The West Beyond the West: A History of British Columbia

by Jean Barman

British Columbia is regularly described in superlatives both positive and negative - most spectacular scenery, strangest politics, greatest environmental sensitivity, richest Aboriginal cultures, most aggressive resource exploitation, closest ties to Asia. Jean Barman's The West beyond the West presents the history of the province in all its diversity and apparent contradictions. This critically acclaimed work is the premiere book on British Columbian history, with a narrative beginning at the point of contact between Native peoples and Europeans and continuing into the twenty-first century. Barman tells the story by focusing not only on the history made by leaders in government but also on the roles of women, immigrants, and Aboriginal peoples in the development of the province. She incorporates new perspectives and expands discussions on important topics such as the province's relationship to Canada as a nation, its involvement in the two world wars, the perspectives of non-mainstream British Columbians, and its participation in recreation and sports including Olympics. First published in 1991 and revised in 1996, this third edition of The West beyond the West has been supplemented by statistical tables incorporating the 2001 census, two more extensive illustration sections portraying British Columbia's history in images, and other new material bringing the book up to date. Barman's deft scholarship is readily apparent and the book demands to be on the shelf of anyone with an interest in British Columbian or Canadian history.

Genres: History, Canada, Nonfiction

449 pages, Paperback

First published May 1, 1991

Reviews

[Warren Wulff · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is the best single-volume history of BC, with caveats. It is very well researched; the bibliography alone is well curated and provides lots of further directions for reading. It is also a well-planned book, weaving the basic facts with political, social, cultural, environmental, labour, and other histories. Further, the author does well to bring in larger Pacific Northwest, Canadian, British, and worldwide historical considerations and how it impacted BC. Further, there is a very good exploration of what is has meant to “be a British Columbian”, Emily Carr’s “British Columbia seeing”, which takes up the final chapter and is peppered throughout. Finally, throughout there is an honest discussion of race and racism in BC and how it has impacted our history.

There are drawbacks. I read the third edition, which has been vastly updated. However, there are many spelling and grammatical errors that are clearly due to sloppy editing by U of Toronto Press. Example: changing “twentieth century” to “twentieth-first”. Come on! Also, if the third edition was indeed this updated, why are Indigenous peoples referred to as “Indians” throughout? Not only is it highly outdated, it is sometimes confusing when discussing people whose ancestry is actually from India! Sometimes Indigenous and Indian peoples were discussed together and I had to read it over multiple times, but the larger picture is how the language ill-treats both groups.

It is also interesting to note that as a history book published in 2007, it takes the “history” of the province right up to 2006. While laudable, there is no real perspective in time when writing current events as history, since the author cannot know how this recent history will turn out, especially regarding prognostications for the future. For example, writing in 2006 and suggesting what the tonnage passed through Vancouver and Prince Rupert will be in 2016 can be easily checked in 2021 and not surprisingly it missed the mark! Therefore, be warned.

I will say that this is a good book and worth reading. Having done so, I have tied together a lot of loose threads of what I understood to be BC history. I am much better at tackling other BC history learning for having read it. However, I would advise to pair this book with also reading Derek Hayes’ “British Columbia: A New Historical Atlas” and Robin Fisher’s “Contact and Conflict” to provide a further overview of BC history, and then the world is your oyster!

I think it is time for a new, collaborative, multi-volume BC history to be written that takes into account these issues. I would love to see UBC Press and Harbour Publishing collaborate on such a venture.

[Jay Daze · Rating 4 out of 5]

Solid, very readable history of British Columbia.

The West Beyond the West is, as of 2021, over 25 years old, so it unsurprisingly shows its age, especially in the later chapters. I found the social and cultural chapters more engaging than the meat and potatoes resources and political chapters, but don't regret them, need all that to have a general understanding of the province. It was a great book for me to start my independent education on B.C.

I'll be be reading Barman's recent book 'On the Cusp of Contact' essays on 'Gender, Space and Race in the Colonization of British Columbia' in November. Back for more!

[Bruce Whitmore · Rating 4 out of 5]

A lot of detail. Interesting. As I am to travel the lower portion of BC by train, I was interested in background of the development of the Provence. Quite a bit more detail than I actually needed, but what I received satisfied my need.

All of the detail in the book would be a great resource for someone doing historically related writing or ancestry work.

[Bruce · Rating 4 out of 5]

A lot of detail. Interesting. As I am to travel the lower portion of BC by train, I was interested in background of the development of the Provence. Quite a bit more detail than I actually needed, but what I received satisfied my need.

All of the detail in the book would be a great resource for someone doing historically related writing or ancestry work.

[Ian · Rating 3 out of 5]

An incredible collection of historical facts about the province of British Columbia. It was fascinating to learn about the development and peoples that have made this province what it is today. Lot of good information which kept me coming back but a bit hard to access and difficult to get into.

[Kathleen McRae · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a interesting read

[Madison]

Skimmed/mostly read the first half

[Nicole · Rating 5 out of 5]

Such a great and interesting text for my History Course

[Sandra Oldfield · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great read--very well written

[D'arcy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Barman is one of the leading historians when it comes to BC history. Her approaches are varied and appropriate, and her personal beliefs are checked and used when needed or valid. She uses a wide mix of primary and secondary sources from all over (be it records, journals, oral histories, etc), and each chapter is short enough to be in-depth without washing the reader into one subject or another. Obviously one won't fully understand each topic in question, but the book acts as the perfect springboard to ask questions like "What is the history of Race in BC?" or "How have fisheries developed in BC's history and what have been their effects?" It's a great introduction to the vast and varied history of BC.

[Stefan · Rating 5 out of 5]

‘The West Beyond the West’ was a brilliant work of narrative and scholarly history. Jean Barman did a great job at balancing readability (moving between diverse topics smoothly) with thoughtful insights into the history of British Columbia. I particularly enjoyed the parts where Barman explained how British Columbia developed against the odds geographically and politically (thanks in no small part to Governor James Douglas). I also learned a lot from the passages that examined how British Columbia developed somewhat apart from the rest of Canada and developed a distinctive regional identity as a result.

[tamarack · Rating 1 out of 5]

okay, so i had to read this in a compulsory college class on BC history. it is never something i would have chosen of my own volition. it wasn't awful, but gets one star because it's true: "i didn't like it".

[Marni · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is basically a history book, but one that is readable.

As a recent resident of B.C. (2 years) I found this very informative. There were many times I thought, "That's why it's like that here".