When Alice Lay Down with Peter

Susan Thomas is a middle-school guidance counselor, teacher, and social
worker in Milton, Ontario.

This novel is written from the perspective of Blondie who is 109 years
young. Her parents, Alice and Peter, conceive Blondie while they are
fighting with Louis Riel in his rebellion against the Canadian
acquisition of Manitoba. Alice participates in the rebellion, and the
political execution of Thomas Scott, while pretending to be a man.
Scott’s ghost then haunts Alice throughout the rest of her life; he
indirectly haunts all of Alice’s offspring as well. This is one of
those novels where the reader is compelled to continue without clearly
understanding the reason. For some, it may be the lyrical style in which
the book is written; the pages are filled with rich, poetic imagery
reminiscent of a 19th-century style of writing. For others, it may be
the brilliance with which fact and fiction intertwine. For still others,
it may be curiosity as to whether anyone in this novel finds true
happiness.