The Terry Fallis 3-Book Collection


Book Description

Since winning the Stephen Leacock Medal for Humour in 2008 for his first novel, The Best Laid Plans, Terry Fallis has been celebrated as one of Canada's new humour writers, compared to the likes of Robertson Davies and Leacock himself. In this new eBook collection, Fallis's three novels -- The Best Laid Plans (also the 2011 Canada Readers winner), The High Road, and Up and Down (both shortlisted for the Stephen Leacock Medal for Humour) -- are packaged together for the first time. In The Best Laid Plans and The High Road, follow Daniel Addison navigate Parliament Hill as the political aide to Angus McLintock, the no-hope candidate he helped into government. Political storms, visiting dignitaries, surprise elections, Watergate-style break-ins -- these deftly written political satires will have readers laughing out loud. In Up and Down, Fallis takes readers from Parliament Hill to the world of corporate politics, where David Stewart's first day on the job -- and quick thinking -- swiftly lands him on an out-of-this world project: a revitalization of North America's interest in the space program. What follows is a clever and satirical, thoughtful and affecting story rife with classic U.S.-Canadian misunderstandings and hysterical plot twists.




The Best Laid Plans


Book Description

WINNER OF CBC CANADA READS WINNER OF THE STEPHEN LEACOCK MEDAL FOR HUMOUR Here’s the set up: A burnt-out politcal aide quits just before an election—but is forced to run a hopeless campaign on the way out. He makes a deal with a crusty old Scot, Angus McLintock—an engineering professor who will do anything, anything, to avoid teaching English to engineers—to let his name stand in the election. No need to campaign, certain to lose, and so on. Then a great scandal blows away his opponent, and to their horror, Angus is elected. He decides to see what good an honest M.P. who doesn’t care about being re-elected can do in Parliament. The results are hilarious—and with chess, a hovercraft, and the love of a good woman thrown in, this very funny book has something for everyone.




The High Road


Book Description

This deeply funny satire continues the story of Honest Angus McLintock, an amateur politician who dares to do the unthinkable: tell the truth. Just when Daniel Addison thinks he can escape his job as a political aide, Angus McLintock, the no-hope candidate he helped into Parliament, throws icy cold water over his plans. Angus has just brought down the government with a deciding vote. Now the crusty Scot wants Daniel to manage his next campaign. Soon Daniel is helping Angus fight an uphill battle against "Flamethrower" Fox, a Conservative notorious for his dirty tactics. Together they decide to take "The High Road" and—against all odds—turn the race into a nail-biter with hilarious ups and downs, cookie-throwing seniors, and even a Watergate-style break-in. But that's only the beginning. Add a political storm in the capital and a side-splitting visit from the U.S. President and his alcoholic wife, and Terry Fallis's second novel is a wildly entertaining read full of deft political satire and laugh-out-loud comedy.




Up and Down


Book Description

On his first day at Turner King, David Stewart quickly realizes that the world of international PR (affectionately, known as "the dark side") is a far cry from his previous job with the Canadian government. For one, he missed the office memo on the all-black dress code; for another, there are enough acronyms and jargon to make his head spin. Before he even has time to find the washroom, David is assigned a major project: devise a campaign to revitalize North America's interest in the space program—maybe even show NASA's pollsters that watching a shuttle launch is more appealing than going out for lunch with friends. The pressure is on, and before long, David finds himself suggesting the most out-of-this-world idea imaginable: a Citizen Astronaut lottery that would send one American and one Canadian to the International Space Station. Suddenly, David's vaulted into an odyssey of his own, navigating the corporate politics of a big PR agency; wading through the murky waters of U.S.-Canada relations; and trying to hold on to his new job while still doing the right thing. Equal parts clever and satirical, thoughtful and affecting, Up and Down is Terry Fallis at his best.




Operation Angus


Book Description

From bestselling author Terry Fallis comes the long-awaited follow-up to The Best Laid Plans and The High Road--a comic spy story that heralds the return of Angus McLintock. Angus McLintock, accidental Member of Parliament, has won re-election and is now the Minister of State for International Relations--or, in other words, he's the junior global affairs minister. In this new post, he and his trusty Chief of Staff, Daniel Addison, are in London to meet with their international counterparts to discuss the upcoming G8 Summit in Washington. Unfortunately, Angus is not in charge of Canada's involvement in the summit--that task falls to the actual Global Affairs Minister, not the junior one. What Angus is responsible for is planning a brief post-summit meeting in Ottawa between the Prime Minister and the President of Russia, the former head of the KGB. The London meetings are all going to plan until Daniel receives a cryptic, late-night text, from a burner phone, directing him to a pub around the corner from their hotel. There is important information he needs to know, the mysterious texter says--but he must keep the meeting a secret, and must come alone. Naturally, he immediately tells Angus, who of course tags along to the pub--just as reinforcement. The soon-to-be-retired MI6 agent who is waiting for Daniel is not pleased, but there are more pressing matters at hand: Chechen separatists are plotting to assassinate the Russian President--and it’s going to happen when he’s in Ottawa to meet with the Prime Minister, just weeks away. Angus and Daniel have to put a stop to it before it's too late. Naturally, no one in Ottawa will take them, or their top-secret intelligence, seriously, so they’re on their own. In an instant, they are thrown into a race against the clock to uncover the Chechen sleeper cell, thwart their plans, and ultimately save the Russian President. Along the way, in classic Angus and Daniel style, they have to dodge bitter rivals, enraged protestors, and even a runaway Cessna. This is a madcap cloak-and-dagger adventure with humour and heart that will delight and entertain readers until the very last page.




Albatross


Book Description

NATIONAL BESTSELLER A funny and smart new novel about destiny--and what it means to forge your own path--from two-time Leacock Medal winner Terry Fallis. Adam Coryell is your average high-school student--well, except for that obsession with fountain pens--when his life changes forever. Based on a study by a quirky Swedish professor that claims that every human being, regardless of athletic inclination, has a body that is suited to excel in at least one sport, it turns out that Adam is good--very good, in fact--at golf. Even though he'd never even picked up a golf club. Almost instantly, and with his coach, hard-nosed Bobbie Davenport by his side, Adam and his new-found talent skyrocket to a prodigy-level stardom that includes tournament titles, sponsorship deals, throngs of fans following his every move, and fodder for tabloids. But here's the catch: Adam doesn't really like golf. And as the life he once knew slips away--including the love of his life, the dream of being a writer, and everyday normalcy--he can't help but wonder if all this success and fame is worth it . . . or if it's enough for him. Heartwarming and funny, sweeping and entertaining, Albatross takes readers on a journey of self-discovery.




One Brother Shy


Book Description

From the two-time winner of the Stephen Leacock Medal for Humour: a story about a man tormented by an event from his youth, and the journey he finds himself on to heal and to learn who he is. Few people know the real Alex MacAskill. Most of the world sees a painfully and chronically shy software engineer in his mid-20s, soft-spoken, a bit of a loner, and someone easy to escape notice wherever possible—and that's just the way Alex wants it. Because no matter how many years have passed, the incident known only as "Gabriel" in the MacAskill family is something that still haunts him. But when his mother, one of the only people in the world who Alex felt comfortable as himself around, dies after a long illness, he suddenly has no choice but to face the very thing that he's been avoiding since that night in high school. In an instant, Alex finds himself trying to piece together the mystery of his identity, and on a search for parts of his family he never knew existed—a search that takes him from Ottawa to London to Moscow, encountering along the way echoes of the Cold War, painful memories from his past, and even the 1972 Russian hockey team—a search that ultimately helps Alex discover himself. With his trademark wit and captivating storytelling, Terry Fallis has written a novel unlike any of his others. One Brother Shy is at once poignant and humorous, heartbreaking and heartwarming, and readers will not soon forget Alex MacAskill.




Poles Apart


Book Description

Eve of Equality, a new feminist blog, becomes an overnight sensation when a wildly popular talk show host stumbles upon it, tweets about it, and promotes it on her show. The anonymous blog is intelligent, thoughtful, and bold, brazenly taking on various injustices in the lives of women. But it’s the blogger Eve’s post about the controversial entrepreneur behind XY, a new chain of high-end strip clubs opening up across the country, that sets off a firestorm. In a matter of hours, the site crashes, its Twitter count jumps from a paltry 19 followers to nearly 250,000, and Eve is suddenly lauded as the new voice of modern feminism. But who, exactly, is the Eve behind Eve of Equality? Well . . . not who you might think. Meet Everett Kane, aspiring writer and fervent feminist. He writes his erudite blog in his new apartment, at his kitchen table, and his life is about to change forever. Hilarious and smart, and offering timely commentary on a subject that is flooding our headlines, newsfeeds, Twitter streams, and conversations, Poles Apart is Terry Fallis at his best, confirming his status as a king of CanLit comedy.




The Best Laid Plans


Book Description

He wanted power; she wanted revenge. The magnificent novel by the internationally bestselling author of The Other Side of Midnight and Morning, Noon and Night.




Stay Up with Hugo Best


Book Description

**One of Vogue’s Best Books of the Year ** “Incisive, funny, and tinged with melancholy, the timely novel follows two lost but clever souls desperate for connection.” —Entertainment Weekly June Bloom is twenty-nine, broke, and an aspiring comedy writer. Hugo Best is a beloved late-night TV icon and notorious womanizer who invites her to his mansion for Memorial Day weekend. This is the story of their four days together, a “zippy…magnificent…devilishly fun ride” (Vogue). When June Bloom, an assistant on the late-night comedy show, Stay Up with Hugo Best, runs into Hugo himself at an open mic following his unexpected retirement, she finds herself fielding a surprising invitation: Hugo asks June to come to his mansion in Greenwich for the long Memorial Day weekend. “No funny business,” he insists. “Incisive, funny, and tinged with melancholy, this timely novel follows two lost but clever souls desperate for connection” (Entertainment Weekly). June, in need of a job and money, but harboring the remains of a childhood crush on the charming older comedian and former role model, is confident she can handle herself. She accepts. As the weekend unfolds and the enigmatic Hugo gradually reveals appealingly vulnerable facets to his personality, their dynamic proves to be much more complicated and less predictable than June imagined. “A witty and subtle commentary on sex, power, and social politics” (Refinery 29) and “an outstanding comedic debut” (Kirkus Reviews, starred review), Stay Up with Hugo Best announces a gloriously irreverent, bold, and winning new voice in fiction.