Best of
Canada

1982

Man Descending: Selected Stories


Guy Vanderhaeghe - 1982
    Vanderhaeghe has the uncanny ability to show us the world through the eyes of an eleven-year-old boy as convincingly as he reveals it through the eyes of an old man approaching senility. Moving from the hilarious farce of teenage romance all the way to the numbing tragedy of life in a ward for incurables, these twelve stories inspire belief, admiration, and enjoyment, and come together to form a vibrant chronicle of human experience from a gifted observer of life's joys and tribulations. This is Guy Vanderhaeghe's brilliant first book of fiction.

Of Time and Place


Sigurd F. Olson - 1982
    In this, his last book completed just before his death, Sigurd F. Olson guides readers through his wide-ranging memories of a lifetime dedicated to the preservation of the wilderness.

Wild Harvest: Edible Plants of the Pacific Northwest


Terry Domico - 1982
    For everyone from backpackers to backyard harvesters, Wild Harvest is a field guide to wild edibles with their seasons and cooking suggestions.

The T.E. Lawrence Poems


Gwendolyn MacEwen - 1982
    Lawrence Poems is Gwendolyn MacEwen’s most integrated, complete and respected work. It is now recognized as her signature poetic achievement.“In 1962, I was staying in a hotel in Tiberias, Israel; the tall, white-haired proprietor invited me downstairs one evening and served me syrupy tea and a plate of fruit. He showed me a series of old sepiatone photographs which lined the walls – photographs of blurred riders on camels riding to the left into some uncharted desert just beyond the door. Some of them were signed.‘It’s Lawrence isn’t it?’ I asked, walking up to one.‘Yes,’ said my host, offering me a huge section of an orange. ‘I rode with him once a long time ago. I see you always carry a pen and paper to write things down. I thought you’d be interested; I thought you’d like to know.’These poems were written some twenty years later.”

Radical Tories: The Conservative Tradition in Canada


Charles P.B. Taylor - 1982
    Charles Taylor profiles seven prominent thinkers in the radical tory tradition, among them Donald Creighton, biographer of John A. Macdonald and author of the most influential interpretation of Canadian history in the 20th century; George Grant, philosopher and author of the classic analysis of Canadian nationhood, "Lament for a Nation"; and Eugene Forsey, one of the founders of the socialist CCF in the 1930s, who identifies himself a Macdonald Conservative. "Radical Tories" is an eye-opening journey to the wellsprings of conservative tradition on Canada.

Picture Theory


Nicole Brossard - 1982
    The title, taken from Wittgenstein, is a reference to the hologram as a new pictorial model for woman. Like the hologram which is intended to be read from an infinite number of changing conditions, Brossard's work abstracts the image of the feminine so that it can be read from all angles.

The Chilkat Dancing Blanket


Cheryl Samuel - 1982
    From the legendary origins of this weaving, the story unfolds to tell of the women who wove it, of the source and inspiration for the designs which adorn it, and of the pride and esteem in which it was held by the society which gave it birth. The Dancing Blanket was a robe reserved for ceremony. The remarkable photographs of Tony Hunt performing the Headdress Dance afford a rare opportunity to see this blanket in its full glory, alive and dancing.The story does not stop with an overview of the Dancing Blanket, but delves into the mysteries of its creation. Mountain goat wool and cedar bark were spun and dyed and then woven into intricate, stylized designs. In this magnificently illustrated text, author Cheryl Samuel presents a detailed description of the weaving techniques which were perfected by the Tlingit women. Photographs of Dancing Blankets from many museum collections and of weavings in progress are knitted together with beautiful drawings in order to illustrate this complicated process. The Chilkat Dancing Blanket interweaves legend, history, and technique and is presented in honor of the women who created this exquisite art form.

Two Strand River


Keith Maillard - 1982
    Set in the Vancouver of the early 1970s, it commemorates a heady time when experimentation was a passport to self-awareness.Entertaining, building to a powerful climax, "Two Strand River" generated an immediate cult following when it was first published in 1976. It will be a great read for new Keith Maillard fans and a special treat for those already hooked on his provocative, elegantly written novels.

Jasmin


Jan Truss - 1982
    Burdened with the responsibilities of being the oldest child in a large, poor family, she lies awake nights staring at the stars but seeing no way to succeed. She can't do her homework because of noise from her family and the television set that is always on in the main room of their small house. Her science fair project has just been ruined by Nathaniel and Leroy's careless horsing around. She doesn't know what to do.For solace she reaches for a treasured book of poems and becomes inspired to imitate Meg in her favorite poem: from now on she will live "as she do please". She will run away. This haunting and sensitively written story of a girl's successful search for independence will resonate with many girls of a similar age.

During My Time: Florence Edenshaw Davidson, a Haida Woman


Margaret B. Blackman - 1982
    Florence Davidson, daughter of noted Haida carver and chief Charles Edenshaw, was born in 1896. As one of the few living Haida elders knowledgeable bout the culture of a bygone era, she was a fragile link with the past. Living in Masset on the Queen Charlotte Islands, some fifty miles off the northwest coast of British Columbia, Florence Davidson grew up in an era of dramatic change for her people. On of the last Haida women to undergo the traditional puberty seclusion and an arranged marriage, she followed patterns in her life typical of women of her generation.Florence's narrative -- edited by Professor Blackman from more than fifty hours of tape recordings -- speaks of girlhood, of learning female roles, of the power and authority available to Haida women, of the experiences of menopause and widowhood. Blackman juxtaposes comments made by early observes of the Haida, government agents, and missionaries, with appropriate portions of the life history narrative, to portray a culture neither traditionally Haida nor fully Canadian, a culture adapting to Christianity and the imposition of Canadian laws. Margaret Blackman not only preserves Florence Davidson's memories of Haida ways, but with her own analysis of Davidson's life, adds significantly to the literature on the role of women in cross-cultural perspective. The book makes an important contribution to Northwest Coast history and culture, to the study of culture change, to fieldwork methodology, and to women's studies.

The Other Elizabeth


Karleen Bradford - 1982
    She was Elizabeth Duncan and...she had somehow stepped into the past. The year is 1813 and the battle between the newly formed United States of America and England for possession of the land called Canada was waging. One of the most decisive battles of the war, the Battle of Crysler's Farm, was about to take place and, stranded in the wrong time, Elizabeth Duncan was about to be an unwilling participant.

The Harrowsmith Northern Gardener


Jennifer Bennett - 1982
    It answers not only the how and the when, but also the why. It anticipates the potential problems, and provides pretested solutions. It can make the difference between a so-so yield and a good one, between a good yield and a greta one.

The Mad Queen of Mordra


Elwy Yost - 1982
    Billy Brown can't resist the opportunity to experiment with the mysterious substance he has found. Before he knows it, he's whisked far into space, through a black hole to a strange flat planet. Soon he's embroiled in a deadly game of chess with an evil mad queen. Can Billy beat her, or will he and his friends be devoured by a monster too hideous for words?

The Argo Bounce


Jay Teitel - 1982