Beautiful language. I enjoyed this book on many levels. The characters are complicated, the plot as well. The character development was really nicely done. Even in their most pathetic states, the characters evoke respect and sympathy. The story touches on early colonization of Saskatchewan, farm life, British immigrants, war in England. But the themes are much more personal -- family relationships, love, faith, etc. Even epilepsy. We are unescapably shaped by the experiences and inheritances of our youth.

I was so relieved the author did not give the story a pat and happy ending.

Some critics found that the author's technique of changing points of view, location, and time frequently made following the story difficult. I did not find this to be the case, but I'm not sure why she did this in terms of point of view.

4 and 1/2 stars.