Book excerpt: Gift of the Loon is the story of a woman ahead of her time. Set in the early twentieth century, Margaret Harrison wants to be an artist—a difficult proposition for a woman at a time when a woman’s place was in the home. Eschewing the burdens of marriage and children to become an accomplished painter, Margaret must not only go against society’s norms and the wishes of her family, she must also overcome imposter syndrome. Amid the pain and loss of World War One, Maggie revels in the avant-garde forms of expression emerging in the art world, including Cubism, Futurism, Expressionism, and Fauvism. When she meets artist, Tom Thomson while painting on the French River, her life is forever changed. And when he betrays her in a way she could never have anticipated, she has to find a way to once again see the joy in life. On her journey, Maggie discovers a truth about her choices that changes the way she sees herself and her relationship with the world. Through Maggie, the reader is immersed in art, travel, nature, romance, painting, and adventure. Gift of the Loon is multilayered, exploring themes of self-discovery, the roles of women, challenging society’s norms, our relationships with art and nature, and the development of Canada’s independent artistic vision. Ultimately, the story asks the question: How do you define success? Is success defined by someone else's standard of what we should achieve? Or, do we give ourselves permission to determine what success is for us?