Surfacing by Margaret Atwood, 1972

An absorbing read--pregnant with meaning and exploratory of themes particular to Canadian literature, such as nature vs. civilization. A woman returns to her childhood home, a remote island in Quebec, to look for her missing father. Readers find themselves immersed in images of intertwining lakes, bristling trees, blueberry bushes sidling lakeshores, herons, and natives’ cultural remnants--all characteristic of Northern Canadian landscapes. Atwood depicts the ever-encroaching American threat to the Canadian wilderness and way of life. The novel also explores language: the French language versus the English language (and thereby the complicated relationship that exists between Quebec and Ontario), the language of animals and nature, and the central character’s failure to communicate. The protagonist, despite her fledgling efforts, has never been able to fit into a girl or woman’s typical role as defined by society. In response to the losses she suffers, her inability to cultivate a nuclear family and the death of her parents, she rejects society and civilization for nature. She becomes one with the land, preferring to view herself as an animal rather than a civilized human, in search of simplicity and meaning. In the end she must choose whether to remain a recluse, submerged in nature, or to surface, swiping aside her fears and blending in with society in order to survive. A sublime piece of Canadian literature. 10/10