At First I Hope for Rescue Paperback - 1998

Media reviews

"A remarkable novel by a huge and genuine talent. Holley Rubinsky has perfect pitch."—Ian Brown

"There is a vein of bravery and insight running through — so rich that it infuses everything.... This is an author staring down the hardest things she knows ... and the results are incendiary."—The Globe and Mail

"Holley Rubinsky's voice is clear, her eyes and ears are carefully tuned, and she has something fresh and loving to say about the world that we live in daily.... Rubinsky's stories are restorative, in the best sense of that word, and renewing."—Russell Banks

"Books this good are rare. [These stories] combine the fine craftsmanship we expect from a Munro or Gallant with Rubinsky's own delightful idiosyncrasy."—The Edmonton Journal

"... Rubinsky's interior monologues are spot on ... Her ability to create believable male characters in all their spunky confusion, and extend sympathy to them, is a laudable achievement." --The Ottawa Citizen

"... remarkable ... [Holley Rubinsky] paints a picture so vivid and creates her cast of characters in such a convincing manner that it is hard to believe we are not reading a non-fiction book." --The County Chronicle

"... emotionally complex ... Rubinsky's stories are intimate explorations of breakdowns in process -- breakdowns of family, of the mind, of emotional clarity." --The Toronto Star