book review and the birds rained down

Book Review: And the Birds Rained Down, by Jocelyne Saucier

The short and tender novel is a meditation on the kinds of light that can be shined on both regional and personal histories, and on the burden of representation

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160 pp; $18.95

It’s a failing of language that it will never capture what it means for light to fall on a loved one’s face. Photography’s failure, on the other hand, is that it can only evoke narrative — the story requires some assembly on our part to figure out why that one was loved. Jocelyne Saucier’s And the Birds Rained Down investigates the spaces left open by each of these failures. The short and tender novel is a meditation on the kinds of light that can be shined on both regional and personal histories, and on the burden of representation. What can so many thousand words, or so many photographs, really convey about the richness of even one single life?

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And the Birds Rained Down was the first Canadian book to win France’s Prix des Cinq Continents de la Francophonie, and Saucier’s use of language retains no small measure of enchantment in Rhonda Mullins’s translation. The novel begins with an unnamed photographer on the hunt for survivors of the great fires that ravaged Northern Ontario at the beginning of the 20th century. While she is ostensibly interested in portraiture, it becomes clear that what the photographer is really after is experience, or the stories of experience. In the opening pages she’s staring down the end of her compulsive photography project; there’s just one known survivor left, supposedly living in a shack in an unpopulated forest.

“Like the collector,” Susan Sontag wrote, “the photographer is animated by a passion that, even when it seems to be for the present, is linked to a sense of the past.” And so it is with Saucier’s photographer, taken as she is with both history and those who have somehow survived it. Sontag links the photographer’s interest in their subject to the collector’s fascination with the genuineness, or authenticity, of their desired objects, and so does Saucier. Her photographer is after “the precision of the grain that seeks out the light in the creases of the flesh.” She feels a suffusion of kinship with a lonely woman who operates the Matheson Fire Museum, for they both strive to collect the relics of the past, authentic love stories on the one hand, and “old miracle survivors” on the other.

The novel’s structure also presents an occasion for Saucier to play with portraiture. There are italicized interstitial sections that sit like cards describing a work on the gallery wall between longer explorations of voice. The first half of the book introduces the dramatis personae one by one in chapters that use each character’s name (or in the case of the photographer, her principal role) for their title. While Boychuck, the survivor our nameless heroine is seeking, turns out to have died, she stumbles on to a strange community of feral old men. Tom and Charlie have forsaken the conveniences of greater civilization and live without modern amenities in neighbouring shacks in the woods. Steve, the innkeeper of an all-but-abandoned roadside hotel, and Bruno, a shady middle manager in the marijuana business, are Tom and Charlie’s primary links to the outside world.

Having chosen to be wild, the old men live in close quarters with death. The animals they trap, for food and furs, and the shortening days of autumn are constant reminders of the precariousness of life, of the inevitability of the end. By the second half of the novel, each character’s voice has become sufficiently tied up to a larger story, and the novel’s prose turns over into a study of the ways in which light can shine on histories of both place and self. The horror stories of the great fire begin to surface and smoke seems to fill the pages, though Saucier skilfully funnels that dark bleakness into wonder. By relying so heavily on metaphors of dark and light, hot and cool, the novel becomes nearly as sensually evocative as, one imagines, the photographs and paintings described in the text.

There’s a subtle magic to the way this short novel moves. The photographer, gathering her stories and taking pictures, is a conduit for an imagined oral history of the Great Fire, and the many losses and the legends it spawned in its devastating wake. Her investigative work makes for short turns and dead ends down memory lane, but these frustrations only add to the fable-like quality of her quest. Saucier’s italicized interstitials double this impression, adding another loving layer to a story about the wilderness of this winter so late in the lives of these characters.

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By Claire Holden Rothman

A review of And the Birds Rained Down by Jocelyne Saucier

W riters of fiction are said to stand on the shoulders of giants. In her fourth novel, Abitibi writer Jocelyne Saucier has climbed onto the shoulders of Joseph Conrad. Her setting is northern Canada rather than the Congo and her main character is a female photographer rather than the seagoing Marlow, but And the Birds Rained Down still bears a striking resemblance to Heart of Darkness .

Saucier has made a name for herself in French Canada writing novels about the North, in particular Quebec’s Abitibi region and the mining towns created when gold and other metals were discovered in the area in the late 1920s. In Les héritiers de la mine (2000), she tells the story of a Québécois prospector and his large family who lose everything when the bottom falls out of the zinc market. In Jeanne sur les routes (2006), translated as Jeanne’s Road, she describes a visit by famous labour activist Jeanne Corbin to the mining town of Rouyn in 1933. Like Conrad, Saucier is a political writer.

In And the Birds Rained Down , Saucier steps across the border into northern Ontario. She also steps out of traditional novel structure, telling her story with multiple first-person narratives. The first narrator, identified only as the Photographer, is the protagonist. We learn only one thing about her: she is on a quest through the wilderness to find a man she has never met. Sound familiar? The man’s name is Boychuck not Kurtz, and she drives a pickup not a steamboat, but these are details.

And the Birds Rained Down Jocelyne Saucier Translated by Rhonda Mullins

Coach House Books $18.95 paper 155pp 978-1-55245-268-4

She never finds her man. He dies a week before she reaches his remote camp. What she finds instead is a pair of fiercely independent octogenarians, friends of Boychuck’s, eking out an existence in this unlikely northern setting. The men have freed themselves from all their past ties and responsibilities.

Their only links to civilization are two young marijuana farmers who drop by periodically with food and supplies.

This discovery astonishes the Photographer. When one of the dope growers arrives at the camp with his elderly aunt, an escapee from a psychiatric institution, things take an unbelievable turn. Like Conrad, Saucier takes a dim view of civilization. Her elderly characters have been victimized by a rapacious, consumer-oriented, institutional society, and have sought refuge in the wilderness. Unlike Conrad, though, Saucier suggests that there’s a better way forward.

She creates a Canadian utopia in which an old man can be miraculously cured of kidney failure; a woman who’s spent sixty-six years in a mental institution can discover she’s not really mad, just misunderstood; a lifelong drunk can give up scotch without a tremor; and sex can stay great to the end of one’s days. No murmurs of horror here.

Evocations of landscape are the best part of this novel, ably translated into English by Montrealer Rhonda Mullins. The historical research is strong, and Saucier plays with promising themes like aging, self-determination, and death. But her book might have shed a truer light on the human condition if it had carried a little more darkness in its heart.  mRb

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And the Birds Rained Down by Jocelyn Saucier

And the Birds Rained Down is a quiet book, a tidy book, a comforting book. The most comforting book you’ve ever read about mass destruction, trauma, mental illness, suicide, marijuana, and love. It begins with a photographer arriving deep in the forest in Northern Ontario at a clearing where a stream cascades into volcanic rock. She’s come to interview a survivor of devastating fires that had taken place nearly a century before, but she’s come too late. He’s died, of natural causes, she’s assured by that two old men with whom the man she’d come to see, Boychuck, had created a community away from the world, their only connection to it two pot farmers. She’s been travelling the province photographing survivors of the fire, documenting their experiences. And while the other two men can’t contribute to her project, she’s intrigued by their company and drawn to return. And the photographer is not the only disrupter to this bucolic idyll. Not long after her departure, one of the pot farmers shows up with his Great Aunt who has been her whole life in mental institutions and refuses to return. Her arrival in the community changes the dynamic forever.

It’s not so much what the story is about, but how it’s told. And the Birds Rained Down is the kind of book you’d expect from a setting deep in the woods at the end of a road by a waterfall. It’s otherworldly with many elements of fairytales. An all-seeing narrator guides us through the book’s various sections from different characters’ points of view, though we are not so guided that there is not mystery here, or surprise The novel’s first paragraph is, “ In which people go missing, a death-pact adds spice to life, and the lure of the forest and of love makes life worth living. The story seems far-fetched, but there are witnesses, so its truth cannot be doubted. To doubt it would be to deprive us of an improbable other world that offers refuge to special beings.” 

This is the most different of the other Canada Reads books I’ve read this year, quieter in its intentions, subtler in its message, more playful and nuanced (though this makes me think of “Like life is always fucking subtle,” and how sometimes books have to be huge and devastating to get their points across). A mysterious book that’s lyrical, lovely, and rich with story and stories. It doesn’t really do anything except be a book ( and it does that so well), which is a political statement in itself I think.

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One thought on “ And the Birds Rained Down by Jocelyn Saucier”

Yes, it is one of my all time favourite novels. My Father used to talk about the great Hailebury fire so it also touched very close to home.

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And the Birds Rained Down

Jocelyne saucier, translated by rhonda mullins, social sharing.

• The great Canadian reading list: 150 books to read for Canada 150

Tom and Charlie are living on their own in the woods, away from civilization. But when two women arrive one summer, all four are faced with challenging questions about growing up, growing old and finding purpose in life.

And the Birds Rained Down  was a finalist for the 2013 Governor General's Literary Awards. Martha Wainwright defended this novel for  Canada Reads 2015.

• Jocelyne Saucier: How I wrote And the Birds Rained Down

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From the book

I had already driven many kilometres of road under threatening skies, wondering whether I would find a clearing in the forest before nightfall, or at least before the storm hit. I had travelled all afternoon along spongy roads that led to labyrinths of quad trails and skidding roads, and then nothing more but clay ponds, beds of peat moss and walls of spruce, black fortresses growing ever thicker. The forest was going to close in around me without me laying me hands on Ted or Ed or Edward Boychuck, whose first name changed but whose last name remains the same, a sign that there was some truth in what I had heard about him, one of the last survivors of the Great Fires.

From And the Birds Rained Down by Jocelyne Saucier. Translated by Rhonda Mullins ©2012. Published by Coach House Books.

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Book Review: Canada Reads 2015: And the Birds Rained Down

First of all, let me say,  Coach House Books has published an exquisite looking book. The pages inside And the Birds Rained Down , are on a cover stock, almost like super fancy stationary. It was a delightful experience to turn the pages, and feel them between your fingers. I’ll admit to caressing them while reading. A very tactile experience I would not have obviously enjoyed had this been read on my e-reader.

I’ll also admit to at first being put off slightly by this title, based on my first impression of what the description had to say: a group of men living their lives in the forest, two pot farmers and then the arrival of two women that will change everything. Pot farmers? Living in the forest? Not my usual cup of tea and it was one of the Canada Reads finalists that I wasn’t too sure if I would enjoy.

Well…just a few pages in and I was completely entranced and captivated by this little story. Beautifully written (and translated) with very compelling characters each with great stories/histories. I couldn’t wait to get back to it at every chance I got.  Beautiful language.

Before the start of each chapter, there is a “set up” telling you a little about the character you are about to meet and how he/she fits into the overall story. Because of this it reminded me a wee touch of Eleanor Catton’s The Luminaries (although not for its length, this one is only 160 pages!)

There are many words, sentences, paragraphs that can be included here, but I’ll include this one just as a sample of the beauty, the detail and the imagery found in Saucier’s writing (and Mullins translation):

“The whims of a fire cannot be explained. it can climb the highest peaks, rip the blue from the sky, spread in a reddish glow, swelling, whistling – good god, it can leap onto anything that lives, jump from shore to shore, plunge into ravines soggy with water, devour peatlands, but leave a cow grazing in a circle of grass. What is there to understand? Fire, when it achieves this power, obeys no one but itself.” (p. 57) “…fire leaves in its wake earth that gasps, trees that slowly bursts into pieces, charred remains that crackle and whistle. How could a child wait quietly for someone to come save him while all around him monsters are stirring in the night?” (p. 58)

And then, comes the point where the title of the book is revealed to the reader, and it washes over you in another moment of beauty:

“The little old lady was a survivor of the Great Matheson Fire. She told her about the sky black as night and the birds that were falling from it like flies. ‘It was raining birds,’ she told her. ‘When the wind came up and covered the sky with a dome of black smoke, the air was in short supply, and you couldn’t breathe for the heat and the smoke, neither the people nor the birds, and they fell like rain at our feet.” (p. 69)

I’m not going to reveal too much about this book, I really want you to pick this one up and read it. It’s exquisite. I want you to discover, in this short little novel, all the grand beauty of the writing and the stories of each of the characters.

I was also a bit confused how this would fit into the 2015 Canada Reads theme, “One book to break barriers”.  What could this possibly have to do with breaking barriers? Well, again, just a few pages in and I could easily see how this fit into the theme. My read on this is awareness for the elderly, and their right to live (and die) at their own choosing and to do so with their dignity in place. I’m certain there’s more to it than this, but in general, this was the overall focus and the reason why Charlie, Ted and Tom have chosen to live out their remaining days in the forest. The arrival of the two women are perfectly suited and I do have to say my very favourite character was Gertrude (she then changes her name to Marie-Desneige). Her story and her history made for wonderful reading. And the Birds Rained Down is also a grand love story. 4.5 stars for this exquisite read. I do hope it goes far in the Canada Reads competition!

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When I saw that you had read this, I had to come see what you thought of it. I LOVED this book, so I am so glad to hear you did too. I had no idea what to expect, although the premise of three men living in the woods did appeal to me – I like stuff like that. I am so glad it has been chosen for Canada Reads this year, so lots more people will read it!

I’ve been trying to press this into many hands after reading. It is so far my very favourite of the Canada Reads contenders this year! It’s also one I cannot stop thinking about – it definitely is one of those that I see myself easily picking up and re-reading again. It was beautiful! Thanks for stopping by Naomi!

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And the Birds Rained Down by Jocelyne Saucier

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Jocelyne Saucier 's novels have received countless prizes, including the Prix des Cinq Continents de la Francophonie.

Rhonda Mullins's translation of Saucier's novel Jeanne's Road was nominated for the Governor General's Award.

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And the Birds Rained Down Paperback – Oct. 15 2012

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A CBC Canada Reads 2015 Selection

Finalist for the 2013 Governor General's Literary Award for French-to-English Translation

Deep in a Northern Ontario forest live Tom and Charlie, two octogenarians determined to live out the rest of their lives on their own terms: free of all ties and responsibilities, their only connection to civilization two pot farmers who bring them whatever they can't eke out for themselves. But their solitude is disrupted by the arrival of two women. The first is a photographer searching for survivors of a series of catastrophic fires nearly a century earlier; the second is an elderly escapee from a psychiatric institution. The little hideaway in the woods will never be the same. Originally published in French, And the Birds Rained Down , the recipient of several prestigious prizes, including the Prix de Cinq Continents de la Francophonie, is a haunting meditation on aging and self-determination.

• Print length 160 pages
• Language English
• Publisher Coach House Books
• Publication date Oct. 15 2012
• Dimensions 12.7 x 1.91 x 20.32 cm
• ISBN-10 1552452689
• ISBN-13 978-1552452684
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Product description

About the author, product details.

• Publisher ‏ : ‎ Coach House Books (Oct. 15 2012)
• Language ‏ : ‎ English
• Paperback ‏ : ‎ 160 pages
• ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 1552452689
• ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1552452684
• Item weight ‏ : ‎ 230 g
• Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 12.7 x 1.91 x 20.32 cm
• #229 in Canadian Women Writers
• #9,840 in Contemporary Women's Fiction
• #20,669 in Literary Fiction (Books)

About the author

Jocelyne saucier.

Jocelyne Saucier is the author of several novels and the recipient of the Prix des Cinq Continents de la Francophonie and the Prix Ringuet de l'Académie des lettres du Québec. She was born in New Brunswick and now resides in Abitibi, Quebec.

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And the Birds Rained Down Rhonda Mullins , Jocelyne Saucier 176 pages • first pub 2011 ( editions ) ISBN/UID: 9781770563339 Format: Digital Language: English Publisher: Not specified Publication date: Not specified fiction literary reflective sad slow-paced to read Expand dropdown menu read currently reading did not finish Toggle book page action menu and links add to "up next" mark as owned buy Bookshop US Bookshop UK Blackwell's The StoryGraph is an affiliate of the featured links. We earn commission on any purchases made. The StoryGraph is an affiliate of the featured links. We earn commission on any purchases made. Browse similar books... Start a readalong... Start a buddy read... View question bank... Book Information Add missing information... Report missing/incorrect information... StoryGraph Preview Personalized Powered by AI (Beta) Add blurb Community Reviews

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And the Birds Rained Down Rhonda Mullins , Jocelyne Saucier 176 pages • first pub 2011 ( editions ) ISBN/UID: 9781770563339 Format: Digital Language: English Publisher: Not specified Publication date: Not specified to read Expand dropdown menu read currently reading did not finish Toggle book page action menu and links add to "up next" mark as owned buy Bookshop US Bookshop UK Blackwell's The StoryGraph is an affiliate of the featured links. We earn commission on any purchases made. The StoryGraph is an affiliate of the featured links. We earn commission on any purchases made. Browse similar books... Start a readalong... Start a buddy read... View question bank... Book Information Add missing information... Report missing/incorrect information... fiction literary reflective sad slow-paced StoryGraph Preview Personalized Powered by AI (Beta) Add blurb Community Reviews

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