Gabrielle Roy, the author of , shows us through her main character, Elsa Kumachuck, that isolation can have unfortunate effects on an individual and the people around them. We, as readers, are in the beginning given the impression that Elsa is a fit mother who is responsible and knows how to raise her child properly. Later on though, we realize that it's the influence of other people in her life and the experience of isolation later on that lead her to make the decisions that she does. Elsa Kumachuck was at one time just a carefree teenage ....