Abstract

Hogweed consists of the first seven chapters of a novel in progress. Set in Toronto's Park-dale neighbourhood, the story follows the quotidian adventures of eleven year-old Clare Lowy and her best friend, Florian Weatherup. Clare and Florian enjoy a middle-class existence that is relatively carefree, though not without the prick of family tensions and the harassment of the class bully, Kevin R. They spend their after-school hours playing games in the alley behind their street and spying on the Pamphleteer, the outspoken activist next door. As Clare's twelfth birthday approaches, her greatest concern is the loss of imagination that she believes characterizes the passage into adulthood. But when a fantastical growth of plants and trees threatens Toronto's very foundations, Clare must also contend with the environmental, political, and personal repercussions of the disaster. As the domineering Mayor Lash limits civil freedoms in response to the uncontrollable growth, Clare finds the motivation in her relationships and her own imaginative powers to help create a more sustainable city. The focus of these chapters is the development of character and place, but the larger work will explore notions of community, responsibility, and agency.