UWindsor Professors Publish Love Stories

Written by: Serafina Piasentin

André Narbonne and Peter Hrastovec, two beloved University of Windsor professors, explore the simple beauties and struggles of budding love in their upcoming books, Lucien & Olivia and There Will Be Fish.

Lucien & Olivia is a comedic love story that follows the pre-modern enemies to lover’s arc of marine engineer Lucien and philosophy prodigy Olivia. Mutual animosity evolves into complicated emotions that result in even “professors enjoy[ing] a good cry” (Narbonne).

Drawing from his own experiences in the marine, Narbonne bridges the gap between fiction and reality, noticing love’s existence in both. “It is the most realistic—and beautiful—of love stories,” says Chris Benjamin, author of a Boy With A Problem.

While Lucien sets sail on unpredictable waters, he must also embark on a voyage through the unexpected and uncontrollable ups and downs that accompany loving someone. Narbonne puts it best, saying, “…sometimes, they fall in love. Unexpectedly, like they’ve been hit by something falling from the sky.”

Set in two worlds—the sea and the port—Lucien and Olivia are testimonies to the double life Narbonne leads as an English and Creative Writing professor and a marine engineer, both of which contain experiences of love in all its forms.

Peter Hrastovec tackles a new kind of love in his poetry collection, There Will Be Fish, which is about personal memories, milestones, mundane moments, and the magic in both. A sessional professor at the University of Windsor, Hrastovec draws from his own experiences as a poet and a husband, elegantly scrapbooking and immortalizing his love for both. From momentous occasions such as a wedding and his first kiss to simple moments such as baking and collecting flowers, Hrastovec offers a glimpse into his relationships with books and with his wife.

Living in a pandemic has put stress on his perspective, but “Hrastovec chronicles those moments in his life that have shaped his positive outlook on the world while sacrificing nothing in terms of poetic accomplishment,” says Bruce Meyer, author of Grace of Falling Stars and For A Writer.

Hrastovec compares the process of finding love to catching fish, implying that beauty emerges when you surrender to life’s flow. Hrastovec’s poems are bound to reel you into the homely love shared in Windsor’s collective heart.

Love is as vast as the sea in both Narbonne’s Lucien & Olivia and Hrastovec’s There Will Be Fish. Both the physical act of sailing and the emotional aspect of love meet in a brilliant display of struggle and triumph that is sure to hook anyone who loves a good love story.