A Broken Head

When s a murder not a murder? When is a patricide not a patricide? When is Satan involved and when is God? These are some of the questions that Lee Gowan puts before us as he unwinds his first-person account narrated by a janitor reflecting on his upbringing in small-town Saskatchewan and the events that drove him to Toronto. The town is aptly named Broken Head because in so many ways the protagonist of this novel has a broken head. The line between fantasy and reality is one he has trouble drawing, and we, the readers, sense this early on.

This is Lee Gowan’s third novel. Shortlisted previously for the Trillium Awardry hi and published under the prestigious Knopf imprint, Gowan is a talented and ambitious author. His willingness to take chances is evident in the narrator he has created in Confession. Dwight Froese, the janitor, is a man who has trouble understanding the world and the actions of its inhabitants. He does not mix easily and his comprehension...