When She Was Electric

by Andrea MacPherson

Three generations of women living in a small town find themselves caught up in the culture wars and generation gaps that make modern life so exhilarating and frustrating, discovering the fragility of life and the unreliability of memory. Original.

256 pages, Paperback

First published February 11, 2005

About the author

Andrea MacPherson, poet and novelist, is the author of six books: three novels, What We Once Believed, Beyond the Blue, and When She Was Electric, and three poetry collections, Ellipses, Away, and Natural Disasters. Her poetry has been anthologized in the UK publication, How the Light Gets In.

When She Was Electric was listed No. 6 on CBC Canada Reads: People’s Choice; Natural Disasters was longlisted for the 2008 ReLit Awards. Andrea holds an MFA from the Creative Writing Department at the University of British Columbia, where she was Editor of Prism International. She has also acted as the Reviews Editor for Event Magazine. She teaches Creative Writing and Literature at the University of the Fraser Valley.

Reviews

[Nicole · Rating 2 out of 5]

It was okay. I didn't particularly enjoy it, but that's because the style it was written in didn't appeal to me, not because it was a terrible book. It is very, very poetic and often skips between past and present events, so you don't always know where the story actually is. I found it very disorienting and a bit frustrating. There also weren't any character that I really liked/sided with/related to. Oh! Actually, I quite liked Ione. And Willa. But they are both young children. There are no adults/older children in this book that I like. I did like the geographical setting. And the fact that Min's mysterious lover was never named. I thought that was excellent.

[Nicola Riches · Rating 5 out of 5]

Beautifully written novel in a style which allows the reader to feel the words. Couldn't put it down and would highly recommend!

[cypher · Rating 3 out of 5]

it had some ok points to it, but it took awhile for me to start even remotely caring about the plot or characters. can't really say it was for me.

[Patrisia Sheremeta · Rating 2 out of 5]

Everything in this book was pale, luminous, silvery, intricate, delicate. The characters were fluid, pale, fragile and were constantly slipping beneath bodies of water. The writing is so self-consciously ethereal that it came off as affected. Plus, the author really overused simile and lots of times the comparison just didn't work. The story didn't live and I was unmoved.

If the author would stop writing what she thinks a book is and write something authentic, she might end up being a fine writer.

[Diane · Rating 3 out of 5]

I liked this book. Read it in one weekend. Easy to read. Set in British Columbia during WW2. Story is about relationships between aboriginal and non-aboriginal peoples, relationships between women and families, and women who love the "wrong" kind of man. How a person's heart and soul can be broken when they are forced to live a life that is not of their own making and how families are affected by these broken people.

[Katia · Rating 1 out of 5]

I got only through a bit of chapter 1 in this book. No attention getter, and just really confusing. The book is great at describing things and people, but overuses metaphors until there is no recognizable plot.

[prescribed · Rating 5 out of 5]

beautiful and haunting

[Sara · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of my all time favourites, adding to my re-read list.

[MissySue Hanson · Rating 5 out of 5]

I could not stop reading this book. One of my all-time favorites.