Katherine Lawrence lies to her mother, and others, justifying her mendacity by quoting Clare Booth Luce – “lying increases the creative faculties, expands the ego and lessens the friction of social contact.”

However, she is completely frank in her admission of these actions to her readers. And in her description of the circumstances in which such revisions might be required. A small muddy daughter battles her protective mother for her right to experience the fascinating world. As a girl, a young woman, the struggle with the social world continues. It’s a matter of living the life of both Scaredy Cat and Dare Devil, and simply saying what must be said to make that possible.

When she has a daughter of her own, things are a little different. She’s not above a few familiar tricks to try and protect her own from the dangers she can remember so well.

Then comes the times when life brings some really hard truths - a spouse with lies of his own, a husband with cancer, the death of loved ones. Are those helpful lies now more dangerous than they are comforting?

In a mature, confident voice, Katherine Lawrence examines the tricky emotional terrain of a woman’s darknesses as well as lightnesses, providing valuable hints as to what may be lying in wait.

* Finalist, Poetry Award, Saskatchewan Book Awards