Try the Goose Grease

Mary Isabel (Dolly) MacDonald Tuplin was born in 1894 in New Glasgow, PEI. She graduated from Prince Edward Island Hospital in 1917 and nursed in Massachusetts, Los Angeles, Montreal and on Prince Edward Island. But she wove her novel around the people who captured her heart in the rural areas of PEI. Skilled at portraying scenes with both paintbrush and pen, Dolly brought her characters and Island landscapes to life. Dolly died in 1975 and was laid to rest in the United Church Cemetery in Margate, PEI.

It's 1917. Nurse Elizabeth MacRae has just received her nursing diploma on Prince Edward Island. Some graduates have chosen to work for the Red Cross or in Allied Military Hospitals, but Elizabeth has signed up for private duty on the Island. That means travelling out to the homes of patients and caring for them until they are well.

It's a man's world, and doctors are exclusively men. Elizabeth must work hard to earn the respect of her patients and the attending doctors. It means navigating through the period when old home remedies are giving way to a more science-based method of medical care. Under the curious and sometimes suspicious eyes of a patient's family or untrained caregiver, she must gently discourage the unproven remedies that are still commonplace in the country.


While Elizabeth is focused on her career, she has caught the eye of a successful young doctor. Intelligent, confident and attractive, Dr. Grant commands much respect. But he could not be more different from the men who made their living farming in the rural areas of PEI. Now Elizabeth must not only battle illness in the community but also make a decision on where her own future lies.