Stone Country: An Unauthorized History Of Canada

by George Bowering

History is too important to be left to the historians. That's one lesson to be gleaned from novelist/poet George Bowering's history of Canada, Stone Country. While others have tried, and continue to attempt, to turn Confederation, the Meech Lake Accord, and the rise of Jean Chrétien into something other than the stuff of schoolkids' nightmares, it has taken a 67-year-old cynic with a novelist's insight (or vice versa) and sense of irony to turn these ingredients into a readable narrative. For starters, the author's manner is breezy and informal--at one point he writes that Prime Minister Mackenzie King "was browned off" that a group of Canadian anti-fascists used his grandfather's name for its battalion. Nor does Bowering feel any compunction about devising dialogue between policymakers to explain their wheeling and dealing, and his remarks on political players range from the catty to the cutting. He describes explorer James Wolfe as a "member of a military family despite having almost no chin" and calls Brian Mulroney "a smiling prime minister who held the door open [to the Americans] and said everything is for sale." Obviously, a reader seeking an objective account would do well to avoid this book entirely, since the author's idea of fairness is to heap scorn on both the Liberals and the Conservatives (though the latter definitely get a sounder beating.) Bowering, recently named Canada's first poet laureate, doesn't try to hide his anti-American streak either, and calls our neighbours to the south "USAmericans" (ostensibly to differentiate them from the original inhabitants) throughout the book. Indeed, no one, with the exception of fellow poet Dorothy Livesay, is free from the West Coast native's sharp-eyed put-downs, which even include potential "If you are the kind of person who thinks that ice hockey is exciting, you might wake up for a while during the Riel Rebellions." Bowering's own beliefs are perhaps best summarized by his description of the tumultuous '60s, which he calls "the most honourable years of the twentieth century." But it's totally subjective remarks like these, as well as his willingness to make imaginative leaps into the motivations of his real-life characters, that make Stone Country an immensely readable story rather than a simple recounting of facts. Hence, both Canadian history buffs and neophytes will be, at the very least, entertained--although readers with a right-wing bent are also likely to be seriously "browned off." --Shawn Conner

Genres: History, Nonfiction, Canada

Hardcover

First published May 1, 2003

About the author

George Bowering was born and brought up in the Okanagan Valley, amid sand dunes and sagebrush, but he has lived in Quebec, Ontario, Manitoba, and Alberta — great sources of hockey stars. Along the way he has stopped to write several books on baseball. He has also picked up Governor General’s Awards for his poetry and fiction, and otherwise been rewarded with prizes for his books, except in his home province of British Columbia. His earlier ECW book, His Life, was a finalist for the Governor General’s Award for 2000. He lives in Vancouver.

Reviews

[Luke · Rating 4 out of 5]

Concise and comical Canadian history. Bowering's Stone Country is refreshing in its brevity, humour, and progressive viewpoint.

I wouldn't necessarily want this in schools, but a handy survey for both those versed in history and casual readers.

[Huda · Rating 4 out of 5]

If you think Canadian history is boring, read this book! It's a very entertaining journey through the story of the True North Strong and Free.

[Isblue · Rating 3 out of 5]

Very much a book of the writer's opinions on Canadian history. I don't have a problem with this, though I'd have appreciated footnotes to back up his number/fact dropping statements. There is an extensive bibliography though. The book is breezy and cheery and the writer has opinions he's not afraid to voice. It's a lot like having someone chatting away at you over coffee on something he's passionate about but still has enough objectivity not to be irrational.

I enjoyed it quite a bit, but then I share many of Bowering's opinions.

[Scott · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is a good read if you already have a grounding in Canadian history and you've got a bit of a lefty bias as I do.

[Katya Epstein]

I gave up on this after eight pages: too glib to be informative.