Heart of a Stranger

Travel was closely connected to Margaret Laurence_s creativity. Laurence realized that her travels, especially to Africa, provided her with new perspectives on Canada.Heart of a Stranger, originally published in 1976, is a fascinating travelogue chronicling Laurence's geographical journeys to many lands and historic places. She notes "I saw, somewhat to my surprise, that they are all, in one way or another, travel articles. And by travel, I mean both those voyages which are outer and those voyages which are inner."Laurence writes about her travels to Egypt in "Good Morning to the Grandson of Ramesses the Second," to Scotland in "Road from the Isles," and to Greece in "Sayonara, Agamemnon." In "The Very Best Intentions" Laurence sees herself as a "stranger in a strange land" in Ghana. She reflects on the many places she lived in "Put Out One or Two More Flags," "Down East," "The Shack" and "Where the World Began."Professor Nora Foster Stovel_s new introduction "Heart of a Traveller" explores how Laurence_s experiences in other lands influenced and shaped her writing. She contends that "Heart of a Stranger constitutes a concealed autobiography, for, in chronicling her literal life journey, Laurence also reveals her spiritual odyssey."Laurence, Margaret is the author of 'Heart of a Stranger' with ISBN 9780888644077 and ISBN 0888644078.