When Sparrows Fall

by Laura Goodman Salverson

292 pages, Paperback

Published January 1, 1925

About the author

Laura Goodman Salverson (née Goodman) was a Canadian author. Born in Winnipeg, Manitoba, the daughter of Lárus Guðmundsson and Ingibjörg Guðmundsdóttir who immigrated to Winnipeg in 1887 from Grundir in Bolungarvík, Iceland. She married George Salverson in 1913.

Her novel The Dark Weaver was awarded the Governor General's Award for Fiction in 1937.

Reviews

[Marlene · Rating 3 out of 5]

Salverson was a Unitarian who wrote a few novels and won the GG for The Viking Heart. Through an Icelandic immigrant lens, When Sparrows Fall examines moral and ethical issues in Canadian society generally, but more specifically in small communities. Much of the book is autobiographical. It was a sweet, romantic story that dealt with messy bits of life (infidelity, domestic abuse, poverty, discrimination) in an open and kind manner. The melodramatic, flowery language was little over-the-top for my taste.

[Aimee · Rating 3 out of 5]

Old time love/loss/tragedy with a happy ending story. Alot of younger people probably wouldn't be able to follow the language in this book, but for people who can it is a vert entertaining read with a very diverse story line and character plots.
I must admit to a giggle or two over the names, agian seeing as when the story was written it's not that hard to believe such names existed, but still provided a good chuckle.