Norah Winters

Norah is the oldest of the three Winters daughters. She is described as bright, good, and docile. She horrifies the entire family when she decides to live the life of a vagabond on the streets of Toronto, forsaking everything that is meaningful in our culture: love, family, education, wealth, home. Norah is thoughtful and philosophical; like her mother, Reta, she struggles with the larger questions of life. Although her character is not as well-developed as that of Reta Winters and, in some ways, she remains in the background of the novel, the story centers around her disappearance.

Reta Winters

Reta Winters is a forty-three year old successful writer who began her work as a translator for the feminist philosopher, Danielle Westerman. When the story opens, she has achieved some modest success with her first novel, My Thyme is Up, which also won the Offenden Prize. Reta decides...