Irma Voth

Irma Voth

by Miriam Toews (Author)

Synopsis

The stifling, reclusive life of nineteen-year-old Irma Voth, recently married and more recently deserted, is turned on its head when a film crew moves in to make a movie about the strict religous community in which she and her family live. She is drawn to the creative passion and warmth of their world but her domineering father is determined to keep her from it at all costs. The confrontation between them sets her on an irrevocable path towards something that feels like freedom as she and her young sister, Aggie, wise beyond her teenage years, flee to the city, upheld only by their love for each other and their smart wit, even as they begin to understand the tragedy that has their family in its grip. Irma Voth delves into the complicated factors that set us on the road to self-discovery and how we can sometimes find the strength to endure the really hard things that happen. It also asks that most difficult of questions: How do we forgive? And most importantly, how do we forgive ourselves? The new novel from Miriam Toews returns to the subject of a Mennonite community, so powerfully rendered in her award-winning, number-one bestseller "A Complicated Kindness".

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More Information

Format: Paperback
Pages: 272
Publisher: Faber and Faber
Published: 02 Jun 2011

ISBN 10: 0571273548
ISBN 13: 9780571273546
Book Overview: A story of love, longing, and dark family secrets from one of Canada's most acclaimed writers

Media Reviews
Toews . . . is clearly an artistic powerhouse. . . . In this compelling and beautiful novel, Toews's quirky and authentic voice shows increasing range and maturity. She is well on her way to fulfilling her promise as an important and serious writer. -- The Gazette There is something quite mesmerizing about Toews's prose. It's to do with the rhythm of her language, with the seeming effortlessness of it and, when combined with her quick, offhand wit, it can enliven even the darkest of moments. -- Toronto Star Toews's ability to generate comedy and heartache at the same time just soars. -- Maclean's Irma Voth is wryly funny and perceptive. -- National Post It is beautiful, strange, and fascinating, and readers wise enough to trust in the author's sure hand will be rewarded with a novel that takes them someplace altogether unexpected. -- Kerry Clare, Quill & Quire A beautiful, heartbreaking novel. . . . Calls to mind Ann-Marie MacDonald's 1996 epic, Fall On Your Knees. -- Winnipeg Free Press A stunning culture clash between the Mennonite and art communities. . . . The internal conflict over when to reveal hard information, in life or in art, is one of Toews's key themes. A sequence about how it feels to tell the truth is a knockout. -- NOW (Toronto) NNNN
Author Bio
Miriam Toews grew up in a Mennonite community in Southern Manitoba. Her previous novels include The Flying Troutmans, which was longlisted for the Orange Prize, A Boy of Good Breeding and A Complicated Kindness, which won a host of awards. She lives in Toronto. She starred in the Mexican film Silent Light (Spanish: Luz silenciosa, 2007).