A Pocketful of Canada

by John D. Robins (Editor), Laurence Hyde (Illustrator)

Here is no dry as dust anthology but a book reflecting all the vigour and diversity of the Canadian scene, a book designed to bring to the attention of the world the Canadian way of life.

While difficult to define, the spirit of a nation is expressed in the life and thought of the nation's people. Here is Canada, interpreted not only through the prose and poetry of the country's greatest writers but through her historical documents, the writings of her pioneers, through her arts and crafts, through photographs of her people and her industries.

It is a book that will make Canadians aware of their literary heritage and serve as an ideal gift to friends in other countries.

430 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1946

About the author

Born September 8, 1884, near Windsor, Ontario, John D. Robins was educated at Albert College in Belleville, Ontario. He attended Victoria College, University of Toronto (B.A., 1913; M.A., 1922), and the Universities of Freiburg and Marburg (1914), before becoming instructor in German at Victoria College in 1914. Robins took a leave of absence from 1916 to 1918. He enlisted May 25, 1916, and was discharged December 31, 1918. His rank was Sergeant, Musketry Staff, and then Company Sergeant Major, and he taught musketry at Camp Bordon, Toronto, and Halifax. After the war, he returned to Victoria College as a lecturer in German from 1919 to 1925, and then as Associate Professor of English from 1925 to 1933. He had obtained a Ph.D. from the University of Chicago in 1927 and became a full Professor in 1933 and served as head of English at Victoria College from 1937 to his death. For a time beginning in 1945, he was College Librarian. His academic fields included Chaucer, Old and Middle English philology, and popular literature, especially folklore and the ballad. Robins and Leila Isabel Douglas married at Strathroy, Ontario, in 1917. They had one adopted son, Peter Donald. In 1943 John Robins published The Incomplete Anglers and won the Governor General's Award for non-fiction. He went on to edit A Pocketful of Canada (1946) and to write Cottage Cheese (1951) and co-edit, with Margaret V. Ray, A Book of Canadian Humour (Toronto, 1951). Edith Fowke edited his Logging with Paul Bunyan and brought it out in 1957 and again in 1982. His recreations included fishing and the Arts and Letters Club. He lived at 257 Ellis Ave. in Swansea and died, still serving the Department, on December 18, 1952.

Reviews

[Ew Lake · Rating 2 out of 5]

More like a Pocketful of Racism. I was excited to pick up this book, chock full of fiction, nonfiction, facts, essays, wood engravings - all from the perspective of it's 1946 publication date. I suffered through racists views and 300+ pages before reading an essay that genuinely addressed Canadianism - the chapter in the Cultural section on Canadian painting and sculpture. Even better were the following two chapters: Canadian Musical Life and Reconstruction Through the Arts. In the Political section, there were two timely reads that struck me: The Underlying Principle of Confederation and Canada at War. That was a tough one to work through but I'm glad I persevered.