A member of the first generation of Quebec romantics imbued with the fervor of political revolution and historical nationalism, Antoine Gérin-Lajoie is remembered for his plaintive lament "Un Canadian errant" (1865) and his classic of nineteenth-century Quebec fiction, Jean Rivard (1874, 1876; originally published serially in 1862 and 1864), a "roman du terroir," preaching the nationalist myth of agriculturalism.

Gérin-Lajoie was born at Sainte-Anne-de-Yamachiche into the habitant family of Antoine and Marie Gélinas Gérin-Lajoie, whose house is today a museum, a monument to their traditional rural life that was to inspire Jean Rivard , a book full of nostalgic memories. Early in his career at the local school, Gérin-Lajoie won prizes and, with the priest's encouragement, was sent to the classical college at Nicolet for what his son, Léon Gérin, has described as a "brilliant career," his mark on college...