"I read Heart of a Stranger as soon as it was published and, while I was interested in her travel writing, I have to say her comments on each essay meant more to me. They pointed to the authorial voice which Laurence possessed and demonstrated her insight about her own work. Little did I know that the preface she wrote for the collection was not published, until now.It is fitting that this edition connects her travel writing with the rest of her work and, therefore, offers a fresh approach. As Laurence wrote in her Foreword, 'they are a record of the long journey back home.'" Anne Burke, Prairie Journal, July 2003
"The essays in Heart of a Stranger cover a wide variety of topics. Generally considered as Laurence's "travel writing," the essays explore her experiences in Somalia, Nigeria, Greece, Egypt, England, Scotland, and then back to Canada. But they go far beyond travel writing, for they show, as well, how her travels influenced her novels and short stories.Because the topics and treatment vary so widely, different people may enjoy different parts of this book. I especially enjoyed Laurence's own comments at the beginning of each essay, as she looks back and analyses her own writing. The reissue of Heart of a Stranger will be welcomed by many libraries, as well as individuals." (Complete review: http://www.prairiefire.mb.ca/reviews/laurence_m.html) Donna Gamache, Prairie Fire Review of Books
"[A]n absorbing travelogue of Margaret Laurence's one-woman global journey, a world spanning travel adventure which brought her new perspectives both on faraway lands such as Africa as well as her cherished home of Canada. Containing threads of autobiography and life journey, as well as fascinating views of diverse cultures, Heart of a Stranger is a most memorable and enjoyable read." Library Bookwatch
"Heart of a Stranger (1976) has now been republished with new material, a very helpful annotation, and an introduction by its editor Nora Foster Stovel..The [annotated notes] will assist and enrich the experience of reading and rereading the essays. These notes span twenty-six pages: they provide publishing histories on Laurence's essays, they also record the sources of poem fragments....[Laurence] is with us again in this book thanks to Stovel's scholarship and critical vision. And the message that ran between Laurence and her best friend, Adele Wiseman, is repeated: 'Courage-Forward!' (217). I have one word to add: that's 'Bravo'!" Laura McLaughlan, Canadian Woman Studies, Vol. 23, No. 2
"Nora Foster Stovel's new edition of Margaret Laurence's Heart of a Stranger is an excellent re-issue of Laurence's important collection of travel essays. Through Heart of a Stranger, Laurence's voice reaches across the decades to tell us about herself, her fiction, and the plight of a Western woman traveler in the twentieth century. This new edition of the text is a carefully documented, well-researched, and expanded version of the original." Laura Strong Davis, Margaret Laurence Revew, Vol. 13
"As Stovel notes, we can enjoy these essays as travelogue, as autobiography, or as a key to Laurence's fiction. While some of their commentary has inevitably become dated, they still speak in a fresh voice because Laurence always evokes her fascination with people and a sense of urgency about their needs, even when the needs are as old as the pharaohs. She never belittles her subjects or talks down to her readers, which means that her writing will always appeal to a wide readership." Jon Kertzer, Canadian Ethnic Studies Journal, Vol. 36, No. 2 (2004)
"It is a joy to be able to reread Laurence's essays about those strange lands. This new trade paperback edition continues efforts by editor Nora Foster Stovel and the University of Alberta Press to ensure that Laurence's lesser-known works are back in print and thus accessible to Canadian readers." Wendy Roy, Canadian Literature 183, Winter 2004
