About the Author

Theresa Chevalier lives in the beautiful Fraser Valley in BC.  Here she has the pleasure of raising four children as a single parent. She learned early on that in all situations there are choices to be made that will drastically impact the paths of our life. This knowledge along with her ability to read and write German gave her the tools for creating this novel.

Her own family has a rich history of migration and adapting to changing lifestyles.  She spent her childhood exploring the jungles of South America.  In Canada she has maintained her love of the outdoors by hiking the fabulous B.C. mountains, skiing, swimming, biking, and running whenever possible. She continues to take chances in life and love and experiencing all that goes along with it. Balance is a key ingredient to her life.  Knowing her limits so that she can give her best to family, work, and herself is of great importance.

Writing has become a passion to her and she has many ideas that she looks forward to bringing to life on paper.

Why This Book?

During my childhood and teenage years I had absolutely no interest in my family’s history. Then one time when I was in my early thirties my mother told me a poignant story of a family trying to survive the Russian Revolution. The terrors and horrors inflicted by the communist government just brought me to tears. That’s when I realized that I’d been handed a gift. Because I am able to read in German I was able to research many autobiographies with people who had lived during those times. This enabled me to create a family that is as real as all the events they lived through.

The world is very much aware of suffering of the Jewish people during WWII and of the degradation that African Americans went through during times of slavery. I was given an opportunity to bring to light the humble strength possessed by the Mennonite people as they also suffered unmentionable atrocities. I hope that by reading my novel people will take time to think about what their own actions might be during severe crisis. I hope that they will make the conscience decision to always treat others humanely.

Big Accomplishment

Setting goals and sticking to them is very important to me.  When making the decision to write "Shameful Innocence" I knew that it was no small under taking.  It, being my first novel, I did not have a team of people helping me with research which, at times, could take months till I found just the right piece to keep the story going and the setting authentic.

To complete the story it did take me 7 years.  Often, months would go by where I did not write a single word.  Like everyone else’s, my life would get busy with kids, work and obligations.  But the story was always in the back of my mind and I refused to give up.  I had decided that I would complete this novel no matter how long it took.  Completing "Shameful Innocence" was a huge personal accomplishment!

Award Winning Author

In April of 2009 I had the honour of receiving the award for 'Outstanding Artist in the Literary Arts' from the Abbotsford Arts Council.

I was and still am completely overwhelmed and grateful to be receiving such recognition from the great city that I call home.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Fun Fact

I love raspberry fields!  At the age of 7 my family immigrated to Canada.  That very first summer in the beautiful Fraser Valley I had to pick raspberries to earn money for school supplies.  Our 'Straw Boss' did not allow us children to slack at all.  But I didn’t mind.  Every year since that first year we had to pick during rain, extreme heat, and wind.  Where others may have suffered, I found joy and peace.

Today I live just blocks from the raspberry fields and they still inspire me as though painted by God! I drive, run, walk past them on a daily basis and will always take a deep breath and admire them in all their different stages and seasons. I could probably go on and on about raspberry fields!