The Followers

About the Book

The struggles of women to gain an education are well-known, but the three generations of women in The Followers are determined in more ways in their desire to learn. Initially members of a devout fundamentalist Presbyterian community in the mid-nineteenth century, we follow their lives and loves as they travel across three continents to achieve their various goals. Margaret, strong but gentle, the second wife of a farmer in Nova Scotia, gives birth to her fourth daughter, Catharine, who is different from her siblings even as a youngster. While her mother is unable to read and write, Catharine makes decisions that often do not meet with the family's approval. Her own daughter, Maggie, has very different goals, which also run contrary to the family's expectations. We come to admire these women as we follow their journeys through life and are drawn to hope as much as they do that their ambitions will be achieved.

About the Author

Joanna van Kool has been a teacher of English literature and has also written in various genres before gaining a master’s in creative writing from Sydney University. It has been said that her writing shows a sensitivity toward the natural world, and while her characters are realistic in their creation, there is an underlying spirituality that presents them in believable three-dimensional form. Some of her descriptive writing is almost poetry, and her dialogue is so real as to be almost heard by the reader.