French Kiss: Stephen Harper's Blind Date with Quebec

by Chantal Hébert

Chantal Hébert’s first book is both a post-mortem of the Canadian federation that died on January 23, 2006, the night of the last federal election, as well as a brilliant examination of our changing political future, one that involves living with Quebec rather than just wooing it.

On that night, award-winning political writer and broadcaster Chantal Hébert stood in a Calgary convention hall with 2,000 Alberta Conservatives, who were raucously cheering the election of ten Tory MPs from Quebec. The Conservatives would not have gotten their man in office without Quebec, and now the future success of the Harper government hinges on turning this one-night stand into a long-term relationship.

More than ten years ago, the Quebec-Alberta coalition cobbled together by Brian Mulroney dissolved, leading to the births of the Bloc Québecois and the Reform Party. As a result, Alberta and Quebec took their marbles out of federal play, and Ontario got to run Canada.

Have we now come full circle? By the time this book is published, the Liberal Party of Canada may have morphed into the Liberal Party of Ontario (or Toronto). And the Canadian Left will have chosen a camp in preparation for a decisive federal election battle.

Provocative and always worth listening to, Chantal Hébert is at her savvy and insightful best in French Kiss . No Canadian can be truly informed on the subject of Canadian politics without the benefit of her non-partisan commentary.

Genres: Politics, Nonfiction, History, Canada

288 pages, Hardcover

First published February 26, 2007

Reviews

[Ty Bradley · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love books about the Martin-Harper years. Hébert is such a good narrative storyteller, I’m surprised she hasn’t written more books.

[Marla · Rating 3 out of 5]

Mother-daughter book club, because... Chantal Hébert. Like all Hébert’s journalism this offered a succinct political analysis that understands the issues from both Québec and angloCanadian perspectives. This clarified my understanding of the heady days of sovereignty, the constitutional wrangling, it’s fallout and the rise of Stephen Harper. But French Kiss is also a book of a very specific time - before the orange wave, before the emergence of another Trudeau and before a pandemic brought federalism back to the forefront of Canadian lives.

[Marlies · Rating 3 out of 5]

Although she did not intend for this book to develop the background as the why the Liberal Party crashed and burned, Hebert's knowledge of Canadian politics did just that for me! With jems like, "On January 23, 2006, every sovereignist chicken came home to roost--in Stephen Harper's hen house," (50)I couldn't help but enjoy Hebert's commentary on Harper's rise in Quebec in the 2006 election. Even though the NDP took over, I think that Hebert's book was an excellent read for anyone interested in Canadian politics, especially if you want a better understanding of the history of the Canada-Quebec relationship.
Hebert's writing style is light and it almost feels like she is in the living room chatting with you, instead of trying to write over you. I have to admit that I love watching her on TV on the CBC because she is extremely intelligent and very well-spoken. That comes across in her book.
Also, Hebert hits on some interesting points that had me laughing, looking up information online, and saying "yes!" out loud. For instance, she has some great insight into the profession of politics, particularly when it comes to women in politics: "At the very time when women have come into their own in the upper levels of the professional job market, the image of the career politician has plummeted" (136).
Anyone interested in Canadian politics should have a look at this book. Herbert is a gold-mine of Canadian political history and insight, and does it all with a Quebecios slant.

[Ronnie · Rating 5 out of 5]

First of all A LOUD HUZZAH AND A BIG HURRAH ! for the Leominster Public Library for be able to get this book from a Library in Orono, Maine. I heard and saw this lady on Canadian TV Sunday Noc on the program "Touts Monde En Parle" This journalist has just released a new book titled " The Morning After...The 1995 Quebec Referendum and the day that almost was". Its about politics....Canadian....Quebecan Politics. this book.."The French Kiss" is a definite good read..a hoot...really..the machinations foisted on the electoral folk of Canada and Quebec makes for some nightmarish views...The attempted,,,,successful or otherwise of having the voters behave a certain way is revolting... The politicos viewing the happenings of Europe....i.e. Serbia..Ruwanda ....Sarajevo...cast a fearful pall over what could or could not happen. This lady writes with behind the scenes wallpapering that is nothing less than stunning. For anyone who is hooked on politics this book is a gem...Why? Canadian politics and US politics are like two streams....side by side.....sometimes one or the floods over...or a tributary develops by a wearing away of the walls of the boundary of each river flow....Its a good book written by an articulate self effacing gentlewoman that when you hear her talk...you could listen forever with her gripping tales of capers in Ottawa...Montreal...Western Canada.....please read it.....RJH

[Cow · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting book. Like so many, it gets dated quickly. The history is good; the predictions are, well, who could've seen the last six years in politics? (Although the section on how the Conservative government will mean the end of pork-barrel politics because Quebec has no taste for it was, well, optimistic to say the least.) Ms. Hebert absolutely knows her stuff, and the insight into both Quebec attitudes and the unofficial Alberta-Quebec coalitions of the past explained so much to me.

Also, if you, say, moved to Canada in 2007, this is an excellent book for filling in the gap in your historical knowledge for about 1986-2006. It's interesting how many of the things I think of as just 'how Canada is'--mostly involving a weak federal government and very strong provinces--are a relatively new thing.

The writing gets clunky at times, and there are so many mixed metaphors and little bits that could've used a bit of editing. But underneath is a solid look at recent Canadian history, and a sense of how we got where we are.

[Vontel · Rating 5 out of 5]

A most interesting read almost 10 years after publication, inspired by the 2006 federal election that ended the Liberal party's "Natural Governing Party" rule, and in view of political changes that have occurred since then. I was motivated to read this book after reading Hebert's new book "The Morning After: the 1995 Referendum and the Day That Almost Was". This book provides some interesting analysis and background to current politics, which is very relevant in what is a federal election year.

[Chelsea · Rating 5 out of 5]

For those millennials who were in high school and college while this part of Canadian political history unfolded around them, unawares and not yet part of the vote, this is a perfect fill for the gaps. I have so much respect for a non-partisan political writer in this day and age. This book fostered more understanding in me than most of my high school education.

I would love to see literature like this used and referenced in the Canadian education system.

Thank you Chantal, please keep writing!! This and "The Morning After" were both great reads and left me hungry for more.

[Mélanie · Rating 3 out of 5]

It wasn't bad, but I should have read it before Harper got his majority and the NDP swept Quebec in the last federal election. The Liberals come across as a pretty dysfunctional party. So Harper's blind date with Quebec is not so much about what he's done right, but how much his opponents could not get their act together.

[Stanley Lee · Rating 4 out of 5]

if you want to know how stephen harper leveraged quebec in his 2006 election win, this is a good book for you.