Author: Charlotte Gray

I read Susanna Moodie’s “Roughing it in the Bush” and, to my surprise, I really enjoyed it. This biography of Susanna and her sister, Cathrine Parr Trail, came to me as a Christmas gift.

The book is well written and gives us a glimpse of their lives before marrying and then emigrating to Canada in 1832. From that point the book focuses on the hardships and poverty both sisters faced trying to settle and make a living from their homesteads in the bush, and follows them as each family moves across Upper Canada in an attempt for a better life. During this time the sisters continued to try to earn extra money publishing articles and books both in Canada and in England. Although their writing was well received they were never paid much for their efforts. Life was certainly a struggle from beginning to end.

Goodreads Rating: * * * *