This is a fascinating memoir by CBC reporter Pauline Daikin. As a child Daikin's parents were divorced. She, her younger brother, Ted and her mother repeatedly moved (from Vancouver, to Winnipeg, to St. John) suddenly and without telling their family and friends. They always went to the same place as a family friend, a minister named Stan. Daikin was alienated from her father and the subject of a bitter custody dispute. Though Pauline and Ted knew their family was different, whenever they asked their mother why she told them she would explain when they were older.
When Pauline was 23, her mother and Stan explained to her that all this time they had been on the run from organized crime. They advised that her father had been heavily involved and that Stan and her mother were thought to be informants and thus at risk. They also warn her against getting close to her father and various other former friends who had mob connections. Finally they tell her she is under constant surveillance by a group trying to protect her from the mob. She is warned not to share the story with anyone as it could put her and her mother at risk.
With a keen reporter's eye and research skills Pauline works to sort out her past, the present and what to do with her future given these revelations. She must closely examine her relationship with her mother and Stan (who has been a father figure) in order to move forward.
I couldn't wait to get to the end to sort out the mystery with the author and I was not disappointed with her account of how the story unfolded. She has proven herself to be not only a skilled researcher and writer, but also a resilient person.
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