(my Where Nests the Water Hen shirt; bought at the Roy House)
(1947 G-G winner; pictorial dj of novel’s characters; 1947 Reynal & Hitchcock; translator: Hannah Josephson; jacket design–Robert Hallock ; facsimile of GR`s signature on bookmark from Gabrielle Roy House; the back jacket bio blurb–photo Annette & Basil Zarov; the French title was Bonheur d’ Occasion)
(1951, Harcourt, Brace dj–design: Cirlin?; translator: Harry L. Binsse; postcard and book mark from the Gabrielle Roy House in St. Boniface–photo–Henry Kalen; I highly recommend a visit to and tour of her childhood home–this is the most famous and popular French-Canadian writer`s site in Canada; the more poetic French title was La Petite Poule d’ eau)
(2 eds. of her 3rd novel; left; 1955 McClelland & Stewart–dj; translator–Harry Binsse; cover by P.G.; Heinemann, 1956 dj by Jennifer Rope; the French title was Alexandre Chenevert, Caissier)
(left: 1947, Harcourt, Brace dj; translator: Harry Binsse; jacket design–Ellen Raskin; right: French version, Rue Deschambault, 1967, Beauchemin pb, cover illustration J. Soucy)
(the house which inspired the stories in the above book is located at 375 rue Deschambault, Saint-Boniface, Manitoba. The house is now Maison natale de Gabrielle Roy/Gabrielle Roy’s birthplace which was originally built in 1905 and restored in 2002-2003. The house is a must-see for any Roy fan or French-Canadian literature fan, well-worth a nice, quaint afternoon visit when you are in Winnipeg.)
(Harcourt, Brace, 1962 dj; translator: Harry Binsse; jacket design by James & Ruth McCrea; original French title La Montagne secrete)
(GR-inscribed 1979 children’s book, Stanke, 1979; images by Francois Olivier; inscription translated to English–“I wish that they would accept her, this other cat, among their numerous cat friends. With my affectionate remembrance”)
(highly recommended award-winning 2001 video: Gabrielle Roy L’auteure la plus celebre du Quebec, 2007 Direct Source; in English and French)
(the author some years ago beside a sculpture of Roy on the Citizens Hall of Fame avenue on the east side of Assiniboine Park, Winnipeg; other sculptures featured include those of Nellie McClung, Carol Shields, and Leo Mol)
(Marie-Rose-Emma-) Gabrielle Roy (1909-1983) was born in St. Boniface, MB, the youngest of 8 children. She was interested early in drama and belonged to Cercle Le Moliere. She was a rural schoolteacher which contributed to her writing Where Nests the Water Hen. Initially, she worked as a journalist in Quebec, though she also did spend time also in France.
Her first novel, The Tin Flute, was widely acclaimed and she shyly returned to Winnipeg to escape the limelight. She especially liked to write about ordinary people and to write autobiographical reminiscences. She won 3 G-G awards for: The Tin Flute (1947), Street of Riches (1957), and Children of My Heart (1978). Indeed, Roy often wrote about/from the heart and people’s feelings and passions. A quote from The Hidden Mountain was used on the Canadian $20 bill beginning in 2004: “Could we ever know each other in the slightest without the arts?”
Two must-reads for biographical info on Roy are Gabrielle Roy: A Life by Francois Ricard and Enchantment and Sorrow: The Autobiography of Gabrielle Roy.