A Bushel of Light

Darleen R. Golke is a high-school teacher-librarian in Winnipeg,
Manitoba.

One of thousands of British children sent to Canada by the Barnardo
Homes Agency, Maggie Curnow, now 14, has spent six years with the Howard
family on their farm near Peterborough, “[w]ashing clothes, heating
flat irons, lugging kindling, pouring pig slop, hoeing garden weeds,
stirring jam, mending socks, baking bread. Sweating in the fields at
planting and harvest”—anything, in fact, that Matthew Howard ordered
Maggie to do.

Worn out coping with the Howards—withdrawn and depressed Kathleen
mourns her lost children; incompetent Matthew lavishes attention on his
horses; angry, 26-year-old Willy longs to leave the farm; sweet,
four-year-old Lizzy depends on Maggie for mothering—Maggie wants to
run away, even though her contract requires seven more years of
servitude. Memories of her twin sister, Thomasina, from whom she was
cruelly separated in Cornwall, fuel her determination to escape. From
the Barnardo agent who checks on her, Maggie learns that Thomasina has
recently been sent to a farm nearby. After arranging care for Kathleen
and Lizzy from their family in Toronto, Maggie seizes the opportunity to
leave and goes searching for her sister. Her quest proves difficult, but
yields unexpectedly positive results.

Troon Harrison paints a graphic portrait of life on an early
20th-century Canadian farm in this well-constructed historical novel.
Maggie’s daily routines reflect both the hardships faced by settlers
fighting for survival against the harsh elements and the ordeals of
displaced children struggling to endure and to retain their humanity.

Maggie’s anguish and despair are tempered by the kindness of friends
and strangers, and by her ability to take action and refusal to give up
hope. A well-paced plot, realistic dialogue, and believable
characterization combine to produce a highly readable story suitable for
all ages. Highly recommended.