Description
Please join Upstart & Crow and Adelle Purdham to celebrate the West Coast launch of her debut memoir-in-essays, I Don’t Do Disability and Other Lies I’ve Told Myself (Dundurn Press). Purdham will be in the shop talking about her new collection, which, at its heart, is about being a mom to a daughter with Down syndrome and confronting her own ableism (the belief that an abled body is better.)
Purdham will be in conversation with Taslim Jaffer. Both writers are interested in amplifying the voices of marginalized groups, and their conversation will converge on this topic, as well as address the book writing process. Tickets are free, but please RSVP here as capacity is limited.
About the author:
Adelle Purdham is a writer, teacher, and parent disability advocate. She holds an MFA in Creative Nonfiction Writing from the University of King’s College and is a writing instructor at Trent University. She lives with her family in her hometown of Peterborough/Nogojiwanong, Ontario.
About the moderator:
Taslim Jaffer is the 2025 City of Richmond Writer-in-Residence, winner of the 2022 Creative Nonfiction Collective/Humber Literary Review CNF contest, and co-editor of the literary anthology Back Where I Came From: On Culture, Identity, and Home (Book*hug Press).
More about Upstart & Crow.
Located on Granville Island, Upstart & Crow is a not-for-profit literary arts studio for curious readers and creative storytellers alike. We are international in our outlook, and local in our sensibilities. We create opportunities to surface new talent and champion bold ideas through events, workshops, literary launches, unique partnerships — and yes, we also sell books!
Accessibility:
The main studio of our shop is accessible for folks with mobility aids. There is a washroom on the main floor available for attendees.
Questions: hello[at]upstartand
I Don’t Do Disability and Other Lies I’ve Told Myself
“A beautifully intimate blend of personal narrative, cultural critique, and sharp-eyed social commentary on disability and motherhood, this stirring debut is lyrical, heartfelt, and uncomfortably honest. Adelle Purdham, with uncanny precision, cuts our heart strings and dissects our minds with her archeological approach to excavating life’s difficult truths. I Don’t Do Disability and Other Lies I’ve Told Myself is a riveting collection of essays that will deeply resonate with readers.”
— Lindsay Wong, author of The Woo-Woo
