2024 SCWES BOOK AWARDS FOR BC AUTHORS WINNER As the first month of 2016 rolled into the next, the death count continued to climb… Evann has no excuse to be living among the city’s destitute. When he reached into the medicine cabinet for that first dose of OxyContin, he didn’t consider everything the drug might take; he could only see the escape it might offer. Determined to prove himself as an artist, Evann moves to the city, only to discover that physical distance can’t sever the emotional ties binding him to a past fraught with pain and rejection. Desperate to escape his own anxious thoughts and his mother's relentless criticisms, he enters an insidious spiral that ultimately costs him everything. On the unforgiving streets of Vancouver’s Downtown Eastside, Evann doesn’t know who to trust, where to turn, or how to regain control over his all-consuming addiction. Wracked by shame and fear, he lurks in the city’s shadows, until a brush with death presents a chance to get his life back on track. But confronted with his secret, will his family be there for him? In an evocative debut, Long sheds light on the devastating consequences of ostracizing those who yearn for love and connection the most. "To understand the life and motivations of a young man suffering from substance abuse, read Less Than . The story of Evann who started with ambitions to become an artist and an eagerness to love his family, only to embrace the seduction of escape in drugs. Long gets into Evann's head, exposing his motivations, his logic, and his reasonable choices that send him into his desperate search for drugs. This is a well-written, cohesive, beautifully plotted novel that moves quickly and logically. Everyone who deals with someone suffering from substance abuse—and that's most of us—should read this." — Marion McKinnon Crook, author of Always on Call: Adventures in Nursing, Ranching and Rural Living "An amazing first novel that changed my soul. I cared deeply about the protagonist and his journey." — Cathalynn Labonté-Smith, best-selling author of Rescue Me: Behind the Scenes of Search and Rescue (Caitlin Press, 2022)