Sisters of Grass [Paperback]

Theresa Kishkan (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: May 15, 2000

In her vibrant first novel Sisters of Grass, Theresa Kishkan weaves a tapestry of the senses through the touchstones of a young woman’s life. Anna is preparing an exhibit of textiles reflecting life in central British Columbia a century ago. In a forgotten corner of a museum, she discovers a dusty cardboard box containing the century-old personal effects of a Nicola valley woman. Fascinated by the artifacts, she reconstructs the story of their owner, Margaret Stuart. Margaret, the daughter of a Native mother and a Scottish-American father, she tries to fit into both worlds. She’s taught photography by a visiting Columbia University anthropology student that she falls in love with. With strong, poetic language, Kishkan makes the past reverberate through the present in a richly patterned work celebrating the complexities and joys of life and the sustaining connections of family.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"An astonishing debut." -- Quill & Quire

"For Years, Kishkan has been steadfastly championed by her peers as a writer of formidable talent, a writer against whom one measures one's own attempts." -- Rhonda Batchelor, Monday Magazine

"Kishkan is one of the richest voices in Canadian writing." -- Harold Rhenisch

From the Back Cover

Letters, photographs, a program from a concert by Madame Albani, a buckskin jacket, clippings about the Bill Miner gang — mementos found by a museum curator organizing a display about central British Columbia a century ago. Infused with the spirit clinging to these personal treasures, Anna reconstructs the life of their owner, Margaret Stuart. On the cusp of womanhood, Margaret is drawn by opposites: the Nicola Valley ranchland, the horses, and her native grandmother’s traditions on one side, the luxuries sent by her American relatives an the new art of photography on the other. Anna’s and Margaret’s lives entwine, the past reverberates through the present, and their shared rituals and turning points create a universal pattern of beauty.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 260 pages
• Publisher: Goose Lane Editions; No edition edition (May 15, 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0864922884
• ISBN-13: 978-0864922885
• Product Dimensions: 8.2 x 5.5 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 9.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,666,116 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A vivid sense of place and time, July 18, 2002

By 

Barbara Brydges (Calgary, AB Canada) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Sisters of Grass (Paperback)

One of the most difficult of achievements for a novelist is to truly convey the essence of life in another time but Theresa Kishkan's portrayal of life in the frontier country of the Nicola Valley of British Columbia at the turn of the twentieth century rings absolutely true. And anyone who has ever visited the Nicola Valley will smell again the scent of the air, feel the heat on their skin and hear the bird songs, so evocative is her language. A wonderfully accomplished book.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Unique and meaningful, February 24, 2007

By 

dr. glk (Wilds of New York) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Sisters of Grass (Paperback)

Sisters of Grass is one of the most beautiful books I have read. Kishkan is a master at lyrical writing that brings nature alive. The characters are sympathetic, and the structure of the book is smart. She leaves you wanting more rather than overplay the story. Another fabulous Canadian author. Check out Margaret Laurence too.