TORONTO, May 17, 2018 /CNW/ – Penguin Random House Canada is proud to announce a special pre-order campaign for Vivek Shraya’s upcoming book, I’m Afraid of Men, to mark the International Day Against Homophobia, Transphobia and Biphobia on May 17, 2018. This campaign is in support of the Tegan and Sara Foundation, which fights for health, economic justice and representation for LGBTQ girls and women.
The campaign will run from 12:01 a.m. EST May 17 through 11:59 p.m. EST May 18, 2018. During this time, Penguin Random House Canada will donate two dollars for every pre-order of Vivek Shraya’s I’m Afraid of Men to the Tegan and Sara Foundation and Vivek Shraya will personally donate one dollar for every pre-order.
I’m Afraid of Men (on-sale August 28, 2018) is Vivek Shraya’s raw, honest and important record of the cumulative damage caused by misogyny, homophobia and transphobia. It’s a journey from camouflage to a riot of colour and a blueprint for how we might cherish all that makes us different and conquer all that makes us afraid.
Penguin Random House Canada is honored to publish I’m Afraid of Men and its important and timely message. “I had the great privilege of reading this book first, and I couldn’t stay quiet about it. I shared it with my colleagues, who shared it with other colleagues, and before we knew it there was an army of us. Our numbers will only grow from here,” said the book’s editor, David Ross.
“While there is certainly power in naming a collective fear of men, I didn’t want the end result of reading this book to be solely self-empowerment,” said Vivek Shraya. “Donating a portion of the pre-sales from I’m Afraid of Men to the Tegan and Sara Foundation ties the book to a direct action, one that supports a large group of people who are often impacted by violence from men—namely LGBTQ women and non-binary people. Tegan and Sara have been doing vital work for the LGBTQ community for over a decade, even before the formation of their foundation, and on a personal note, they are huge queer role models for me. Sharing my story through writing books has been largely inspired by their generous visibility, so I am thrilled to support the Tegan and Sara Foundation with this book as a small gesture of gratitude so that these formidable women can keep improving queer lives.”
On May 17 at 3:30 p.m. EST, Tegan, Sara and Vivek Shraya will be hosting an Instagram Live to discuss the need for more conversations about queer representation and Vivek Shraya’s I’m Afraid of Men. The three will be live from Tegan and Sara’s Instagram, @teganandsara.
Supporters can pre-order copies from the Penguin Random House Canada website.
About Vivek Shraya
Vivek Shraya is an artist whose body of work crosses the boundaries of music, poetry, fiction, visual art and film. A Publishing Triangle Award winner, her books include even this page is white, The Boy & the Bindi and She of the Mountains. Shraya is one half of the music duo Too Attached and founder of the publishing imprint VS. Books. She teaches creative writing at the University of Calgary.
