Diana Stevan

This is another book I read during my master's program in social work. It was written at a time when patients' rights were being questioned, as far as voluntary admission into mental asylums and the use of electro-shock treatment. A fantastic read, as fantastic as the movie that was made about it.

Fantastic read. Strong and clean prose with compelling characters. Kept me turning the pages. Can't wait to read the next book in this trilogy.

So many reviews. Donald Maass, NY literary agent and author, talked about this book in a workshop at the Surrey International Writers Conference. He read the first few pages. I was so intrigued that I bought it. I wasn't disappinted.

What a delightful read! I was captivated by the author's style of writing. Marisa de los Santos tells the story about Cornelia, a young woman, perhaps unlucky in love, who becomes enmeshed in the life of a young girl, Clara, in need of some motherly love and attention. Clara is the daughter of Martin, the man who has (we think) won Cornelia's heart. And then Theo enters, the husband of Cornelia's sister, an old time friend, the one who gave Cornelia her first kiss. The author switches points of view from Cornelia to Clara evenly, and keeps us intrigued and guessing right to the end as to how it'll all turn out. Highly recommended.

Fabulous read! Alistair MacLeod pulls no punches in his portrayal of a Canadian family with strong ties to its ethnic roots in Scotland.