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The Sweet Second Summer of Kitty Malone
The Sweet Second Summer of Kitty Malone , first published in 1979, is one of Matt Cohen's four novels that came to be known as the Salem quartet--stories set in the fictional town of Salem in eastern Ontario, somewhere north of Kingston in the rugged farmland and forest of the Canadian Shield. These are the novels that first brought Matt Cohen to national attention. The Sweet Second Summer of Kitty Malone , a story about the pleasure of love that comes late in life, centres on the lives of two time-worn characters whose pursuit of happiness is strangely rewarded. With The Disinherited , another of the Salem novels, this is considered among the author's best works.
- GenresFiction
232 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1979
About the author
Matt Cohen
94 books10 followersMatt Cohen studied political economy at the University of Toronto, and taught political philosophy and religion at McMaster University in the late 1960s before publishing his first novel, Korsoniloff, in 1969.
His greatest popular success as a writer was his final novel, Elizabeth and After, which won the 1999 Governor General's Award for English-language Fiction only a few weeks before his death. He had been nominated twice previously, but had not won, in 1979 for The Sweet Second Summer of Kitty Malone and in 1997 for Last Seen.
A founding member of the Writers' Union of Canada, he served on the executive board for many years and as president in 1986. During his presidency the Writer's Union was finally able to persuade the government of Canada to form a commission and establish a Public Lending Right program. He also served on the Toronto Arts Council as chair of the Literary Division and was able to obtain increased funding for writers. In recognition of this work he was awarded a Toronto Arts Award and the Harbourfront Prize.
Cohen died after a battle with lung cancer. A Canadian literary award, the Matt Cohen Prize - In Celebration of a Writing Life, is presented in Cohen's memory by the Writer's Trust of Canada.
He also published a number of children's books under the pseudonym Teddy Jam. Cohen's authorship of the Teddy Jam books was not revealed until after his death. The Fishing Summer was also nominated for a Governor General's Award for children's literature in 1997, making Cohen one of the few writers ever to be nominated for Governor General's Awards in two different categories in the same year.
A film adaptation of his 1990 novel Emotional Arithmetic has been produced by Triptych films starring Max von Sydow, Christopher Plummer, Gabriel Byrne and Susan Sarandon. It was the closing Gala at the Toronto International Film Festival in 2007.
His greatest popular success as a writer was his final novel, Elizabeth and After, which won the 1999 Governor General's Award for English-language Fiction only a few weeks before his death. He had been nominated twice previously, but had not won, in 1979 for The Sweet Second Summer of Kitty Malone and in 1997 for Last Seen.
A founding member of the Writers' Union of Canada, he served on the executive board for many years and as president in 1986. During his presidency the Writer's Union was finally able to persuade the government of Canada to form a commission and establish a Public Lending Right program. He also served on the Toronto Arts Council as chair of the Literary Division and was able to obtain increased funding for writers. In recognition of this work he was awarded a Toronto Arts Award and the Harbourfront Prize.
Cohen died after a battle with lung cancer. A Canadian literary award, the Matt Cohen Prize - In Celebration of a Writing Life, is presented in Cohen's memory by the Writer's Trust of Canada.
He also published a number of children's books under the pseudonym Teddy Jam. Cohen's authorship of the Teddy Jam books was not revealed until after his death. The Fishing Summer was also nominated for a Governor General's Award for children's literature in 1997, making Cohen one of the few writers ever to be nominated for Governor General's Awards in two different categories in the same year.
A film adaptation of his 1990 novel Emotional Arithmetic has been produced by Triptych films starring Max von Sydow, Christopher Plummer, Gabriel Byrne and Susan Sarandon. It was the closing Gala at the Toronto International Film Festival in 2007.
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
March 8, 2017
Arguably the best white Canadian male writer of his generation, Matt Cohen, who died too young in 1999, is barely remembered now. I absolutely loved this 1979 tale of a hard-living, tempestuous, larger-than-life - goodness me, downright operatic - couple and their significant others in small-town Ontario. Kitty and Pat clash and love and clash some more: will their demons win out? A gut-wrenching story: prose that etches itself in deep.
May 24, 2020
That was a slog. Two hundred and some pages, and I still have no idea who these characters are. We learn almost nothing about who they are as people, except that they like to drink and fight. And almost nothing actually happens. The writing was best when we entered the mind of Ellen Malone, Kitty's mother who suffers from dementia. That was when the odd writing style made the most sense. Some reviews have called Cohen's style poetic or lyrical. I think it's unnecessarily abstruse and sometimes nonsensical.
June 26, 2017
Well written but not my usual interest. Lots of "deep" thinking going on
May 18, 2012
I read this so long ago I forget the details so plan to pick it up again soon. considered one of Matt
Cohen's best novels about an autumn love. As always with this author..genuinely Canadian.
Cohen's best novels about an autumn love. As always with this author..genuinely Canadian.
December 30, 2012
Such a talent gone from the Canadian literary scene for some years. Beautiful prose - makes me want to re-read narrative passages.
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews