Document 1 by François Blais, Translated by JC Sutcliffe

Audiobook Sample

Tess and Jude live in small-town Quebec and spend their time travelling all across North America—using Google maps—which provides them the luxury of adventure while remaining in the comfort of their own home. But Tess and Jude are dreamers, and their online adventures eventually give rise to a desire to actually travel somewhere. They settle on Bird in Hand, Pennsylvania, and begin scheming to raise the cash they’ll need for the trip.

After a series of hilarious ideas that never pan out, they turn to a local experimental author (who has a major crush on Tess) and convince him to apply for an arts council grant on their behalf. But when they actually receive the grant money, can they pull it all together for a real adventure?

Funny, smart, and wonderfully human, Document 1 is a tragicomic tale of two dreamers and their quest for adventure, as well as a satirical take on the world of arts and letters.

Praise for Document 1

“Who knew that I would fall so in love with a book of metafiction starring two hapless, completely self-sabotaging scammers and featuring a little light fraud, a list of all the places in Kentucky with the word “lick” in the name, and a female dog named Steve? And yet, here I am, wanting to go back to the beginning and read it all over again. Ridiculous and hilarious, completely unique and yet overwhelmingly relatable, Document 1 is a quirky little gem of a book.” —Amy Jones, author of We’re All In This Together

“A perfect mix of humour and bite, Document 1 is the best go nowhere travel adventure book I’ve read in a long time. Never underestimate a pair of dreamers equipped with a Monte Carlo car and a dog named Steve.” —Brian Francis, author of Fruit and Natural Order

Press Coverage

The Most Beautiful Girl in Rouyn-Noranda: Read an excerpt from Document 1 by François Blais, translated by JC Sutcliffe —Quebec Reads

Interview with JC Sutcliffe —Quebec Reads

Most Anticipated: Our 2018 Spring Fiction Preview —49th Shelf”

“Document 1 is a fun, irreverent romp that goes nowhere in particular, but enjoys itself along the way.” —Tony’s Reading List blog

“Document 1 moves at a breakneck pace through the mundane lives of mundane people; and does so in an absolutely hilarious way. ” —William Kemp, All Lit Up

“I hope we will see more of Blais’ work in translation, because this is a fine introduction.”  —David’s Book World blog

Document 1 by François Blais, a review —Winston’s Dad’s Blog

All Books Are Beach Books: Get Your Summer Reads Locked In —49th Shelf

“Document 1 is good, quick, light fun.” —Michael Orthofer, The Complete Review

Get Out Of Town: 11 Literary Getaways —49th Shelf

“From the first page, the author’s wit and humour drew me in, and I quickly breezed through the compact little book.”—Megan Callahan, Quebec Reads

Véhicule Press/Esplanade Fiction & BookThug/Book*Hug [P.T. Smith Redux] —Three Percent

François Blais is one of the most exciting contemporary voices of Quebec literature. Considered an underground superhero of French writing, he is the author of 9 novels and a collection of short stories. Document 1, which was released in French in 2013 to great critical acclaim, is his first novel to be translated into English.

JC Sutcliffe is a writer, translator, book reviewer, and editor who has lived in England, France, and Canada. She has reviewed for the Times Literary Supplement, The Globe and Mail and the National Post, among others.