With the promise of nothing but fun in the sun, Zinnia, Fay, Kiara, and Valentina are all geared up to reconnect on their 10th annual girls' trip that brings them together from all different cities. What they don't know, however, is that some baggage comes on vacation whether you pack it or not. Their outside lives slowly seep into their seaside getaway, and when the weekend proves to be a series of secrets, snide remarks, and non-stop bickering, tensions escalate. Suddenly they are all forced to wonder: Have they outgrown their childhood friendships?
Shedding light on the power and complications of lifelong friendships, This Is Why I Need You questions the choices we make in life that can bring us closer together with - or pull us further apart from - the people we need most: our friends. Four lifelong friends explore romance, motherhood, sexuality, and loss, forcing them to confront the strength of their bonds and the direction of their lives. Character driven and sharply observed, This is Why I Need You captures the realities of friendships in your 30s.
Alecsandra Kakon is an English Literature professor at Concordia University and Dawson College. She holds an MA in Hispanic Literature and a Ph.D. in Comparative Literature. Alongside her academic pursuits, she published My Profile Projects, an online series of personal essays that tell the collective memoir of 52 womxn. Alecs lives in Montreal with her three incredible children, Azalea, Ivy, and Brighton.
Sales and Market Bullets
• FOR FANS OF: A heartfelt read that celebrates the power of enduring friendships during life's messiest, most pivotal moments. Perfect for longtime fans of Sex and the City or those who rooted for the love and struggles in Valeria, Friends from College, and Girls, or want a grown-up Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants to celebrate womanhood in all its complexity.
• A DIVERSE MONTREAL: Set against the vibrant, multicultural backdrop of Montreal, This Is Why I Need You weaves an addictive multi-POV narrative featuring characters from richly varied backgrounds, careers, and experiences: Val, a Hispanic full-time writer; Kiara, a half-Jamaican, half-Jewish educator and body positivity advocate; Zinnia, a Lebanese runner, former dancer, and photographer; and Fay, a French Canadian gallery owner. The multiculturalism at the heart of these characters is essential to capturing the soul of Montreal.
• GREAT FOR BOOK CLUBS: Readers are sure to see some of themselves in one or all of the characters and will be eager to share their thoughts with their friends.
• SEXUAL IDENTITY: One of the storylines of the book is a queer love story with one character in her 30s who has a later-in-life sexual awakening, having previously only been with men.
