The pages in between these two darkly comic images suggest that the various positions of ballet, sex and morality are intimately linked, and frequently inseparable. Her essays, arts criticism and short fiction have appeared in publications including The Walrus, Hazlitt, The New Quarterly and Dance Magazine.What kinds of positions does Various Positions have in mind? Dance positions, sex positions, moral positions? The novel's tantalizing front cover depicts a ballerina (from behind) taking a bow on the back cover, her legs dangle in the air, as if she has just been hanged. She was The Globe and Mail's dance critic from 2015-2020, where she also wrote about theatre and books. It was shortlisted for an Evergreen Fiction Award and named a book of the year by The Globe and Mail, Quill & Quire and NOW Magazine. Her first novel, Various Positions, was published in Canada, the U.S., Australia and New Zealand. It's the story of a young woman owning up to the lies she's fallen in love with, and figuring out if she can still recognize herself when she finally lets them go. In psychologically astute prose full of provocative insights and gem-like sentences, My Face in the Light is a moving exploration of truth in art and identity. As the contradictions and complications of leaving one's life behind swell to the point of crisis, Justine must confront the collateral damage of a traumatic past she has long repressed. She begins to toy with the idea of throwing away the life she is expected to want for the allure of something she can't quite grasp. After a disastrous audition in London, England, a chance encounter with a stranger leads to an unorthodox business proposition that would allow Justine to abandon Toronto indefinitely. An intuitive and uncanny mimic, distinguished by a pronounced scar across her forehead (the result of a childhood accident), Justine has made acting the centre of her life since she was a teenager, but lately her seemingly charmed off-stage life in Toronto has begun to ring false.

Justine feels uneasy in her marriage, her theatre career and her relationship with her estranged mother, a famous painter. Perfect for fans of Rachel Cusk and Jenny Offill-a piercing, poignant novel about a scarred actress at a breaking point.

Various Positions by Martha Schabas