Sandy shores of time
Vikki VanSickle is the author of Words That Start With B, Love Is A Four-Letter Word, and Days That End in Y. Her latest novel, Summer Days, Starry Nights, is about a 12-year-old girl named Reenie who lives with her family at a summer resort in Orillia, Ont., called Sandy Shores, a place she wishes to remain forever. But not everything is perfect; Reenie observes the quiet distress of her father when her mother wilts into periodic sad moods, and her life is turned upside down when a cultured city girl named Gwen arrives to teach dance lessons. Summer Days, Starry Nights examines the delicate balance between individuality and preserving our sense of home. Rebecca Melnyk interviewed its author about real and imagined places, the 1960s, parental imperfections and dreams of never leaving home.
Q Sandy Shores is a deeply meaningful place in Reenie’s life. Is Sandy Shores completely imagined or did you model it after a place in your own life?
A When I was a child, my family rented a cottage on Lake dalrymple, near Orillia, at a family resort for a week every summer. I loved it there and never wanted to leave. The basic layout is very much based on this resort, although I added things, such as the mess hall and the old dock, to suit the needs of the story. One of the joys of writing fiction is the element of wish fulfillment, so I got to live at a summer resort vicariously through reenie’s experiences.
Q The themes of this novel are timeless — gaining independence, awkward adolescence, young love. Why place your story in 1962? How central is this time period to your story?
A Summer Days, Starry Nights is essentially a coming-of-age novel, and the 1960s was a coming-of-age period for the whole world. The story is very much about women’s choices and opportunities, which differ among the three female characters. Mimi was part of a generation of women who got a taste of freedom during the Second World War when society expected them to step up to fill the roles of men. When the men returned, those women were expected to step back into the roles of wife and mother, roles that were not a natural fit for Mimi. Gwen, the next generation, is right at the beginning of the civil rights and feminist movements, electrically captured by the music of that era. Women were beginning to express themselves in popular culture and through music, and Gwen wants to be a part of that. And then we have reenie, who yearns to be taken seriously as a potential caretaker of Sandy Shores but knows that traditionally it’s her brother who stands to inherit the resort. In a contemporary setting these struggles wouldn’t carry as much weight or relevance, but in the early 1960s the stakes were much higher.
Q What makes a great young female protagonist?
A Curiosity and strength of character. A good female protagonist takes chances and is honest with the reader, if no one else in the story. I want my readers to feel like the narrator’s confidant. They are in on the secret, which may perhaps reflect secrets of their own and provide comfort or reassurance. My narrators can voice concerns or thoughts that perhaps the reader feels but is not brave enough to voice aloud. This is a powerful feeling for a young reader.
Q Reenie wants to live at Sandy Shores forever in the hopes of running it some day. What are some benefits of remaining where you grow up, as opposed to venturing out in the world. Is it OK to want to stay in one place forever?
A reenie feels a calling. She believes that all she needs is Sandy Shores, but she learns that this includes the people around her, not just the physical place. Gwen represents the outside world, and part of reenie’s infatuation with Gwen is her life in Toronto, and the adventures she has had. I am a strong believer that a person should go out into the world and return home if they choose to do so, but there is something to be said for people who have a strong sense of belonging to a particular place.