Red Deer Press, Fall/2002
(Teens)
Centuries ago, Princess Sheila NaGeira finds herself stranded with her lover on a rocky outcrop ten leagues from Newfoundland’s shore. In the late nineteenth century, Sybil finds love in the parched badlands of Drumheller. During World War II, Ruthie retrieves the ring that her dead brother gave to an unfaithful girlfriend before he left to fight in the war. Today, Tess fears that her new-age boyfriend, Guy, had flown the coop and left her pregnant.
No Missing Parts is for those who like princesses that are nothing like Sleeping Beauty or Cinderella. It is for those who believe that love can save us, but that it never appears as a handsome prince. It is for those who would like to confront the princess myth and, instead of bowing politely, challenge its very foundations.
The stories collected here range over centuries, celebrating real princesses: women who become leaders, who defy social conventions, and who learn the hard way what it means to fall in love without giving up part of oneself.
“…readers will find achingly real heroines to identify with and learn from.”
Quill and Quire, September 2002
AWARDS
“Leaving the Iron Lung”, Vicky Metcalf Award 1999
and 2nd Prize The Toronto Star Short Story Contest 1998
“The Piano Lesson” winning story in Up All Night, Thistledown Press.
“No Missing Parts” 2nd Prize The Toronto Star Short Story Contest 1997