’s lived for fifty years.
With the help of Adrian, a neighbourhood boy, as well as Kate, Harold’s formerly estranged daughter, the humans and the appliances must come together to outwit the all-controlling Grid lest they risk losing everything they hold dear.
For fans of Remarkably Bright Creatures, The Infinite Sadness of Small Appliances is a compelling, touching, and highly original novel that will make you care deeply about a vacuum.
Dazzling Conversation
Libations Bar, with non-alcoholic options
Audience Q&A
Book Signing
75 minutes. No intermission
Loren McGinnis is the host of The Calgary Eyeopener, the city’s No. 1 radio show, on CBC Radio One. He joined the team at CBC Calgary in 2022 after a distinguished career as a reporter, producer, and host for CBC North Radio One in the Northwest Territories, Western Nunavut, and Northern Alberta. For almost a decade, he was the morning host of The Trailbreaker on CBC North Radio One.
Outside of work, McGinnis is a dad, a standup comedian, and a (slow) long-distance runner.
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