author
Isabel Ecclestone Mackay
1875–1928
A Canadian poet and novelist of the early 20th century, she wrote with a lyrical touch and a sharp eye for character. Her work helped shape a growing national literature at a time when Canadian writing was still finding its wider audience.
3 Audiobooks
Up the Hill and Over
by Isabel Ecclestone Mackay
The Window-Gazer
by Isabel Ecclestone Mackay
Fires of Driftwood
by Isabel Ecclestone Mackay
About the author
Born Isabel MacPherson on November 25, 1875, in Woodstock, Ontario, she became known as Isabel Ecclestone Mackay after her marriage. She built a literary career as both a poet and novelist, and her writing appeared during an important period in the development of Canadian literature.
Mackay published poetry as well as fiction, and she is especially remembered as a Canadian writer whose work reached readers in the early decades of the 1900s. Her career connected her to the broader literary life of the country, and she is often noted for bringing a graceful, reflective style to both verse and prose.
She died in Vancouver, British Columbia, on August 15, 1928. Though not as widely known today as some of her contemporaries, she remains part of the story of Canadian writing in the years when its modern identity was taking shape.