Desolate, devastating and resilient are words that describe both the struggling characters and the rough terrain of Newfoundland of Kit’s Law. This strong writing remains with the reader long after the book is closed with a reader puzzling how other members of the small town could treat a family so poorly. I have to admit that the first couple of chapters were a bit slow but once I got into the story, it was hard to put the book down!
The novel is the story of Kit, a young girl living with her feisty grandmother and her “wild” yet intellectually challenged mother. They live in a remote outport and fight for their independence from the nasty local pastor who preaches against them and has led the fight to have Kit placed in an orphanage. This book is has strong characters that are described so that the reader has strong emotional reactions to them. The reader admires the feisty independence of Kit yet cringes at the descriptions of some of the men.
I had been lucky to meet Donna Morrissey who was born in Newfoundland. She was engaging and enthusiastic while keeping the audience laughing! This was her first novel which began as a short story and lengthened into a book as she wrote at her mother’s bedside. Her mother argued against happy endings and sadly, her mother died before the evening before it was accepted by the publisher.
This is a great novel and I am looking forward to reading more books by Donna Morrissey including Sylvanus Now which is the first in a series leading to The Fortunate Brother which is the book that I have signed.
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