THE POOL IN THE DESERT. Duncan, Sara Jeannette. Markham (Ont.). Penguin Books, c1984.189pp, paper, $5.95, ISBN 0-14-007457-0. (Penguin Short Fiction) CIP Grades 12 and up Reviewed by Anne Locatelli Volume 13 Number 1 1985 January The trend to revive obscure and forgotten works by early Canadian authors brings us this interesting collection of four stories, originally published in 1903 and reprinted by the University of Toronto Press in 1979. This timely Penguin edition opens with a sensitive and provocative seven-page introduction by Rosemary Sullivan, assistant professor of English at the University of Toronto, which provides an excellent critical appraisal of the stories. Each story reflects, in a very special way, Duncan's experiences as a woman living within the constraints of conventional British India at the turn of the century. In each of the four stories the main character is a woman confronted with a challenging situation that restrains her feelings, actions and reactions and reflects the stultifying effect of a conformist society on the development and expression of passionate, independent and intellectual women. Sara Jeannette Duncan was born and raised in Brantford, Canada West (later Ontario) in 1861. Upon graduating from normal school in Toronto and following a brief teaching career, she travelled extensively as a freelance journalist. In India, she married and settled there for the rest of her life; however, she did return to England periodically for lengthy visits. She died in England in 1922. Her work was described by leading writers of her time as "extraordinarily keen and delicate, and able." She wrote with ease and perspicacious understanding. Of the many books she wrote, two of her best-known Canadian novels are Cousin Cinderella; or a Canadian Girl in London and The Imperialist. A remarkable depth of perception and a keen sense of irony and humour pervade Duncan's writings. Her stories are both amusing and thought-provoking, as fresh and appealing today as when she first wrote them. Her love of freedom and justice for women makes her a precursor of today's feminist movements. This slim paperback volume, with an illustrated cover, belongs to the Penguin Short Fiction series. The Pool in the Desert should be considered for senior high school collections, particularly in connection with women's studies, history and sociology courses, and of course it should be in every Canadiana section. Anne Locatelli, Elliot Lake S.S., Elliot Lake, Ont.