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Summerland: Family, Loss, and the Inheritance of Dreams: A Memoir
A brilliant and touching memoir about the dreams and desires passed down through three generations of a family, from the beloved and decorated writer of The Ghost Orchard, Rabbit Foot Bill and Nocturne
In March of 1941, Helen Humphreys’s grandfather, Dudley, disappeared near the island of Malta. He was travelling with a crew on a Wellington bomber to the island, where he would take command of the RAF station. At 5:45 a.m. the pilot of the Wellington sent out a radio call to say that he was under attack, and then there was nothing further. No trace of the plane, or of any of the seven men aboard, was ever found.
The loss of this husband and father would reverberate through the family for years, cutting short Dudley’s dream to return from Britain to the Okanagan Valley in British Columbia to start an orchard in the place where he spent his adolescence. Decades on, the son who was left behind, Helen’s father, would partially realize that dream and move his family to Canada. And even more years on, a family member would discover a cache of short stories written by Dudley about his experiences in the trenches in World War I and share them with Helen. She knew that the grandfather she never met had wanted to be a writer but had not expected that any of his stories had survived.
Weaving in memory, reconstructed family history and her grandfather’s stories, Helen Humphreys explores the nature of inherited dreams within a family. Do dreams and desires pass through DNA like a physical trait, from one generation to the next and the next after that? What continues? And how does it continue?
Beautifully written, full of curiosity and emotional reckonings, Summerland reminds us why Helen Humphreys is one of Canada’s most admired and accomplished writers.
In March of 1941, Helen Humphreys’s grandfather, Dudley, disappeared near the island of Malta. He was travelling with a crew on a Wellington bomber to the island, where he would take command of the RAF station. At 5:45 a.m. the pilot of the Wellington sent out a radio call to say that he was under attack, and then there was nothing further. No trace of the plane, or of any of the seven men aboard, was ever found.
The loss of this husband and father would reverberate through the family for years, cutting short Dudley’s dream to return from Britain to the Okanagan Valley in British Columbia to start an orchard in the place where he spent his adolescence. Decades on, the son who was left behind, Helen’s father, would partially realize that dream and move his family to Canada. And even more years on, a family member would discover a cache of short stories written by Dudley about his experiences in the trenches in World War I and share them with Helen. She knew that the grandfather she never met had wanted to be a writer but had not expected that any of his stories had survived.
Weaving in memory, reconstructed family history and her grandfather’s stories, Helen Humphreys explores the nature of inherited dreams within a family. Do dreams and desires pass through DNA like a physical trait, from one generation to the next and the next after that? What continues? And how does it continue?
Beautifully written, full of curiosity and emotional reckonings, Summerland reminds us why Helen Humphreys is one of Canada’s most admired and accomplished writers.
212 pages, Kindle Edition
Published September 1, 2026
About the author
Helen Humphreys
31 books436 followersHelen Humphreys is the author of five books of poetry, eleven novels, and three works of non-fiction. She was born in Kingston-on-Thames, England, and now lives in Kingston, Ontario, Canada.
Her first novel, Leaving Earth (1997), won the 1998 City of Toronto Book Award and was a New York Times Notable Book of the Year. Her second novel, Afterimage (2000), won the 2000 Rogers Writers' Trust Fiction Prize, was nominated for the Commonwealth Writers' Prize, and was a New York Times Notable Book of the Year. Her third novel, The Lost Garden (2002), was a 2003 Canada Reads selection, a national bestseller, and was also a New York Times Notable Book of the Year. Wild Dogs (2004) won the 2005 Lambda Prize for fiction, has been optioned for film, and was produced as a stage play at CanStage in Toronto in the fall of 2008. Coventry (2008) was a #1 national bestseller, was chosen as one of the top 100 books of the year by the Globe & Mail, and was chosen one of the top ten books of the year by both the Ottawa Citizen and NOW Magazine.
Humphreys's work of creative non-fiction, The Frozen Thames (2007), was a #1 national bestseller. Her collections of poetry include Gods and Other Mortals (1986); Nuns Looking Anxious, Listening to Radios (1990); and, The Perils of Geography (1995). Her latest collection, Anthem (1999), won the 2000 Canadian Authors Association Award for Poetry.
Helen Humphreys's fiction is published in Canada by HarperCollins, and in the U.S. by W.W. Norton. The Frozen Thames was published by McClelland & Stewart in Canada, and by Bantam in the U.S. Her work has been translated into many languages.
Her first novel, Leaving Earth (1997), won the 1998 City of Toronto Book Award and was a New York Times Notable Book of the Year. Her second novel, Afterimage (2000), won the 2000 Rogers Writers' Trust Fiction Prize, was nominated for the Commonwealth Writers' Prize, and was a New York Times Notable Book of the Year. Her third novel, The Lost Garden (2002), was a 2003 Canada Reads selection, a national bestseller, and was also a New York Times Notable Book of the Year. Wild Dogs (2004) won the 2005 Lambda Prize for fiction, has been optioned for film, and was produced as a stage play at CanStage in Toronto in the fall of 2008. Coventry (2008) was a #1 national bestseller, was chosen as one of the top 100 books of the year by the Globe & Mail, and was chosen one of the top ten books of the year by both the Ottawa Citizen and NOW Magazine.
Humphreys's work of creative non-fiction, The Frozen Thames (2007), was a #1 national bestseller. Her collections of poetry include Gods and Other Mortals (1986); Nuns Looking Anxious, Listening to Radios (1990); and, The Perils of Geography (1995). Her latest collection, Anthem (1999), won the 2000 Canadian Authors Association Award for Poetry.
Helen Humphreys's fiction is published in Canada by HarperCollins, and in the U.S. by W.W. Norton. The Frozen Thames was published by McClelland & Stewart in Canada, and by Bantam in the U.S. Her work has been translated into many languages.
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
September 15, 2026
Spectacular.
October 3, 2026
a beautiful memoir that extends beyond helen humphreys' reach, letting readers wonder if they too have inherited desires and aspirations that dream past passed down trauma.
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews