A Milksop Walks Into a Dairy Farm… and Finds Himself
May 23, 2026 | For Immediate Release
Chicken House Press debuts John Van Rys’s tender coming-of-age novel set in rural Ontario
Chicken House Press is proud to announce the publication of Milksop by John Van Rys, available May 23, 2026.
Seventeen-year-old Evan Mulder is awkward, angsty, and armed only with a gift for running and numbers when his disappointed parents dump him in a dark farm laneway to spend the summer making up for a disastrous winter term. What follows is anything but simple. Between early morning milkings and mucking out stalls at Logan & Sons Dairy, Evan discovers a family caught between mounting debt, a predatory neighbour, and secrets buried in desk drawers—and is forced to confront the truth he’s been running from all year. In a summer of chickens and calculations, flower gardens and financial ledgers, he’ll find unexpected ways to belong—and discover that being small in a world of big egos might not be weakness, but wisdom.
A tender coming-of-age story set against the rhythms of rural life, Milksop is about the quiet courage it takes to show up, the healing power of honest work, and learning that sometimes the smallest acts of care matter most.
The novel has already drawn praise from prominent voices in Canadian literature. Award-winning author Joe Kertes—founder of the Humber College creative writing and comedy programs—offered this endorsement: “Who’d have thought that there could be a fresh take on the age-old tale of growing up, of finding oneself, of growing into oneself, of falling in love...? That is precisely the journey that Evan, the protagonist of this novel, takes. He is a clumsy city boy, the ‘milksop’ of the title, who is transplanted by his parents into the country only to discover what is good and right about this world, after believing that little of it could be true or possible. John Van Rys is a bold, honest and eloquent new voice in Canadian letters. We should welcome and celebrate his arrival.”
Author Melissa Kuipers (The Whole Beautiful World) adds: “Tender and hilarious, Milksop follows a young man on a reluctant quest towards self-discovery within a beautiful but unrelenting pastoral milieu... Van Rys’s debut novel is full of description so rich you can smell the hay and feel the rumble of the tractor while reading.”
The novel has also earned the endorsement of the farming community it depicts. Larry Link of Linkhaven Farms, who grew up on a dairy farm in the same era the novel is set, speaks to its authenticity simply and directly: “It is well written and brought back so many memories. I highly recommend reading this book if you grew up on a farm.”
Van Rys describes himself as '“old, rural, and pretty square” —and that turns out to be exactly the right credential for this story. He lives on a hobby farm outside Dunnville, Ontario, with his wife April, a menagerie of animals, and the kind of life that supplies real fiction. Until his retirement in July 2025, he spent his career as a mild-mannered English professor; his passion since 2016 has been writing stories. His short fiction has appeared in The New Quarterly, The Dalhousie Review, and Prairie Fire, where his story “Excavations” won the 2022 MRB Short Fiction Contest. Many of his stories are gathered in his debut collection, Moonshine Promises (Wipf and Stock, 2021). At 61, the Canada Council for the Arts designated him a New and Emerging Artist. He completed Milksop through The Novelry.
Milksop is available to order through the Chicken House Press bookstore, Indigo, Amazon, and independent bookstores across Canada beginning May 23, 2026.
For media inquiries or to request a review copy, please contact Alanna Rusnak at Chicken House Press.
ISBN (print): 978-1-997584-16-2; ISBN (ebook): 978-1-997584-18-6
A coming-of-age novel by John Van Rys
The summer of 1979 should have been simple: two months on a dairy farm in rural Ontario to make up for a disastrous winter term. But for seventeen-year-old Evan Mulder—awkward, angsty, and armed only with a gift for running and numbers—nothing about the Logan farm proves simple.
Dumped in a dark laneway by his disappointed parents, Evan finds himself among strangers: the reserved Niall, warm-hearted Connie, their two young children, and one very judgmental farm dog. Between early morning milkings and mucking out stalls, Evan discovers that the Logans are caught between a rock and a hard place—mounting debt, a predatory neighbour circling their land, and farm records buried in desk drawers like secrets no one wants to face.
As Evan learns to navigate life beyond his suburban comfort zone, he also confronts the truth he’s been running from all year. In a summer of chickens and calculations, flower gardens and financial ledgers, he’ll find unexpected ways to belong—and discover that being small in a world of big egos might not be weakness, but wisdom.
A tender coming-of-age story set against the rhythms of rural life, Milksop is about the quiet courage it takes to show up, the healing power of honest work, and learning that sometimes the smallest acts of care matter most.
Store owners and distributors are invited to register with Chicken House Press as a retailer to enjoy a wholesale discount on copies of the book.
