True North Rising: My fifty-year journey with the Inuit and Dene leaders who transformed Canada's North

by Whit Fraser

NATIONAL BESTSELLER
In this captivating memoir, Whit Fraser weaves scenes from more than fifty years of reporting and living in the North with fascinating portraits of the Dene and Inuit activists who successfully overturned the colonial order and politically reshaped Canada—including his wife, Mary Simon, Canada's first Indigenous governor general.

"This is a huge embrace of a book, irresistible on every level. . . . I couldn't put it down." —Elizabeth Hay, Scotiabank Giller prize-winning author of Late Nights on Air

In True North Rising , Whit Fraser delivers a smart, touching and astute living history of five decades that transformed the North, a span he witnessed first as a longtime CBC reporter and then through his friendships and his work with Dene and Inuit activists and leaders. Whit had a front-row seat at the MacKenzie Valley Pipeline inquiry, the constitutional conferences and the land-claims negotiations that successfully reshaped the North; he's also travelled to every village and town from Labrador to Alaska. His vivid portraits of groundbreakers such as Abe Okpik, Jose Kusugak, Stephen Kakfwi, Marie Wilson, John Amagoalik, Tagak Curley, and his own wife, Mary Simon, bring home their truly historic achievements, but they also give us a privileged glimpse of who they are, and who Whit Fraser is. He may have begun as a know-nothing reporter from the south, but he soon fell in love with the North, and his memoir is a testament to more than fifty years of commitment to its people.

Genres: Nonfiction, Canada, Indigenous, Audiobook, Social Justice, Memoir, Biography

336 pages, Paperback

Published January 31, 2023

Reviews

[Katheryn Haskell · Rating 4 out of 5]

This generally was a great book, but not my favourite.

As a blanket statement, this 100% would make a really cool study for students. It covers a history that isn't typically addressed (at least not in southern Ontario), and it's moreso a story of triumph and joy instead of anger and abuse. It's nice to read about native joy as well as the harder truths. I think the only unfortunately thing about this is that it's written by the white man involved instead of one of the native men involved (granted, as stated in the book, all those native men were dead at the point of this being written and having these stories is significantly better than not at all). All in all, super cool portion of Canadian history I was not privy too.

I think the only big thing that threw me off with it was the time skipping. There are points where it jumps around time wise a little bit and gets a tiny bit confusing. One that got my specifically was when talking about an event and then just jumped to how all the people involved died, then back to the story. It was jarring for sure, but aside from that, I don't have a lot that I noticed as being bad per say.

All in all, it's a good read, Witt is a great story teller, and I am glad to know more about this portion of history, and more about Northern Canadian and Native history as well.

[Emily · Rating 3 out of 5]

Overall this book covered more political talk than I usually read or find interest in, but I still learned a lot from it. The book did make me reflect on the life in the North and value of northern Canada.

[Sadie Lye · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was great .. i learned and lot. great audio book bc whit has a fantastic voice

[Bookwoman67 · Rating 4 out of 5]

I knew next to nothing about the formation of Nunavut before I read this (most US citizens don't, even those like me who have visited Canada multiple times). This was a lively and approachable introduction to the years 1967 to about 2020 in Northern events from one man's perspective.

Whit Fraser is married to Mary Simon, the current governor general of Canada (and first Inuk to hold that office). He details his introduction to the Northwest Territories as a rookie reporter in 1967, his coverage of the MacKenzie Valley pipeline inquiry, and his later work with many natives in the land claims and native rights movements. A strong point of the book is his highlighting of the lives of many indigenous leaders he has known.

As an aside, I would recommend the print version. I listened to the audio and as a visual learner it was killing me not to see the non-English language words and names. In addition, although Whit Fraser was apparently a broadcaster of some note, he reads his own work and does so with strange pauses and very s-l-o-w-l-y; I listened at 1.25 speed with no detrimental effects.

[Susan Marrier · Rating 4 out of 5]

Much more than a memoir, here Whit Fraser chronicles the 50-year struggle of the people of the North to assert their rights, their land claims, and ultimately their sovereignty, a struggle led by some amazingly talented and articulate young Inuit. Fraser chronicles the lives of these leaders and his relationships with them with compassion and wit, leaders who include his own wife, Mary Simon, born and raised on the land and now Canada’s Governor General, after having filled many other important roles in the North. For more information, see the summary on the Goodreads page. In his Afterword, however, Fraser points out how very much further Canada needs to go to redress the struggles that remain as a sad legacy from decades of neglect and worse. The only thing that keeps this from a full 5-star rating is some less-than-perfect proofreading, leaving a number of typographical errors etc. These however in no way detract from this entertaining, enlightening, and important read, one from which all Canadians could learn much about our country’s treatment and lack of understanding of our remarkable Northern neighbours.

[Amy Dance · Rating 4 out of 5]

The first part read like a memoir, the second half like a who's who of NWT. And the structure of the book flipped back & forth in time, so a timeline was difficult to follow. But it wasn't essential to follow it, either.

However... I knew nothing about the Northwest Territory or Nunavut, and I learned much & enjoyed the story very much.
Fraser wrote little about the life of his wife, Mary Simon, saying it was her story to tell. The bits we do read of her are of a leader of her People & of Canada as a whole. I'd be very Interested in that story also.

[Anne Jisca · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really enjoyed listening to this book. The narration is calming, and the content is interesting. It was like sitting with an elder and listening to his stories from a life well lived.

I learned a lot through it, about the far north, and politics related to it. I’m glad I picked up this book!

[Lindsay Harkness · Rating 5 out of 5]

I can’t say enough about this book, it was inspiring, educational, thought provoking, sad, happy, historical, funny - it elicited the whole range of human emotions. Such a great read about events and people from Canada’s north, highly highly recommend.

[John Bunge · Rating 5 out of 5]

This memoir by Whit Fraser describes his experience working in The North, and the folks he encountered while doing that. It is a love letter to The North and a very satisfying read. I highly recommend it.

[Numberbox · Rating 3 out of 5]

Don’t read this book as a proxy for GG’s memoir. It is not her voice, but rather that of a privileged white Whit witness to amazing First Canadians, Canadians First history. Earlier in the book it felt like a four star, by the end the tone and the lens were too grating, I have said three.

[Trina · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed this book for its rich and decades long perspective on Northern relations.

[Kathleen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Whit Fraser is a CBC journalist who is married to Mary Simon Canada's first indigenous governor general. I knew nothing about Canada's north so found this really interesting and easy to read.

[Shannon · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5

[Janet Slater · Rating 4 out of 5]

A bit of a slog but I learned a lot about some of the history of northern Canada.