O Canada!
I love reading travel books, especially about travel in Canada, the U.S., and Europe. I've only visited Canada a couple of times (Toronto, Niagra Falls, and Quebec City). One of the most memorable places visited was "Tivoli Miniature Village" near St. Catherine's, Ontario. It was on one of those family driving vacations (Wisconsin to Niagra to Maine to Quebec City and back). Tivoli Miniature World had tiny models of famous world landmarks. It was fun and cheesy, and we were hundreds of miles from home, so we teenagers didn't need to be embarrassed. I think it's now gone. Another important moment: meeting real Canadians (teenagers swimming in the motel pool) who said "eh?" at the end of sentences. I also stayed in Toronto during the SARS scare.
I'd like to visit Canada again. In the meantime, I read about Canada, listen to As It Happens from time to time on Wisconsin Public Radio, and watch what Canadian tv we get (like Slings and Arrows).
Brook, Stephen. Maple Leaf Rag: Travels Across Canada. New York: Vintage Books, 1988.
This is a "rag," that is, a fair amount of complaining. But it's also funny. Brook mostly goes to Canadian cities. One of those books I've re-read more than once. I remember coming across it at Prairie Lights bookstore in Iowa City, when I was in college.
Fraser, Marian B. Walking the Line. San Francisco: Sierra Club Books, 1989.
One of those I read ages ago, but enjoyed enough that I remembered I enjoyed it. Fraser travels along the Canadian-U.S. border (among the longest unguarded borders in the world), and writes about the people she meets.
Gordon, Charles. The Canada Trip. Toronto: McClelland & Stewart, 1997.
A newspaper reporter and his wife take a car trip across Canada one summer, starting and ending around Toronto. Gordon is strictly a tourist; he briefly describes the people they meet, but his emphasis is not on character sketches. He describes places--cities and natural areas, and towns. They visit a town that they had lived in decades before, when Gordon was starting out in newspapers. They also visit various friends. Gordon loves visiting territorial capitol buildings; this is a theme in the book. His family has a relatively (for white people) long history in Canada, and they visit places associated with his grandparents and great-grandparents. They also take a break at a family cabin in the Ontario Lakes. It's fun to read about another region's country getaway spot--sounds similar to the "northwoods" of Wisconsin. I think I liked this book because the trip reminded me of the car trips I took with my parents and brother (without all the squabbles).
Stackhouse, John. Timbit Nation: A Hitchhiker's View of Canada. Toronto: Random House Canada, 2003.
I usually don't include books I didn't really like. But I recently read this, and wanted to warn people against it. Or recommend it for people who want a gritty, depressing view of Canada. Maybe this is the reality and the above books are the sugar-coated tales. I hope not. They're probably both realities, just the realities of different people. Many of the people (mostly men) who picked up hitchhiker John Stackhouse seemed to be living on the edge economically. Stackhouse spent a lot of time standing in urban sprawl, in crappy weather or being attacked by bugs, waiting for rides. His destinations were dependent on his drivers, who were not usually tourists. The book had more character studies than descriptions of places. He did hitchhike from coast to coast. (I did know what Timbits were, courtesy of a Canadian friend.)
To end on a happier note...
The Way We Live in Manitoba. Winnipeg, Man.: Winnipeg Free Press, 1998.
This is a pretty coffee table book, lots of pretty pictures, compiled by a Manitoba newspaper. Nice text too. Confirms that "the prairies" are more than just flat fields of wheat. Looks at the ethnic and geographic diversity. I think I was inspired to track down this book after visiting the National Museum of the American Indian in Washington Dc, and seeing an exhibit on the Metis of Manitoba.
Other Canada-related books I've mentioned so far:
August 8, 2006
Ganong, Joan. Backstage at Stratford. Toronto, Longmans [1962].
Patterson, Tom. First Stage: The Making of the Stratford Festival. Toronto: McClelland and Stewart, c1987.
Ouzounian, Richard. Stratford Gold: Fifty Years, Fifty Stars, Fifty Conversations Toronto: McArthur & Co., 2002.
June 13, 2006
Tewksbury, Mark. Visions of Excellence: The Art of Achieving Your Dreams.
Toronto, Ont.; New York, N.Y.: Viking, 1993.
I love reading travel books, especially about travel in Canada, the U.S., and Europe. I've only visited Canada a couple of times (Toronto, Niagra Falls, and Quebec City). One of the most memorable places visited was "Tivoli Miniature Village" near St. Catherine's, Ontario. It was on one of those family driving vacations (Wisconsin to Niagra to Maine to Quebec City and back). Tivoli Miniature World had tiny models of famous world landmarks. It was fun and cheesy, and we were hundreds of miles from home, so we teenagers didn't need to be embarrassed. I think it's now gone. Another important moment: meeting real Canadians (teenagers swimming in the motel pool) who said "eh?" at the end of sentences. I also stayed in Toronto during the SARS scare.
I'd like to visit Canada again. In the meantime, I read about Canada, listen to As It Happens from time to time on Wisconsin Public Radio, and watch what Canadian tv we get (like Slings and Arrows).
Brook, Stephen. Maple Leaf Rag: Travels Across Canada. New York: Vintage Books, 1988.
This is a "rag," that is, a fair amount of complaining. But it's also funny. Brook mostly goes to Canadian cities. One of those books I've re-read more than once. I remember coming across it at Prairie Lights bookstore in Iowa City, when I was in college.
Fraser, Marian B. Walking the Line. San Francisco: Sierra Club Books, 1989.
One of those I read ages ago, but enjoyed enough that I remembered I enjoyed it. Fraser travels along the Canadian-U.S. border (among the longest unguarded borders in the world), and writes about the people she meets.
Gordon, Charles. The Canada Trip. Toronto: McClelland & Stewart, 1997.
A newspaper reporter and his wife take a car trip across Canada one summer, starting and ending around Toronto. Gordon is strictly a tourist; he briefly describes the people they meet, but his emphasis is not on character sketches. He describes places--cities and natural areas, and towns. They visit a town that they had lived in decades before, when Gordon was starting out in newspapers. They also visit various friends. Gordon loves visiting territorial capitol buildings; this is a theme in the book. His family has a relatively (for white people) long history in Canada, and they visit places associated with his grandparents and great-grandparents. They also take a break at a family cabin in the Ontario Lakes. It's fun to read about another region's country getaway spot--sounds similar to the "northwoods" of Wisconsin. I think I liked this book because the trip reminded me of the car trips I took with my parents and brother (without all the squabbles).
Stackhouse, John. Timbit Nation: A Hitchhiker's View of Canada. Toronto: Random House Canada, 2003.
I usually don't include books I didn't really like. But I recently read this, and wanted to warn people against it. Or recommend it for people who want a gritty, depressing view of Canada. Maybe this is the reality and the above books are the sugar-coated tales. I hope not. They're probably both realities, just the realities of different people. Many of the people (mostly men) who picked up hitchhiker John Stackhouse seemed to be living on the edge economically. Stackhouse spent a lot of time standing in urban sprawl, in crappy weather or being attacked by bugs, waiting for rides. His destinations were dependent on his drivers, who were not usually tourists. The book had more character studies than descriptions of places. He did hitchhike from coast to coast. (I did know what Timbits were, courtesy of a Canadian friend.)
To end on a happier note...
The Way We Live in Manitoba. Winnipeg, Man.: Winnipeg Free Press, 1998.
This is a pretty coffee table book, lots of pretty pictures, compiled by a Manitoba newspaper. Nice text too. Confirms that "the prairies" are more than just flat fields of wheat. Looks at the ethnic and geographic diversity. I think I was inspired to track down this book after visiting the National Museum of the American Indian in Washington Dc, and seeing an exhibit on the Metis of Manitoba.
Other Canada-related books I've mentioned so far:
August 8, 2006
Ganong, Joan. Backstage at Stratford. Toronto, Longmans [1962].
Patterson, Tom. First Stage: The Making of the Stratford Festival. Toronto: McClelland and Stewart, c1987.
Ouzounian, Richard. Stratford Gold: Fifty Years, Fifty Stars, Fifty Conversations Toronto: McArthur & Co., 2002.
June 13, 2006
Tewksbury, Mark. Visions of Excellence: The Art of Achieving Your Dreams.
Toronto, Ont.; New York, N.Y.: Viking, 1993.
posted by Beth at 11:47 AM
1 Comments:
Good words.
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