Finding Flora by Elinor Florence
Reviewed by Laura Patterson
Full of suspense, courage and resilience, Elinor Florence gives us a pioneer story like no other in her new novel Finding Flora, which follows Flora’s journey as she attempts to prosper in a new land. Toiling from sunup to sundown, Flora faces challenges she had not anticipated when she left Scotland to settle on the Alberta prairies. With the help of her neighbours, she builds a community willing to fight for each other when danger comes to call.
“…a riveting story which challenges the traditional views and roles of women in Canadian pioneer history.”
Flora’s story begins in a flurry of motion as she jumps from a moving train into the darkness of night to escape an abusive husband. With her life savings in her satchel and a small treasure sewn into her petticoat, she begins her journey. When a clever nurse assists her in claiming a plot of land on the vast Alberta prairie, Flora plans to disappear in this wild new expanse. As Flora meets her neighbours, she is shocked to learn that most are female, and together they build a sisterhood, trading goods and assisting each other when it seemed like the rest of the world hoped for their failure. When their homes are threatened by the government and Flora’s husband comes looking for her, they “fire the heather,” fighting together for all they have worked so hard for, for better or worse.
As a lover of historical fiction, I am always eager to learn something new or to see an event from a different perspective than the history books teach. Finding Flora did not disappoint. The author has done an extensive amount of research surrounding the increased immigration and settlement of the prairies during the early 1900s. The expansion of the Canadian Pacific Railway and its importance in connecting the far reaches of our vast country, as well as the laws and rules associated with land grants and homesteading. All these amazing historical facts are woven together in Finding Flora, creating a riveting story which challenges the traditional views and roles of women in Canadian pioneer history.
Finding Flora is built upon a number of themes, with the central most inspirational theme being that of female empowerment. Coming from various backgrounds, the remarkable group of women in this novel recognized early on that to survive and succeed in a male-dictated world, they would have to pool their knowledge and resources. With power in numbers and each offering a different skill set, they fought for their right to work the land and to create a home for themselves, becoming trailblazers for all female homesteaders who followed. As the women reinvent themselves throughout the novel, their strength, and determination grow, allowing them to face their battles together as one.
Even though female suppression was an issue in Finding Flora, it is important to note that there were a few incredible male characters in this novel who helped the ladies through the difficulties of homesteading. The standout male character was Sourdough Buckhorn who was Flora’s closest male neighbour. Comically complaining the entire time he offered invaluable advice and assistance to Flora during her first year of homesteading, Sourdough never allowed anything bad to befall his female neighbours. With his grumpy demeanour stemming more from worry than from anger, Sourdough was just the male character needed to show that not all men of that time shared the same views on women’s rights.
Focusing on the real-life struggles of female homesteaders in Canada and the legal barriers they faced in the early 1900s, Finding Flora will have you cheering the women on as they fight to survive and for their rights. With an engaging storyline and relatable characters, Finding Flora has become one of my favourite underdog stories, one I highly recommend.
About the Author
Elinor Florence grew up on a Saskatchewan farm and earned degrees in English and journalism. She worked for newspapers in all four Western provinces, spent eight years writing for Reader’s Digest Canada, and even published her own award-winning community newspaper. Her first novel, Bird’s Eye View, was a national bestseller, while the second, Wildwood, was named one of Kobo’s Hundred Most Popular Canadian Books of All Time. Finding Flora was inspired by her own Scottish homesteading and Indigenous ancestors. She is a member of the Métis Nation of British Columbia and makes her home in the mountain resort of Invermere.
About the Reviewer
Laura Patterson is a Registered Acupuncturist and a Food Inspector from rural New Brunswick, where she lives with her husband and twin boys. When she's not busy with life's craziness, you'll find her with a warm drink in hand and her nose in a book.
Book Details
Publisher : Simon & Schuster
Publication date : April 1 2025
Language : English
Print length : 384 pages
ISBN-10 : 166805891X
ISBN-13 : 978-1668058916