Marguerite Gallant — A Legendary Acadian / une Acadienne légendaire

by Béatrice Desveaux with/avec Daniel Doucet • colour photos • 80 pages

A FRIEND TO ALL, this unique Acadian comes to life in a delightful book.
    Marguerite Gallant is remembered as a woman brave enough to go her own way, to dress as she wished, and to live life to the fullest. Having grown up in poverty, she struck out in the world, serving as a companion to families in the United States. In the end, she traveled to nearly every state, and brought back the beginnings of her incongruous collection of items both rare and ordinary: a collander and thousands of bottles, fishermen's knots tacked to a board, plaster replicas of Mary, Joseph, and saints, jewelry both fake and real, stuffed birds, sheet music. and everyday tools.
    In this tender and tart memoir, Béatrice Desveaux celebrates Marguerite's joyous encouragement to simplicity, and to respect for all that lives. Sparkling with anecdotes, this attractive book offers bold, readable print, and an excellent translation into French by Charles D. Roach. The French and English versions are on facing pages.
    Rich in colour photos of her treasures and the bright red walls of her turquoise house on Chéticamp Island, with historical photos from her life, Marguerite Gallant is a souvenir, a great gift and, like Marguerite herself, a lasting treasure.