Care Of: Letters, Connections, and Cures
Ivan Coyote
McClelland & Stewart, 2021
$25.00
“Everybody on this continent remembers the week it all stopped.”
— Ivan Coyote, Care of
Care Of is a compilation of letters from and responses to people whose lives have been impacted by author Ivan Coyote.
Coyote is a Whitehorse, Yukon-born writer, storyteller, and spoken word performer. They have won many awards for their 13 books including the ReLit Award, the BC and Yukon Book Prizes’ inaugural Jim Deva Prize for Writing That Provokes, and have been shortlisted for the Governor General’s Literary Awards. Coyote is a 2SLGBTQ+ advocate who uses their experiences of being trans and non-binary to inspire others. Coyote’s previous book, Rebent Sinner, focused on the political struggles of the 2SLGBTQ+ communities over the last 30 years. Coyote regularly tours across the world for storytelling events at libraries, schools, and other venues.
Coyote put this book together in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. The stay-at-home order forced the entire country to slow down and allowed Coyote the time and opportunity to respond to the many letters they had received over the years. The responses to these letters grew longer and longer until Coyote saw the potential in collecting them into a book. The aim of the letters and the responses is to draw emotion from the reader. These are real people with real struggles and real stories. Each letter to Coyote that is included in the book touches on suffering in one form or another.
Coyote’s responses let the letter writers, and in extension, readers of the book, know that they are not alone. It’s an important message as feelings of isolation and loneliness have been exacerbated during the pandemic. A central theme of the book is grief over the loss of a loved one — something many who have lost family members or friends as a result of COVID-19 will relate to.
Care Of can also serve as a short lesson on 2SLGBTQ+ history over the last 30 years and how the community has evolved. Readers learn about forgotten parts of the 2SLGBTQ+ community’s history; one fascinating example is the labrys, formerly a symbol of empowerment for the lesbian community, now just a really cool looking axe only recognized by lesbians from a different age.
This book is best enjoyed in short bursts — reading one letter and response at a time will maximize your enjoyment. Coyote’s responses can start to feel a tad repetitive around the midway point if read in one sitting. This book is the perfect bathroom companion (each letter and response combo is roughly 10 pages long).
Care Of is written first and foremost with the 2SLGBTQ+ community in mind. Readers outside of the 2SLGBTQ+ community will still take something away from it, whether it be warm fuzzies from Coyote’s kindhearted supportive attitude and ideas about how to be a better ally to your 2SLGBTQ+ friends and family. Coyote has lived an eventful life. Their stories read like poetry that get readers to tap into empathy.