Lives of the Saints

Joseph Garcea is an assistant professor of Poli-tical Studies at the
University of Saskatchewan.

Lives of the Saints is a story about the lives of people in a small,
rural village in Italy in 1960. It is the story of a young boy being
raised by his mother and grandfather. His father, who has emigrated to
Canada, does not maintain close contact with his family. The mother has
fallen from grace in the eyes of the community for an illicit affair she
has had with a foreigner during her husband’s sojourn in Canada. Her
fall from grace becomes particularly difficult when she can no longer
conceal the fact that she is pregnant. Tired of life in the small town,
and despite her pregnancy, she decides to immigrate to Canada, she dies
en route, and the boy is left on his own to complete the voyage.

Lives of the Saints has already received the 1990 Governor General’s
Literary Award for English-language fiction and has become a best seller
in Canada. This book attests to the rich literary tradition springing up
in Canada from the multicultural heritage of this country.

Lives of the Saints will appeal to all first-generation
Italian-Canadians who wish to stroll down memory lane, and to
second-generation Italian-Canadians who wish to better understand the
sociocultural background of their parents, grandparents, and
compatriots. It will also appeal to those who enjoy novels that provide
interesting insights into foreign culture and social relations.