Prose
1 primary work • 2 total works
Book 33
These are stories of women -- pursing a first love, giving birth, ministering to a dying mother -- women searching for identity and place and purpose in an international world of professors and bricklayers, mafiosi and hockey stars. The stories of these women are contained in those moments when different cultures and different values intersect, when dislocation and fragmentation lead to awareness. Edwards takes her images from the spheres of art and science highlighting unexpected connections and, with her graceful, spare style, brings clarity, understanding and humour to basic questions of responsibility, desire and loss.
v. 16
n The Lion's Mouth, an Italian-Canadian woman, Bianca, tells the story of her beloved cousin, Marco, whose life is disintegrating along with his city - Venice. Marco is her dark twin, her Italian self. As she tries to make sense of her cousin's breakdown, she describes her story and reflects on her immigrant and Canadian experiences, coming to terms with her dual cultures. The novel is multifaceted - a thriller, a study of social mores in Italy and Canada, a portrait of Venice, a self-reflexive account - and yet the whole is seamless, powerful, and elegant.