Crossings

Crossings was Betty Lambert's only novel; published by Pulp Press in 1979, it was revolutionary for its frank and unsettling portrayal of Vicky, a female writer in Vancouver in the early 1960s, an educated and intelligent woman who struggles to come to terms with herself as she navigates an emotionally abusive relationship with Mik, a violent logger and ex-con. Their physical, often violent affair offers an honest and unflinching look at relationships and female suffering. The book caused a furor when it was first published, and in fact was banned from some feminist Canadian bookstores. At the same time, it was widely acclaimed by critics and writers, including Jane Rule, who wrote: "This portrait of an artist as a young woman should stand beside Alice Munro's Who Do You Think You Are and Margaret Laurence's The Diviners as a testimony of the courage and cost of being a woman and a writer." Out of print for more than twenty years, this new edition of Crossings will introduce this Canadian classic—and remarkable writer—to a new generation of readers. Includes an introduction by novelist Claudia Casper ( The Reconstruction and The Continuation of Love by Other Means).