Throughout Ghost Wife, Dicinoski describes the experiences of queers throughout history. These people were forced to ‘hide in the open’, to conceal their sexuality from others. The author discusses her parents’ uneasiness regarding both her sexuality and her marriage. Dicinoski describes the happiness of her wedding day. This is accompanied by the knowledge that her union would not be recognised legally once she left Canada. As her car enters the United States following the ceremony, Dicinoski wonders: ‘Where on this bridge does my marriage dissolve?’

Dicinoski’s prose is lucid and engaging. She skilfully intersperses anecdotes from queer history with her personal narrative. The honesty with which Dicinoski describes her family – and particularly their reaction to her betrothal – is at once confronting and admirable. The book never seems preachy. That being said, Dicinoski does make a strong case for legalising same-sex marriage. In doing so, she emphasises the validity of gay and lesbian relationships. Once readers reach the book’s end, they will – or at least should be – puzzled as to why queers have been so widely denied the opportunity to wed.

The use of the ghost as a metaphor for homosexuality (and specifically lesbianism) is hardly original. That being said, Dicinoski makes clever use of this metaphor. Ghost Wife is a powerful and deeply moving book.