Dark Times is a collection of thirteen stories by Canadian authors.
The book was the result of a cross-Canada contest for the best short
stories about young people's experience of loss and grief, Dark Times
s a superb anthology about a topic that often remains hidden but is crucial
in the development of a child's sense of identity. The stories develop
highly contemporary situations: a First Nations boy mourns the death
of his mother; a boyfriend's death takes a girl through the five stages of grief;
a destitute family loses their home; a daughter loses a parent when her
mother leaves; a fetal alcohol syndrome child is lost to his family when he
is sent to prison; a boy loses the brother he loves to mental illness; the death
of a small child challenges a girl's belief in God; and a young girl discovers
her father in an affair and confronts him with devastating results.
Although the stories sound depressing, they aren't. Most of them leave
the reader with the sense that things will get better, that the grieving will pass.
Editor Ann Walsh's story is about a a girl coping with the loss of her grandmother to Alzheimer's disease. This story has been used in many anthologies and reading texts.
Other authors include: Sarah Ellis, Lee Maracle, Alison Lohans, Diana Aspin,
Carolyn Pogue, Gina Rozon, Jessie Mae Keller, Libby Kennedy, Donna
R. Gamache, Patricia McCowan, Betty Jane Hegerat and Carrie Mac.
Published by Ronsdale Press, Vancouver
