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By Stuart Mclean Morningside World of Stuart Mclean [Paperback]
For years, Canadians across the country waited with eager anticipation for Stuart McLean's Monday morning appearances on CBC-Radio's Morningside . Funny and charming, poignant and nostalgic, McLean's essays illuminate a world most of us take for granted. Among Stuart's favourites in this collection - the shocking truth about household dust- the importance of hardware stores- the sad, true tale of Anne, the street lady- an ode to the Popsicle, "one of the world's most perfect foods"- the story of the greatest game of Monopoly ever played.
Unknown Binding
First published January 1, 1989
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About the author
Stuart McLean
103 books266 followersLibrarian Note: There was more than one author in the Goodreads database with this name.
From the Vinyl Cafe web site: Stuart McLean was a best-selling author, award-winning journalist and humorist, and host of CBC Radio program The Vinyl Cafe.
Stuart began his broadcasting career making radio documentaries for CBC Radio's Sunday Morning. In 1979 he won an ACTRA award for Best Radio Documentary for his contribution to the program's coverage of the Jonestown massacre.
Following Sunday Morning, Stuart spent seven years as a regular columnist and guest host on CBC's Morningside. His book, The Morningside World of Stuart McLean, was a Canadian bestseller and a finalist in the 1990 City of Toronto Book Awards.
Stuart has also written Welcome Home: Travels in Small Town Canada, and edited the collection When We Were Young. Welcome Home was chosen by the Canadian Authors' Association as the best non-fiction book of 1993.
Stuart's books Stories from the Vinyl Cafe, Home from the Vinyl Cafe, Vinyl Cafe Unplugged, Vinyl Cafe Diaries, Dave Cooks the Turkey, Secrets from the Vinyl Cafe and Extreme Vinyl Cafe have all been Canadian bestsellers. Vinyl Cafe Diaries was awarded the Canadian Authors' Association Jubilee Award in 2004. Stuart was also a three-time winner of the Stephen Leacock Memorial Medal for Humour for Home from the Vinyl Cafe, Vinyl Cafe Unplugged and, most recently, Secrets from the Vinyl Cafe.
Vinyl Cafe books have also been published in the U.S., the U.K., Australia and New Zealand.
Stuart was a professor emeritus at Ryerson University in Toronto and former director of the broadcast division of the School of Journalism. In 1993 Trent University named him the first Rooke Fellow for Teaching, Writing and Research. He has also been honored by: Nipissing University (EdD(H)); University of Windsor (Lld) and Trent University (DLH). Stuart served as Honorary Colonel of the 8th Air Maintenance Squadron at 8 Wing, Trenton from 2005 to 2008.
Since 1998 Stuart has taken The Vinyl Cafe to theatres across Canada, playing in both large and small towns from St. John's, Newfoundland to Whitehorse in the Yukon.
Close to one million people listen to The Vinyl Cafe every weekend on CBC Radio and Sirius Satellite Radio and on a growing number of Public Radio stations in the United States. The program is also broadcast on an occasional basis on the BBC.
From the Vinyl Cafe web site: Stuart McLean was a best-selling author, award-winning journalist and humorist, and host of CBC Radio program The Vinyl Cafe.
Stuart began his broadcasting career making radio documentaries for CBC Radio's Sunday Morning. In 1979 he won an ACTRA award for Best Radio Documentary for his contribution to the program's coverage of the Jonestown massacre.
Following Sunday Morning, Stuart spent seven years as a regular columnist and guest host on CBC's Morningside. His book, The Morningside World of Stuart McLean, was a Canadian bestseller and a finalist in the 1990 City of Toronto Book Awards.
Stuart has also written Welcome Home: Travels in Small Town Canada, and edited the collection When We Were Young. Welcome Home was chosen by the Canadian Authors' Association as the best non-fiction book of 1993.
Stuart's books Stories from the Vinyl Cafe, Home from the Vinyl Cafe, Vinyl Cafe Unplugged, Vinyl Cafe Diaries, Dave Cooks the Turkey, Secrets from the Vinyl Cafe and Extreme Vinyl Cafe have all been Canadian bestsellers. Vinyl Cafe Diaries was awarded the Canadian Authors' Association Jubilee Award in 2004. Stuart was also a three-time winner of the Stephen Leacock Memorial Medal for Humour for Home from the Vinyl Cafe, Vinyl Cafe Unplugged and, most recently, Secrets from the Vinyl Cafe.
Vinyl Cafe books have also been published in the U.S., the U.K., Australia and New Zealand.
Stuart was a professor emeritus at Ryerson University in Toronto and former director of the broadcast division of the School of Journalism. In 1993 Trent University named him the first Rooke Fellow for Teaching, Writing and Research. He has also been honored by: Nipissing University (EdD(H)); University of Windsor (Lld) and Trent University (DLH). Stuart served as Honorary Colonel of the 8th Air Maintenance Squadron at 8 Wing, Trenton from 2005 to 2008.
Since 1998 Stuart has taken The Vinyl Cafe to theatres across Canada, playing in both large and small towns from St. John's, Newfoundland to Whitehorse in the Yukon.
Close to one million people listen to The Vinyl Cafe every weekend on CBC Radio and Sirius Satellite Radio and on a growing number of Public Radio stations in the United States. The program is also broadcast on an occasional basis on the BBC.
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Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews
January 5, 2018
When Morningside and the Vinyl Cafe series first entered my life, I couldn't get enough of Stuart Mclean's writing. For me, he totally pegged what it is to be Canadian: our humour, our insistence on using that extra U in spelling words, our ability to innovate in a pinch and yes, our inbred politeness. It doesn't hurt to be polite and it sure as heck can get you out of some sticky situations! Thanks Stuart!
August 27, 2019
Stuart McLean write in an incredibly approachable way. These stories or essays run the gamut of topics, Canadian or not. Some of the terminology is a bit dated now given the age of the book, but generally this is an entertaining read.
April 21, 2019
An interesting book in that you can see the seeds of stories that will later show up in The Vinyl Cafe as the adventures of Dave and Morley.
August 30, 2018
Vignettes of a Canada that no longer exists. MacLean is the master storyteller.
February 16, 2022
What can I say about a Stuart McLean book? Every page was a delight.
January 10, 2021
Stuart Mclean is known as one of Canada's best story tellers, most well known for his tales in the Vinyl Cafe Collection about a family of four: Dave, the often awkward but good hearted owner of a small record store in Toronto, his understanding wife Morley and their two children Sam and Stephanie. But before that time, McLean spent years at CBC Radio, first as a researcher for the show "Cross Country Checkup" and later working on documentaries for the program "Sunday Morning".
During the eighties and nineties he was a frequent contributor and sometimes a guest host for Peter Gzowski's popular radio program "Morningside". When he and Peter Gzowski first began working together, Gzowski was uncertain whether the pairing would work, but the two soon found their footing and Gzowski gradually came to enjoy Mclean and respect his work. They had a regular spot together on Monday mornings during which they discussed whatever came up and Stuart would read one of his essays about the every day world, pieces Gzowski later described as small "exquisitely crafted pieces of journalism".
Mclean chose subjects that focused on every day people and their experiences, ordinary things that people could relate to, were often part of their own experience and presented a positive view of life. They were meant for people to enjoy rather than to raise questions, controversy or to present a particular point of view, so there was never anything about religion or politics. They were funny often nostalgic and people enjoyed listing to them.
Stuart credits this time on CBC with Gzowski as a time that helped him hone his craft as a writer.
Eventually McLean compiled a selection of this work in this, his first book, which quickly became a best seller and was chosen as a finalist for the 1990 Toronto Book Award.
There are a number of stories here on a wide variety of subjects, most of them about every day life and the world as a kind and decent place with good people just making their way through life. Some are very funny and make you laugh out loud, a few are a little sad and pull at your heart strings.
This collection includes essays on the virtues of the wooden pencil, the sad tale of Anne the street lady, the story of Ernie the hot dog street vendor, the miracle of the Stanley Street Tavern, the shocking truth about household dust and an ode to the popsicle, what Mclean deemed one of the most perfect foods.
What I enjoyed most was his stories about growing up in Montreal and summers at Lac Marois where my family rented a cottage not far from his own. His memories are the same as many of mine -- of the tuck shop on the lake and Friday night dances. He talks of growing up in the West End of Montreal, what the area was like and notes the well known Elizbeth Ballantyne School.
It reminded me of so many times from my own past as he was writing about living through his.
This is a lovely book, his stories charming and so well written. For those who enjoy so much of his later work, it is good to go back to this time and read his early stories when he was just beginning to live his dream of becoming a successful writer.
During the eighties and nineties he was a frequent contributor and sometimes a guest host for Peter Gzowski's popular radio program "Morningside". When he and Peter Gzowski first began working together, Gzowski was uncertain whether the pairing would work, but the two soon found their footing and Gzowski gradually came to enjoy Mclean and respect his work. They had a regular spot together on Monday mornings during which they discussed whatever came up and Stuart would read one of his essays about the every day world, pieces Gzowski later described as small "exquisitely crafted pieces of journalism".
Mclean chose subjects that focused on every day people and their experiences, ordinary things that people could relate to, were often part of their own experience and presented a positive view of life. They were meant for people to enjoy rather than to raise questions, controversy or to present a particular point of view, so there was never anything about religion or politics. They were funny often nostalgic and people enjoyed listing to them.
Stuart credits this time on CBC with Gzowski as a time that helped him hone his craft as a writer.
Eventually McLean compiled a selection of this work in this, his first book, which quickly became a best seller and was chosen as a finalist for the 1990 Toronto Book Award.
There are a number of stories here on a wide variety of subjects, most of them about every day life and the world as a kind and decent place with good people just making their way through life. Some are very funny and make you laugh out loud, a few are a little sad and pull at your heart strings.
This collection includes essays on the virtues of the wooden pencil, the sad tale of Anne the street lady, the story of Ernie the hot dog street vendor, the miracle of the Stanley Street Tavern, the shocking truth about household dust and an ode to the popsicle, what Mclean deemed one of the most perfect foods.
What I enjoyed most was his stories about growing up in Montreal and summers at Lac Marois where my family rented a cottage not far from his own. His memories are the same as many of mine -- of the tuck shop on the lake and Friday night dances. He talks of growing up in the West End of Montreal, what the area was like and notes the well known Elizbeth Ballantyne School.
It reminded me of so many times from my own past as he was writing about living through his.
This is a lovely book, his stories charming and so well written. For those who enjoy so much of his later work, it is good to go back to this time and read his early stories when he was just beginning to live his dream of becoming a successful writer.
March 12, 2008
30 stories from CBC radio
May 18, 2009
lent to Kate
May 16, 2012
Always a good read.
May 23, 2014
Love Stuart McLean. He celebrates all the simple everyday things I love about Canada.
Makes me a little homesick.
Makes me a little homesick.
Read
November 4, 2008The Morningside World of Stuart McLean by Stuart McLean (1989)
Read
July 26, 2011I love reading these stories.
November 30, 2013
very enjoyable and serene reading
March 15, 2014
love he's books
Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews