Product Description

Shortlisted for the 2005 Young Adult Canadian Book Award

Susanna's Quill is a work of historical fiction based on the life of Susanna Moodie, writer and pioneer, by award-winning author Julie Johnston. The story takes us into Susanna’s genteel English childhood, through her humorous teenage attempts at writing, growing to her burgeoning independence, marriage to Dunbar Moodie, and their decision to emigrate from England. To the Moodies, Canada was the answer to their prayers. They would have the life they could no longer afford in Britain and they could raise their children to become wealthy landowners in their own right.

The adventures that thwart this dream become a story of lost illusions and a found sense of self-reliance and inner strength.


From the Hardcover edition.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #3798551 in Books
• Published on: 2007-08-14
• Released on: 2007-08-14
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 336 pages

From School Library Journal
Grade 6-9 - An acclaimed Canadian author veers from her solid contemporary novels with this fictionalized account of Susanna Strickland Moodie's life as a young girl in England and as an adult frontierswoman in Canada. In the 19th century, when writing was still a socially unacceptable venue for ladies, Susanna makes a name for herself as a poet. At age 28, she falls in love with the admirable but poverty-stricken John Moodie; they marry and move to Canada, lured by the promise of free land and the opportunity to make their fortunes. Reality, however, proves a difficult teacher: their only servant accidentally shoots a neighbor's cow instead of a deer; ague and scarlet fever threaten the family; John is frequently absent trying to make money for the family through (bad) investments. Haunted by debt, clinging to Victorian ideals of rank even while living in a log shanty, Susanna works through depression and trials to discover that she is still a determined poet and writer. While teens may admire the protagonist's ability to survive and pursue her dream of writing despite challenging circumstances, they will have difficulty identifying with her as she is distant and often peevish. This novel lacks the strong characterization and plot development that Johnson developed so compellingly in Hero of Lesser Causes (1993) and Adam and Eve and Pinch-Me (1994, both Little, Brown; o.p.). - Melissa Moore, Union University Library, Jackson, TN
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Review
Praise for Susanna’s Quill:

“[Susanna’s Quill] brings to the subject what is best about Johnston’s writing — considerable thoughtfulness and proven ability to provide a rich, textured prose that invites readers deeper toward understanding.”
— The Toronto Star

“Johnston weaves a myriad of delicious detail.… Johnston makes roughing it in the bush visceral and real…. The reader cannot help but become emotionally involved in this woman, a tribute to Johnston, who brings her to life on the page.”
— The Globe and Mail

“Richly detailed.… Memorable characters and a well-paced narrative mark Johnston’s foray into historical fiction.” — The Horn Book Guide

From the Inside Flap
Susanna is a work of historical fiction based on the life of Susanna Moodie, writer and pioneer, by award-winning author Julie Johnston. The story takes us into Susanna's genteel English childhood, through her humorous teenage attempts at writing, growing to her burgeoning independence, marriage to Dunbar Moodie, and their decision to emigrate from England. To the Moodies, Canada was the answer to their prayers. They would have the life they could no longer afford in Britain and they could raise their children to become wealthy landowners in their own right.

The adventures that thwart this dream become a story of lost illusions and a found sense of self-reliance and inner strength.