First published June 1, 2018. Born in Toronto on August 14, 1931, Doreen Alice Ellen (Hayes) Armitage died at Lions Gate Hospital in North Vancouver on May 15, 2018. A writer who believed strongly in oral history, Armitage wrote for publications such as Canadian Geographic, Outdoors Canada and Canadian Living before publishing her first book,…
Read more #313 Doreen Armitage (1931-2018)
The Language of Family: Stories of Bonds and Belonging by Michelle van der Merwe (editor) Victoria: Royal British Columbia Museum Press, 2017 $27.95 / 9780772670526 Reviewed by Claire Sicherman First published May 30, 2018 * When I first held The Language of Family in my hands, I could feel the faint stirring of emotion, the…
Read more #312 A sesquicentennial smorgasbord
First published May 28, 2018. A Matter of Confidence: The Inside Story of the Political Battle for BC by Rob Shaw and Richard Zussman Victoria: Heritage House, 2018. $22.95 / 9781772032543 Reviewed by Hamish Telford * The British Columbia provincial election on May 9, 2017 was one for the history books. After a long night…
Read more #309 Christy Clark’s downfall
First published May 25, 2018. City on Edge: A Rebellious Century of Vancouver Protests, Riots, and Strikes by Kate Bird, foreword by Charles Demers Vancouver: Greystone Books, 2017. $32.95 / 9781771643139 Reviewed by Larry Hannant * We would be remiss if we did not preface this review with a notation that Michael Barnholden has previously…
Read more #308 A little revolution, please
First published May 24, 2018. The Canadian Party System: An Analytic History by Richard Johnston Vancouver: UBC Press, 2017. $55 / 9780774836074 Reviewed by Adam Coombs * Few political parties in countries within the Westminster political system have been as successful over the course of the twentieth and twenty-first centuries as the Liberal Party…
Read more #307 Why Liberals dominate federally
Sonny Assu: A Selective History by Sonny Assu, with a foreword by Janet Rogers and essays by Candice Hopkins, Marianne Nicolson, Richard Van Camp, and Ellyn Walker Victoria: Heritage House, 2018 $34.95 / 9781772031706 Reviewed by Solen Roth First published May 18, 2018 * Sonny Assu: A Selective History showcases the first fifteen years in…
Read more #306 Assu’s autobiography of ancestors
Alan Caswell Collier, Relief Stiff: An Artist’s Letters from Depression-era British Columbia by Peter Neary (editor) Vancouver: UBC Press, 2018 $45.00 / 9780774834988 Reviewed by Daniel Francis First published May 8, 2018 * Most British Columbians live within an easy drive of one of the unemployment relief camps established by the federal government during the…
Read more #302 Middle class artist on relief
The Green Horse: My Early Years in the Canadian Rockies — A Park Warden’s Story by Dale Portman Victoria: Rocky Mountain Books, 2017 $25.00 / 9781771602266 Reviewed by Michelle Murphy First published May 7, 2018 * Like many, I am captivated by the beauty and vastness of the Canadian Rockies – and curious about the…
Read more #301 Glory days of Park Wardens
Summer of the Horse: A Memoir by Donna Kane Madeira Park: Harbour Publishing, 2017 $19.95. 9781550178197 Reviewed by Heather Longworth Sjoblom First published May 7, 2018 * “Wilderness… is a place that retains its beauty because it escapes us.” — Donna Kane In her literary memoir, Summer of the Horse, Donna Kane explores the wilderness…
Read more #300 By horse to the Muskwa-Kechika
Memoir: Margaret’s Ormsby’s milieu by Daniel Marshall * The influence of Quesnel-born B.C. historian Margaret Anchoretta Ormsby (1909-1996) on younger generations of scholars and readers continues more than two decades after her death. Not only has The Ormsby Review perpetuated her name — and we hope her commitment to the culture and literature of British…
Read more #296 Margaret’s Ormsby’s milieu
A Legacy of Canadian Art, from Kelowna Collections by Roger H. Boulet Kelowna: The Kelowna Art Gallery, 2017 $15.00 / 9781896749860 Reviewed by Maria Tippett First posted April 23, 2018 * Drawn from eight private collections in Kelowna as well as from the permanent collection of the Kelowna Art Gallery, A Legacy of Canadian Art, from…
Read more #292 Hidden gems in Kelowna
Breaching the Peace: The Site C Dam and a Valley’s Stand against Big Hydro by Sarah Cox, foreword by Alex Neve Vancouver: UBC Press (On Point Press), 2018 $24.95 / 9780774890267 Review by John Gellard First published April 21, 2018 * From UBC Press’s new On Point Press, which aims to “introduce a broad audience…
Read more #291 Disturbing: the Peace
First published April 18, 2018. Mod ‘n Lavender: Salt Spring Island in the ‘60s by John Grain Kelowna: Tadpole Publishing, 2017. $18.95 / 9780973863413 Reviewed by Ron Verzuh * For some of us, remembering the 1960s is increasingly hindered by old age and failing memories. A few of us might prefer to forget parts of…
Read more #289 Coming of Age on Salt Spring
Flowing through Time: Stories of Kingfisher and Mabel Lake by Joan Cowan (editor) and Kingfisher History Committee (Jean Clark, Judy Fischer, Diane Hatt, and Sue Saloka) Kelowna: Kettle Valley Graphics, 2017 $25 / 9780995303607 Reviewed by Ken Mather First published April 17, 2018 * Probably the majority of British Columbians have never heard of Mabel…
Read more #288 Mabel Lake-Shuswap memories
Explorers of the Maritime Pacific Northwest: Mapping the World through Primary Documents by William L. Lang and James V. Walker Santa Barbara, CA: ABC-CLIO, 2016 $108.00 (U.S.) / 9781610699259 Reviewed by David Brownstein First published April 12, 2018 * Unless you are an aspiring armchair sea captain, Explorers of the Maritime Pacific Northwest is a…
Read more #285 Mapping first contacts
Views of the Salish Sea: One Hundred and Fifty Years of Change around the Strait of Georgia by Howard Macdonald Stewart Madeira Park: Harbour Publishing, 2017 $39.95 / 9781550178036 Reviewed by Peter Grant First published April 7, 2018 * Howard Macdonald Stewart’s Views of the Salish Sea: One Hundred and Fifty Years of Change around…
Read more #283 Stewart’s Salish Sea
All the Fine Young Eagles: In the Cockpit with Canada’s Second World War Fighter Pilots (updated and expanded second edition; first published by Stoddart, 1997) by David L. Bashow Madeira Park: Douglas & McIntyre, 2016 $28.95 / 9781771621359 Reviewed by Howard Hisdal First published April 3, 2018 * In All the Fine Young Eagles, David…
Read more #280 From Beurling to Bashow
The Clean Money Revolution: Reinventing Power, Purpose, and Capitalism by Joel Solomon with Tyee Bridge Gabriola Island: New Society Publishers, 2017 $29.99 / 9780865718395 Reviewed by Jawad Qureshy First published April 2, 2018 * Born in Tennessee in 1954, Joel Solomon was educated at Vassar College, worked as national youth co-ordinator on Jimmy Carter’s election campaign…
Read more #279 The wisdom of Solomon
From Oral to Written: A Celebration of Indigenous Literature in Canada, 1980-2010 by Tomson Highway Vancouver: Talonbooks, 2017 $29.95 / 9781772011166 Reviewed by Deanna Reder First published March 30, 2018 * Eminent Cree author Tomson Highway’s From Oral to Written, released by Talonbooks in 2017, is beautifully flawed, inspiring the reader with tremendous lists of…
Read more #277 The new turf of Indigenous Lit
Alan Fry (1931-2018) An obituary by Alan Twigg First published March 30, 2018 * Whistleblowers are seldom cited as heroes—especially those who can be dismissed as crackpot racists. The importance of Federal Indian Agent Alan Fry’s first novel and second book, How a People Die (Doubleday 1970; Harbour 1994), has therefore gradually been glossed over,…
Read more #276 Alan Fry (1931-2018)