Diane Schoemperlen

Unlike other Canadian novels of its genre, Our Lady of the Lost and Found is a profound and quietly affecting gem that does not produce ennui or restlessness. Despite her critics, Schoemperlen produces an entrancing tale which begins with a window to a writer’s solitary yet comfortable life and routine in Anyville, North America (although the author betrays her Canadian roots at the outset of the novel) and leads to a series of spiritually sumptuous moments that begin with the arrival of show more the Virgin Mary at the narrator’s doorstep (rather at the foot of the fig tree in the living room).

In Our Lady of the Lost and Found, Schoemperlen juxtaposes the nameless narrator’s ordinary life and daily preoccupations with a brief albeit rousing history of the Virgin Mary and her apparitions throughout the past two millenniums. Indeed, Schoemperlen’s gem of a novel is not riddled with a defining plot or particularly thrilling or resonating events in the course of its denouement. Then again, this bookworm does not object to a slow paced book that unfurls a delightful narrative which interweaves faith, science, and the frailty of the human mind and psyche with amazing attention to detail, pathos and humour.

Schoemperlen displays an effacing and quasi-self-deprecating sense of humour which makes the dreariness of a quiet existence come alive in vivid shapes and colours. In reading Our Lady of the Lost and Found, one is drawn in quietly towards the germination of the story of the protagonist’s life which rings surprisingly true to the quiet existence of this particular reader’s reality. In some way, one cannot help feel a slight forbearing of things to come which was oddly comforting to me. Schoemperlen’s protagonist recognizes romantic (dis)entanglements in her youth as foolish mistakes and ruminates over yesterdays and used-to-bes yet all the while being fully appreciative of the current of her life with some dignity.

Some readers and critics admonish Schoemperlen for the ambivalent role that religion and faith play throughout Our Lady of the Lost and Found. Is it a work of fiction, a compilation of historical narratives, or a tentative recollection of the writer’s hallucinatory visions of the Virgin Mary? In my opinion - it does not matter. As an agnostic who struggles with her wavering faith, the narrative was blissful in that it enabled the character of Mary to intersperse humourous anecdotes with wry intelligence and field questions on the conflicting role that religious fervour and spiritual apathy have in modern society. Millions of people across the globe firmly believe in their faith and hold true to their tales of apparitions and miracles. After all, these fascinating debates on the role of unwavering faith is sorely lacking nowadays despite the rising influence of spiritual gurus and their teachings. show less

Normally, I don't wind up wondering if a tale is autobiographical or not; I believe authors can make things up that seem utterly real. And yet, I often found myself pondering just that question as I read Diane Schoemperlen's "At a Loss For Words." A writer re-encounters a past love and they resume their romance, only to have the affair come again to an unsatisfactory ending, one which leaves the writer with a terrible case of writer's block. The story of the relationship is told in journal show more entries, voicemails, emails, IM conversations and it is perhaps the here-and-nowness of these communications that gives the book such realism. Well, that and Schoemperlen's photographic capture of the lusts, obsessions, depressions and doubts of an intense, waxing-wanning relationship. show less

Subtly hilarious and entirely serious, this visitation of the Blessed Virgin is above all a holy hoot.

She can't eat. She can't sleep. She drinks too much coffee and smokes too many cigarettes. She can't focus. She's a writer who can't write. She checks for messages several times a day and her disappointment is palpable. What's wrong with her? She's in love. Such is the author's strength that she makes us feel everything her character is going through.This woman's first love has walked back into her life after many years while she's giving a reading in a bookstore. Her euphoria knows no show more bounds. It's a long distance relationship this time and she just can't get enough of his letters, emails, phone messages or the occasional day or two together. The bad news is that, between the exhilarating highs of passion and devastating lows of doubt and fear, she can't concentrate enough to work. This has never happened to her before. She doesn't want to panic but books on writing don't help much with their simplistic though well-meaning suggestions on how to get past the big WB-writer's block. She uses some of their ideas to great satirical effect in the novel, which reads much like journal entries. "Take some swings in a batting cage". "Write in the woods while leaning against a tree". In her mind these become as inane as "Make a paper clip chain six feet long or more." This is the story of words and the power we give to them during the throes of romantic love. We go over every word or phrase the object of our affection says. Was there more there than stated, some unspoken meaning, did he mean it seriously or was it just a casual remark? Is he as commited as he says or just a smooth talker? Our character finds sudden meaning in crossword puzzle definitions or horoscopes, things that emphasize her new feelings or sharpen her worry and pain. It's not long before the reader begins to squirm a little because you've see yourself behaving the same way. She's exposed us all a little, told the unspoken truth about how obsessed or even goofy we can be when we think we're in love. We all have friends who act like this and we know there's little reasoning with them when their under the influence of adoration. We suffer along with her but like our friends we sometimes want to shake her and tell her to get real. The author has done a terrific job, with a slow reveal of the other side of the relationship. I reread large portions just to enjoy the way she uses language. Schoemperlen has several novels to her credit already but the format is different here. Some may not like that it's not a simple narrative but it works for her purposes very well. And some will think the story should have ended sooner but then so should some of our own rides on this rollercoaster of the heart. Four stars out of five.

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