Fifteen Lanes by S.J. Laidlaw

Review by Nicolai Hughes, Teen Advisory Council

Fifteen Lanes by S.J. Laidlaw is an award-winning Canadian novel, and it's clear to see why.
It's a groundbreaking story set in Mumbai that refuses to gloss over difficult topics like teen
mental illness, the sex trade, self harm and suicide, as well as other important issues. It
follows the story of two teenage girls, each coming from vastly different backgrounds and
situations, who grow to understand each other's hardships, and form an unbreakable bond
because of it. It's an emotionally taxing read, with a writing style so raw and real that you
may have to take time between chapters just to allow everything to sink in. If you're looking
for a thought-provoking story to truly change your perspective, I would highly recommend
picking up Fifteen Lanes.

Guy Vanderhaeghe is the winner of the 2015 Governor General's Literary Award for his short story collection Daddy Lenin and Other Stories.  This is the author's first short story collection in over 20 years.  Jury members had this to say about the collection:   "each story is superbly crafted, razor-sharp, wickedly funny.