Sesso: female
Nazionalità: Canada
Luogo di residenza: British Columbia, Canada
Breve biografia: Darcie Friesen Hossack is a graduate of the Humber School for Writers, where she was mentored by Giller Prize finalist Sandra Birdsell (The Russlander, Children of the Day). Her stories have appeared in publications such as Half in the Sun (Ronsdale Press), an anthology of Mennonite literature; Rhubarb Magazine; and Prairie Journal. Mennonites Don’t Dance collects a number of these acclaimed tales, including “Year of the Grasshopper,” which was nominated for the prestigious Writers’ Trust of Canada/McClelland & Stewart Journey Prize, and “Dandelion Wine”and “Ashes,” which were both finalists in UBC-Okanagan’s Okanagan Short Fiction Contest

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Stillwater di Darcie Friesen Hossack

I read Mennonites Don't Dance by the same author some years ago, and loved it, so I was delighted to discover that she has a new novel out.

Lizzy and Zach are the two children of Daniel and Marie. Daniel is a Seventh Day Adventist adherent, and Marie has converted from her Mennonite faith. The family lives in Kelowna, but as Covid comes into society, Daniel believes this is the time to a SDA commune elsewhere in British Columbia's Okanagan Valley. Daniel is opposed to vaccines and masks. He is fairly rigid and angry man. Meanwhile daughter Lizzy is very interested in pursuing an education in the Sciences.

Eventually Daniel convinces / forces his family to move to the strict SDA commune, Stillwater. Lizzy is the most unhappy, struggling with the rigid rules, the fact that she cannot continue any further education. A new threat causes Lizzy to escape Sillwater, with her brother and mother.

Tense, fascinating, and heartrending, this was an excellent read.… (altro)

Segnalato

vancouverdeb | Sep 5, 2024 |

Mennonites don't dance di Darcie Hossack

3.5 stars

This is a book of short stories, all of which are set on the Canadian Prairies, mostly on farms run by Mennonite families.

I enjoyed this more than most short story collections. The first couple weren't as interesting to me, but they got better, I thought. I loved that one later story brought me up to date on the characters from one of the earlier stories. My dad's family is Mennonite, so of the Mennonite references, I mostly just caught the food, but that was kind of fun for me, too. I also recognized some of the little German/Mennonite towns in Saskatchewan, as it was where Dad grew up.… (altro)

Segnalato

LibraryCin | 3 altre recensioni | Sep 27, 2014 |

Mennonites Don't Dance di Darcie Friesen Hossack

This is a collection of short stories focusing on the struggles of family and the conflict between the Mennonite farm life and city life. Many are harrowing in their bleakness, their firm no-nonsense approach to life, and the scars left.

Segnalato

snash | 3 altre recensioni | Mar 31, 2014 |

Mennonites Don't Dance di Darcie Friesen Hossack

Darcie Friesen Hossack is another new author that I’ve discovered through the Ontario Library Association’s Evergreen list. I don’t often read short-story collections, but I greatly enjoyed this one, which gives us glimpses into the lives of Mennonites living on Canada’s prairies. I was impressed by how much Hossack drew me into each story after only a few paragraphs.

These are not particularly happy stories. A number of the characters suffer from depression or anxiety, and several stories deal with the tension between the older generation attempting to maintain the traditional way of life and the younger members trying to find their place in a modern society. At the same time, the stories celebrate lovingly the simple joys in life, like the smell of freshly baked bread. Hossack’s stories give us insight into Mennonite customs and traditions but they also show that their hopes, fears and concerns are not all that different from those of anyone else.… (altro)