Town House, Country House: Recollections of a Quebec Childhood

Janet Arnett is the former campus manager of adult education at Ontario’s Georgian College. She is the author of Antiques and Collectibles: Starting Small, The Grange at Knock, and 673 Ways to Save Money.

This beautifully innocent account of life in a middle-class Quebec
family in 1872 will appeal to everyone who loves early Canadian history.
Girls from eight to twelve will particularly enjoy it, as they will
identify with Julie, the little girl who tells the story of her two
homes.

The story begins with an account of going to school, then progresses
through the coming of winter, the Christmas celebrations, winter games,
the slow arrival of spring, the fun of watching log-drives on the St.
Lawrence, and, finally, a summer excursion to a country home. During
this journey through Julie’s year, the reader comes to know much of
what life was like for a school girl in Quebec shortly after
Confederation.

The slow-paced, almost graceful style adds to the reader’s sense of
the era as a gentle, peaceful time in our history.