A subject of fascination for writers like
Margaret Atwood and Timothy Findley, Susanna Moodie was
a Romantic writer from a celebrated literary family whose
life changed forever when she and her husband embarked
from England for the backwoods of Canada in 1832. Misled
by land merchants, the Moodies discovered that settlement
in Upper Canada was far from pastoral, but rather a wild
frontier. Utterly unprepared for pioneer life, they soon
found themselves starving in a hostile wilderness. With
her husband absent in the army during the 1837 Rebellion,
Susanna began publishing her writing to feed and clothe
her growing family. The result was the novel Roughing
It in the Bush-Moodie's aggravated and acerbic testament
of pioneer life was praised in England but turned her
into a controversial figure. Two centuries later she is
now honored as an early feminist and literary pioneer.
Shields' long fascination with Moodie
led her to collaborate on a screenplay with Patrick Crowe,
which has now found its way to the world as a graphic
novel. A talented adaptation by Willow Dawson and emotionally
complex illustrations by Selena Goulding bring the words
of the controversial and fascinating Susanna Moodie to
life through the insightful personality of Carol Shields.
Includes a rousing introduction by Margaret Atwood.
Susanna Moodie: Roughing It in the
Bush brings the words of this controversial yet fascinating
woman to life through the insightful personality of Carol
Shields.
