"Roadkill stuffed and presented as art, an OB/GYN appointment gone horribly wrong, and government spies with a weakness for salmon bagels and Timmy Ho’s. Tender, satirical, and occasionally absurd, Barb Howard’s new story collection Western Taxidermy is a perfect introduction to one of Western Canada’s most high-spirited literary voices.

In these sixteen stories, Howard effortlessly balances wry social commentary and prairie gothic, pairing humans and animals in clever and unexpected ways.

Praise for Western Taxidermy
"Bizarre, disturbing, sad, hilarious and haunting. Howard's stories stir the reader's imagination."
~ The Prairie Journal
"Not only would I recommend reading it, I would recommend re-reading it not long after."
~ Herizons
"Grab it for a satisfying, thoughtful tease on your palate before we tumble headlong into snow season."
~ Bess Lovec, Billings Gazette

Barb Howard is a third-generation Calgarian who worked as a lawyer and a land contract analyst before receiving her M.A. in Creative Writing from the University of Calgary. In 2009, Barb received the Writers’ Guild of Alberta (Howard O’Hagan) Award for short fiction. She has also won contests in Alberta Views and Canadian Lawyer, and was also a finalist at the Western Magazine Awards. Barb's first novel, Whipstock, was published by NeWest Press in 2001. Since then, Barb has published the novella Notes for Monday (Recliner, 2009), and the young adult novel The Dewpoint Show (Fitzhenry and Whiteside, 2010). Barb currently lives in Bragg Creek, Alberta with her husband, a pair of easygoing sons, and one neurotic dog.

Barb Howard's profile page