Riverwork

Synopsis

Beneath the streets of Paris flows a river that no longer appears on most maps. Buried beneath centuries of urban expansion, the Bièvre survives only in fragments, memories, and forgotten archives. When Lucy Frost inherits the notebooks of her great-aunt, a scholar who vanished while researching the lost waterway, she becomes consumed by the river's hidden history. Working as a cleaner in the apartments of Paris's intellectual elite by day and writing through sleepless nights, Lucy traces the lives of laundresses, labourers, writers, and dreamers whose stories have disappeared alongside the river itself.

Moving effortlessly between history, philosophy, memoir, and fiction, Riverwork is a dazzling meditation on memory, women's labour, archives, and the invisible forces that shape cities and lives. Lisa Robertson's luminous prose transforms forgotten landscapes into living histories, creating a novel that is both intellectually exhilarating and deeply moving. Part literary mystery, part urban archaeology, and part love letter to Paris, Riverwork is an extraordinary work from one of Canada's most original writers.

About the Author

Lisa Robertson is a Canadian poet, essayist, and novelist who lives in France. Born in Toronto and long based in Vancouver, she is the author of numerous acclaimed books of poetry, essays, and fiction, including The Baudelaire Fractal. Renowned for her intellectually adventurous and lyrically inventive writing, Robertson has received international recognition for work that explores language, history, philosophy, and place.

Publisher

Coach House Books

Publication Date

May 5, 2026

Format

Paperback

Pages

240

Subjects

Literary Fiction · Canadian Literature · Paris · Historical Fiction · Philosophical Fiction · Literary Mystery

ISBN

9781552455173