2 comments about Pierre Berton's Canada: The Land and the People.

1. "Canada: The Land and Its People" is a lavish and informative volume.

   Pierre Berton examines Canda's past through the stories of twenty-five diverse historical characters.

   Berton also presents the country's vast and often stunning geography through the lenses of over thirty Canadian photographers.

   Just a few of the excellent pictures/stories include a modern diesel-powered train making its way through a Rocky Mountain stretch of track that was first envisioned by 19th-century railway pathfinder, Walter Mosberly; the East Block of the Parliament Buildings, where Prime Minister John A. MacDonald (a "likeable rogue") had his office in the 1870s; and the rustic though beautiful Yukon cabin of poet Robert Service.

   There are over 125 color and b/w photos and illustrations in this mammoth work.




2. "Canada boasts the longest coastline in the world. If it were straightened out it could wound around the equator three and a half times and there would still be a bit left over." - a fitting topic of immense proportions portrayed by the splendid photography of André Gallant and the always readable prose of Canada's late lamented historian journalist, Pierre Berton accompanied by a series of fascinating archival photographs and drawings from the 18th, 19th and early 20th century.
   
   Unlike most dining room table books that, having been opened at random pages and skimmed, are examined only for the quality of their presentation and the beauty of their photographs, Berton's essays, designed to accompany the photographs and embellish and enrich them as only Pierre Berton can, make this book enjoyable as a stand-alone read from cover to cover. The topics which he has chosen to cover are as widely varied as Canada's maritime geography - the Queen Charlotte Islands, the history and social customs of the Haida, the Potlach people; the demise, over-hunting and myopic mismanagement of the west coast salmon, the arctic bowhead whale and the east coast cod fishery; the absurdly mistaken romantic notions of the life of a lighthouse keeper; a brief history of the search for the elusive Northwest Passage; some stories of the golden age of sail; and a history of Sable Island, the wrecking yard of the Atlantic located in the mouth of the St Lawrence River.
   
   What a wonderful way for any Canadian to take a brief tour of the outer edges of this fascinating country of ours and to dip their toes into that ocean of wisdom that Pierre Berton has provided for interested readers of Canada's history, geography, politics and social life and customs.
   
   Highly recommended.
   
   Paul Weiss

1 comments about A Very Double Life: The Private World of Mackenzie King (Goodread Biographies).

1. Attentive students will recall that Prime Minister King was a bit odd, perhaps a mild eccentric, but this book will throw the door wide open. Essentially, WLM King was a loon. He obsessed over his mother and submitted to her control to the point where his visions of her ghost still guided him. King was a mystic, who engaged in seances and table-rapping to communicate with such "advisors" as his mother, Wilfrid Laurier, FDR, and other sympathetic spectres. If only people knew what was running through his mind every time he glanced at a clock, or took his dog for a walk... A very revealing book about a very mysterious man.

No comments about Marilyn Bell: The Heart-Stopping Tale of Marilyn's Record-Breaking Swim (Amazing Stories).

No comments about The Chretien Legacy: Politics And Public Policy in Canada.

No comments about Paradise for the Poor: Hussar, Standard & Caroline Alberta: Letters of Ole Nissen, 1923-1937 (Literature and the Religious Spirit Series).

No comments about Will the Real Gordon Sinclair Please Sit Down (Goodread Biographies).

1 comments about Twentieth Century Women of Courage.

1. Escott tells the stories of British, American and Commonwealth women who have received medals for courageous acts in the 20th century. The book is interesting and readable. The number and variety of the stories about actions in both peace and war are truly impressive.

   Included are nurses and ambulance drivers (WW I) who served under appalling conditions, young English girls who worked under extreme danger in munitions factories, World War II women who worked in the midst of the Blitz and much more. The compelling story of the youngest "Woman of Courage" is about a 14 year old girl who saves a friend from drowning.

   Having said all of the above, there is also a story about one Karen Mast, supposedly a WW-2 combat pilot, that is quite simply false. Mast is introduced as "the only woman aviation cadet in the US Army Air Corps [sic]...[who] choose...Mosquito Mark XVI, modified to her...specifications to take her on highly dangerous photographic and confidential reconnaissance missions over Japanese-held territory..." Facts are lacking, the description and crew unbelievable, and the results unlikely. She claims to have flown her last mission with a single crewman, an RAAF Air Marshal, who operated the camera while she piloted the aircraft. The aircraft was seriously damaged by Japanese Zeros and both Mast and the Air Marshal seriously wounded. The Air Marshal was retired to a sheep farm and Mast was given her 4th Purple Heart and later, the Silver Star from Harry Truman.

   Women's history in World War II is well covered in Mattie Treadwell's excellent book _The Women's Army Corps_. WASP history is well covered in many books (eg: Boyd et al, _on Final Approach_). Mast was not in the WASP (who are well known and documented by name). The WASP, disbanded in late 44, did not fly outside the US, and hence did not fly in combat. Non-medical women in the Army were in the WAAC, later the WAC. No WAAC or WAC served as pilots; none were combatants. Sixteen WACs received the Purple Heart, most (if not all) for wounds received in London during the Blitz. None received the award twice, much less four times. No WACs received the Silver Star. Several Army nurses received the Silver Star for their courageous actions at Anzio. Hundreds of WACs received the Bronze Star for service in Europe or the Pacific.

   Mast's story is completely untrue. In correspondence with the author, she stated that she had received the information from a source she thought reliable. Her efforts to verify the story were unproductive so she accepted it. Readily available information on the Mosquito aircraft would have shown the impossibility of Mast's story. Her description of the Mosquito has no similarity with the real aircraft which has a cockpit so cramped that pilot and navigator/bombadier sit shoulder to shoulder. While some models of the Mosquito saw limited service with the RAAF in the South Pacific late in the war, the Model Mark XVI was not one of them. Nor were the RAAF Mosquitos involved in the kind of combat operations claimed by Mast. The RAAF had relatively few senior officers, and no officer of the rank of Air Marshal would have been involved in the mission described!

   Inquiries to the National Personnel Records Center where the records of US military personnel are kept revealed that there is absolutely no record of anyone one named "Karen Mast." It is unfortunate in a book with many good stories that one that is completely false stands out.

   In extensive tables at the end of the book, Escott attempts to identify women award recipients by country, award given and name. This is a daunting task, certainly for American women, because no centralized records exist. It is no surprise to find the list of Americans appears to be both incomplete and inaccurate.

   A few examples: Four WW-1 Navy nurses received the Navy Cross (Sterner, _In and Out of Harm's Way_), including Lena Higbee, listed by Escott as receiving the DSC. Ruth Streeter, listed as "Col WAVES," was the WW-2 leader of the Women Marines; she is listed under "Commendations for Heroism." Although her service was exceptional and, some might agree under trying circumstances, "heroism" does not seem a likely description. CAPT Leaverton, and LT COLs Holleran and Reinhold are listed as recipients of the "Marine Corps Medal (with V for Combat);" each woman received the Bronze Star Medal for service in Vietnam (Stremlow, _A History of the Women Marines 1946-77_). About 600 WAC received the Bronze Star Medal for service during WW-2 (Treadwell). Several hundred Army nurses were also probably recipients. Escott lists a total of 26.

   A final puzzle: the book contains no footnotes. An extensive bibliography (including Treadwell, Stremlow and Morden [post WW-2 WAC]) is provided, but the books do not appear to have been consulted.

   Recommended reading, but be aware of the discrepancies.

4 comments about Names of the Dead: An Elegy for the Victims of September 11.

1. Picking up this book in a bargain bookstore is something I ordinarily would not do becauseI,ost my son on 9/11 and don't ever look at those books. When I looked at the first few pages, they seemed thoughtful, interspersed with lines of poetry and descriptions of individual personalities. However, when I got to the page where my son was listed, I almost felldown. He was listed with 3 or 4 other names, alkl women. Under that was the sub title, Physical Descriptions. After that followed what could be called a medical examiner's review of the people as they were found at recovery. It was digusting- not only inappropriate, but in the case of my son, totally wrong. I am so upset, that I am seeking legal counsel.



2. I think the negative review on this site may have missed (in an honest mistake) the rationale behind how this book is organized.
   
   Names of the Dead lists, in alphabetical order, every single name of those who died on the morning of September 11th, 2001. Interspersed at random between the names are statistics from the various Ground Zeroes (New York, Washington, D.C., the field in Somerset County, Pennsylvania) and small anecdotes that don't necessarily relate directly to the specific names where they are listed.
   
   Names of the Dead is a profoundly moving tribute to the lives that were ended so rapidly that morning. It "re-humanizes" what has become an almost symbolic event for our world. Ms. Schoemperlen has created a truly unique work of art and paid magnificent tribute to the innocent dead from that morning.



3. I too believe Mrs Fairben has misinterpretted the meaning of the descriptive following her sons name. The descriptives in this book were not directly related to the names listed. They were random listings of statistical facts about ALL the people who were lost 9/11/01, some were stories of what the people may have done on the 10th of september, there were a few interesting paragraphs describing what kinds of tatoos people had, or what kinds of cloths they were wearing. This book was so moving. I can't explain how intense and well thought out it was. The amount of information she used in the book is so vast. She just helps you to know more about the people who were lost. I am sorry Mrs Fairben feels that way, because the book is something to treasure and a way for those of us who did not know the people who were lost to feel closer to those who were. This was well worth the money and truly one of the best books I have read in a long time.



4. Not what I was expecting, but it would be a wonderful memorial for those who lost loved ones in the 9/11 terrorist attacks.

No comments about Mr. Smith Goes to Ottawa: Life in the House of Commons.

2 comments about Spitfire: The Canadians.

1. What can I tell ya...its's got Spitfires and Canadians!!! Actually, this is a wonderful text containing various Canadian memories of the Spitfire in WWII with a few post-war Isreali adventures thrown in for good measure. The book is richly illustrated with photographs and artistic renderings of this most beautiful of aircraft. Of special note is the rich detail provided on every Spitfire featured and the inclusion of 5 plates denoting various colour schemes used by the RAF and RCAF. Model builders looking for authentic schemes in their creations will find this text invaluable. See more reviews at the "WWII Aviation Booklist" http://www.ampsc.com/~prophet/booklist.html



2. This is a beautifully illustrated book, with many personal stories of Canadian Spitfire pilots. Certain tactics used by the Spitfire pilots are also detailed, giving the reader an insight into the aircrafts capabilities. The photographs are quite unique, and most will be new to the reader, even if you are ( like me ) a Spitaholic, with numerous Spitfire tomes on your shelves. The colour plates are some of the finest I've EVER seen, boasting great detail and depicting a comprehensive crossection of wartime marks, from the Mk I to the mighty Mk XIV. This is not JUST a great book for people interested in Canadiana; it is also a superb book for anyone with a general to deep interest in the Spitfire or aviation. Highly Recommended!