Unless

Unless (HarperCollins Canada, 2003) by Carol Shields
Carol Shields's exploration of how a mother's life is turned upside down when her daughter drops out of university and becomes a beggar on the streets of Toronto may not be one of her most famous works, but it's certainly one of her most loved. Julie Buckley was one of several Shields fans showing the Canadian icon some love in the reader recommendation process:
"I read this book a number of years ago and the essence of it has remained with me all these years later. Whenever I see a teenager who appears homeless on the streets, I remember the character in this book. It reminds me that everyone has a story that has shaped them up to this stage in their life and they are not looking to be judged, rather to just be seen. This person on the street has loved ones who are often unable to understand why they have chosen this way to live."
Accolades: Unless won the Ethel Wilson Fiction Prize and scored a place on the shortlist of numerous other awards, including the Man Booker Prize, the Scotiabank Giller Prize, the Governor General's Award and the Orange Prize. It also won high praise from critics world-wide; The Guardian's reviewer called Shields "an elegist of the everyday," adding, "We should celebrate her achievement while we can."

Just finished it this morning.  I have only read one other Carol Shields novel, "The Stone Diaries" and actually studied it in university.  I remember how interesting and unique it was that that novel was a piece of fiction, and yet Shields adds dates, pictures, etc to make you feel you are reading non-fiction.  She does this a little in "Unless" also.  This was a very fluid and easy book to read, even though the prose and subject matter were full of depth.  Her character sturcture is so easy you end up carrying them with you during the day in your mind.  Thumbs up.