What Was Always Hers

Lori A. Dunn is a ESL teacher, instructional designer, and freelance
writer in New Westminster, B.C.

The author of this collection of short stories and one novella writes
from the point of view of an Indo-Canadian woman. The stories recount
experiences that all Canadian women share (relationships with men,
children, friends, and coworkers), but at the same time contrast those
experiences with what was (in India) and what now is (in
Canada)—coping with life in a new country, the acceptable number of
children, marital relations. Happily, personal titles and endearments
are left untranslated; catering too much to the non-Indo-Canadian reader
would have detracted from the power of the writing.

The stories contain believable dialogue, reflecting the author’s
background as a playwright. The writing is gripping and descriptive,
especially of Vancouver, “where sea and mountain endlessly kissed each
other in abandon.” The stories are mystical, imbued with an
otherworldly quality that enhances their readability.