Iryn Tushabe’s debut novel Everything is Fine Here, published by House of Anasi Press, will be coming to bookstores in April 2025. 

Everything is Fine Here is a tender coming of age novel in Uganda, exploring themes of LGBTQ+ identity, family bonds, and the connection of sisters. It tells the story of a young woman who asserts herself outside the religious and cultural limits of her family in order to stand with her lesbian sister. 18-year-old Aine Kamara eagerly anticipates a reunion with her older sister, Mbabazi, only to discover that Mbabazi is queer. When a family death brings Achen to their home village, tensions arise when their mother is unwilling to accept her sister’s identity. Through difficulty and sisterly love, the two flee to Kampala, where Aine navigates family, love, and the risks of her decisions.

Iryn Tushabe, a Ugandan-Canadian writer and journalist, has been shortlisted for the Caine Prize, in addition to winning the 2020 City of Regina Writing Award. Her work has appeared in a multitude of  collections and publications such as Briarpatch, adda, Prairies North, and on CBC Saskatchewan and her short fiction has been published in Grain, The Carter V. Cooper Short Fiction Anthology Series, and The Journey Prize Stories. We are very excited to see her debut novel, and watch her writing career continue to expand!

Pre-order the novel here!