In Search of Puffins by Marjorie Simmins
Stories of Loss, Light and Flight
I was always going to read this book; a memoir, in part, about Marjorie’s move from Cape Breton to Truro, Nova Scotia. I wanted to read an account of a newcomer moving to the town I’ve lived in for the past 22 years. But, now that I’ve read it, I can recommend it to any reader interested in literature about loss and grief, belonging and starting over; universal themes most of us can relate to.
At the age of 61, Marjorie Simmins embarks on a whole new life. For the past two decades, she has been joyfully living with the love of her life on a little Acadian island in Cape Breton, Nova Scotia. Both her and her partner, Silver Donald Cameron, were born and raised on the west coast, but Don had fallen in love with the east coast decades ago and convinced Marjorie to join him here. The death of her partner not only devastated her, but it left her longing to go back to her roots, where most of her family still lived. That was absolutely the plan. Except that no matter how she crunched the numbers, it just didn’t make any financial sense.
“When I hear the side gate latch click in place I worry it’s my heart that’s snapping in two.”
For two years after his death, Marjorie flip-flopped between the two options, but the one thing she knew for sure is that she had to leave their cozy home in D’Escousse (“a village Don loved so much I almost thought of it as a woman, of whom I was on occasion gloweringly jealous”) where there were too many ghosts. No, she had to move on. Where could she go?
“I can’t live in Cape Breton without Don – or, no matter how benign, with his ghost, and, almost as hurtful, the ghost of things we wanted to do together and now never will.”
“…it will break my heart to leave the Maritimes, and may break my heart to stay.”
In the end, she moves to Truro, the “hub” of Nova Scotia, into a sweet little bungalow in Salmon River. But she couldn’t have done it alone; Marjorie writes glowingly about all the friends who helped her along the way. Most of whom also knew and loved Don.
Marjorie Simmins is a force to be reckoned with; she is ambitious, dedicated, and driven, and has not given up on living life to the fullest. After several years of wondering if she was ever going to be able to write again (“If I write, I’ll have to open my heart.”), she not only completed this book, she also moved to a brand-new town with her beloved dog Franki, started facilitating writing workshops again, joined the church choir, became the proud part-owner of a race horse, and went back to her old love of horseback riding.
After reading what she had to say about Truro, I think Marjorie could be a walking, talking advertisement for the town. She describes all her new favourite places (including the library, which she describes as the “crown jewel” of downtown Truro); Truro has a skating rink in front of the library! A community theatre! A book store! A Frenchy’s! And even a harness racing track! I had to laugh when she mentioned how “wicked narrow” our main street is – the street on which my daughter had recently been sideswiped by a passing vehicle, after which she declared she would never drive on that street again. I also had a laugh when Marjorie goes on to say that her only “complaint” about Truro is that “everywhere I go, I see camo clothing.” (It’s not me!)
It’s heartening for me to read such a positive account of a newcomer’s view of Truro–that there is so much on offer and that residents still feel a sense of community. Marjorie writes that, “Life in Truro is re-buttressing hopes and dreams I’d quietly given up on.”
One day, at the Farmer’s Market: “The day someone called out my name from over the heads in the crowds, I truly felt a part of this busy, thriving community.”
Let’s not forget that at the heart of this book is Marjorie’s great loss. Marjorie writes about her marriage to Don (and her loss of him) with so much love and care. And she writes about her own feeling of losing herself so well that I could feel it like it was happening to me. She recalls many things that Don has done and said over their time together, including: “If you’re lucky, the end of great love comes with tears and grieving. It’s not always that way. But if it is, you’ve had the grand luck of a luminous love.”
We’ve met at the library, Marjorie, where I helped you pick out some middle grade books about horses. Hopefully I’ll see you again soon so I can thank you for writing this beautiful and touching memoir.
(By the way, if you’re wondering what puffins have to do with it, you’ll have to read the book!)
(Editor’s note: Naomi’s review first appeared on her blog, Consumed by Ink and is posted here by her kind permission.)
James’ Review
Looking at the list of Marjorie Simmins’ books at the back of In Search of Puffins, it seems that over the years, I have read and reviewed all except her excellent book on memoir writing, Memoir: Conversations and Craft (Pottersfield Press, 2020). Her one non-memoir related book was Somebeachsomewhere, about a record-setting harness racing horse from the East Coast.
In Search of Puffins is her third memoir based on her 20+ year relationship with Silver Donald Cameron, who passed away in 2020. Puffins begins with Don’s final moments. From then on, Marjorie is dealing with not only his passing, but his posthumously released bestseller, Blood on the Water, whether to move or stay in Cape Breton, or perhaps head West, back to her family in BC. So much to deal with!
Although I didn't know Don well beyond the few emails we exchanged, I feel like I know the best of him via her words. Don is never far from her thoughts, and it’s not unusual to wonder what he would say or do in certain situations. His guidance is always sure, however. “People will help you,” Don’s voice in her head tells her. And they do. Help, in the form of a friend or neighbour, is never far from Marjorie, which is a testament to the type of person she is: a good friend, a good neighbour, a good sister. Even after Hurricane Fiona passes through Truro (“my own private hurricane” she muses), Joe the Carpenter is at her door in the morning with chainsaw in hand.
There's always a risk with memoir writing that it can be too much about the memoirist and not enough about the memory. Also, it can become overly sentimental when dealing with the loss of a loved one. Marjorie Simmins expertly avoids all this, maintaining a tone of hopeful caution throughout, despite the changing circumstances and the swaying between our East and West coasts.
Nobody writes memoir with as much grace as Marjorie Simmins.
About the Author
Marjorie Simmins is an award-winning journalist and the author of five nonfiction titles. These include a trio of memoirs, Coastal Lives, Year of the Horse, and In Search of Puffins, a book on the practice of memoir, Memoir: Conversations and Craft, and a biography of a spectacular Canadian racehorse, Somebeachsomewhere: A Harness Racing Legend from a One-Horse Stable. Simmins teaches writing workshops around the Maritimes and across Canada, and also via Zoom. When she's not writing or teaching, you can usually find her somewhere near horses or anywhere near the water, salty or fresh. Her website is www.marjoriesimmins.ca
About the Reviewer
Naomi MacKinnon lives in Nova Scotia with her husband, three kids, a dog, three cats, and a bunny. She works in the children's department at the beautiful Truro Public Library where she loves to read all the picture books and play with the puppets. She blogs about (mostly) Canadian and Atlantic Canadian books at Consumed by Ink.
Book Details
Publisher : Pottersfied Press
Publication date : April 15 2025
Language : English
Print length : 198 pages
ISBN-10 : 1990770738
ISBN-13 : 978-1990770739
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