Genevieve Graham’s On Isabella Street is a masterclass in immersive historical fiction—equal parts intimate character study and sweeping social commentary. Set during the chaotic pulse of 1967 Toronto, with echoes from the Vietnam War reverberating through its pages, this latest novel from Canada’s celebrated historical fiction author unfolds like a vintage folk ballad: layered, wistful, and piercingly resonant.
Known for bestselling works like Tides of Honour, Come from Away, and Letters Across the Sea, Graham has carved out a unique space in Canadian literature by amplifying underrepresented historical narratives through emotionally grounded storytelling. In On Isabella Street, she shifts her lens from rural wartime stories to urban unrest and the personal price of progress, crafting a novel as timely as it is timeless.
Plot Summary: Two Women at the Crossroads of Change
Set against the backdrop of Toronto’s vibrant yet unsettled Yorkville neighborhood, On Isabella Street interlaces the lives of two starkly different women:
- Marion Hart is a committed psychiatrist navigating the pressures of deinstitutionalization—a policy that promises community integration for mental health patients but threatens a societal safety net for the most vulnerable.
- Sassy Rankin is a folk-singing idealist from an affluent family, whose brother’s decision to fight in Vietnam pushes her further into anti-war activism and personal rebellion.
Though their lifestyles, politics, and temperaments couldn’t be more divergent, both women inhabit the same apartment building at 105 Isabella Street. Through protest marches, therapy sessions, and deeply personal reckonings, they develop a reluctant yet ultimately transformative friendship that anchors the novel’s emotional heart.
When a devastating secret emerges and a tragic decision is made, it’s their shared strength—and the street they call home—that ties the threads of past, present, and future together.
Historical Fiction with Contemporary Echoes
Exploring the Legacy of Deinstitutionalization
The novel’s engagement with mental health care is particularly moving. Graham takes readers into the underbelly of a transitioning system, where compassion often clashes with policy. Marion’s quiet, relentless advocacy for her patients, especially Daniel—a voiceless and deeply traumatized war veteran—is depicted with sobering nuance. This storyline not only highlights the flaws of the mental health system of the time but resonates deeply with today’s ongoing discussions around housing, care, and mental illness.
Protest Culture and Generational Dissonance
Sassy’s storyline serves as a window into the 1960s counterculture, but Graham does not romanticize the hippie ideal. Instead, she presents Sassy as both part of the movement and a product of privilege, whose protests are tinged with inner conflict. Her father, Jim Rankin, is the embodiment of capitalist ambition—his real estate ventures displacing the very people his daughter claims to champion. Graham mines this tension with admirable depth, showing how ideology can become entangled with family and identity.
War’s Echo in the Home Front
Although Canada didn’t officially enter the Vietnam War, the novel reveals the emotional toll of the conflict through families like the Rankins and patients like Daniel. Genevieve Graham shows how war’s reach extends beyond borders and battlefields—into apartments, hospitals, and the hearts of those left behind.
Literary Craft and Structure
Graham’s writing remains lyrical yet unpretentious, drawing beauty from the mundane: chipped paint in aging hallways, the distant hum of protest songs, the eerie silence of a hospital ward. The alternating point-of-view chapters between Marion and Sassy maintain a fluid rhythm, offering two contrasting lenses through which to view the social upheaval of the time.
Where Graham particularly excels is in her rendering of emotional subtleties. Marion’s scenes, especially those set in the mental hospital, are steeped in ethical ambiguity and quiet heartbreak. Sassy’s chapters hum with the rhythm of music and revolution, yet never lose sight of personal stakes. The result is a dual narrative that feels balanced and compelling throughout.
Standout Characters
- Marion Hart is the moral compass of the novel, yet her strength lies in her vulnerability. Her belief in structured care over idealistic reform is complex and well-argued, making her a character both admirable and frustrating in all the right ways.
- Sassy Rankin is a magnetic presence—at times impulsive and naïve, but never stagnant. Her transformation is one of the novel’s greatest successes. Watching her evolve from a performative activist into a woman willing to risk real consequences is both satisfying and believable.
- Daniel, the war veteran whose trauma robs him of speech, is the novel’s quiet conscience. Through him, Graham illustrates how trauma can become a silencing force—and how empathy can become a lifeline.
- Jim Rankin, though a secondary character, embodies the novel’s internal contradictions. His secret ties to Daniel and his ultimate gesture of redemption add a haunting layer to the book’s final act.
Strengths of the Novel
- Immersive Setting: From the bustling Yorkville protests to the institutional walls of mental hospitals, every location feels lived-in and carefully rendered.
- Authentic Dialogue: Conversations between characters—especially Marion and Sassy—never feel forced, blending period-appropriate language with timeless emotional truths.
- Balanced Pacing: The alternating perspectives allow the narrative to breathe, shifting from introspective to action-oriented beats with ease.
- Relevance: Themes of systemic failure, privilege, trauma, and political awakening are not just historical—they speak directly to current conversations in mental health, housing, and activism.
Areas for Improvement
- Occasional Predictability: Some plot developments, particularly related to character revelations and Daniel’s backstory, feel foreshadowed a bit too heavily, reducing their emotional impact.
- Supporting Characters Left Undeveloped: Figures like Davey or Sassy’s mother fade quickly, serving the plot more than enriching it.
- Slight Imbalance in Voice: At times, Marion’s introspections verge on repetition, while Sassy’s voice tends to dominate the more dynamic scenes.
Readers Who Will Love This Book
This novel will particularly appeal to:
- Fans of Kristin Hannah’s The Women, for its blend of female solidarity and wartime reckoning
- Readers of Jennifer Chiaverini and Ellen Keith, who appreciate nuanced historical fiction with emotional stakes
- Longtime admirers of Genevieve Graham, especially those who enjoyed Letters Across the Sea and Bluebird
- Anyone interested in Canadian history, especially through the lens of mental health, civil rights, and war-era politics
Final Thoughts: A Quietly Courageous Novel
On Isabella Street may not shout its brilliance—it unfolds slowly, like a sepia-toned photo coming into focus. But its quiet courage lies in its honesty: about systems that fail, about people who falter, and about the fragile bridges we build in our search for connection and meaning.
Though not a novel of high drama or sensational twists, it is a story of steady, soulful reckoning. Graham has once again reminded us that the most profound revolutions often begin not on stages or in government buildings—but in homes, in hospitals, and in the hearts of everyday women.