Mary Eleanor Wilkins was an English woman brought up to a lire of tine music, elegant clothes, and a strong sense of propriety.

The Silent Song is the story or her immigration with her adventurous husband and two young daughters in 1904 to the rough and undeveloped Qu'Appelle region of what became Saskatchewan.

Mary Eleanor's story is not unusual, but its quiet sadness is unforgettable. Through memory, diaries, and letters, her oldest daughter, Marjorie Wilkins Campbell, a Governor General's literary award winner, pieces together her beautiful and talented mother's struggle to survive. The Silent Song gives voice to the thousands of women who suffered the barren conditions of the early West with few resources, and offers insight into the lives of those who were not strong enough to endure.

Marjorie Wilkins Campbell (b at London, Eng 1901; d at Toronto 23 Nov 1986) was the author of thirteen books for both adults and younger readers, including The Silent Song: A Tribute to a Reluctant Pioneer Mother (Fifth House, 1999). She is a recipient of a Guggenheim Fellowship (1959) and a Member of the Order of Canada (1978), and received two Governor General's Awards; the first in nonfiction for The Saskatchewan (1950) and the second in juvenile literature for The Nor'Westers (1954).

Marjorie Wilkins Campbell's profile page