Too Much Light for Samuel Gaska is the story of a composer who gives up music after serving time in prison in the Canadian West. From Quebec and of Polish origin, Samuel Gaska is torn between the Old World and the New. His life compels him to explore the origins of American immigration: Acadia, the Amerindians, and the West. Delving into that history, he discovers that the birds were the first to come here and are the true guides for anyone wanting to settle in “America”.

A writer, professor and publisher, Étienne Beaulieu runs Éditions Nota bene and teaches literature at the Cégep de Drummondville. In 2014, Trop de lumière pour Samuel Gaska (Too Much Light for Samuel Gaska) garnered the City of Montreal’s Prix Jacques-Cartier, the Grand Prix du livre de la Ville de Sherbrooke, the Prix Alfred-Desrochers and was a finalist for the Prix Chambéry (France). He has also published collections of literary essays and a collection of studies on French Romanticism. He is co-founder and editor of the literary journal Contre-jour and is in charge of critical editions of works by Joseph Joubert at Classiques Garnier in Paris. His historical narrative, Thomas Auber: La Pensée et la mer, will be appearing in 2017.

Jonathan Kaplansky studied at Tufts University and Université de Paris III. His translations include Annie Ernaux’s Things Seen (La vie extérieure), Days of Sand by Hélène Dorion, The Girl Before, the Girl After by Louis-Philippe Hébert, and No Culture, No Future by Simon Brault. He has taught at the University of Ottawa and sat on the juries for the English-translation category of the Governor General’s Literary Awards and the John Glassco translation prize.