The History of "Forty Mermaids"
The History of Forty Mermaids by Ruth Latta "Une histoire" generally translates into English as a story,”a fictional tale or anecdote, while "l'histoire" means history as an academic subject or an account of true past events. My new novel, Forty Mermaid s (Ottawa, Baico, 2026) is both. It’s a work of fiction which takes place against a backdrop of real events. It came out of my love of stories and my history background (M.A., Queen’s, 1973), and is my sixth Canadian historical novel focussed on a woman central character, whether historical or imaginary. The main characters in my earlier novels are: a folk song collector; a future feminist Member of Parliament; a women’s suffrage advocate; an aspiringfashion designer thwarted by the Great Depression, and a trade union leader. My husband’s interest in art gave me the idea of creating a Canadian woman artist as my next central character. When Roger retired from microbiology and began painting as a hobby...