Alexandra Mae Jones is making words in Toronto, Canada.
She is the author of THE QUEEN OF JUNK ISLAND, a YA novel set in the mid-2000s which hit the shelves in May 2022 with Annick Press.
Her short fiction has appeared in publications such as EVENT, Prairie Fire, Third Wednesday, and Frond Literary, among others. As a queer writer who hails from a small rural town, she is preoccupied with the space between the places we come from and the people we are. She has an MFA in creative writing from the University of Guelph.
She got her start in journalism with a two-year stint on the breaking news desk at the Toronto Star. As a student journalist, she won a John H. McDonald Award for a piece written in 2016 for The Strand. After spending five years with CTVNews.ca, reporting on everything from health to space to breaking news, she now writes for the digital desk at CBC News. THE QUEEN OF JUNK ISLAND is her first novel.
Praise for THE QUEEN OF JUNK ISLAND
“Jones never shies away from brutally honest discussions of sexual topics that were even more taboo in the 2000s when the book is set, capturing in particular the toxicity of biphobia as Dell is confused by her intense desire, earlier for boys and now, for Ivy.”
— Kirkus Reviews
“The unforgettably sardonic voice of 16-year-old Dell is the strength of this book—set in the 2000s—about trauma, identity, and finding a home within yourself.”
— Booklist
“This book is a raw, poignant exploration of female teenage sexuality and how societal expectations conflate desire with shame.”
— The Bulletin of the Center for Children’s Books
“Through Dell’s tumultuous mental health and equally turbulent relationships, this intensely personal and moving narrative adeptly captures the often nerve-wracking complexity of queer adolescence.”
- Publisher’s Weekly
RECENT WORKS
Conservation of Matter
Prairie Fire, Summer 2021, Volume 42, No.2
How to Fake a Breakdown
EVENT magazine, edition 50/1, 2021
arteries / convenience
Open Minds Quarterly, Spring 2020 issue