Signing event at Saanich Archives (inside the Saanich Centennial library branch). Meet archivist and best-selling author Sonia Nicholson as she reads from her local history-inspired book. Copies available for purchase: $25 cash or e-transfer.
ARCHIVIST COMBINES LOCAL HISTORY AND LOVE OF PARIS IN NEW BOOK. The story of generational family secrets features Saanich’s Cloverdale neighbourhood.
They say to write what you know, and local archivist and author Sonia Nicholson has done just that, infusing 17 years of experience in local archives and a lifelong passion for the City of Lights into her novel, Provenance Unknown, where an archivist without a past of her own doesn’t expect her profession to get personal.
Thirty-year old single mom Michele Norman has finally found her dream job at the city archives. But while she does a deep dive into every inquiry that comes in, there’s one past she won’t touch: her own. But when she discovers a forgotten French diary in the vault, it sends her on a journey from the west coast of Canada all the way to Paris, France. Will Michele be distracted by the intriguing and maddening Sébastien? Or will she finally find answers to the family questions she has never been ready to ask?
The book includes glimpses of Victoria during WWII, the Tolmie family’s presence in the Cloverdale neighbourhood in the early settler days, and even Rutledge Park’s beloved pink elephant statue.
“I love visualizing the places where I live, work, and play as they appeared 10, 50, or 100 years ago, so it was natural to include these peeks into the past in the book, and they’re integral to the plot,” says Nicholson. She adds, “I also wanted to explore the unusual idea of an archivist who doesn’t know anything about her own past and doesn’t want to know, while being utterly obsessed with the stories of strangers.”
Provenance Unknown, originally published by Sands Press in 2023, has been re-released by She Rises Studios. It is available in ebook and paperback on Amazon, with links available at
https://sonianicholson.com/books/
About the Author
Sonia Nicholson’s work has appeared in publications including Inspirelle, Literary Heist, Pinhole Poetry, Heimat Review, and Rivanna Review. Her writing explores themes of identity, family, and place. A first-generation Canadian who grew up in a Portuguese immigrant household, she was born and raised in Osoyoos, British Columbia. She holds a Bachelor of Arts Degree in French and Spanish from the University of Victoria and continues to call Victoria home. Provenance Unknown is her first novel, and she has two more set to be published.
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