A review of Lily's Story from George Clark, a journalism professor: "Don Gutteridge's 'Lily's Story' is a tour de force, chronicling the life of an orphaned child in Upper Canada, facing the trials and tribulations of rural and small town life in the mid nineteenth to the early twentieth century, and doing it all through the eyes of a woman and the special challenges they faced. Lily is a tough nut, willing to fight her corner when necessary but also willing to use hard work and common sense to achieve her ends. There's nothing the matter with taking in laundry and scrubbing floors if it pays the bills and puts food on the table and clothes on their backs. Lily faces down blizzards and disease, near poverty and even fire. She bears children in her home overseen by an inebriated but well meaning mid-wife. And she can still see the humour in the small minded actions of the so-called Christian clergy in their attempted dealings with her. Along the way Lily has both husbands and children, and lovers in high office. Her problem is that she outlives so many of them. Known variously as a washer woman, a fallen woman, a witch and a saint, Lily chooses the life literally "on the wrong side of the tracks" in the railway town of Point Edward. She becomes a monument to the town's past, just as much as the War Memorial erected the site of her former cottage. Don Gutteridge knows his history and politics which add texture to this saga of life and times in early southwestern Ontario. "Lily's Story" is an entertaining saga which provokes both laughter and tears. It portrays the role of women in those days as much,much more than just those "who stand and wait." And I'm sure that for many, some of our own history and stories are embraced by Lily's." Review from John Ogletree, professor emeritus, The University of Western Ontario: "I finished reading the 666-page historical novel by Don Gutteridge and was eager to start again. The character descriptions were superb. He has a full command of the language of the day, so that you can hear the characters speaking. The author’s use of language makes the story flow in a believable form. The interweaving of history and fiction is skillful. He is a master of his craft. The novel is very well researched with over sixty references in the bibliography. This is one of the few books where I have recorded so many “nuggets” from the conversations and observations of the characters. This epic work helped this reader to make sense out of life."
