Meeting of March 27, 2017

We met at Carla's to discuss Jolene's book choice The Mockingbird Next Door - Life with Harper Lee by Marja Mills.  Present were Carla, Colette, Beth, Betty, Janet, Jolene, Michèle and Shirley.  Carla served some wonderful cheese and a nice variety of crackers along with a kale dip, a warm artichoke dip and spicy jellies.  Of course there was wine and with tea and coffee Carla served a wonderful pavlova.  We are spoiled!

Some changes to our schedule were made and Linda, who is enjoying the warmth of Florida has proposed along with her book choice for May, an excursion!  Take a look at our 2017 list of book choices and see if you can guess where we are going!  Make sure you check back in May to read about our great outing!

One of Jolene's favourite books and for many of us, is To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee.  So a memoir about Harper Lee was an obvious choice for her this year. The author, Marja Mills is a journalist who has worked for the Chicago Tribune.  As part of a Chicago project to encourage citizens to read To Kill a Mockingbird, Ms. Mills requested and received permission to interview the Lee sisters Harper and her older sister Alice.  After the article appeared in the Chicago Tribune, Ms. Mills sent it to the Lee sisters and then developed a friendship with them eventually renting the house next door to them for 14 months.

The Mockingbird Next Door is a memoir of Ms. Mills' experiences and the friendship that developed with the Lee sisters over those 14 months and not a biography of Harper Lee.  Alice, Harper's older sister and their friends that she meets are the bigger source of stories about Harper Lee.  Harper, known much more as Nelle, told some stories, took Ms. Mills along with he on excursions such as fishing at a friend's farm but always refused to be taped and often said, this is not to be printed.  Both sisters were very good storytellers and the book has many stories about life in Monroeville and its residents.

When Penguin Press announced that the book would be published and later when it was  published in 2014, a statement from Harper Lee was published in which she said that she had never authorized the publication.  The statement created a controversy and there were questions as to who had pressured Harper Lee to send out the statement.

Most of us enjoyed the book though many thought that it could have used more editing.  Many found the stories of their daily lives, relationships with friends and family endearing.  It was also interesting to read about Nelle's friendship with Truman Capote and her involvement in research for Capote book In Cold Blood.  We also learn a bit about Nelle's friendship with Gregory Peck who played Atticus Finch in the movie To Kill a Mockingbird..  A couple of us did not find it particularly interesting and thought the author wrote too much about herself.

In the end, this book generated a lot of discussion about new genres in memoirs and biographies, that not only speak of the subject of the memoir but also the author of the book.  As always, we enjoyed our discussions.  Thank you Jolene for the book choice and thanks to all members of the Muse & Views Bookclub, the best there is!

Meeting of March 21, 2016

Our book this month was The Rosie Effect by Graeme Simsion, Jolene's choice. We met at Carla's home. She served a lovely array of hot and cold hors d'oeuvres, topped off the evening with Pavlova and fruit, in honour of Australia, Simsion's home. Shirley, Beth, Carla, Janet, Colette, and Jolene attended.

Simsion has had quite a varied career, ranging from information systems consultant to wine distributor. He holds a PhD in data modeling. He has won several literary awards and is currently finishing a new novel, The Best of Adam Sharp. He and his wife Anne are planning to walk the Camino de Santiago de Compostela, to research a joint book. 

The Rosie Effect picks up where The Rosie Project left off, telling the story of Don Tillman, his wife Rosie, and their friends and family. This time, Rosie is pregnant, and Don gets into all kinds of mishaps as he misreads social cues in his attempt to learn how to be a good father. Problems in his relationship with Rosie abound because he fails to communicate with her, all in a misguided effort to keep from stressing her during her pregnancy. 

Club opinions about the book were evenly divided. On the negative side, some were disappointed with it, especially after enjoying the first book so much. Comments were that this story was frustrating, even stressful, more contrived, less convincing, especially the communication breakdown between spouses. On the positive side, others felt that it was perhaps a mistake to over-analyze the story, that it was more appropriate to enjoy the comic elements and to appreciate Don as a charming, guileless romantic hero with a good heart. All of us were able to connect the characters and events to our own lives to a certain degree, though critics thought the Asperger's elements were overdone, especially in the first half of the novel.

In summary, our club comments seem to reflect quite well some of the professional reviews of the book, where opinions are also varied.

Meeting of March 23, 2015

 

Muse and Views met at Carla’s to discuss Chris Hadfield’s An Astronaut’s Guide to Life on Earth, Jolene’s choice. Beth, Betty, Colette, Jane, Janet, Jolene, and Shirley were in attendance and Carla hosted the evening. She served shrimp cocktail, an array of lovely cheeses and hors d’oeuvres, and some gluten-free desserts that were out of this world. She even had a depiction of the solar system on her table!

Much of Colonel Hadfield’s life is portrayed in the book itself, and Jolene added details about his present ventures. He is currently working as adjunct professor at Waterloo University, where he uses his experiences as a pilot and commander of the International Space Station to lecture students on such topics as the historical and scientific importance of photos from space (many of which can be found in his book You Are Here), the usefulness of advanced remote sensing techniques, and for upper-year aviation students, technical notions such as lift vectors and landing distances. Quite an accomplishment for a farm boy from southern Ontario, who knew at age 9 that he wanted to become an astronaut!

He is also a musician, and Jolene suggests that we check out internet videos - see chris hadfield song. It is no surprise that Hadfield seems to have been able to promote the space program better than any other astronaut to date, using social media and the help of his techie son Evan. Hadfield’s wife Helene says of her husband, “He just thinks everything is so great and cool and wonderful and he wants people to feel it too.” (The Ottawa Citizen, November 30/13, p H1). 

We all thought Helene was pretty cool too. She and the couple’s children have had to take a backseat to the astronaut’s educational and professional life. Most of us did enjoy the educational insights of the book, particularly the emphasis on servant leadership, excellence, and perseverance. There was a debate about whether Hadfield was actually humble or just trying hard to overcome his lack of humility. Because high achievers are not always team players, we found it interesting that nurses and others were contacted to see how potential candidates for the space program interacted with people at every level. 

Although reviews of the book were mixed, many of us found personal and family connections because of backgrounds in education, military service, and even the aerospace industry. The book’s style was not well liked, described as choppy, and ‘the writing of an engineer’, with events compartmentalized and sometimes oft repeated. 

Two other interesting side items were discussed. Apparently, one of Hadfield’s blue flight suits was found and bought at a Toronto Thrift Store. Also, Chris Hadfield said on CTV’s Canada AM on October 20, 2014, (http://canadaam.ctvnews.ca/video?playlistId=1.2061551) that Warner Brothers and ABC are developing a pilot for a sitcom loosely based on his life as father and husband with the added complexity of the technology and jobs he has handled. 

Till next time…stay grounded.

Meeting of March 24, 2014

Despite the continuing winter weather even if Spring has officially arrived, we had nine of our eleven members present ; Beth, Betty, Carla, Colette, Jane, Janet, Jolene, Michèle and Shirley attended the meeting.  The book choice this month was Longbourn by Jo Baker, Jolene's choice.  Jolene also hosted and we were served wonderful British cheese and "bangers" in pastry with mustard.

Jolene, who is a big Jane Austen fan, gave us all bookmarkers she had made herself with quotes from Jane Austen books and from Ms. Austen's letters to her sisters and cousins.

It is unusual that we all agree on a book.  Longbourn was enjoyed by everyone and again contrary to previous discussions on a book when everyone has a similar opinion, a considerable amount of discussion was generated by this storyline. Jo Baker is a British author who has a Ph.D. in English literature. She did her thesis on the author Elizabeth Bower.

 There have been several books written by others that have tried to continue the Bennet Family saga or given another perspective on the story of Pride and Prejudice. Not many have succeeded. Longbourn tells us the story of those who served the Bennett Family in Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice. We were pretty well all in agreement that Ms. Baker did excellent work in creating a credible story.

The story has a very good plot involving most of the servants, Mr. and Mrs Hill, the butler and housekeeper, the housemaids Sarah and Polly and James the footman.  The focus of the book is on the chores the servants must perform to meet the needs and demands on the Bennett Family.  And the descriptions are fairly graphic letting the reader understand that cleaning silk dresses that have been worn walking through wet fields and mud is difficult, that emptying chamber pots is not pleasant work. It was obvious through Ms. Baker's descriptions that serving a family was hard physical work for all the servants.

Ms. Baker's plots were based on the lives and adventures of the servants. Though she did refer to some of the Bennett girls' activities, the stories were in large part about the characters downstairs, the love affair of James and Sarah, Mrs. Hill's relationship with Mr. Bennett, etc.

Some of us found some revelations a bit shocking and maybe incredulous, I will not go into detail to not give away some of the surprises.  Several of us found the conclusions and what happened to some of the servants to be far-fetched. For example, could someone of Polly's social stature really become a teacher?

The book was very much appreciated by all members present, a good read, thank you Jolene.

Meeting of March 25, 2013

We met at Carla's to discuss Kathryn Stockett's The Help, Jolene's choice this year. To set the scene, Carla greeted us in uniform...with a long white apron covering a black dress. Her chicken-cucumber appetizers and brie cheese with edible flowers were wonderful, and she topped the evening off with some "terrible awful" chocolate pie. Carla, Beth, Colette, Jane, Shirley, and Jolene were in attendance, with other members all vacationing or working out of town.

According to a CBS interview in 2011, Kathryn Stockett began writing the book in the wake of 9/11 as she was homesick for her native Jackson, Mississippi. She calls the story a love letter to Demetrie, the maid who helped raise her. Originally, Ms. Stockett received 60 rejection letters, which she has kept in order to encourage other young writers to edit and persevere when trying to have a novel published. The book has now been produced in French and Spanish as well, and has been made into a feature film by her friend and director, Tate Taylor. While there are differences between the movie and the book, the author was on set every day and was satisfied that the movie felt like the book, remaining true to its essence.

While both the film and the book have become wildly popular, there has been some controversy surrounding the story. Stockett's brother's maid Ablene Cooper filed suit, feeling that her identity had been appropriated. The case was dismissed because the Statute of Limitations had run out. Dr. Duchess Harris of Macalester College and William Mitchell College of Law also has harsh criticism for Stockett. Dr. Harris laments, for instance, the fact that the protagonist championing the cause of black domestics is white Skeeter, just as Atticus Finch was the white hero in To Kill a Mockingbird. Skeeter is dealing with her own issues and leaves the black domestics in the south at the book's end. Despite negative press like this, The Help has sold upwards of 10 million copies since its publication in 2009.

The Muse and Views ladies in attendance liked the book, without exception. The characters and relationships were well developed, with Celia Foote being a particular favourite. Minnie was likened to To Kill a Mockingbird's Calpurnia. The heat, food, and atmosphere of Mississippi were brought to life as well, as was background history such as Rosa Parks' stand for civil rights. Several ladies also saw indirect connections to their own lives or to literature, some having had family members with nannies, or having read stories such as Jane Eyre, where class structure and the mistreatment of governesses figured prominently. We also briefly touched on racial, religious and linguistic tensions in Canada's history.

Stockett is apparently working on a second novel about life in the Roaring 20's and the Depression years, but she has missed deadlines in an effort to write it well and not risk being a one-hit-wonder. Coincidentally, next month we will discuss Rules of Civility, similar in time setting to Stockett's new story in the works.

Meeting of May 30th 2011

Our host this month was Jolene. Present were Beth, Betty, Carla, Colette, Jane, Janet, Jolene, Linda, Michèle and Shirley. All were present!  Jolene prepared a very nice ham and cheese roll and other great hors d'oeuvres.  We also had a very nice strawberry and whipped cream cake.

The book choice was Jolene's The Forgotten Garden by Kate Morton.  Ms. Morton is Australian and studied both in England and Australia.  The Forgotten Garden is her second book of three that have been published.  The story is situated in Australia and England and has three main characters in three different time periods.  Ms. Morton drew from parts of her own life in writing this book.  Her grandmother found out at age 21 that she was adopted and kept it to herself until she was an old woman.  Her home in Brisbane is very much like Nell's home, close to Antique shops and tucked into the Paddington hillside. And she heard many stories of family members immigrating to Australia from Europe.

The majority of members very much enjoyed the book, found the characters well developed and were captivated by the story.  Even though the story is situated in three different time periods most found it easy to follow.  All found the fairytales that were inserted into the story, written by The Authoress added another element to the book.  Several members mentioned the connections to Daphne DuMaurier's Rebecca and  some to the scenes portrayed by Dickens such as how Eliza was treated by Mrs Swindell, Sammy's death on the streets of London and Eliza's tragic death.

There were some interesting themes, for example a lot about motherhood, the need and desperation to become a mother as Rose felt, surrogate motherhood, the relationships between mothers and daughters, Nell and her daughter Leslie, Nell and her granddaughter Cassandra, Rose and her mother and Eliza's desperate and tragic attempt to take back her daughter after Rose's and Nathaniel's deaths.  

Many of us enjoyed the book and felt it was romantic in its depiction of scenery and characters, especially in England, Cliff Cottage, the walled garden, Nathaniel's drawings that illustrated Eliza's fairytales.  There was a magical environment to the stories and characters, Eliza so tragic, Linus, evil and creepy, Rose, manipulative,  Lady Adeline, uptight and mean.

There was some discussion on our need to know our complete identity and where we come from and how that influenced Nell's whole life and her relationships with her sisters, her daughter and her granddaughter.

Thanks to Jolene for this book, we hope that she may come to enjoy it as much at some point in time

Meeting of April 26th 2010

We met at Jolene's home to discuss this month's book, La's Orchestra Saves the World by Alexander McCall Smith, Jolene's choice. At the meeting Beth, Betty, Carla, Colette Janet, Jolene, Linda, Shirley and Michèle were present.

Mr. McCall Smith is best known as author of The No. 1 Laides' Dectective Agency and he has also written The Portuguese Irregular Verbs Series and In the 44 Scotland Street Series and The Isabel Dalhouse Series. He has also written several non-fiction books in his original professional field of medical law. He was born in Southern Rhodesia which is now Zimbabwe. He has also written several books for children.

All liked the book and found it to be an easy enjoyable read. The story describes in part, life during World War II in rural England. The story and the creation of La's Orchestra brought out England's determination throughout World War II and the bombing to keep everyone's spirits up and not allow the enemy to defeat them. It also brought out the push during the War for all to do their part, however small. La for example, not only conducted the Orchestra but also helped out a local farmer and grew a vegetable garden. Everyone had to do their part. This was also spelled out in La's struggle with her conscious when she found the need to talk to Constable Percy Brown of her suspicions that Lenny Agg had stolen Henry Madder's money and then to Tim Honey about her suspicions that Felix was in fact German and not Polish. She felt it was her duty to protect England. Many stories written about England and WW II, talked about the British determination. Beth referred specifically to Lady Diane Cooper's biography in which she described the determination of the British.

Most of us felt that the last part of the book was a bit rushed as if the author was trying to tie up all the loose ends, La's attempt to participate in demonstrations during the Cuban crisis is a good example.

Many of us liked that she eventually met again with Feliks. Carla compared it to "Love among the Ruins" the poem by Robert Browning. Some of us, however, had not realized the link between Felix's boys and the young men at the beginning of the book who visited Suffolk, La's home and the back garden where she had grown potatoes and the building where the Orchestra practiced and performed.

Meeting of March 23, 2009

This month's meeting was at Janet's home and she provided us with wonderful appetizers and we had a beautiful and excellent chocolate tart made by Julia! Members present tonight were Beth, Carla, Colette, Janet, Joan, Jolene, Linda, Michèle and Shirley. The book choice this month was Jolene's and we read "Mr. Darcy Presents his Bride" by Helen Halstead.

Ms. Halstead is an Australian author who began by self-publishing this book under the name "A Private Performance".  The book was eventually picked up by Ulysses Press and the title was changed.  

This story is follows Jane Austen's "Pride and Prejudice" and give the reader an account of Elizabeth Bennet & Fitzwilliam Darcy's first years of marriage and Elizabeth's entry into London high society.  There are several sequels to Jane Austen's book and Jolene brought several for us to peruse: "Mr. Darcy's Decision" by Juliet Shapiro, "Darcy's Passion" by Regina Jaffers, "The Independence of Miss Mary Bennet" by Colleen McCullogh.

Several of our members found the book frustrating and a bit boring. They found that it was difficult to determine who was speaking in the book sometimes. Also many descriptions of the evening balls or dinners were repetitive. Some felt the language was a bit stilted.

However some of our members quite enjoyed the book. They enjoyed the descriptions of the different homes such as Pemberley and the description of the 12th Night Ball.  Many members enjoyed reading about what happened after "Pride and Prejudice" to the Bennet's sisters.  It was a good easy read. 

There was quite a discussion about the lack of development of Mr. Darcy and not enough about the development of their relationship.

Meeting of March 31st, 2008

The meeting was held at Beth’s home. Thank you Beth for a warm reception and wonderful goodies and wine! We had the largest attendance in a long time, nine members were present. Along with Beth and Michèle, Betty, Carla, Collette, Joan, Jolene, Linda and Shirley were present. We also received written comments from Janet.

The book discussed at this meeting was Life of Pi by Yann Martel, Jolene’s choice. The novel won the Mann Booker Prize in 2002. Mr. Martel is a Canadian who was born in Spain in 1963 to Canadian diplomats. He received an undergraduate degree in Philosophy from Trent University in Peterborough. Life of Pi is his second book. Martel also publishes a letter to Prime Minister Harper every two weeks with a book suggestion for him to read. The letters and the list of books that have been suggested are on the website What is Stephen Harper reading .

Most members thought that the book is well written and that Martel is an excellent storyteller. Some members had read the book twice and found it more enjoyable the second time. Only some however, found the book enjoyable. The story of a teenage Indian boy named Piscine (Pi) Molitor Patel, begins with a description of his life in the Pondicherry region of India, his family, the family zoo his father manages and Piscine’s interest in several religions. Pi’s parents decide to immigrate to Canada and leave on a ship with a menagerie of animals. When the ship sinks, Pi is the only survivor along with a zebra, a hyena, an orangutan and a Bengal tiger. The rest of the story is one of survival on the lifeboat.

Beth told us about a radio interview she heard with Martel and how he came to write this book. He had traveled to India and had a bit of a writing block while trying to write another book. A lot of what he said is in the preface of the book and Beth found it important to read before reading the book.

Several members wondered if the story as Pi told it when he was finally rescued was real or if he used his imagination as a coping mechanism for survival, a way to keep him alive a bit like the role of the basketball in the film Castaway. When he is interviewed by the Japanese owners of the ship that sank, he tells two stories and challenges them to decide which is the real story. Carla felt that the story and the book stayed with you, though it was a fairly easy read, is quite thought provoking.

There was also some discussion on the considerable knowledge this 16 year old boy had and whether it was credible that he would know so much about animals and religions. Carla thought he might be what we call an "old soul".

Janet saw it as an allegory. She sent us the following comment: “The story begins with Pi's journey of faith and at the end challenges the reader to either take it on faith or disbelieve. Of course, Martel means it to be an allegory of the journey of faith that we each must take. Yet in the end, it falls short as an allegory for there is no deeper truth.” . It certainly links the beginning of Pi’s life in India to his harrowing ordeal.

This book elicited considerable discussion and the evening was very interesting!

April’s meeting at Linda’s home is Beth choice City of Falling Angels by John Berendt on April 28^th.

Books read in 2007 - Choose your favorite!

BOOK CLUB - 2007

January – City of Joy by Dominique Lapierre

The story concerns a polish priest living in West Bengal, India, Stephan Kovalski, who is trying to help and understand life in a Howrah slum (across the Hooghly river from Kolkata) called Anandnagar (City of Joy). Among its various protagonists is the rickshaw puller, Hasari Pal who becomes a central figure in the novel. Despite the abject poverty and injustice, the inhabitants of Anandnagar display an inscrutable acceptance and celebration of life - an attitude that humbles fate and dignifies life.

February - Home to Harmony by Philip Gulley

Come home to Harmony, Indiana, a peaceful slice of small-town America, as Sam Gardner, Harmony-born and raised, begins his inaugural year as pastor to a new flock of old friends, family members, and outrageous eccentrics -- in this unforgettable place where earth-shattering events rarely occur, but small life-altering ones happen daily.

March - The Lovely Bones by Alice Sebold

The book is the story of a 14-year-old girl who is raped and murdered. She tells her story from her personalized Heaven looking down as her family tries to cope with her death and her killer escapes the police.

April – State of Fear by Michael Crichton

State of Fear is a 2004 novel by Michael Crichton published by HarperCollins on December 7, 2004. Like most of his novels it is a techno-thriller, this time concerning eco-terrorists who attempt mass murder to support their views. The book contains many graphs and footnotes as well as two appendices and a twenty page bibliography.
Crichton, who spent 3 years studying the theme, included a statement of his own views on global climate change at the end of the book, saying that the cause, extent, and threat of climate change is largely unknown and unknowable. This has resulted in criticism by scientists as being inaccurate and misleading. He warns both sides of the global warming debate against the politicization of science. He provides an example of the disastrous combination of pseudo-science and good intentions, in the early 20th-century idea of eugenics. He finishes by endorsing the management of wilderness and the continuation of research into all aspects of the Earth's environment.

May - The Wide Sargasso Sea by Jean Rhys

Wide Sargasso Sea is a 1966 postcolonial parallel novel by Caribbean-born author Jean Rhys. After many years of living in obscurity since her last work, Good Morning, Midnight, was published in 1939, Wide Sargasso Sea put Rhys into the limelight once more and became her most successful novel.
The novel acts as a prequel to Charlotte Brontë's famous 1847 novel Jane Eyre. It is the story of the first Mrs Rochester, Antoinette (Bertha) Mason, a white Creole heiress, from the time of her youth in the Caribbean to her unhappy marriage and relocation to England. Caught in an oppressive patriarchal society in which she belongs neither to the white Europeans nor the black Jamaicans, Rhys' novel re-imagines Brontë's devilish madwoman in the attic. As with many postcolonial works, the novel deals largely with the themes of racial inequality and the harshness of displacement and assimilation.

June - Bloodletting & Miraculous Cures by Vincent  Lam

Bloodletting & Miraculous Cures welcomes readers into a world where the most mundane events can quickly become life or death. By following four young medical students and physicians – Ming, Fitz, Sri and Chen – this debut collection from 2006 Scotiabank Giller Prize winner Vincent Lam is a riveting, eye-opening account of what it means to be a doctor. Deftly navigating his way through 12 interwoven short stories, the author explores the characters’ relationships with each other, their patients, and their careers. Lam draws on his own experience as an emergency room physician and shares an insider’s perspective on the fears, frustrations, and responsibilities linked with one of society’s most highly regarded occupations.

September – The Memory Keepers daughter by Kim Edwards

Award-winning writer Kim Edwards's The Memory Keeper's Daughter is a brilliantly crafted family drama that explores every mother's silent fear: what would happen if you lost your child and she grew up without you?

On a winter night in 1964, Dr. David Henry is forced by a blizzard to deliver his own twins. His son, born first, is perfectly healthy. Yet when his daughter is born, he sees immediately that she has Down's syndrome. Rationalizing it as a need to protect Norah, his wife, he makes a split second decision that will alter all of their lives forever. He asks his nurse to take the baby away to an institution and never to reveal the secret. But Caroline, the nurse, cannot leave the infant. Instead, she disappears into another city to raise the child herself. So begins this beautifully told story that unfolds over a quarter of a century in which these two families, ignorant of each other, are yet bound by David Henry's fateful decision that long-ago winter night.
October - Perfume--the Story of a Murderer by Patrick Suskind,

An international bestseller, set in 18th century France, Perfume relates the story of Jean-Baptiste Grenouille, "one of the most gifted and abominable personages in an era that knew no lack of gifted and abominable personages".
Born lacking a personal odour (a fact other people find disquieting) but endowed with an incomparable sense of smell, he apprentices himself to a perfumer and becomes obsessed with procuring the perfect scent that will make him fully human. In the process, he creates perfumes—presumably based on pheromones—that powerfully manipulate human emotions, murdering 25 girls to take their scent.
The book features detailed descriptions of the techniques of scent extraction such as maceration and enfleurage.

November - Charles the Bold: the Dog Years by Yves Beauchemin,

Charles the Bold: The Dog Years is the first in a series of four novels that chronicle the life of Charles Thibodeau, a youngster from Montreal’s notorious east end. In this first volume, Yves Beauchemin takes us from Charles’ premature birth in October 1966 to his first term in secondary school. In the first pages the reader realizes that Charles is a special child and that his life is going to be far from ordinary. Although he is “born with a natural gift for happiness,” Charles’ childhood is overshadowed by tragic events. His mother never fully recovers from the birth of his younger sister Madeleine and both sister and mother die before Charles reaches the age of four. Left with his alcoholic father, Charles suffers from the domestic violence Wilfrid Thibodeau repeatedly inflicts upon him. One night the carpenter even attempts to murder his son, who then seeks refuge with the Fafard family.

References:

Wikipedia.com

Amazon.ca

Chapters.ca

Canlit.ca

Mdextras

2007-12-29