Leaving Wisdom

by Sharon Butala

Sharon Butala’s new novel begins with the wrong kind of bang when retiring social worker Judith falls on the ice on the way to her retirement party. The debilitating concussion that follows seems to shake loose a confusing whirl of memories.

Judith is a mother of four, and her relationships with her daughters are complicated. They all seem to have men trouble, except for the wild daughter who seems to have settled down, inexplicably to Judith, in Jerusalem. With her ears still ringing and her strength compromised by a shaky recovery, Judith leaves Calgary and, to everyone’s bewilderment, moves back to the town near the family farm. In Wisdom, Saskatchewan, she confronts many unanswered questions: Why was her father, a World War Two vet, so troubled? What are her brother and sister hiding from her? As she pursues answers to unsolved mysteries in her own life, more complicated and wider ranging questions arise.

Living in a small town is a shock after the anonymity of a big city. Judith finds herself exposed to watchful neighbours, and she is watchful in turn, seeing things that are mystifying at first—and then alarming. Small town bigotry and what looks like a serious crime unfolding in the house next door make her return even more difficult—what is she doing here? Does she have enough wisdom to unravel her past? Does she have a future in a place where she is not exactly welcome?

This thought-provoking and very readable tale shows not only the suffering that comes from family secrets, but also unfolds one woman’s late life awakening to the complex shadows cast by World War Two and the Holocaust.

Genres: Canada, Fiction

282 pages, Paperback

Published May 30, 2023

About the author

Sharon Butala (born Sharon Annette LeBlanc, August 24, 1940 in Nipawin, Saskatchewan) is a Canadian writer and novelist.

Her first book, Country of the Heart, was published in 1984 and won the Books in Canada First Novel Award.

As head of the Eastend Arts Council she spearheaded the creation of the Wallace Stegner House Residence for Artists in which Wallace Stegner's childhood home was turned into a retreat for writers and artists.[14]

She lived in Eastend until Peter's death in 2007. She now lives in Calgary, Alberta.

She was shortlisted for the Governor General's award twice, once for fiction for Queen of the Headaches, and once for nonfiction for The Perfection of the Morning.

The Fall 2012 issue of Prairie Fire, entitled The Visionary Art of Sharon Butala was dedicated to Butala and her work and influence.

(from Wikipedia)

Reviews

[Debbie Bateman · Rating 5 out of 5]

In Leaving Wisdom, the suffering of the world echoes the smaller more intimate struggles of a single family. The largest questions of life, love, justice, responsibility, forgiveness, and harm resound on all scales. This brave, penetrating, vital story of sorrow and joy will stay with me... how it shows the human faces of evil and dares to linger over the agonizing unanswerable questions. An engaging read on all levels.

[Anne Gafiuk · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5

[Toby Welch · Rating 5 out of 5]

I first fell in love with Sharon Butala’s writing in the 90s when someone gifted me a copy of her #1 best-selling book The Perfection of the Morning. Since then, I have followed her writing journey closely, devouring almost all of the 20+ books she has penned. Butala’s ability to craft a story that sticks with you long after you’ve turned the last page continues with her latest book, Leaving Wisdom.

This is a fascinating novel centered around an intriguing character named Judith. The mother of four adult children, Judith is headed to her own retirement party when she slips on a patch of ice. She whacks her head and suffers a life-altering concussion. Struggling to recover and deal with the memories that her fall seems to have dislodged, she moves from big town Alberta to small town Saskatchewan to be closer to the family farm. What ensues is a wild journey filled with unanswered questions and a woman’s quest for the truth.

The book is divided into three parts: Wisdom, Sage, and Jerusalem. Hesitant to give away too much, I’ll just say that the third part shares the story of Judith travelling to Israel to find some truths. That chapter is captivating and pulls you in with its authenticity. I wasn’t surprised to learn that Butala has been to Tel Aviv as she brought that world to the pages of this book.

I wrongly assumed that the word wisdom in the title referred to someone’s knowledge but it doesn’t. It is the name of the town that the book is primarily set in. As someone originally from small town Saskatchewan, I easily pictured Wisdom as any of the places I’ve driven through as I meandered around the province. The fictional location of Wisdom is filled with many things you’ll often find in those small towns: stagnancy, biases, and neighbours who make a pastime of being in everyone else’s business. It’s a setting that could’ve been forgettable but under Butala’s hand, Wisdom is as memorable of a character as any of the people in the book.

As with her other books, one of my favourite writing skills of Saskatchewan-born Butala’s is her ability to draw a picture in the reader's mind with her words. For example, in chapter 12 Judith shares a dream she’d experienced and Butala does such an excellent job drawing the mental picture that you feel like you experienced the dream yourself.

If you are looking for a novel that will grip you from page one that deals with family secrets and the long reach of the past, I can not stress how fast you should run to pick up a copy of Leaving Wisdom.

THIS BOOK IS AVAILABLE AT YOUR LOCAL BOOKSTORE OR FROM WWW.SKBOOKS.COM

[Barbara Brydges · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5, but much of the book rates a 5. On her way to her own retirement party after years as a Child Protection Social Worker, Judith falls and suffers a concussion, triggering both headaches and flashes of memories and awakening a need to return to Wisdom, the small Saskatchewan town from which she fled as a teenager trying to escape her overly religious and stern parents, including a father who screamed in the night and sometimes left bruises on her mother. She’s had virtually no contact since then with the brother and sister she left behind. Her uncovering the reasons behind her father’s behavior, rooted in his WWII experiences is immensely powerful. I found the later part of the novel when she travels to Jerusalem didn’t work as well for me, but overall it’s another excellent book from Butala.

[Gail Sherley · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a book club selection. I had read one of her other books so I had no hesitation to try a new story. She did not disappoint. This one has many layers, threading through the comprehension and consequence of the holocaust. I have been to Dachau, I have been through the Holocaust museum in Jerusalem. I have witnessed the multi generational damage from wounded ancestors. I live in the Calgary area, there was so much that was familiar to me through the whole book. Overall, I like Sharon’s style of writing, I enjoyed the story.

[Bejohnson · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was so reminded of growing up in rural Alberta on a farm and wanting to leave and see more of the world. Another similarity - my dad fought in World War II in an attempt to crush the nazi regime, although as a very young rural farm boy, he was probably thinking of seeing more of the world when he left the farm. He grew up quickly and for many years would not speak of the atrocities he saw.

[Joanne Culley · Rating 3 out of 5]

The writer of the memoir The Perfection of the Morning is back with a novel called Leaving Wisdom, about Judith, a retired social worker who returns to the small town she grew up in to come to terms with her family and find out why she felt compelled to leave home as a young teenager.

[Patricia Coulter · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sharon Butaka has written a book that touches the reader’s heart in many ways. The recovery from falling on ice, to returning to her hometown, to navigating family relationships- it’s all so relatable and so compelling!

[Deb Mervold · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed this powerful story about a woman newly retired and recovering from a concussion. She struggles to find her place in her family.

[Lisa · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5

[Maggie · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book. I loved the way Sharon Butala wrote sentences! I know that I crazy but I would reread them just to capture the flow of words and thoughts. This book gave me lots to think about.

[Lynn · Rating 4 out of 5]

A woman moves back to her hometown (after 50 years of estrangement from her family, 2 failed marriages, and 4 daughters) and tries to come to terms with her life and family.

[CAW · Rating 5 out of 5]

i'm a huge Sharen Butala fan, and this novel did not disappoint.

[Mary · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love sharon butala but I found this one slow going. Which I think was the point

[Vontel · Rating 4 out of 5]

Always lovely reading Butala's writing. A recently retired social worker, and mother of four daughters, revisits her own history, her family & family history on the prairies. She ran away from home at the age of 15, and made her way through the ongoing complexities of life. On the day of her retirement, she fell on ice, suffering a severe concussion. After some recovery, she decides to move back from Calgary to her small home town of Wisdom in Saskatchewan.

October 21-29, 2024: What a delightful book I found on re-reading it before book club Oct 30! The book was my choice, & it was almost a year since I first read it(Dec, 2023). There is much wisdom in the book about the lessons that can still be learned as we age. A number of the social & historical issues are currently much on our minds. I recommend re-reading this book every couple of years, or perhaps include others of hers, such as Perfection of the Morning, or Old Man Lying on his Back.

[Jane Cawthorne · Rating 5 out of 5]

A wonderful novel about the complexity and messiness of life, family, and all of our relationships and a sensitive portrayal of inter-generational trauma.

There are a few things sorted out for the main character at the end of the book, and others left unresolved, which is so much like life.

My favourite passage is:

“That it had happened over seventy years ago now shamed her, because for all her adulthood she had done her best to avoid knowing more than the bare outlines of it, she had not wanted to know more, had thought she wouldn’t be able to bear knowing what other people seemed to be able to handle, and now found that in a not-so-distant way, all along it had been her story too.”

That passage feels universal to me, that it could apply to so many people about a host of different things, how we can stay in a place of denial to avoid our own feelings.

[Erika · Rating 4 out of 5]

I never mind a book set in Saskatchewan, especially by this author who understands the landscape and small town vibes perfectly. This book takes some unexpected turns. A good read from start to finish.