Inside Jalna

An interactive experience within the series of 16 romantic novels Jalna, written by Canadian author Mazo de la Roche (1879-1961). The idea is to create a web-based prototype where the user will be able to navigate through the characters, sets and stories of the books. Settled on the rural shores of Lake Ontario, the novels offer an unique overview of Canadian society from 1854 to 1954, with undeniable historical and social relevance for Canadian culture. The arrival of English immigrants in the 19th century, the American Civil War, the First Nations people and the two World Wars are some of the themes that serve as a backdrop to the story, led by the intrepid matriarch Adeline Whiteoak and her grandson Renny. The narrative has a curious hyper textual structure. De la Roche wrote the novels randomly over fifty years, and they still make sense when read chronologically. This characteristic will be explored in the building of the project, as it fits perfectly into an interactive environment.