"The Tin Flute" and "Mercy Among the Children"

Both Gabrielle Roy and David Adams Richards have delved into the reality of poverty among Canadian families. Roy's novel, The Tin Flute, depicts the pain and hardship of poverty, through her portrayal of the Lacasse family. Florentine Lacasse fervently attempts to detach herself from her family's financial situation, only to realise that it is a battle she cannot win. Similarly, the Hendersons must endure the misery that has been brought upon them by their poverty, in Richards' Mercy Among the Children. Lyle, the eldest boy, is conflicted between his family's desolation and his pursuit of…