If Tenderness Be Gold

by Eleanor Albanese

If Tenderness Be Gold is set in 19th-century and early 20th-century northern Ontario and Manitoba. An Irish mother, an Italian herbalist, and a Scottish midwife come together on the night of a difficult birth, and the result of their union has effects that echo through the generations.

Genres: Historical Fiction, Canada

348 pages, Paperback

Published May 9, 2020

About the author

Eleanor Albanese is an award-winning writer, artist, playwright, and filmmaker living in Thunder Bay. Her work has been published by Innana Publications, Playwrights Canada Press, Burning Book Press, Arctic Journal as well as numerous journals and magazines. Many of her plays have been produced and/or toured extensively throughout Canada. "The Novena Sisters" was produced and aired nationally by CBC radio, and her recent play "Night Wings" was produced by Superior Theatre Festival. If Tenderness Be Gold is her first novel.

Reviews

[Annette · Rating 4 out of 5]

From the blurb, my impression was that the story would be driven by three female characters. But that’s not the case. The story starts with two female characters and continues for about 25%, then those two characters reappear at the very end of the story. The third character I’d say doesn’t have that distinct voice to be considered as one of the three leading voices. But as it turns out, for most of the part the voice belongs to one man and his family.

Manitoba, 1897. Despite warnings of Fiorella being a witch or madwoman, Mary, an Irish immigrant, becomes close friends with her. With three boys, the youngest one, Faolan, giving her the most joy. In her loveless and abusive marriage, Faolan keeps her spirits up.

Fiorella, an Italian immigrant and herbalist, before her husband hang himself she had people coming to her for medicine. Now, only when badly needed they come in secret. She hardly has food for one person, but when her only friend Mary comes she shares whatever she has.

I enjoyed Mary recalling her journey from Ireland to New York and their inspection at Ellis Island. Her innocent voice pulled me into the story right away. Fiorella with her broken English mixed with Italian and some wisdom made me laugh. “Winnipeg. Sound to me like name for cow or pig, not for big city.” I enjoyed those two characters so much that I was looking forward to the third distinct voice and those three women leading the story.

Then for most of the part the voice belongs to Faolan. He comes back from France in 1918 and moves to Ontario where the story continues from 1923.

Toward the middle of the story, with his wife Primrose talking a lot about family it slows the pace of the story.

Even when it switches between her and him in the second part it continues to have a slower pace. It picks up only with a new voice of a new teacher. But because I felt engaged then disengaged, overall the second part didn’t hold my interest as much as the first part of the book. And for those reasons, this is more of a 3.5 star read.

The time period is well presented through everyday life affected by two WWs, when jobs are scarce and by living in remote areas.

I enjoyed the author’s way with words, “I couldn’t just put a candy in my mouth and expect sweetness to pop out.” So she says it as she truly feels.

The writing is certainly of a very talented writer. I’d definitely reach for her second book when it comes out.

Source: ARC was provided by the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

[Fran · Rating 5 out of 5]

Mary Moore traveled to the new land on a ship from Ireland with her ten siblings, Mammy and Da. Many "...made their graves of the salt water seas, overcome with typhus...". Mary snipped buttons from coats, dresses and sweaters, one button for each family member lost. She cut the threads from five mother-of-pearl buttons from her Mammy's dress. "From that day onward, I kept the buttons in safekeeping not parting with a single keepsake-until the day I gave Fiorella three buttons from my mother's dress."

Aspen Bluff, Manitoba, 1897. Fiorella lived in a "tumbledown farm...a clothesline was stretched alongside the length of the woebegone house with dried herbs, flowers, and branches with berries...". Gossip mongers called her "the Italian Witch". Both Mary and Fiorella felt alone in the world. Mary said,"no matter what others thought of her, she found a friend in me...I now had a friend, a true friend who changed my outlook from bleak to buoyant."

Discovering that she was pregnant, Mary shared her news with husband, James. James had "great love of the bottle...turns to whisky for comfort...how do I know [the baby] is mine?" Mary decides, "...I'll return to the herb woman. I'll soak up her tenderness, as the earth draws in the rain." James insisted that their youngest son, Faolan, accompany her to the Italian herbalist's shack "as his spy".

Fearful of the upcoming spring birth, Mary begs Fiorella for assurances. She does not fear a miscarriage but her own demise. Fiorella promises not only to attend the birth but to ensure the newborn's safety. "I make promise to Maria...But I no like this promise. This promise have one part angel, one part devil."

Twenty years later, in Autrecourt-et-Pourron, France, Faolan awakened in a room decorated with blue linen curtains, his right leg "cocooned...in a hot soaked woolen blanket". "To keep myself from going down a tunnel of fear, I picture my life before the madness of war...[he] tried to conjure up the sights and sound of the farm back home." What really happened on the night when his mother, Mary birthed a baby, a difficult delivery performed by Fiorella and Scottish midwife, Mrs. Watts?

"If Tenderness Be Gold" by Eleanor Albanese is a work of historical fiction relating a promise made in 19th Century Manitoba with ramifications well into 20th Century Ontario. The generational ripples are conveyed by well fleshed out characters. It is an excellent read I highly recommend.

Thank you Latitude 46 Publishing and Net Galley for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

[Penny (Literary Hoarders) · Rating 3 out of 5]

Thank you to Latitude 46 Publishing for sending the book (via Netgalley).

I have conflicting feelings about this one. There is quite a bit going for it, but there are also parts where I felt it wandered around way too aimlessly before reaching the end that I knew was coming. It was that ending that I wished was fleshed out more, or had a better part throughout the book.

It's beautifully written. There is no doubt there, although I am conflicted in some of those parts too. The manner of speaking in broken English by the Italian woman, Fiorella and of Primrose's mother, the Scottish woman became trying at times.

This starts out strong with the story of Mary Moore. She makes Fiorella promise to take care of her baby girl after she's born because she knows she won't survive the birth, and she does not want this baby raised by her husband. Fiorella whisks the baby away at the birth and then we never hear about the baby, or Fiorella, until much, much later and towards the very end of the book.

There was a lot of discussion about buttons throughout. In the PDF version I read, a picture of a button was at the start of every chapter. However meaningful these buttons were to Mary Moore that were stated at the beginning of the book, that too fell away and there was never a real solid connection sewn throughout the story for the mention of other buttons. It just kind of hung there by a thread.

Right after the start with Mary Moore we begin to follow her youngest son Faolan into WWI. This part as well was very nice to read, and there were only very tiny, tiny hints of threading together what happened on the night of the birth of his sister and the death of his mother. There were so faint it again felt like they were just hanging there by a thread.

Then we hear for many, many pages the life of Faolan and his wife Primrose and their many children. This is where it meandered and wandered and was a trying part for me. Where was this story going? Where is this story meant to take us? We are wandering aimlessly here for 100s of pages!

Finally, at the very end, the true story of what happened to Faolan's baby sister comes to be told. I think the reader knew all along and it was a real shame that we never got to hear more, we never had this parallel story running alongside Faolan's life, about this girl named Mary Violet (named before her mother passed). This is where I felt great sadness, because I felt there was so much more potential there but it fell far too short for me.

[Alda Saldan · Rating 5 out of 5]

If Tenderness Be Gold starts at the end of the 19th century in a small town in Manitoba, Canada, when a worried and pregnant Irish woman, Mary, meets Fiorella, an Italian herbalist and outcast. Despite being very poor in means, Fiorella is rich at heart: it’s her tenderness that binds the two women in a promise that will have repercussions for the future generations.
The scene moves forward to the aftermath of World War I, where we follow the life of Faolan, Mary’s younger son, now a war veteran looking to build a new life starting from scratch. We meet new characters: among them Primrose, Faolan’s wife, and Lotta, a young teacher; and we move to Ontario. The story moves on at a slow pace but in a gentle manner and Eleanor Albanese offers the reader some gentle and poetic lines interspersed in a plot that does not censor the hardships of life in small rural Canadian villages in the first half of the XX century. The characters face harsh climate, poverty and bereavement, yet I always found a tone of hope dominating in all the novel. As the story unfolds, every element come together in a perfect fit and in a soothing end.
I really enjoyed reading this book: the setting and characters feel real, the description of Canada landscapes and climate are well rendered, but most of all I praise the tone of hope and tenderness that resonates throughout the story. A gem of a book!

Thanks to Latitude 46 Publishing and Netgalley for the opportunity to read and review this book.

[Jim Fisher · Rating 2 out of 5]

I had hopes that this would be a good literary novel about life in Northern Ontario (as the publisher, Latitude 46 is based out of there), but this novel is a dragged out story of a baby that was supposedly dead just after being born but was whisked away by an Italian lady (be prepared for lots of broken English passages that recall Chico Marx to mind, if you're old enough to remember the Marx Brothers) to be buried while the family dealt with the consequent death of the baby's mother.
Down through the years of two world wars (which do not figure very prominently), the baby's brother Faolan wonders what happened to her. Where was she buried?
This was one of those books that you read just to finish it, hoping it might get better, but it doesn't. Perhaps someone more sentimental than myself will enjoy If Tenderness Be Gold.

[Andrea Alba · Rating 5 out of 5]

Beautiful written , eloquent language describing people from another time . Just a beautiful story .

[Mary Marier · Rating 5 out of 5]

I don’t often read fiction, however, this historical fiction is vivid in its description of the hardships of our ancestors living in rural Manitoba and Northern Ontario. I am touched by the eloquent writing and the stories of these hardships; of how the intertwined relationships didn’t blame but found tenderness in their hearts to help each other through these hardships. Looking forward to a 2nd read!

[Susan Marrier · Rating 2 out of 5]

I really wanted to like this book by a local author, taking place in a location familiar to me (I live in Thunder Bay, formerly Port Arthur). But I was disappointed. This could have been a pretty good book, but needed lots more editing, for clarity, consistency of style, dialogue and proper use of quotation marks, and more. I hope if Ms. Albanese writes another novel it will be critiqued more widely and edited more carefully.

[Ron Harpelle · Rating 5 out of 5]

In Tenderness Be Gold, Eleanor Albanese captures the spirit and the struggles of immigrant pioneers who settled in the boreal forest region of Northwestern Ontario and Manitoba. She provides readers with an insights into the lives of pioneering women on the Canadian frontier without glorifying their role in society. These are people who toil every day, isolated from the cultures and societies they left behind. The characters come across as real and the story lines accurately reflect the challenges faced by people living in the communities of the region at the time. Albanese brings to life the ethnic diversity and cultural differences that shaped and continue to shape communities across the region and across Canada. The novel is primarily set in the first half of the twentieth century, depicting the harshness of life in a frontier region and the resilience of the individuals who came to Canada looking for a better future. The focus is on one family, but the story captures the lives of settlers in remote areas from coast to coast. The people are poor, and their struggles are those of individuals who have no option but to pick themselves up after every defeat and continue pushing forward because there is no going home. Tenderness Be Gold is a story about pioneer life and survival in a rugged land.

[Mary Yonan · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love historical fiction and “If Tenderness Be Gold” tells a memorable story of a family across three generations in Canada. The book begins with Mary, a lonely, abused and pregnant Irish immigrant wife and her alcoholic and abusive husband, James. Mary is a loving mother of three sons but is greatly in need of a female friend whom she finds in Fiorella, an eccentric Italian herbalist. Mary is concerned about the upcoming birth of her child and insists that Fiorella be present. Her husband disapproved of his wife's friendship with Fiorella and insisted that an officious midwife from the neighborhood also be present to deliver the baby. Mary was right in her concerns about the birth of her child and the outcome has ramifications throughout the rest of the book.
The book is told from the point of view of several different characters and in different time and location settings. Later in the book, we meet Mary’s youngest son as a soldier during the First World War and a few years later as a husband and loving father. You must read the book to discover how the birth scene early in the book is connected to the conclusion.
I thoroughly enjoyed “If Tenderness Be Gold” and highly recommend it.

[Roger Delaney · Rating 5 out of 5]

As an academic who wrote extensively on rural and remote communities and its people, i read this book with this analytic framework to guide my review. What I discovered was quite unexpected...a rich tapestry that explored in detail, the natural helping processes, the suffering and the grit of surviving in remote areas with limited social resources and the incredible spirit of human beings who found tenderness in harsh realities. The story follows a generational evolution of an Irish family, an Italian immigrant and host of interesting characters as events brought them together and challenged each in very human ways. I was particularly impressed with the author’s command of natural remedies and potions brought from Italy and enriched by First Nation wisdom. I highly recommend this book for those who are interested in rural and remote life, especially students who want to operationalize theory into real life situations. The book is well written, the story interesting, the context harsh and sometimes brutal but throughout shines the human spirit. If tenderness be gold, then this book is golden.

[Kate · Rating 4 out of 5]

There is something familiar and comforting about Albsnese's 'If Tenderness Be Gold", it feels almost as if a loved one is singing to you sleep with an old beloved hymn.

Gentle, rhythemic writing about the hardships of life, of familial hardships, of death, of questioning of humanity, of generational secrets that leave behind the scars of those that came before us.

You will also celebrate new life, and of winter giving way to the blooms of spring, of lost last understandings, and the glorious reunification of loved ones. The pages of life are stained with tears of heartbreak as well as tears of joy, as will the pages of If Tenderness Be Gold, as you mourn along side Primrose and rejoice along side Jerome.

'If Tenderness Be Gold' envelops you in open arms, into generations of families as they live out their lives in rural Canada; as the chapters slip by and the pages come to an end, in the hush of reading it's final words, you'll find that you're right where you needed to be, you find that your heart is welcomed home.

Thank you to Netgalley and Latitude 46 Publishing for an advanced copy of If Tenderness Be Gold in exchange for my honest review.

[Peter Fergus-Moore · Rating 4 out of 5]

If Tenderness be Gold has been touted by other readers as capturing the spirit of pioneer families, especially of women, in the rural northwest of Ontario in the first half of the twentieth century. I don't disagree with that, but from my perspective, Eleanor Albanese has created a spiritually multi-dimensional world where actions (and refusals to act) have consequences well beyond the days and hours and people involved. It starts slowly, but amply rewards the reader who stays with it.

Her ability to get into people's heads and articulate their thoughts reminds me of Jane Rule, while her handling of the spiritual magic reminds me of Gabriel Garcia Marquez. There is warmth and love and hate and rage, but very little sentimentality. I suggest reading it in one or two sittings at most, to savour the atmosphere in which her characters breathe.

[Holly · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a beautiful book. It arises from the heart and it speaks to the heart, right from its very title on. If Tenderness Be Gold is a work celebrates women, in its focus on familial life and love, as well as women’s art, in its depiction of traditionally feminine arts such as tea making, gardening, gathering and weaving. And while it is an emotionally open story, allowing its many characters their unique voices, it is also a challenging book, as the reader must negotiate the story’s many secrets and silences. If you like to use comparisons to help you decide on whether to read a book, think of this novel as a family saga, like Faulkner’s As I Lay Dying, or as a multi-perspectival drama, like McKellar/Girard/Fichman’s The Red Violin. The drama comparison also points to Albanese successful genre-leap from drama and fabric art to novelist.

[Cory Gaudette · Rating 5 out of 5]

If Tenderness Be Gold captures the rural life of Northern Ontario in a dramtic and beautiful way. This book reminds me of Isabelle Allende's Daughter of Fortune, or Arlette Cousture's Les Filles De Caleb. The women in this novel have powerful voices, and the male character, Faolon, is lovable because of his feminity and his charm. This book also has a diverse cast of characters (an Irish mother, an Italian Herbalist accused of being a witch, a scottish family, etc...) and these components define Canadian culture then and now.

I recommend If Tenderness Be Gold to all fans of historical and literary fiction.

[Taina Chahal · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a great story, Eleanor Albanese! I read a chapter a day and really fell into the lives of the characters. Loved the setting on the shore of Lake Superior, in Hurkett and in Manitoba, the history of the late 1800s to 1940s, the interweaving stories, the herbal lore, the strong female characters, the Irish and Italian cultural lore and the focus on children, childbirth, and midwifery. The vivid detail and poetic phrasing! I also liked the Finnish connection and finding my name in one of the stories! My copy became waterlogged as a water bottle had leaked onto my copy on my roadtrip -- but given the theme of water in the book, maybe a ghostly hand at work!

[P.L. Jones · Rating 4 out of 5]

I met this author when she did a reading at my apartment building a few months ago. This promoted me to buy and read her book. We are both authors who happen to live in Thunder Bay, Ontario, Canada, although I am hardly in this award winning writer's class. This book is a well written and interesting work of historical fiction. I enjoyed reading this book. It gives insight into the struggles of those living in Northern Ontario and Manitoba in the 19th and early 20th centuries. Well done Eleanor!

[Mona · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a wonderful book. The description of life in Canada in the early 20th century is very engaging. Since it is set near Thunder Bay (where I live), I was very intrigued with the physical background and challenges. I was deeply moved during the last section of the story. Albanese captures family relationships very intuitively and brought me back to a much more simple time of living in Canada. Simple, but so difficult. I highly recommend this book!

[Barbara Rohde · Rating 3 out of 5]

This gentle tale begins in Ontario and Manitoba in the late 19th century with an Irish mother who dies during childbirth. She has befriended an Italian herbalist who is considered a witch by many of the townspeople. This unlikely friendship has elements that span the subsequent generations with unintended consequences. Easy to read and told from multiple viewpoints, this is an engaging story.

[Paula Thiessen · Rating 5 out of 5]

The light running through If Tenderness Be Gold is refracted through several distinctly-wrought voices that echo back and forth between generations, voices you will ache for long after the book ends. The monumental, everyday navigations of the heart, what it speaks and what it withholds, illuminate this beautiful and prismatic story about kin and kinship.

[Boz · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed If Tenderness Be Gold. It has the slow-paced world-building of some of my favourite Canadian authors. The landscape of this book is just as important as the characters. This makes the plot somewhat slow at times, which I'm not sure every reader will appreciate, but I felt the pacing mostly worked, and there was interesting exploration of themes like resiliency and connection.

While I generally enjoyed the pacing, some parts of the book felt a bit choppy to me. There are some transitions that might make sense in hindsight, but in the initial reading they are rather jarring. I also didn't love the ending. I saw it coming sooner than I would have liked, so elements that were maybe supposed to feel surprising didn't. It also felt like a forced tidy resolution that didn't suit the rest of the book.

Overall, I liked this book. The ending wasn't the strongest aspect of Albanese's writing, but I think that the rest of the book builds a world worth exploring.

Thank you to Net Galley and Latitude 46 Publishing for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

[Nicholas Davey · Rating 5 out of 5]

If Tenderness Be Gold is the Outlander of the North!! I fell in love with the story of immigrants, women’s health, and the boreal forest and waters. Eleanor’s writing is so descriptive and visual, the characters easily come to life. It’s like sitting in Nonna’s kitchen with a cup of espresso and a biscotti telling stories of family and folklore. Pure comfort!!

[Lin Wills · Rating 5 out of 5]

As I held If Tenderness Be Gold in my hands and followed along with my eyes, my heart became intertwined with the pulse of the story. What was captured was such subtleties in the characters, settings, and relationships which made the book come alive. I felt deeply throughout the story.
It was one of those books that holds you close with heart language.

[Karly Stewart · Rating 5 out of 5]

I thoroughly enjoyed this beautifully written and engaging story. I was captivated by Mary and Fiorella's bond at the beginning of the novel. And I enjoyed putting the pieces together about how all the characters were connected through out the book. Loved all the details about the Northern Ontario setting as well!

[Maria De Groot · Rating 5 out of 5]

Awesome book!

[Page Cowell · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fascinating history of northern Ontario, Italian culture, Irish culture, and war. Weaves stories together to reveal a tapestry of devastation and miracles.