New ebooks From Canadian Indies
Description
Manfred Weiszl lies dying of cancer in an upper room of a grand old Toronto house. His last wish is to see his son, Rupert, from whom he has been estranged for sixteen years, and much of the action derives from attempts to get Rupert's cooperation. Manfred's sister Pauline, the housekeeper Marie (and Marie's boyfriend Steve), as well as Manfred's dead wife, Gertrude are central to Manfred's life and each have their role to play in the unfolding drama of a family in crisis dealing with issues of death, marriage breakup, gender identity, and generally just trying to find ways to live. The novel explores how these characters interact with each other and play off each other, and how an intervening fate operates in their lives as they discover that through (or in spite of ) the incredible antics of mankind, life can be salvaged, can be joyful and magical. Human angels are a very big part of this book, and eventually come to the rescue of this dysfunctional family coming to terms with the capricious workings of fate and the human heart.
Contributor Notes
Cecelia Frey is the author of thirteen books of fiction and poetry as well as works of non-fiction and award-winning plays. Her reviews, essays and articles have appeared in publications as varied as The Globe and Mail and Canadian Literature. Her work has been broadcast on CBC Radio and performed on the Women's Television Network.
Editorial Review
"I was hooked from the first sentence and couldn't put this book down. Once again Frey has established a pitch perfect familial concert of insightful humor, deep caring, alternated with ambiguous frustration, anger as well as misunderstanding or outright lack of concern -- all the emotions that connect families and their foibles in a deeply touching and nuanced style. As with all of Frey's writing, every syllable is selected to enforce that dynamic that characterizes families and the way they relate to each other and the outside world. Cecilia Frey is to Canadian literature what John Updike represents to American literature, a voice that harkens clearly to the multi-generational and multi-media interfaces of contemporary families. Moments of Joy is a book to be read and reread."--Elona Malterre, author of The Last Wolf of Ireland"Cecilia Frey's new novel Moments of Joy is about Love and Death and Sex and Life. In this multi-generational family saga, Frey gets inside the tortured or inspired (or both!) relationships between father and son, husband and wife, brother and sister. Complex dynamics are described in intricate detail, bolstering a plot that keeps us turning pages as family secrets are revealed one after another. Frey's explorations of Manfred's dementia and physical decline draw us in with their familiarity--mirroring what so many of us are going through as we care for aging parents. It all adds up to forgiveness, for others and for oneself."--Ursula Pflug, author of Motion Sickness and The Alphabet Stones
