Even the Birds
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Pub Date Oct 31 2026 | Archive Date Oct 31 2026
Literary Press Group of Canada | Guernica Editions
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Description
Peace has come to Guatemala after thirty-six years of war. Isabel, a guerrilla fighter of mixed Mayan and non-Indigenous heritage, returns from battle to the daughter she left in the care of her conservative aunt many years before. Soraida, afraid to lose the child she has raised, begrudgingly welcomes her rebel niece into her home, an arrangement that forces her to question her own role in the country’s conflict. Isabel struggles to be the mother her daughter needs, but orphaned very young and marked by the war, she is not sure what that would be. Fifteen-year-old Yasmin faces problems of her own. The trio’s commitment to each other falters, but it also evolves. And whether out of duty or out of love, they may yet help each other find peace—and even happiness—in their still deeply divided country.
A Note From the Publisher
Selected, CBC Books Fall Fiction Preview
Topics explored:
genocide, colonialism/imperialism, oppression of Indigenous peoples, Truth Commissions, war crimes, reconciliation, chronic armed conflicts, intergenerational trauma, and PTSD
Author Bio:
Ruth Taylor worked as a journalist in Guatemala from 1994 to 2003, before returning to Canada and taking up fiction. Her short stories have appeared in The Massachusetts Review, The Dalhousie Review, Potomac Review, and This Magazine, among other journals. In 2024, she won the Penguin Random House Canada Student Award for Fiction and in 2025, the Guernica Prize for Literary Fiction. Even the Birds is her first novel. Ruth lives and writes in London, Ontario.
Advance Praise
"Set in the aftermath of Guatemala’s civil war, Even the Birds is a beautifully written and entrancing story about the struggles among three generations of women in a family torn apart by the war and divided in their beliefs and loyalties. Through vividly drawn, unforgettable characters, this novel brings to life one of the most violent and horrific periods of Guatemala's history and offers glimmers of a way forward through reconciliation. A sweeping page turner."—Leslie Shimotakahara, Judge 2025 Guernica Prize, author of The Breakwater
"In this layered, deeply affecting debut, Taylor explores the legacy of armed conflict—the wounds, divisions and fears that persist after the guns of war are silent. Rendered with clear-eyed empathy, her characters struggle to find the peace they’ve been promised, either in themselves or in their nation. Yet they persevere. Even the Birds is a story both heart-wrenching and life-affirming, peopled with characters readers will not soon forget."—Joy Kogawa, author of Obasan
"Like an archeological excavation, Ruth Taylor’s Even The Birds systematically digs and uncovers and exposes personal ghosts, long-held secrets and uncertainties, crimes against an Indigenous population, and asks the critical question of whether the gain was worth the sacrifice. Set in post-civil war Guatemala, told through the eyes of three generations of women, this powerful and confident debut marks Taylor as a writer to watch."—Rajinderpal S. Pal, author of However Far Away
"In her debut novel, Ruth Taylor has written three unforgettable women navigating themes of duty versus desire. Set in Guatemala during the 1990s Peace Process, Taylor's clean and sharp prose creates a snapshot of a key historical moment through an intimate, multi-generational story. A gripping, moving character study that will stay with you well past the final page."—Carmen Aguirre, author of Something Fierce
Marketing Plan
- Pitching to women/feminist magazines, publications interested in themes of trauma, relationships/family, motherhood, and colonialism.
- Reaching out to reviewers interested in literary fiction, women’s stories, stories of motherhood, Latin America, anticolonial and revolutionary struggles.
- Pitching reading series and festivals in southwestern Ontario, London, Vancouver, Montreal, and Ottawa.
- The author is planning a launch event in London, Ontario.
- The author will be joining Guernica's first Toronto fall launch on September 27th.
Available Editions
| EDITION | Paperback |
| ISBN | 9781778491429 |
| PRICE | CA$24.95 (CAD) |
| PAGES | 258 |