I just finished a book on my Kindle, Countess of Canada by Bessie Marchant, and I'm feeling a little bereft. Sometimes when I am finished with books I really enjoy, I feel like I've lost some close friends. This book saw me through many a hard workout on the treadmill, and it felt appropriate that the main character, Katherine, lives in chilly northern Canada. I felt like I could relate weather-wise.
Katherine and her family live in Canada where her father manages a general store. Katherine has recently returned home from college in Canada in order to teach, but there are not any young children in Roaring Portage for a school. Katherine spends most of her time helping her father deliver goods, but when he falls ill, the bulk of the work falls to her. Katherine spends her time delivering goods and managing the store along with her younger brothers and older sister. Along the way, she manages to rescue several people in the wilds of Canada, including Jervis Ferrars, an agent for a tradesman investing in a fishing operation.
Honestly, I am horrible at summaries and this one is not doing justice to the book AT ALL!
Bessie Marchant (1862-1841) was an English writer who focused on adventure novels featuring young women. This book reminded me a lot of Anne of Green Gables--both have spunky heroines and lots of what I would call episodes throughout. The novel feels like a variety of adventure stories strung together by the main character. Marchant is able to create characters that may not have a lot of depth, but feel genuine all the same. Katherine is brave, hard-working, generous, and intelligent, but Marchant balances all of that to make Katherine a believable character, and an inspirational one too. I never would have made it through some of those runs without reading about Katherine trudging ten miles cross country in snow shoes!
No comments:
Post a Comment