Set in Toronto’s historic Junction area and spanning three generations of a troubled family, Sunshine opens on the heels of the First World War. It’s February 1919 and the Spanish flu is ravaging the city. The death of their eldest daughter, Lillian, has shaken the Wickes family to the core. Lost without her sister, young Matilda suffers frightening “attacks of the nerves.” With a stiff upper lip, her British parents attempt to erase the memory of their first born.
One generation later, Matilda’s son, Wills, a brooding musical prodigy, falls in love with his teacher’s wife, Imogen. Encouraged by this plucky and unconventional woman raised in an artists’ commune, Wills inches closer to the root of his family’s angst.
Themes of loss and longing, devotion, sacrifice, and the restorative power of art unfold throughout the book. Rich in historical detail, this novel offers an intimate glimpse of life at its most fragile.
“Fresh, engaging, powerful, and genuine.”
– Rebecca Silver Slayter, author of In the Land of Birdfishes
“I really enjoyed this. I was delighted to spend some time in Mattie’s head. Wordy and deep thinking, she is the kind of girl who goes into a dream and has to be shaken out of it.”
– Claire Fuller, author of The Memory of Animals (Tin House)
“A time-shifting, character-swapping, mind-boggling novel with real verve. I love how the twins blood and panic are threaded through the novel, connecting so many fates to the death of Lillian Wickes. As a writer addicted to structural matters, I was impressed by the ambition of the novel. Beautiful. Powerful. Timeless. An arrow through the heart.”
– Michael Redhill, Scotiabank Giller Prize winner and author of Bellevue Square (Doubleday Canada)
This book was made with the generous support of the Manitoba Arts Council and the Canada Council for the Arts.
