Worth a read if you have the time (and attention span.)

The Stone Diaries by Carol Shields, Penguin Books, 1993, 361 pp.

Rating: 4 of 5 stars
I think Carol Shields is genius for the way she wove together this tale of a family with roots in rural 19th century Ottawa.

A bit of a slow starter, this one. I tried reading it years ago, got through about 50 pages then put it down. But the "Winner of a Pulitzer Prize" (1995) sticker on the front got me to give it another go.

Sleepy in spots, rich in detail and complex. Told from several multi-generational viewpoints. Sad and ironic.

In the end, you want to defend Daisy Flett, through whose eyes we view the final chapters (illness and death). You want her to find love again. No such luck.