Over Prairie Trails

by Frederick Philip Grove

Published 31 December 1991
Over Prairie Trails recalls Grove’s solitary and often perilous journeys by horse and wagon over 30-odd miles of Manitoba countryside that separated him and his wife during a year of hardship. Grove brings before the reader’s eye a landscape by turns magical and menacing, whose ever-changing moods demand of the traveller the utmost courage, resourcefulness, and endurance.

Published in 1922, this memoir assured Frederick Philip Grove a place among the pioneers of Canadian realism.

Settlers of the Marsh

by Frederick Philip Grove

Published 1 December 1966
Settlers of the Marsh was first published in 1925, after a struggle by the author to persuade publishers that his first novel would meet public acceptance. Some critics immediately condemned this hypnotic story of the loss of innocence on the Manitoba frontier, calling it “obscene” and “indecent.” Churches issued warnings to their congregations to avoid its scandalous contents. Only several decades later was Settlers of the Marsh recognized for what it is – a landmark in the development of the Canadian novel, and a work of realism in the tradition of Thomas Hardy.

A psychological portrait of life in the Canadian West, Settlers of the Marsh presents with chilling accuracy the hopes, passions, and anxieties of young pioneers.

A Search for America

by Frederick Philip Grove

Published 31 December 1991

First published in 1933, Fruits of the Earth has come to be regarded as a landmark in Canadian fiction, an unparalleled depiction of the ordeals endured by the early pioneers of the western prairies. In his portrait of Abe Spalding, Frederick Philip Grove captures the essence of the pioneering spirit: its single-minded strength, its nobility, and ultimately, its tragedy. A novel of broad scope and perception, Fruits of the Earth displays a dignity and stature rare in contemporary works of fiction.