A History of Canada in Ten Maps by Adam Shoalts - Book Report #314

 Epic Stories of Charting a Mysterious Land

Canadians like to think our history is boring and generally peaceful.  But the truth is much more insidious than that and our long history of violence, oppression and disregard for the Indigenous people of this land was hard to learn. 

Adam Shoalts is an Explorer in Residence at the Royal Canadian Geographical Society his previous books blend Canadian history with his own adventures into the blank parts of our map.  This was a bit of a departure for him in that the maps were not his own but those of our history.

From the very earliest maps to the more modern and complete ones he told the story of how Canada became a country.  The importance of our rivers, but more importantly that of the Indigenous nations that helped the Europeans along, was alway central to the pursuit of trying to find the edges of this unknown continent. 

I was disheartened by the violence throughout the entire book.  The conflicts between whites and Indigenous came as no surprise however there was distrust and violence between the Nations themselves.  None was more disturbing to me than the fight between the Dene and the Inuit described by Samuel Hearn in his expedition of the Coppermine River. 

Throughout the book I kept thinking at how deeply flawed humans are.  Our willingness to hurt each other and to distrust those who are not like us is so deeply baked into our DNA that I wonder if we can ever overcome it. 

I am very glad to have read the book.  I learned so much about Canadian exploration history.  Even though it was a gut punch at times it is an important book to help us understand who we are and what kind of country we want to become.  This will not be easy. 

Dissapointment River By Brian Castner - Book Report #303

Finding and Losing the Northwest Passage

I love stories like these.  

This is a real-life, modern-day, canoe journey of the Mackenzie River.  The author decided to follow in the footsteps of Alexander Mackenzie who paddled the river in the hopes of finding an inland Northwest Passage.  "The Mackenzie river is the longest river system in Canada, and includes the second largest drainage basin of any North American river after the Mississippi." (Passage from Wikipedia)

From his starting point at Great Slave Lake all the way to the Arctic Ocean Brian Castner weaves his voyage to that of Mackenzie's.  At certain points in the trip Castner and Mackenzie stood on the same spots, on the same dates, 227 yeas apart.   

Blending history to the modern day by replicating an event, is an effective way to bring history alive and to compare the two worlds.  At times, the author is vividly imagining what Mackenzie and his party went through only to be knocked back into the present by the passing of a speedboat or a container ferry.

In many ways, life has not changed at all in the Canadian north in 1779 Mackenzie was trying to find his fortune, the industry of the day were furs.  Today, oil, gas and mining dominate.

I was thankful for the trip Brian Castner took and glad he chose to write about it.  I was thrilled to shoot the rapids with him from the safety of my couch.  I was happy to learn a bit more about Canadian history and to simply answer the question as to how the river got its modern name.  It is traditionally known as the Deh-Cho by the way.  I was also very happy to learn that no way in hell would I want to take a similar trip.

This was a terrific story.

Brian Castner's website - https://briancastner.com/

Frozen in Time by Owen Beattie and John Geiger - Book Report #299

I remember when the news of the U of A's expedition to Beechey Island and the discovery of how lead poisoning played its part in the demise of the Franklin Expedition of 1845-48.

The 19th century expedition is arguably the most famous and disastrous of the era's arctic explorations.  The Northwest Passage obsessed governments and explorers alike.  How many lives have been lost by throwing ill-equipped wood vessels against the ice?

This book chronicles the forensic research done by the University of Alberta in the mid 1980's when they exhumed the three bodies of men from the ill-fated expedition.

What was staggering was how well preserved they were.  It must have been a heart-breaking experience to look into the faces of men who'd been dead for over 130 years.

This was an excellent book and I kept going back to it at every opportunity.


Owen Beattie's Wikipedia page - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Owen_Beattie

John Geiger's Wikipedia page - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_G._Geiger

John Geiger and Owen Beattie 

Battle for the West by Daniel Francis - Book Report #284

Fur Traders and the Birth

of Western Canada

A long time ago the Edmonton Public Library had something called the Heritage Collection.  It was a cache of books (over 10,000 of them) that could only be read in the downtown branch, they could not be borrowed and taken home.

A few years back this policy was relaxed.  This allowed me to enjoy Daniel Francis' 1982 book about the fur trade of early Canada.

I found it to be illuminating, entertaining and filled with facts about the competition between the Hudson's Bay Company and the North West Company.  Funny, how I always imagined the Voyageurs were exclusive to the HBC - how wrong I was.  At least until they merged in 1821.

I found the subject matter completely engrossing and Francis' text crisp and readable as if it was published today.  This says a lot about his writing style and clarity.

Thank you, EPL for lending this book to me.

Daniel Francis' website - https://www.danielfrancis.ca/

Daniel Francis

A Flag For Canada by Rick Archbold - Book Report #252

Having lived under the maple leaf flag my entire life I found this book to be fascinating.

Creating a flag independent from Britain stirred up a lot of emotions in the Canadian public at the time. 

Understanding how complex it was to boil a country down into such a simple design made me thankful for the people who dedicated so much energy into the task. 

The photography was lush and the historical significance of each iteration of our flag could not have been conveyed without them. 

I originally purchased the book in a fit of patriotism during the Canada 150 celebration year. 

I am glad I finally read it. 

Here are some real contenders:

The Canadain Red Ensign

The Pearson Pennant

13 pointed maple leaf

There is also a group who is suggesting our current flag be modified to better reflect the English and French duality that was Canada.  I use the word "was" because Canada is more about pluralism than ever before.  The English - French duality is fast becoming blurred.  That said I find the modified version quite attractive.  However, if it came to a vote, I would rather keep our current flag.

Proposed Canadain Unity Flag

Rick Archbold

The Penguin History of Canada by Robert Bothwell - Book Report #211

The history of Canada?

What?

All of it?

Yes.  A book like this needs to be looked at as a table of content.  By reading through it you can be pointed to further exploration.

There are periods in our history that capture my imagination more than others.  Through reading this book I have a better understanding of how events fit into our current time.  It also gives me a better insight into what to look for when I am trying to find other books that explore specific events in more detail.

I took a long time to get through the book.  I put it down for months at time but once I got into the last 150 years, my interest solidified and I gave the book the attention it needed.

To think that a nearly 600 page book as a good start, an index, a table of content can be a bit daunting.  But now I feel that I have done the hard part and I can dive into the subjects that stand out to me.

Great fun awaits.

Recommended.

Robert Bothwell - http://www.history.utoronto.ca/robert-bothwell

Robert Bothwell

Just Getting Started by Todd Babiak - Book Report #206

I am an active member (user?) of the Edmonton Public Library.  Whenever I go down a literary rabbit hole, the library has been there to provide me with books to satisfy my curiosity.

Lately, I've been interested in history: Canadian and local history in particular.

And what could be a better read than the history of the Edmonton Public Library itself?

Babiak did a terrific job of blending local history to that of EPL.

In the early days of Edmonton, we were punching above our weight in the pursuit of a library but since Calgary had built a Carnegie funded branch, Edmonton felt it needed one too.  But, interestingly, the Carnegie group had many strings attached to any money gifted to build a library.  This did not make the "founders" happy so they went it alone to build the Strathcona branch.

This was in the times when Edmonton and Strathcona were two separate towns.  How can Strathcona have one and not Edmonton, the capital city?  Edmonton's own library was rushed into being in a space above a liquor store and meat shop.

You see?  This is actually quite interesting.

I was captivated by the book.  The writing was crisp and never lacked a sense of humour.

It was a terrific read that coloured in part of Edmonton's past for me.  I enjoyed learning about the library that I love so much.

Todd Babiak - http://toddbabiak.com/

Edmonton Public Library - https://www.epl.ca/

Todd Babiak

Edmonton's own Carnegie Library - Demolished in 1968

Canadians by Roy MacGregor - Book Report #202

This is not an easy book to describe, it is part Canadian history, part sociology and part personal reflection.

The thrust of the book is to try and define the elusive Canadian Identity.  We are trying to find a way to identify ourselves without using the pat answer of; "Well, we are not American."

This was a perfect book to read in this 150th year of Canadian Confederation.  Although we are still struggling to include our First Nations in meaningful and respectful ways, it is still well worth taking the time to look back and try to make sense of this country.

This became a touchstone book for me personally.  It awoke a desire to learn more about my country.  I feel that I've been a rather lousy Canadian by not taking the time to learn about our history.

From MacGregor's work I was lead to many authors and events, both recent and in the distant past that I wish to learn about.

In the intervening eight years since the book was published and with the massive effort of the Canada 150 department I think we've been able to at least find images that spark an answer to the question: "What is a Canadian?"

I've already purchased his more recent book Canoe Country which is another exploration of Canada this time through the history of the canoe and the great rivers of our country.  I am looking forward to settling back into this one.  I am sure it will lead me to other discoveries.

Roy MacGregor - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roy_MacGregor

Roy MacGregor

Becoming Canada by Ken Dryden - Book Report #200!

My goodness this was an illuminating book.

Ken Dryden, one of this country's towering members, wrote a book to explain Canada to Canadians.  And I thank him for it.

In it he tells a bit about our history, our collective personality and our relationship to America.

The bulk of the book explains the Harper years.  Which was fascinating, not being a politically engaged person, I always "felt" that something was off about his terms as Prime Minister, now I understand why.

The last few chapters explores how our collective sense of self is evolving and becoming something quite unique.

Having been published in 2010 I think a new edition would be a welcomed thing.  Many of his observations have proven true and have evolved since then.

This was the first book of Dryden's that I've read and I was very impressed by it.

Ken Dryden

Lost Beneath The Ice by Andrew Cohen - Book Report #197

The thing I like about coffee table books is how they have the power to pique my interest in a subject.

The exploration of the Canadian north and the North West Passage has caused no end of calamity.  Most famous is the Franklin expedition and its disappearance.

In 1850 Captain Robert McClure of the HMS Investigator is sent to find Franklin.  He was unsuccessful in that task but discovered the elusive North West Passage in the process.

But it wasn't as easy as all that.  The ship and crew found themselves trapped in the ice and were forced to winter in Mercy Bay of Banks Island - for three years.

The book was published by Parks Canada and tells two stories; the historical tale of the dire trip of the Investigator and the modern search for the wreck of the ship.

I enjoyed this book very much -  it has expanded my knowledge of Canadian northern history and my desire to learn more.

Andrew Cohen - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Andrew_Cohen_(journalist)

Andrew Cohen

Canadian Expansion 1867 - 1909 by Dr. David Bercuson.

I was recently on vacation in Ottawa where I discovered I have a deeply disturbing lack of knowledge of my own country.  The history of Canada is everywhere in Ottawa and I decided I needed to get some knowledge on the subject.

History is such a large subject that it can be overwhelming to decide where to start.  I bought a nice Penguin history book that I am currently reading that is a good overview.  I also went on a rampage at my local library, ordering all kinds of books to look at.

How Canada Became Canada, From the Atlantic to the Pacific: Canadian Expansion 1867 - 1909 is an 80 page juvenile book which does not talk down to its audience and offers another quick overview of a very important period in Canadian history.  I like to think of this as being a good introduction and a jumping off book that can point me to specific areas to explore.

To date, I've only reviewed fiction but I've never been limited to it.  Non-fiction requires a different kind of attention, unlike fiction, where the story is not told until the last page.

I got what I wanted from it.  Namely the knowledge that I know nothing!

Dr. David Bercuson