The kind of guy

Always Breathe
by Victor Enns

Kelowna: self-published, 2025
$25

Reviewed by Rosa Reid

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I suggest you jump right into Always Breathe for a down-to-earth portal into the soul of Victor Enns journey with advanced osteoarthritis.  It will surprise you with his subtle sense of humour, his wit, and his wisdom, all the while feeling and struggling with his pain.

The extra five milligrams with my bread and butter

Allow me to see the beauty of the afternoon.

Once I landed on the first page, there was no return. His voice was strong, and he let you into his life. He spoke easily and without hesitation, decoration, or self-restraint (I think). His wonderful contemporary wordsmithing took me right through to the back cover. I now have layers upon layers of his days, the burden of those days, and the saving graces of those days.

I am thankful, as I can visualize Victor on his deck, in his wheelchair, in Kelowna, perhaps on those five milligrams, relishing his own capacity to be amusing and fun.

Always Breathe

Would it matter if she was

Fond of Elliot or Austen

Would it matter if she were

A learner or a teacher,

Down there,

Dear Wife

Would it matter?

The book is in an A-Z layout and includes clarifications, information, wit, and wisdom.

Never a dull moment.

Victor Enns lived in Kelowna with his wife Michelle Hewitt. Michelle is a disability rights advocate. He published five books. His works appeared in Scrivner, Prairie Fire, Rattle, and more.  His 2019 collection Love and Surgery is about amputation, love, and loss.

Victor’s Digital Open Access Journal of disability Wordgathering is a platform for poetry, literature, and art. The authors retain copyright. Despite his disabilities Victor contributed and connected strongly with others by way of creative expression.

[Editor’s Note: Victor Enns passed away in December 2025. Here is Michelle Hewitt’s statement]

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Rosa Reid is an author, poet, and vice president of the Sunshine Coast Writers and Editors Society. She only submits a small fraction of her work and it does get published: “The rest of my work hides under the perfectionist’s shield, the philosopher’s scrutiny, the overlord of fine print and deep purple of a shrunken violet.” Her work was shortlisted for the CBC Literary Prizes and has appeared in SFU’s West Coast Line.

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The British Columbia Review

Interim Editors, 2023-26: Trevor Marc Hughes (non-fiction), Brett Josef Grubisic (fiction)
Publisher: Richard Mackie

Formerly The Ormsby Review, The British Columbia Review is an on-line book review and journal service for BC writers and readers. The Advisory Board now consists of Jean Barman, Wade Davis, Robin Fisher, Barry Gough, Hugh Johnston, Kathy Mezei, Patricia Roy, and Graeme Wynn. Provincial Government Patron (since September 2018): Creative BC. Honorary Patron: Yosef Wosk. Scholarly Patron: SFU Graduate Liberal Studies. The British Columbia Review was founded in 2016 by Richard Mackie and Alan Twigg.

“Only connect.” – E.M. Forster