Cathleen Getchell

"Tears blurring her vision, she pulled it down. It left a gap on the shelf like the space of a missing tooth in a child's smile" It seems that after years of having my nose buried in non-fiction books for graduate studies, I had forgotten how, good fiction can elicit emotions. As I read, hope, joy, anger and sadness rose up within me, with tears breaking the surface on more than one occasion. Journeying with Stephen and Grace, their family and friends was a welcome first foray back into fiction. The writing is exquisite, rich with verbal imagery. Set in Greece and Nova Scotia leading up to and during WWII, the historicity of the story coupled with the discerning manner in which Dale Harris developed and unveils the complexity of the characters, made this a read I quickly became invested in. So much so that I realized something about myself through their stories. Which brings to mind the wise words Ianos offers to Stephen " . . . these stories are not important for where they come from or why they were first told. These stories are important for what they put into our hearts as we hear them." While acknowledging that a movie is rarely as good as the book, I could easily see this optioned for film, and hope it is.