The Erotics of Cutting Grass: Essays on a Well-Loved Life

Kate Braid has never been one to follow the beaten path. In 1977, she broke barriers by stepping-- or rather, stumbling-- into the male-dominated world of construction. With two beloved memoirs, Journeywoman and Hammer & Nail, and a number of award-winning poetry collections, she’s shared her journey as a trailblazer in the trades. Now, Kate is back with her signature blend of guts, wit, and warmth, tackling the fresh territory of women, bodies, and aging. The Erotics of Cutting Grass is a celebration of life’s later chapters, written with the same unique mix of humour, frankness, and vulnerability Kate’s readers have come to know and love. Travel with Kate as she adventures through France, still gets ＂ checked out＂ on the street, picks up a new instrument, and has a secret love-affair with a ride-on Husqvarna grass cutter. In these love stories to life--from weightlifting in her senior years to questioning why older people in love are seen as ＂ cute,＂ but not ＂ hot,＂ and even delving into the mysteries of ＂remembering＂ past lives--Kate’s essays are a refreshing take on what it means to age with audacity.

Kate Braid’s awards include for the Remarkable Woman of the Arts and Pandora’s Collective BC Mentor’s Awards in Vancouver, and for poetry, the Pat Lowther and Vancity Book Prizes. She has also been writer in residence at Mabel Dodge Luhan House in Taos, New Mexico. Kate has written many books of poetry and creative non-fiction including two memoirs of her fifteen years as a carpenter, Journeywoman: Swinging a Hammer in a Man’s World, and Hammer & Nail: Notes of a Journeywoman. She currently lives on Pender Island and in Victoria, BC. See www.katebraid.com.