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Sisters in the Wilderness: The Lives of Susanna Moodie and Catharine Parr Traill
In the inhospitable and hardscrabble bush of Canada, facing a pioneering existence that they never even knew existed, the well-educated, but modestly married, British born Strickland sisters, Susanna and Catharine, turned to the pen to ease their loneliness and isolation. Susanna Moodie’s Roughing It in the Bush warned her countrymen from taking the bait and emigrating to Canada; Catharine Parr Traill’s The Backwoods of Canada and Life in the Clearings celebrated her new-found freedom in Canada's classless society, and the spirit of industry. Both women had great influence on England's understanding of colonial Canada, as well as on Canada's own vision of its young self. Their writings have become central to all Canadian studies courses and are considered classic examples of pioneer memoirs.
400 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1999
31 people are currently reading
877 people want to read
About the author
Charlotte Gray
67books136followersCharlotte Gray is one of Canada’s best-known writers, and author of eight acclaimed books of literary non-fiction. Born in Sheffield, England, and educated at Oxford University and the London School of Economics, she began her writing career in England as a magazine editor and newspaper columnist. After coming to Canada in 1979, she worked as a political commentator, book reviewer and magazine columnist before she turned to biography and popular history.
Charlotte's most recent book is Gold Diggers, Striking It Rich in the Klondike. In 2008, Charlotte published Nellie McClung, a short biography of Canada’s leading women’s rights activist in the Penguin Series, Extraordinary Canadians. Her 2006 bestseller, Reluctant Genius: The Passionate Life and Inventive Mind of Alexander Graham Bell, won the Donald Creighton Award for Ontario History and the City of Ottawa Book Award. It was also nominated for the Nereus Writers� Trust Non-Fiction Prize, the National Business Book Award and the Trillium Award. Her previous five books, which include Sisters in the Wilderness, The Lives of Susanna Moodie and Catharine Parr Traill, Flint & Feather, The Life and Times of E. Pauline Johnson and A Museum Called Canada, were all award-winning bestsellers.
Charlotte appears regularly on radio and television as a political and cultural commentator. In 2004 she was the advocate for Sir John A. Macdonald, Canada’s first prime minister, for the CBC series: The Greatest Canadian. She has been a judge for several of Canada’s most prestigious literary prizes, including the Giller Prize for Fiction, the Charles Taylor Prize for Non-fiction and the Shaunessy Cohen Prize for Political Writing.
Charlotte has been awarded five honorary doctorates, from Mount St. Vincent University, Nova Scotia, the University of Ottawa, Queen’s University, York University and Carleton University.
An Adjunct Research Professor in the Department of History at Carleton University, Charlotte is the 2003 Recipient of the Pierre Berton Award for distinguished achievement in popularizing Canadian history. She is former chair of the board of Canada’s National History Society, which publishes the magazine Canada’s History (formerly The Beaver.) She sits on the boards of the Ottawa International Authors Festival, the Art Canada Institute/Institut de l’Art Canadien, and the Sir Winston Churchill Society of Ottawa. Charlotte is a member of the Order of Canada and a Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada.
Charlotte lives in Ottawa with her husband George Anderson, and has three sons.
Charlotte's most recent book is Gold Diggers, Striking It Rich in the Klondike. In 2008, Charlotte published Nellie McClung, a short biography of Canada’s leading women’s rights activist in the Penguin Series, Extraordinary Canadians. Her 2006 bestseller, Reluctant Genius: The Passionate Life and Inventive Mind of Alexander Graham Bell, won the Donald Creighton Award for Ontario History and the City of Ottawa Book Award. It was also nominated for the Nereus Writers� Trust Non-Fiction Prize, the National Business Book Award and the Trillium Award. Her previous five books, which include Sisters in the Wilderness, The Lives of Susanna Moodie and Catharine Parr Traill, Flint & Feather, The Life and Times of E. Pauline Johnson and A Museum Called Canada, were all award-winning bestsellers.
Charlotte appears regularly on radio and television as a political and cultural commentator. In 2004 she was the advocate for Sir John A. Macdonald, Canada’s first prime minister, for the CBC series: The Greatest Canadian. She has been a judge for several of Canada’s most prestigious literary prizes, including the Giller Prize for Fiction, the Charles Taylor Prize for Non-fiction and the Shaunessy Cohen Prize for Political Writing.
Charlotte has been awarded five honorary doctorates, from Mount St. Vincent University, Nova Scotia, the University of Ottawa, Queen’s University, York University and Carleton University.
An Adjunct Research Professor in the Department of History at Carleton University, Charlotte is the 2003 Recipient of the Pierre Berton Award for distinguished achievement in popularizing Canadian history. She is former chair of the board of Canada’s National History Society, which publishes the magazine Canada’s History (formerly The Beaver.) She sits on the boards of the Ottawa International Authors Festival, the Art Canada Institute/Institut de l’Art Canadien, and the Sir Winston Churchill Society of Ottawa. Charlotte is a member of the Order of Canada and a Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada.
Charlotte lives in Ottawa with her husband George Anderson, and has three sons.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 82 reviews
May 29, 2022
Although Charlotte Gray's Sisters in the Wilderness: The Lives of Susanna Moodie and Catharine Parr Traill is an extensive and also at times intensive analysis of the two sisters' lives and times (both in England and later in Canada) and that yes indeed, I have certainly through my perusal obtained a more thorough portrait of especially Susanna Moodie (and also an increased understanding of her often complex nature and that she indeed was a woman of polar opposites and was actually not only arrogant and curmudgeonly but also passionate and with a willingness to embrace obstacles), I also do have to admit that with regard to actual reading pleasure, I have not all that much enjoyed Sisters in the Wilderness: The Lives of Susanna Moodie and Catharine Parr Traill and for the simple reason that in my opinion, Charlotte Gray often goes rather too far overboard with trying to make excuses for Susanna Moodie (who also seems to be some kind of a major role model for Gray).
For while I do now understand and even appreciate that Susanna Moodie was not only a spoiled and arrogant upper class English settler in Canada who seemed to relish complaining about everything, the fact remains that she certainly and for all intents and purposes was a very difficult person, with many proverbial chips on her shoulder, with strained relationships towards both her family and actually towards many people (especially if they even mildly offended her or acted in ways she herself found unbecoming). And yes, that in Sisters in the Wilderness: The Lives of Susanna Moodie and Catharine Parr Traill Charlotte Gray almost constantly seems to be on Susanna Moodie's side (and is at least from where I stand never really faulting her all that much for her often grating arrogance but instead consistently blaming others and the fact that settling in Canada was supposedly a hardship) this has definitely put very much of a damper on my enthusiasm for Sisters in the Wilderness: The Lives of Susanna Moodie and Catharine Parr Traill (and in particular since the author, since Charlotte Gray also seems to totally prefer Susanna Moodie to her sister and to cast Catharine Parr Traill's more sunny and accepting nature and that while Susanna consistently griped and complained about the hardships of settling in the so-called bush, Catharine always tried to make the best of things and to focus on the positive as somehow being simplistic, silly and naive).
Two stars for Sisters in the Wilderness: The Lives of Susanna Moodie and Catharine Parr Traill, as while I have certainly found what I have read about Susanna Moodie and Catharine Parr Traill interesting enough and meticulously researched, I really on a personal level just cannot stomach how much author Charlotte Gray is often playing favourites amongst the two sisters being portrayed (that she so often is disparaging towards Catharine Parr Traill as somehow lacking in common sense to be more accepting of the circumstances of their settlement in Canada than Susanna Moodie and how Gray in my opinion does not ever really see Susanna Moodie's arrogance and snarkiness as something that needs to be displayed and analysed with a critical eye and not just accepted as being part of her nature and her social class).
For while I do now understand and even appreciate that Susanna Moodie was not only a spoiled and arrogant upper class English settler in Canada who seemed to relish complaining about everything, the fact remains that she certainly and for all intents and purposes was a very difficult person, with many proverbial chips on her shoulder, with strained relationships towards both her family and actually towards many people (especially if they even mildly offended her or acted in ways she herself found unbecoming). And yes, that in Sisters in the Wilderness: The Lives of Susanna Moodie and Catharine Parr Traill Charlotte Gray almost constantly seems to be on Susanna Moodie's side (and is at least from where I stand never really faulting her all that much for her often grating arrogance but instead consistently blaming others and the fact that settling in Canada was supposedly a hardship) this has definitely put very much of a damper on my enthusiasm for Sisters in the Wilderness: The Lives of Susanna Moodie and Catharine Parr Traill (and in particular since the author, since Charlotte Gray also seems to totally prefer Susanna Moodie to her sister and to cast Catharine Parr Traill's more sunny and accepting nature and that while Susanna consistently griped and complained about the hardships of settling in the so-called bush, Catharine always tried to make the best of things and to focus on the positive as somehow being simplistic, silly and naive).
Two stars for Sisters in the Wilderness: The Lives of Susanna Moodie and Catharine Parr Traill, as while I have certainly found what I have read about Susanna Moodie and Catharine Parr Traill interesting enough and meticulously researched, I really on a personal level just cannot stomach how much author Charlotte Gray is often playing favourites amongst the two sisters being portrayed (that she so often is disparaging towards Catharine Parr Traill as somehow lacking in common sense to be more accepting of the circumstances of their settlement in Canada than Susanna Moodie and how Gray in my opinion does not ever really see Susanna Moodie's arrogance and snarkiness as something that needs to be displayed and analysed with a critical eye and not just accepted as being part of her nature and her social class).
March 9, 2018
I could not find any fault with this book, which was both well-researched and well-written. I admire the redoubtable Charlotte Gray for her devotion to the subject. It was not an uplifting book because the journey taken by the two sisters, who emigrated to Canada with their husbands, was so difficult. Their life was filled with deprivations -- poverty, illness, natural disasters, and bereavement -- and spite of their best efforts, they simply could not get ahead in the new world. Their story is told primarily through the enormous number of letters they wrote to each other, and to the sisters who remained in England. What will future researchers do when letters, such a valuable source of printed information, no longer exist? I especially enjoyed the historical context and learned a great deal about Upper Canada in those years leading up to Confederation.
August 23, 2017
I often switch up my reading genres, mixing it up between, fiction, non-fiction and classics. Written by a Canadian author about Canadian authors from the 1800's, this non-fiction was so interesting on many points, living your life in the Canadian wilderness in the 1800's alone can fill the pages, however to know what got the sisters through these tough times, their love of nature. Catherine writing books and articles until into her 90's is inspiring alone. This is a well written biography of two very strong and determined women.
June 15, 2014
I really enjoyed this book. The early days of Canada, experienced by two sisters ill equipped for such an adventure, were brutal and beautiful at once. The sisters saw a Canada that none of us can even imagine: pristine forests, wild flora, a wildness & goodness that is long lost. It was extremely interesting to read their descriptions & thoughts of such places and comparing that with the image of cottage country area of Ontario today.
The two sisters came to Canada with their two husbands in the early 1800s. The country was wild and unsettled, the land was uncleared and hard on "genteel" folks. These two husbands were not prepared or experienced enough to make the experience work for their families. Attempt after attempt failed and the families got poorer and poorer.
The sisters worked hard on their writings. They kept their families together with hard work and gumption. They both had a lot of backbone.
An interesting look at history, seen up close to two pioneering spirits of interest and spunk. .
The two sisters came to Canada with their two husbands in the early 1800s. The country was wild and unsettled, the land was uncleared and hard on "genteel" folks. These two husbands were not prepared or experienced enough to make the experience work for their families. Attempt after attempt failed and the families got poorer and poorer.
The sisters worked hard on their writings. They kept their families together with hard work and gumption. They both had a lot of backbone.
An interesting look at history, seen up close to two pioneering spirits of interest and spunk. .
March 9, 2022
2016
As I read this, I became increasingly aware of how little I know about the history of Canada. Pretty much everything in the story is new to me. I suspect that someone with more background knowledge about the politicians and settlement of Canada could better appreciate all of the time that went into researching this book. Maybe I should give it 4-stars.
The Prelude begins:
Feb 1834: Tall, dense pine trees loomed over the Moodies, blocking any glimpse of the night sky, as they wearily clambered down from the heavy, horse-drawn sleigh.
The story begins:
The childhood of Catharine Parr Traill and Susanna Moodie in the early 1800s was very similar to that of Jane Austen, born a quarter of a century earlier. Like her, they grew up in rural England, with its settled rhythms and reassuring continuity. And like the Austen family in Hampshire, the Stricklands didn't quite fit into the society of prosperous landowners who were their neighbors in Suffolk.
CPT's writing is known for her love of nature, especially the plants. SM wrote bluntly about the life of immigrants, which her family back in England didn't appreciate. Apparently a third sister (unmarried), Agnes Strickland, became a well-known author who focused on the biographies of the females in the British monarchy. I'm wondering if I might have read something by, or about, her when I went through my British royalty phase, back when I was in my twenties.
Catharine in particular was concerned about the rapidly vanishing old-growth forests in Canada. Susanna was more focused on the people and settlement.
If I stumble across writings by any of the sisters, I'll probably browse them.
2022, rating 3.5
p 51, quote from Susanna's writing
What emigrant ever regarded the country of his exile as his home? The heart acknowledges no other home than the land of its birth.
While Susanna was the more prolific writer, Catharine's writings would probably be my preference, although she may have overused references to "God's creations."
As I read this, I became increasingly aware of how little I know about the history of Canada. Pretty much everything in the story is new to me. I suspect that someone with more background knowledge about the politicians and settlement of Canada could better appreciate all of the time that went into researching this book. Maybe I should give it 4-stars.
The Prelude begins:
Feb 1834: Tall, dense pine trees loomed over the Moodies, blocking any glimpse of the night sky, as they wearily clambered down from the heavy, horse-drawn sleigh.
The story begins:
The childhood of Catharine Parr Traill and Susanna Moodie in the early 1800s was very similar to that of Jane Austen, born a quarter of a century earlier. Like her, they grew up in rural England, with its settled rhythms and reassuring continuity. And like the Austen family in Hampshire, the Stricklands didn't quite fit into the society of prosperous landowners who were their neighbors in Suffolk.
CPT's writing is known for her love of nature, especially the plants. SM wrote bluntly about the life of immigrants, which her family back in England didn't appreciate. Apparently a third sister (unmarried), Agnes Strickland, became a well-known author who focused on the biographies of the females in the British monarchy. I'm wondering if I might have read something by, or about, her when I went through my British royalty phase, back when I was in my twenties.
Catharine in particular was concerned about the rapidly vanishing old-growth forests in Canada. Susanna was more focused on the people and settlement.
If I stumble across writings by any of the sisters, I'll probably browse them.
2022, rating 3.5
p 51, quote from Susanna's writing
What emigrant ever regarded the country of his exile as his home? The heart acknowledges no other home than the land of its birth.
While Susanna was the more prolific writer, Catharine's writings would probably be my preference, although she may have overused references to "God's creations."
July 14, 2008
This is the tale of two sisters from my part of the world, Suffolk in England, Susanna Moodie and Catherine Parr Traill, who travelled to the remote Canadian backwoods and lived a backbreaking life there - yet both became famous authors by writing about their experiences. I found this a fascinating and very readable account, good to read alongside the sisters' own reminiscences. The whole family is very interesting, as several other siblings were also writers, including another sister, Agnes Strickland, who was a celebrated Victorian writer specialising in royal biographies.
August 3, 2016
I do admire the author's ability to wade through many historical documents and letters and condense them into a novel. However, it is rather a dry-read in the end. Since I am a lover of adventure stories, I might be better served by reading the original books that were published by the sisters.
June 6, 2016
Lent to me by a friend who was not able to finish, this biography sat on my bedside table a month before I cracked it open. But once I started, I was swept up into the lives of Susanna Moodie and Catherine Parr Trail. Both women were familiar to me as pioneer Canadian authors, but I knew nothing about their personal lives. This biography of these two sisters drew heavily on their own writings, both published works and letters. I was saddened to learn about their trials and tribulations, and the financial struggles they both endured even though their books were so successful. The many photographs and maps add a personal touch to the history. The final paragraph is so striking, I have reread it multiple times:
"Yet the legacy of Susanna and Catherine is as sturdy as Sam's mansion or the Moodie angel in the Belleville cemetery. Their most important books are still in print. More than a century has passed since the sister's deaths, but plenty of contemporary Canadians have shared the feelings they captured on paper about emigration, and their ambivalent relationship with a landscape both majestic and savage. Every new Canadian who thinks longingly of "home" and every brave adventurer who sets off into the bush, brushing off black-flies and marvelling at nature, is following in the sister's footsteps."
"Yet the legacy of Susanna and Catherine is as sturdy as Sam's mansion or the Moodie angel in the Belleville cemetery. Their most important books are still in print. More than a century has passed since the sister's deaths, but plenty of contemporary Canadians have shared the feelings they captured on paper about emigration, and their ambivalent relationship with a landscape both majestic and savage. Every new Canadian who thinks longingly of "home" and every brave adventurer who sets off into the bush, brushing off black-flies and marvelling at nature, is following in the sister's footsteps."
January 13, 2008
I've had this on my stack for over two years now. It was one of our very
first selections for CanLitReaders, and I had trouble getting hold of it.
By the time the bookstore got it in, the discussion was over, and I just
never got around to reading it before now. This is a biography of two
sisters who came to Canada from England in the early 19th century, settling
with their husbands and families in the areas around what is now Toronto and
Peterborough. Engrossing depiction of colonial struggles and the
difficulties of forging a home out of the Canadian wilderness. Left me
thinking a lot about my own grandparents who arrived here around 1915, and
what their early lives must have been like. Both Moodie and Traill are
authors of some renown, and the book quotes heavily from their works. As
much as I enjoyed the story, I was left wishing that I had read the original
works rather than this one.
first selections for CanLitReaders, and I had trouble getting hold of it.
By the time the bookstore got it in, the discussion was over, and I just
never got around to reading it before now. This is a biography of two
sisters who came to Canada from England in the early 19th century, settling
with their husbands and families in the areas around what is now Toronto and
Peterborough. Engrossing depiction of colonial struggles and the
difficulties of forging a home out of the Canadian wilderness. Left me
thinking a lot about my own grandparents who arrived here around 1915, and
what their early lives must have been like. Both Moodie and Traill are
authors of some renown, and the book quotes heavily from their works. As
much as I enjoyed the story, I was left wishing that I had read the original
works rather than this one.
December 13, 2010
I have an interest in local history and really enjoyed reading this book. The author provides much information about the physical, financial, and social hardships facing the sisters as they adjusted to life in the backwoods of Canada, as well as information about their attempts to publish literature here and in England. I usually presumed that people who made the choice to move to Canada in the early to mid 1800s had a very good reason for doing so, and consequently didn't likely regret their decision, despite hardships. This biography, however, demonstrates some of the regrets that pioneers of a certain social class in their home countries may have had. It also highlights the extreme struggle for survival in a time before UI and welfare. Much of it read like a novel and was all the more engaging because the story is true.
October 20, 2014
I found this to be quite a tough slog to make it through. The subject matter should have been interesting, yet somehow this book was not. This one fits in the same area of my virtual bookcase as does "The Sentimentalists".
October 4, 2018
SISTERS IN THE WILDERNESS: THE LIVES OF SUSANNA MOODIE AND CATHARINE PARR TRAILL
Written by Charlotte Gray
2000, 400 Pages
Genres: canadian, history, biography
If you have attended a Canadian school you would have heard of Susanna Moodie, even if you don't remember now. You may not know much about Moodie but Roughing it in the Bush is probably a title you have at least heard of. I remember both book and author mentioned in a few of my History and English courses. It is supposed to be a Canadian classic so of course it is now on my tbr list. Other than what I have gleaned from the title I don't know when or where in Canada this book takes place. Then, recently on my library's "new" book list I saw that Charlotte Gray (also Canadian) had written a biography of Moodie and her sister, Catharine Parr Traill, so I figured this might be the best place to start. Roughing it in the Bush is a memoir, but how much of the author we get in the book can sometimes be iffy so I wanted to know a little something before delving in.
This book, Sisters in the Wilderness:The Lives of Susanna Moodie and Catharine Parr Traill, was way better than I had thought it would be when I picked it up. I figured I would skim through the book, and just get the gist of the two women's life and then could read their memoirs. After the first chapter I was totally flying through the book. Gray's writing, in my opinion, reads like a novel. She is able to take facts and put them in a more entertaining format. My other books were put to the side as I devoured all I could from this historical biography. I didn't realize that Susanna Moodie was actually born and raised in Britain or that her family was so literary (4 out of her 5 sisters have written books, as well as one brother). Catharine Parr, older than Susanna was her confidant and at times her only relative in Canada.
While Catharine Parr was the peacemaker of the family, Susanna was more of the prickly one. Catharine Parr was looking for stability while Susanna wanted love if she was giving up her literary life full-time. These two women would marry and move to Upper Canada - separately. Each would have their own experiences that differed so much from their British Country home. Childbirth was their first sort of major culture shock that affected them personally as women. They would go on to write memoirs of their life in "the bush" and how living in Canada differed from Britain. These sort of portrayals were important as many British folks were looking at opportunities somewhere out in one of the Colonies. Agnes Strickland, "spinster"and older sister of the pair was also a writer but wrote more about the elite and Monarchs that she hobnobbed with. Susanna had dedicated her book to Agnes, who was appalled to have her name associated with this "inappropriate" book. Agnes felt that Susanna described things that should never be talked about in front of company. Agnes would go so far as getting her brother Sam, who also lived in Canada, to write his own memoirs that contradicted the "roughness" of Susanna's book. Susanna would only write more books in her own style.
I loved how Gray gave each sister their own personality and you got to know them versus just facts about them. The story from when they were young to their death was perfectly paced. She gave you enough information that was needed at each point of their lives. This made the book flow and not lag with too much detail or descriptions. I highly recommend this book to those that love history, biographies, women's studies, Canadian life, or those that love a good story like I do.
Written by Charlotte Gray
2000, 400 Pages
Genres: canadian, history, biography
If you have attended a Canadian school you would have heard of Susanna Moodie, even if you don't remember now. You may not know much about Moodie but Roughing it in the Bush is probably a title you have at least heard of. I remember both book and author mentioned in a few of my History and English courses. It is supposed to be a Canadian classic so of course it is now on my tbr list. Other than what I have gleaned from the title I don't know when or where in Canada this book takes place. Then, recently on my library's "new" book list I saw that Charlotte Gray (also Canadian) had written a biography of Moodie and her sister, Catharine Parr Traill, so I figured this might be the best place to start. Roughing it in the Bush is a memoir, but how much of the author we get in the book can sometimes be iffy so I wanted to know a little something before delving in.
This book, Sisters in the Wilderness:The Lives of Susanna Moodie and Catharine Parr Traill, was way better than I had thought it would be when I picked it up. I figured I would skim through the book, and just get the gist of the two women's life and then could read their memoirs. After the first chapter I was totally flying through the book. Gray's writing, in my opinion, reads like a novel. She is able to take facts and put them in a more entertaining format. My other books were put to the side as I devoured all I could from this historical biography. I didn't realize that Susanna Moodie was actually born and raised in Britain or that her family was so literary (4 out of her 5 sisters have written books, as well as one brother). Catharine Parr, older than Susanna was her confidant and at times her only relative in Canada.
While Catharine Parr was the peacemaker of the family, Susanna was more of the prickly one. Catharine Parr was looking for stability while Susanna wanted love if she was giving up her literary life full-time. These two women would marry and move to Upper Canada - separately. Each would have their own experiences that differed so much from their British Country home. Childbirth was their first sort of major culture shock that affected them personally as women. They would go on to write memoirs of their life in "the bush" and how living in Canada differed from Britain. These sort of portrayals were important as many British folks were looking at opportunities somewhere out in one of the Colonies. Agnes Strickland, "spinster"and older sister of the pair was also a writer but wrote more about the elite and Monarchs that she hobnobbed with. Susanna had dedicated her book to Agnes, who was appalled to have her name associated with this "inappropriate" book. Agnes felt that Susanna described things that should never be talked about in front of company. Agnes would go so far as getting her brother Sam, who also lived in Canada, to write his own memoirs that contradicted the "roughness" of Susanna's book. Susanna would only write more books in her own style.
I loved how Gray gave each sister their own personality and you got to know them versus just facts about them. The story from when they were young to their death was perfectly paced. She gave you enough information that was needed at each point of their lives. This made the book flow and not lag with too much detail or descriptions. I highly recommend this book to those that love history, biographies, women's studies, Canadian life, or those that love a good story like I do.
December 3, 2014
It has taken me a while to find how I want to review this book. On the one hand it is a heart-breaking story of pioneer suffering and courage, on the other it is an almost modern tale of women with literary ambitions and their trials and tribulations within the publishing world. Both sisters needed money. They did what they knew best - write - but even then publishers took advantage and, while they made money, the sisters earned pennies.
Part of why Susanna's story, in particular, I find hard to review is that I feel she could be me, she could be any number of women I know now, one hundred and eighty years after Susanna Moodie arrived in Canada. Growing up in a wealthy family she and her sisters only obligations were to educate themselves (and marry well). That's the part that seems modern; they would have been well-educated and encouraged to use their intellects. If they had been farmers to start with they wouldn't have suffered as much as they did.
The umpteen sisters were competitive with each other in their literary ambitions, which is part of what drove them on; the other part being the incessant need for money. If this book were a 'fictional' memoir or a Hollywood-style movie, we would have a happy ending: After their years of toil they finally achieve success and financial freedom. They did achieve fame; their books well received by the public, but not the financial success they needed. And, none of their goals were met, in terms of what they wanted by coming to Canada. They hoped for a place where they could replicate the lives they had as children; instead their own children barely attended school. Their lives were never easy and their deaths were hard, too.
What it is, is a story of perseverance, of will-power. Right in the opening pages we're told that the maxim of Thomas Strickland, Susanna and Catherine's father, was 'Persevere and you must succeed." Unfortunately, within their own lives they never saw success. Being remembered almost two hundred years later is good, right? It reminds me of the Dr. Who - Eleven - episode wherein Van Gogh gets to come forward in time and see how he's seen nowadays. Brought tears to my eyes because he struggled so hard (read "Dear Theo: The Autobiography of Vincent van Gogh"). Ultimately, there is no satisfying moment to which one can point and say - there, that made their suffering all worthwhile!
In summary, not exactly an up-lifting story. But well worth it to read about two women, modern in their sensibilities and literary ambitions, forced to deal with the "barbaric savagery" of Canada in 1834. That they managed to get any writing done at all in the face of the never ending daily grind puts paid to any modern writer's complaints of never having enough time.
Part of why Susanna's story, in particular, I find hard to review is that I feel she could be me, she could be any number of women I know now, one hundred and eighty years after Susanna Moodie arrived in Canada. Growing up in a wealthy family she and her sisters only obligations were to educate themselves (and marry well). That's the part that seems modern; they would have been well-educated and encouraged to use their intellects. If they had been farmers to start with they wouldn't have suffered as much as they did.
The umpteen sisters were competitive with each other in their literary ambitions, which is part of what drove them on; the other part being the incessant need for money. If this book were a 'fictional' memoir or a Hollywood-style movie, we would have a happy ending: After their years of toil they finally achieve success and financial freedom. They did achieve fame; their books well received by the public, but not the financial success they needed. And, none of their goals were met, in terms of what they wanted by coming to Canada. They hoped for a place where they could replicate the lives they had as children; instead their own children barely attended school. Their lives were never easy and their deaths were hard, too.
What it is, is a story of perseverance, of will-power. Right in the opening pages we're told that the maxim of Thomas Strickland, Susanna and Catherine's father, was 'Persevere and you must succeed." Unfortunately, within their own lives they never saw success. Being remembered almost two hundred years later is good, right? It reminds me of the Dr. Who - Eleven - episode wherein Van Gogh gets to come forward in time and see how he's seen nowadays. Brought tears to my eyes because he struggled so hard (read "Dear Theo: The Autobiography of Vincent van Gogh"). Ultimately, there is no satisfying moment to which one can point and say - there, that made their suffering all worthwhile!
In summary, not exactly an up-lifting story. But well worth it to read about two women, modern in their sensibilities and literary ambitions, forced to deal with the "barbaric savagery" of Canada in 1834. That they managed to get any writing done at all in the face of the never ending daily grind puts paid to any modern writer's complaints of never having enough time.
December 4, 2017
Fascinating biography of two real-life heroines. The sisters lived in the area where I live, so I connect so well with the story.
Susanna Moodie and Catharine Parr Traill were early settlers in what was not even Canada yet, but what separated them from other women on the same journey was that they were both writers. Pioneers in New World publishing whose works still inspire writers today.
While they had no idea what they were in for when they emigrated from England, they were both up to the task. After reading about their daily deprivations and struggles for survival, I feel like a slug on the rug. They were absolutely astounding women. The only fault they seemed to share, was their choice of husbands. The men they chose were not able settlers. If their spouses were more in the mold of their brother, they would have had easier lives, but then perhaps not been so eager to earn from their writing.
Charlotte Gray brings history to life brilliantly. She includes everything from little details like how the mail system worked and what the sisters cooked, to an overview of politics in the country at different times.
Brilliant!
Susanna Moodie and Catharine Parr Traill were early settlers in what was not even Canada yet, but what separated them from other women on the same journey was that they were both writers. Pioneers in New World publishing whose works still inspire writers today.
While they had no idea what they were in for when they emigrated from England, they were both up to the task. After reading about their daily deprivations and struggles for survival, I feel like a slug on the rug. They were absolutely astounding women. The only fault they seemed to share, was their choice of husbands. The men they chose were not able settlers. If their spouses were more in the mold of their brother, they would have had easier lives, but then perhaps not been so eager to earn from their writing.
Charlotte Gray brings history to life brilliantly. She includes everything from little details like how the mail system worked and what the sisters cooked, to an overview of politics in the country at different times.
Brilliant!
June 16, 2014
I read this book in preparation for reading Roughing it in the Bush by Susanna Moodie an account of her 7 years as a settler in Canada (1832-1839). It was time so well spent that I want to read more by Charlotte Gray. She is a master at presenting the focus of her interest, in this case Susanna Moodie and her sister Catherine Parr Traill within a historical and social context. The different characters of the sisters, their motivations, and their challenges both in England and in Upper Canada were drawn in a clear, objective and yet compassionate way. No judgment was ever felt but consequences of poor decisions were not sugar coated. I always felt her opinions were well grounded in the research she itemized and her knowledge of the times. My learning through this book was essential for appreciating the motivation that drove Susanna to write Roughing it in the Bush as well as understanding the influences that shaped her point of view, her actions and her incredible fortitude in trying times.
December 31, 2016
An intriguing telling of two of Canada's earliest authors of note. I love how Ms. Gray intertwines the lives of these two sisters taking the reader along for an impressive, spell binding journey. And I relished the little tidbits of information regarding relating topics which do not detract from the main topic but rather enhances the overall understanding of the time period. I am interested in reading more about these two women and the challenges they faced as early pioneers in the Canadian colonies. I am also interested in reading more books by Ms. Gray.
December 29, 2010
This is a really interesting view into the lives of two early Canadian writers. Like the diaries of L.M. Montgomery they really do nothing to encourage trust in book publishers as they were cheated or treated unfairly by publishers in three countries. It is also shocking to imagine just surviving the trials they faced let alone publishing one's last book at 80 some years!
The writing style of Charlotte Gray made for pleasant reading.
The writing style of Charlotte Gray made for pleasant reading.
January 17, 2011
I liked to read about the life of the pioneers in the area where I live. These two families, or should I say two women struggling for the survival of their children and husbands in the worst of adversity.
I would recommend it to anyone wanting to find out more about what life in Ontario was like in the 19th century, and interested in the birth of literature in Canada.
I would recommend it to anyone wanting to find out more about what life in Ontario was like in the 19th century, and interested in the birth of literature in Canada.
November 12, 2012
"Sisters in the Wilderness" was a quick and enjoyable read. However, it was nothing amazing; the writing is fairly generic. I really have nothing else to say about it. It is worth reading, but not overly memorable. I now have to grade 11 essays on this book. Ugh!
January 20, 2015
What these sisters had to deal with and overcome in order to write is awe inspiring and humbling. A fabulous book about two incredible women that I would recommend to anyone - especially aspiring writers. You'll never say "you don't have time to write again"!
November 9, 2015
Really interesting read. Great reminder of what the early settlers faced and how unprepared most of them were. Also, we think politics is corrupt now, boy we have nothing on the early government of our country and cities!
June 5, 2009
A well-researched, engagingly written account of two fascinating gentlewomen who emigrated from England to carve out lives in the harsh and unforgiving backwoods of Upper Canada.
August 30, 2013
Very interesting story about early Ontario pioneer sisters and their many challenges. well researched and written.
May 6, 2016
A bit dry, but interesting because I'm familiar with/ live near one of the main settings in the book. I'm looking forward to reading Roughing it in the Bush now.
May 19, 2018
History can be brought to life and relived by the reader. This wasn't the book.
June 28, 2018
What I learned from this book? They kept writing anyway. Through all of it. If they can do it then so can I.
September 16, 2024
This incredible telling of two fairly ordinary sisters who came to the rather untamed world of Canada in the 1830s is told with such love and honesty that one feels so connected to the women. At times it can be too descriptive but those are small faults for a telling than rivals the actual telling of the subjects.
May 24, 2011
This book describes the lives of two sisters born into Jane Austen's world of gentility who marry feckless men who take them to the Canadian frontier where they are unable to succeed because their upper middle class upbringings have unsuited them to the challenges of pioneering. The sisters both wrote books that are now honored as accounts of women's life on the Canadian frontier, but they were ripped off by all their publishers earning almost nothing for books some of which went through ten editions. Both lived in the kind of poverty where expressions like "my clothes are in rags" or "the children are starving" were not metaphor.
As someone wholly ignorant about Canadian history I found this a compelling read. My only cavil is that though the narrative is drawn from the sisters' letters, the author rarely gives us direct quotes but rather summaries, so we don't hear the sister's voices as much as I would have liked. This may be because the Victorian voice doesn't travel well through time.
Very much worth reading if you are interested in going deep into the question of how Regency children turned into Victorian adults. It also gives good insight into how difficult was the fate of women of slender means in this period who married poor men for love. One of the sisters adored her husband throughout her marriage--a handsome devil based on the one photo given of him in old age--but the contrast between her marginal existence and the prosperity and social whirl enjoyed by her spinster sisters who stayed in England and experienced huge success writing historical biographies of royalty makes it clear that spinsterhood in the late pre-Victorian period had benefits for intelligent women that we may all too easily overlook.
As someone wholly ignorant about Canadian history I found this a compelling read. My only cavil is that though the narrative is drawn from the sisters' letters, the author rarely gives us direct quotes but rather summaries, so we don't hear the sister's voices as much as I would have liked. This may be because the Victorian voice doesn't travel well through time.
Very much worth reading if you are interested in going deep into the question of how Regency children turned into Victorian adults. It also gives good insight into how difficult was the fate of women of slender means in this period who married poor men for love. One of the sisters adored her husband throughout her marriage--a handsome devil based on the one photo given of him in old age--but the contrast between her marginal existence and the prosperity and social whirl enjoyed by her spinster sisters who stayed in England and experienced huge success writing historical biographies of royalty makes it clear that spinsterhood in the late pre-Victorian period had benefits for intelligent women that we may all too easily overlook.
February 22, 2015
Quite a compelling read. I found it impossible not to be filled with admiration for these two sisters' (Catherine Parr Trail and Susanna Moodie) endurance and strength. The English sisters (most especially Agnes) appeared equally formidable but in entirely different ways-- rigid maintainers and enforcers of a class system rather than performers of endless physical endeavors. How these new Canadians ever found the time to write as prodigiously as they did is a mystery. Check out the lifespans and progeny of these females just to get a picture of their fortitude.
The fascinating details of everyday living, politics, and social interactions give this book a real contextual basis and for this alone makes it a valuable experience. The fascinating sisters are icing on the cake.
The fascinating details of everyday living, politics, and social interactions give this book a real contextual basis and for this alone makes it a valuable experience. The fascinating sisters are icing on the cake.
November 17, 2013
This is a really interesting look at 19th century relationships - marriages, families, and society in general. I appreciated the comparison between Catherine and Susanna's lives and the lives of their family still in England. The move to Canada and life of immigrants was interesting to me because it seems so recent. My family's Canadian experience began the century prior to the Strickland sisters, so the notion that life was so rough in the mid-1800s makes me wonder about my own family's arrival and early settlement in the Maritimes. All in all this was a fascinating read; a great look at 19th century Canadian life.
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