Set in Toronto's historic Junction area and spanning three generations of a troubled family, Sunshine opens on the heels of the First World War. It's February 1919 and the Spanish flu is ravaging the city. The death of their eldest daughter, Lillian, has shaken the Wickes family to the core. Lost without her sister, young Matilda suffers frightening "attacks of the nerves." With a stiff upper lip, her British parents attempt to erase the memory of their first born.
One generation later, Matilda's son, Wills, a brooding musical prodigy, falls in love with his teacher's wife, Imogen. Encouraged by this plucky and unconventional woman raised in an artists' commune, Wills inches closer to the root of his family's angst. Themes of loss and longing, devotion, sacrifice, and the restorative power of art unfold throughout the book. Rich in historical detail, this novel offers an intimate glimpse of life at its most fragile.