What do you think?
Rate this book
THERE NEVER WAS A BETTER TIME: Toronto's Yesterdays
Jack and Ernie Taylor emigrate to Canada in 1921, and three years later their parents, Mary and John Taylor, along with their brothers and rascal of a grandfather, Job, move to the city. It is one of the most dynamic decades in the history of Toronto. The family thrives, despite the different temperaments involved, thanks in part to the strength of Mary's discipline. She provides structure for her sons, yet they still enjoy the diverse frivolities of the time.Share in their daily life during the Roaring Twenties as Toronto harbour on a side-paddle ferryAttend a baseball game at Hanlan's PointSail aboard the Cayuga to Port DalhousieAttend a Remembrance Day service at the old city hallObserve the 60th anniversary of the Confederation of CanadaExperience the CNE, the biggest and grandest annual fair in the worldShare the laughter of a vaudeville show at the Pantages TheatreVisit Sunnyside, Toronto's summer playground by the lake"Toronto the Good" was evolving into a dynamic, sinful metropolis, adored by many and feared by others. The Taylors witness the cultural identity and infrastructure of their adopted city becoming firmly established during a time of rapid urban expansion.There Never Was a Better Toronto's Yesterdays is an entertaining and informative history of an immigrant family during one of the most thrilling times in Toronto's history.
506 pages, Paperback
First published July 30, 2008
2 people want to read
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 of 1 review
February 2, 2010
(Reprinted from the Chicago Center for Literature and Photography [cclapcenter.com:]. I am the original author of this essay, as well as the owner of CCLaP; it is not being reprinted here illegally.)
I've said here many times already what I think one of the greatest strengths of the print-on-demand, self-publishing format is -- namely, the chance for part-time writers to pen a story specific to their family and situation, so to make the book easily available to the several hundred other relatives and historians who would be interested in such a book. Take for a good example the recent There Never Was a Better Time by Doug Taylor, a slightly fictionalized narrative account of his own family's migration from a small fishing village in Canada to the bustling city of Toronto in the early 20th century; because the simple fact is that this is destined to just never be a big seller, between the extremely narrow subject matter and Taylor's only so-so skills as a writer. But it's also a lively and very readable account of one family's struggles to adapt to the modern age, penned with the kind of eye for historical detail that you would expect from a retired professor like Taylor; and that makes this perfect for people like Canadian history buffs and friends of the family, even if that's admittedly a small crowd. Such manuscripts used to have to be distributed via grimy, expensive stacks of xeroxes handed out at family get-togethers; so how nice, I always think, that we live in an age where it can instead be purchased in a good-looking bound form and sent straight to your home whenever you want. As always, I urge you to take this mindset yourself when it comes to most print-on-demand volumes, instead of comparing them directly to someone like Malcolm Gladwell and always being disappointed.
Out of 10: 7.6
I've said here many times already what I think one of the greatest strengths of the print-on-demand, self-publishing format is -- namely, the chance for part-time writers to pen a story specific to their family and situation, so to make the book easily available to the several hundred other relatives and historians who would be interested in such a book. Take for a good example the recent There Never Was a Better Time by Doug Taylor, a slightly fictionalized narrative account of his own family's migration from a small fishing village in Canada to the bustling city of Toronto in the early 20th century; because the simple fact is that this is destined to just never be a big seller, between the extremely narrow subject matter and Taylor's only so-so skills as a writer. But it's also a lively and very readable account of one family's struggles to adapt to the modern age, penned with the kind of eye for historical detail that you would expect from a retired professor like Taylor; and that makes this perfect for people like Canadian history buffs and friends of the family, even if that's admittedly a small crowd. Such manuscripts used to have to be distributed via grimy, expensive stacks of xeroxes handed out at family get-togethers; so how nice, I always think, that we live in an age where it can instead be purchased in a good-looking bound form and sent straight to your home whenever you want. As always, I urge you to take this mindset yourself when it comes to most print-on-demand volumes, instead of comparing them directly to someone like Malcolm Gladwell and always being disappointed.
Out of 10: 7.6
Displaying 1 of 1 review