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Fiction Literary

To Scatter Stones

by (author) M.T. Dohaney

Publisher
Goose Lane Editions
Initial publish date
Sep 2005
Category
Literary, Feminist, Sagas
  • Paperback / softback

    ISBN
    9780864924407
    Publish Date
    Sep 2005
    List Price
    $18.99
  • Paperback / softback

    ISBN
    9780100011014
    Publish Date
    Sep 2005
    List Price
    $18.99

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Description

Described as Newfoundland's answer to Frank McCourt, M.T. Dohaney's To Scatter Stones is available once again. Long out of print, the highly anticipated To Scatter Stones was first published in 1992, the second novel in Dohaney's celebrated Corrigan Women trilogy.

In this novel, Tess Corrigan, newly divorced, has moved from Montreal to St. John's as manager of a travel agency. On a visit to her birthplace, a tiny outport called the Cove, she agrees to stand as the Liberal candidate in the forthcoming provincial election. Little by little, she becomes wrapped up in the lives of her childhood friends and neighbours. But the return to her roots is also difficult.

The last of the Corrigan women, Tess is the daughter of Carmel and an American soldier, who turns out to be a bigamist. In addition to the uncomfortable echoes from her past, Tess's politics stir up conflict in the traditionally Tory village. Not only does she face discouraging odds and hard ethical choices, but she is the first "petticoat candidate" ever to run for office in the Cove. On top of these external crises, Tess must deal with her own conflicting emotions and the love of youth, Dennis Walsh, now a priest, who reappears in the Cove.

To Scatter Stones spans from the 1960s into the 1990s, marking not only the life changes of the last of the Corrigan women, but the radical changes as Newfoundland moved from paternalism and an economy based on the fishery to a more equitable political ideal. With wit and insight, M.T. Dohaney carries the story of the Corrigan women into the final decades of the 20th century.

About the author

M.T. (Jean) Dohaney was born in the small village of Point Verde, Placentia Bay, Newfoundland. She moved to Fredericton in 1954, where she completed her BA in English at the University of New Brunswick. She holds both a MA and PhD in literature from the University of Maine and Boston University, respectively. In 1988, she released her first book, The Corrigan Women, which was followed by To Scatter Stones in 1992, A Marriage of Masks in 1996 and A Fit Month for Dying in 2000. She is presently working on script for the feature film, Come Back Paddy Riley, with Amnon Buchbinder, based on a chapter from A Fit Month for Dying.

M.T. Dohaney's profile page

Editorial Reviews

"Dohaney captures the sights, sounds, and people of Newfoundland with amazing clarity."

<i>Daily Gleaner</i>

"Fits the pace and tone of the story, with its sense of the past and loss and hope ... If this book is a good measure of the trilogy, The Corrigan Women deserves a new and broader audience."

<i>St. John's Telegram</i>

"Reels us in and leaves us curious to see how Tess Corrigan and Newfoundland politics mesh in the years to come."

<i>Quill & Quire</i>

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