Cadillac Cathedral

Jack Hodgins, one of Canada’ s favourite storytellers, has returned with a new tale in Cadillac Cathedral. In this story, situated on Vancouver Island, the literary home of many of his earlier books, Hodgins lovingly recreates the rural community of Portuguese Creek. It is here we meet Arvo, a Finn, who has worked in logging camps all his life and now spends his retirement rescuing abandoned cars to restore in his garage, where his loyal group of friends congregate to keep him company. When the group hears that an old friend has died, they decide to drive south to the big city to pick up the body. A road trip ensues— but not just any road trip, for it takes place in a Cadillac Cathedral, a remarkable hearse built in the 1930s, which Arvo has refurbished. Along the way, the friends encounter adventures that create detours into country life. We learn about the unusual marriages that keep couples apart and together. There is a winsome widow with her eye on Arvo, and another mysterious widow in the big city for whom Arvo appears to retain strong feelings. Here is Hodgins at his humorous best, capturing a timeless world that is yet very much of our time.