This is a great collection of short stories. M.Brooks takes you on a fantastic ride that you will never forget. Each reader can relate to its own story in this book. Giving inspiration, hope or comfort, M.Brooks invites you to read on...Not too overwhelming with emotion, but loaded with thoughts.

Gaffen brings to us the accounts of several Canadians who served in Vietnam.

He opens with a history of Canadians serving in the military forces of other nations, which could well make them the Wild Geese of North America. He then gives an historical background to the Vietnam War, as well as Canada's role surprising role in it.

The centrepiece of the book, part two's "War Experiences of Canadians, reads like Guy Sajer's <>. There is combat, but their is also drudgery and boredom and the abuse by ossifers. Not only dispels <> and the other bimbo movies, but also points out faults in <>.

Gaffen also devotes a section to the problems Vets faced after DEROSing back to the World. His chapter on wannabes and imposters is "iron on target", only, he didn't find out how vicious and even violent some of these specimins can be when you try to verify their bona fides.

Gaffen's last chapter talks about some of those who never returned, including the inspiring stories of Randolph Edward Hatton and Brian John Devaney, which every Canadian child (and adult) should read.

Gaffen also courageously leaves the role of a dispasionate stenographer to advocate and agitate for the recognition of Canadian Vietnam Veterans. One has to respect him for this. His government employers could have easily retaliated against him for doing the right thing.One must also respect Gaffen for even just writing about Veterans, who, in Canada, lack the popular "marketability" of Britany Spears.

The only criticism is that Gaffen does not distinguish Canadians who crossed the border to volunteer to fight in Vietnam (in the same manner as Leon Degrelle's Walloon Legion on the OstFront during WWII) from Canadians who were conscripted while living in the US (in the manner of the "Prinz Eugen" Division's enlisted in Yugoslavia during WWII). There are enough in either category to warrant separate chapters. In the end, however, the distinction is merely editorial, as the VC, NVA and ossifers did not discriminate between volunteers and conscripts. Indeed, conscripted Canadians who retained their citizenship could have easily and legally followed the crowd north and become Deans, CEO's, Board Members or even Presidents today; the fact that they didn't speaks to their character.

Gaffen has not only brough to light some of Canada's forgtten heroes, he has also rendered them homage. His work has given us a reason to be proud to call ourselves Canadians!

The opening pages of "Very Heaven," a play by Ann Lambert, note that this piece was first produced in Montreal, Quebec in 1999. A mini-bio declares that the author is a Montreal resident. The play itself takes place in a country house in Quebec.

In this play, three sisters have come together at their mother's home after the death of their mother. The mother, Rose, appears as a character; the production notes state that she "is an integral part of their story; she is not simply a memory, or a ghost, but a vibrant character with her own story to tell and her own journey to make." A fifth character is the local handyman.

As the three sisters spend time with each other and with the handyman, they explore the past and learn more about their mother and about each other. Although a bit soap opera-ish at times, this play is ultimately moving and effective. A key theme is finding one's self and one's way in the world. If you like plays that feature interactions between compelling female characters, I recommend "Very Heaven." For an interesting companion text with some similar aspects, try "Behsharam," a play by Gurpreet Kaur Bhatti.

Our census returns published in 2001 indicate that the population of the United States is increasingly of mixed race and ethnic identity. If I had a dollar for every pundit who claimed that this is a revolutionary situation that has never happened before in America, I could buy my own fleet of birchbark canoes. Of course, there have been many subsets of North American society that have been characterized by a mixing and blurring of ethnic identity. Some of these subsets arose centuries ago. One of them is that group of French-Canadian-Indian men and women known as the "metis" or "voyageurs." The social customs of this group, their values, their strengths, their love of life, are recounted here by an enthusiast. Miss Nute was a pioneer. She wrote before her time. I heartily recommend this book to everyone.

Henighan's assault on the icons of the Canadian literary scene is essential reading for anyone. All that's required to enjoy this book is a detached view of what constitutes "literature." Hollywood and other hype forms have elevated such figures as Timothy Findley, Carole Shields and Michael Ondaatje to elevated status. Is the adulation warranted? In most cases, according to Henighan, the answer is an emphatic negative. These essays, derived from his reviews of literary growth in Canada over two decades, reflect a strong historical awareness. Canada, "endowed by history . . . with the literary language of the world's two most powerful empires, the British and the American," was shedding its British roots just when the American "elephant" came to dominate the literary scene. For Henighan, a sound historical context is fundamental to producing in-depth literature. In Canada, that history was swamped by those imperial intimidations. Canadian writing is thus constrained, with its literature, just gaining an identity, being flooded by market requirements.

Market became the dominant force as Canadian writing was beset by commercial ideals. Writers falsified history to capture sales. In the finest analytical piece in this collection, Henighan dissects two key works of the "transition" period: Michael Ondaatje's "The English Patient" and Ann Michaels' "Fugitive Pieces." Henighan finds both clarity and obfuscation in Ondaatje's work - "at his best, his prose is unbeatable." Henighan faults Ondaatje for transforming history into metaphor. Historians object to authors projecting modern values into the past. Ondaatje commits this sin repeatedly, "neutering the past into harmless, ecstatic visions," according to Henighan. Using fiction as the medium is no excuse, according to Henighan, since this technique leads the reader into false views of history's lessons. Michaels falls into the same trap by "anesthetising the Holocaust." He finds "most of Fugitive Pieces is shapeless showing-off.... The reader's role here, is "to make you impressed with yourself for having read" the book. Not a compelling reason for taking it up.

In the same essay, however, Henighan depicts Jack Hodgins "Broken Ground" as a "deliberate inversion of The English Patient." He contends Hodgins is "sparring" with Ondaatje with his frighteningly realistic portrayal of trench warfare in WWI. This comparison surely diminishes Hodgins' writing skills. Hodgins is purely his own man as a writer, hardly needing Ondaatje as a foil. It's surprising that in his later expose of the Giller and Governor General's awards Henighan overlooks the great injustice done Hodgins over this outstanding work. This oversight is one of Henighan's few serious lapses, since he credits it as Hodgins' most exceptional book.

Canada's role in literature was hampered in the 90s by the rise of "neo-conservatism" typified by a public seeking "traditional values," particularly in family matters. Carole Shields is targeted here most stridently. Once derided for this approach, "her fiction has acquired a glib pseudo-postmodern veneer . . . her contentedly family-values vision of existence" is "cut by the sting of a certain school-marmish reproval." Henighan calls "The Stone Diaries" the "flagship novel of Free Trade Fiction" in referring to the impact of pandering to the American market. That the book succeeded in this market is testimony to the worth of his assessments.

If Henighan seems to appear only negative, offending your perceived tastes in writing, never fear. He finds treasure in regional writers - often scorned by "establishment" reviewers. Besides Hodgins, he cites Wayne Johnston, Alistair MacLeod and David Richards as prominent choices. Unlike those Henighan faults, these writers sanitize neither history nor characters. His agile evaluations are supported by appropriate examples. He is perceptive and incisive at the same time, and his analyses might be applied with equal validity in other places. Critical reading is often difficult in the face of overwhelming and sometimes dubious marketing ploys. Henighan's aim is to awaken readers to what they face. He performs a needed service to all readers. Take heed of his appraisals and remember them when you are enjoined to read a novel because "you must."

White Niggers of America is a manifesto that depicts the life of a working class child growing up within a province exploited by those in power.
Pierre Vallieres begins by offering his life-story as an exploration of a young man who leaves Quebec with feelings of betrayal and later, coming to terms with the state of his homeland, returns to invoke revolution.
The book offers a gripping depiction of Quebec prior to, and early into the Quiet Revolution, but fails short of convincing this reader that economic and political reforms demand violence. In all, I believe that this is an excellent book for those interested in understanding the mind of one who feels that violent revolution (terrorism, or guerrila warfare if you like) is the only means to change.
This book convinces me on the need for every English Canadian to reflect on our country's history (by this, I refer to what we are taugh at school, if the subject was discussed at all), but fails in justifying the violence committed by the FLQ.

I read this book for a college course and found it to be refreshing. Unlike other books one reads for classes this book had a wealth of information and was interesting. Berton in this book has a conversation with "Sam", known to most as Uncle Sam represents the people of the United States, whom Burton conveys Canadian's feelings and sediment towards Americans in. This conversation is a key feature of the book that I found interesting. I recommend this book to Americans and Canadians alike because of the comparisons Berton makes between the two groups. I think other groups will enjoy this book and find it to be a learning experience as well, but they might get lost in parts that Canadians and Americans might consider common knowledge.

Gabrielle Roy paints a portrait of a culture that has been interfered with by the materialist culture of America. The White dominant race has infiltrated the Innuit landscape, and the effects are portrayed at times as having devastating consequences. It is a novel with thoughtful characterizations, and the Innuit are depicted as having a rich culture, which is creative, insightful, and hospitable. However, there is a horrifying context as well. Rape, incest, and abandonment are regular instances in a novel that leans toward a tragic representation of a culture that has been violated in every way. American GI's stationed in this northern landscape during the Vietnam war take liberty with the women of the Innuit culture. Elsa, the main character, is raped by one such GI, a child is born from their violative union. Jimmy, appears as the Saviour of the people. In the end, he tragically forsakes his mother, his homeland, and opts instead for the White culture which ironically forsook him. It is a novel that celebrates purity, and the indictment of the violation of this purity; whether the purity be of a moral, natural, or spiritual order. The violation of such purity is met with a gentle rebuke, but the lasting consequences are tragic, and melancholy. Elsa's eventual abandonment by her son, and the abandonment of herself substantiates this theme. An excellent novel, but be forewarned, the tragic representations leave an indelible impression that is very difficult to release.

This book provided good information on various awards and grants available to students, even very obscure ones. It also provided good information on how and when to collect information towards preparing applications. It also introduced the concept of a scholarship "coach"; an idea I think worth pursuing!

In September 1986, Harriet Renae Giesecke, 40, knowing that she would never receive custody of her seventeen month old daughter because of her criminal record of writing phoney checks, wanted her estranged husband, Randall Carl Giesecke, 35, killed. So, on September 22, she coldly ambushed her husband in his underground parking lot and shot him twice with a high-powered shotgun. Although she claimed that her boyfriend, Bruce Bernard Lynch, 25, shot him without her knowledge out of love for her, in June 1988 she was found guilty of first degree murder and sentenced to life imprisonment.

These sort of women do exist. They plot out the murders of their husbands, relatives or friends and kill them. The sort of people that they kill are usually too weak or incapacitated for some other reason. But the truth is that they usually gain from them dying. But what makes then think they will get away with their crimes? What made Adele Gruenke think she could get away with beating an old man up for inheritance? What pushed Elouise Roads Wilson so far over the edge that she would kill her cousin? And how did Agathe Brochu think she would get away with killing her stingy common-law husband? These women are demons, who want to gain, and not let anything stop them. Even if it does mean that they have to kill someone.

But not all women are like that. For example, Mae Favell, 52, stabbed to death her common-law husband because she couldn't take it anymore. He had abused her, burnt her with cigarettes, swung axes, smashed bottles over her head...the list is endless. After sixteen long years, she decided that there was only one way out, and she took it with a knife blade on November 21, 1985. With support from the community, she put the incident behind her, and was given three years probation.

All over, WOMEN WHO KILLED shows that there are two types of women killers - the accidental and the cold-blooded. Both kinds are printed in here. As the judge said at Agathe Brochu's trial, "You are nothing but a blue-eyed, cold hearted killer...the female of the spieces is more deadly than the male." WOMEN WHO KILLED definetely shows that there is nobody innocent out in the Canadian world. Women who kill... There is certainly no discrimination between the two sexes.