Rosanna Eleanor Leprohon (1829-1879), writer and mother of 13, provided a rare French-Canadian perspective in early English-Canadian literature, the result of marrying a descendent of an old French-Canadian family, Dr. Jean-Lukin Leprohon. "Le Manoir de Villerai" (1861), "Antoinette De Mirecourt" (1864), and "Armand Durand" (1868) were her most important works. She also wrote poems and short stories. Two years after her death, the book "The Poetical Works of Mrs. Leprohon" was published in 1881.

Armand Durand, first published in 1868, is a novel about French-speaking Quebecois, by an author whose first language was English and who wrote for such English-language publications as The Literary Garland, the Family Herald and The Pilot. It tells the story of two male characters yet it is written by a woman. It described boys' life on a seigneury farm, although its author, born into an Irish family, had spent her own youth in the warehouse district of seaport Montreal; describes college life and professional training- although its mid-century author was of course excluded from such realms and experiences by her sex. Rosanna produced a novel every year or so throughout her marriage, while also producing thirteen babies, (and caring for the eight that survived infancy). Armand Durandhas an authentic ring. It is a moving, disturbing, and realistic novel.