Canada Books

M.Wylie Blanchet or Capi, the name her children call her, took her five children up to Desolation Sound every summer for many years in their 24' boat. This story of their adventures and travels is wonderful to read. Desolation Sound hasn't changed since the 1930's except for the number of boats, and for anyone who has sailed there or dreams of it, this books fulfills all expectations.

My boyfried and I read this book and because of it took 3 weeks to cruise the Desolation Sound area. We would read the stories from the book filled with background history as well as Ms. Blanchet's excursions in the area and then we would experience it for our selves. Recalling how Capt. Vancouver discovered the area and then how this single woman with 5 children in the mid-1920's experienced this area. It was fabulous and the area is still a lot like it was 50 or even hundreds of years ago. Breath taking scenery and a sense of peace and freedom is the only way I can describe my experience of the Inside Passage. I will never be the same and anytime I want to go back I can through reading the stories in this book.

This is an important book, which easily captured my attention and interest. In the spirit of a true cyborg, Steve Mann explores both the human and technological issues involved with living in an increasingly digital society. Through the cybernetic experience of the main author (a most interesting, curious and extremely diverse character), the reader is introduced to a plethora of advanced personal computing technologies that extend far beyond what most of us are currently exposed to on a daily basis. A very exciting taste of the very near future!

I was surprised at how many different areas of life this book touched upon: to name but a few examples: wearable computers will change the ways we shop, dress, commute, read, communicate, and interact as a community. I like how Steve Mann's technologies and philosophies empower individuals to mediate, filter and augment their realities in a proactive and inspiring way.

I found this to be a very well written book, created by a multi-faceted human being I'd like to succinctly describe as: an explorer who is pushing into new realms of human experience. It's pretty amazing what individuals within a community of cyborgs can do with wearable computers. Very thought provoking and highly recommended.

-Tom

Steven Mann describes himself as a Luddite. Come again? Luddites went around smashing the machines of the industrial revolution. How could Mann, an arch-geek, a professor of electrical engineering who lives, invents, builds, and
wears the very latest technology, call himself a Luddite? Mann's "cyborg philosophy" lies just here: in the thought that in an increasingly Orwellian world, the individual's only hope is to fight technology with technology.

For a couple of decades, Steve Mann has lived as a cyborg: his view of the world mediated and enhanced by a wearable computer. Actually our clothes, contact lenses, heart pacers, and for that matter our books and our aeroplanes have already made
cyborg of us all; but somehow most of us react with shock at Mann's experiment on himself. Rather than "artificial intelligence" conceived in the hope of making machines smarter than people, Mann wants computers to enhance human intelligence.
Thanks to "WearComp," an increasingly inconspicuous and elegant "wearable computer" of his own design, Mann is perpetually in contact with the internet, communicating when he wants to by tapping messages on a pocket device and
better by projecting the view from his eye-level camera onto the web. His senses of sight and hearing (though not yet, one gathers, smell, taste or touch) are thus mediated and enhanced: want to see a face more clearly from a distance?
just zoom in! Hate Coke ads? Get the computer to erase them. Want an instant replay in slow motion? He can get that too, with enough control to read the markings on the spinning wheels of a passing car... And all the while he has the
power of the internet literally at his fingertips, so that he not only can consult a dictionary, look up arcane facts to win an argument, but also bring the world to bear witness to what he sees -- and most important, turn the tables against the
surveillance that state and corporations think it their right to monopolize. This fascinating book is about the consequence of this brave experiment, which Mann has been conducting with mainly himself as subject for nearly two decades.

One of Mann's most striking philosophical ideas is to distinguish between privacy and solitude. The first contrasts with other people's ability to become aware of you, while the second refers to your ability to prevent intrusions into your
own awareness. Some people care more for privacy than others, but a case might be made for the view that a lack of privacy is essentially harmless unless it comes with a violation of solitude. It wasn't lack of privacy but lack of solitude
that killed Lady Di: for if the paparazzi had never intruded on her life -- if, for example, she had been using Mann's wearable computer to suppress any information about who was photographing her and what appeared in the press) she
wouldn't have had to flee in haste and crash to her death.

Mann's wearable computer serves to protect his solitude more than his privacy. (He quotes Scott McNeally of Sun Microsystems: "You already have zero privacy. Get used to it.") For several years, in fact, you could see what he saw at
pretty much any time, as the computer output line that provided his window on the world was also constantly fed to the Web. "When I post what I see every day on the Web, I am deliberately violating my own privacy. When I send an
e-mail, I am knowingly violating my own privacy and sometimes the solitude of the recipient. However, in living in symbiosis with WearComp I increase my solitude, insomuch as I can control the kind of information to which I am open."

This affords all kinds of opportunities for what might be called guerilla theatre, or performance art, in the service of subversive awareness of the constraints under which we increasingly live.

Mann describes with hilarious deadpan irony a number of devices he has actually patented. Particularly timely, when all loyal Americans seem to think it obvious that all loyal Americans must be prepared to give up freedom for the sake
of securing freedom, is the plan for a "Mass Decontamination facility" in case of an anthrax attack or civil unrest. Visitors are stripped and required to pass through hexagonal rooms equipped with internet-connected showers combined
with body scanning machines. The routine -- which Mann has demonstrated in various art galleries -- is inspired by the availability of surveillance equipment as well as by reminiscences of Nazi concentration camp procedures. It is
designed to inspire a meditation on the nature of all the insults to our dignity daily perpetrated for our protection and greater security...

In this gloomy picture, Steve Mann's light-hearted and brilliantly inventive "Luddite technology" is a ray of hope. Read the book while you're still free to.

Becky and Brent Heath have covered every question anyone could ask about daffodils. We never realized how easy this wonderful flower was to grow, hybridize and cultivate until we read this book. The Heaths bring years of commercial growing success to the home gardener--and create an inspiring guide for anyone who wishes to have plenty of this spring delight!!

Most of my daffodil work is with older species, and critters I dig off old lots and in the woods. However, the pub is an excellent reference for grower's in any catagory! They will also answer questions!!

I received this fine book as a Christmas gift.In "Dances With Light", photographer Darwin Wiggett shows skill and artistry in portraying the Canadian Rockies in many changing moods of light and reflection. As well as the grand landscape, Wiggett has an eye for the small detail, catching things that many would walk by without noticing. Great work here! The production values of the book are very high and Altitude Publishing is to be commended for presenting Wiggett's work in fine fashion. Highly recommended.

I visited this area of Canada and took my own photos, but wanted something more that would capture seasons, lighting and times I missed. I saw this book in a store in Banff and ordered it once I returned to the states. The photos are absolutely wonderful and the book lives up to its title about the use of light. Unless you have a year to spend in the Canadian Rockies and plenty of time to travel to out-of-the way locations, you will never get the photos that Mr. Wiggett has gotten. I liked this book so much I bought a copy for a Canadian friend who is going overseas where there is only sand and office buildings. You'll be happy with this book purchase.

I thoroughly enjoyed this tracing of David Suziki's life from his early encounters with racism through his life-long efforts to inform others of the need to safeguard the Earth's resources and his role to do something about it. This is indeed the story from the one who lived it of a great scientist and environmentalist. Highly recommended.

+++++

"Why would anyone else be interested in my life? I know people like to delve into the hidden parts of the lives of people who have acquired some notoriety, hoping to find juicy bits of gossip, signs of weakness or faults that bring the subjects down off pedestals, or simply to expand on what one knows about a public figure. It's not my intension to satisfy that curiosity. Instead, as an "elder," I hope my reflection on one life may stir the reader to consider those thoughts in relation to his or her own life."

The above is found in the last paragraph of the preface of this book by geneticist and environmentalist, the TV host of the acclaimed long-running program "The Nature of Things with David Suzuki," the founder and chair of the David Suzuki Foundation, and the author of more than forty books, David Suzuki (born 1936).

Suzuki explains the contents of his candid and honest book:

"This...is a story I have created by selectively dredging up bits and pieces from the detritus of seventy years of life. The first five chapters skim over the first fifty years...and the rest of the book describes events since then."

More specifically, the first five chapters begin with his childhood life in "racist British Columbia" in Canada, then goes on to his education in the U.S., his early career as a research geneticist, and his "new career" in radio then television. As the book proceeds, we see his transformation into environmental warrior where he recounts stories of his activism in British Columbia and eventually the Amazon, telling us of the plight of the indigenous peoples in this environmentally sensitive region.

In the second half of his book, he tells of his journeys to Australia. Suzuki fell "head over heels" for this country and says that "We [his second wife and him] have never regretted remaining in Canada, but we do feel privileged to be able to return to Australia again and again." He goes on to explain the establishment of the foundation named after him and describes some of its successes to date. Then he proceeds to tell us of his experiences at the Earth summit of 1992 and the world climate change conference held in Kyoto, Japan in 1997.

The last three chapters are especially interesting where Suzuki gives us his ruminations on science and technology, the cult of celebrity and old age respectively.

Throughout the book, two things are apparent: Suzuki cares deeply for his family and his passion for the environment. With regards to the latter, I thought I knew a lot about what's happening to the environment, but I learned much more from reading this book. I think I learned so much because of Suzuki's first-hand observations that he eloquently details and his explanations of what's going on are easy to understand. (My assertion here is actually incredible when you think about it because this book is actually an autobiography and not an environmental science book.)

This autobiography is chatty, intimate, full of interesting stories, and remarkably honest. Suzuki's decency and sincerity shines through practically every sentence of his book.

Finally, the book is peppered with photographs. Even though he sees the "cult of celebrity" as "frightening," you'll see Suzuki in photographs with Canadian and U.S. celebrities such as Gordon Lightfoot, John Denver, Tom Cruise, and Jane Fonda. My favorite photo is the very last one that has him posing naked with only a fig leaf on. The caption reads:

"The notorious fig leaf shot for the show "Phallacies" for [his TV show] "The Nature of Things with David Suzuki."

In conclusion, this is an elegant account of the life of a man who evolved from an academic geneticist into a T.V. and radio personality, first popular in Canada, then the world!!

(first published 2006; preface; 18 chapters; main narrative 400 pages; index; photo credits)

+++++

This is a book we have been waiting for. It is not action packed and sensationalized like the `Perfect Storm', but that is not what Eric Wickham's book is about. It is very well written and thought out, and makes for an easy read in it's story book style. Only it's not just a story... this book shows the true picture of what really has happened to the once prolific commercial fisheries along the North West Coast of the United States and Canada. Eric Wickham is not afraid to call it like it is, and lay blame where blame is due. He recounts events about bureaucratic decisions and practices that led to the demise of these fisheries and aptly calls it "drastically dysfunctional" management. With 50 years of commercial fishing experience his knowledge is factual and enlightening. The only fault that I could find in this book is the author's narrow-mindedness towards the small dragger boats. He needs to research this fishery more before he makes the statements he made about their effects on the fishery. These small boats are capable of fishing with minimal environmental impact while keeping the fishery viable and sustainable, just the same as the fisheries that Mr. Wickham participated in. Many of these smaller boats work in the same manner as Mr. Wickham... near shore, supporting the local communities, and providing fresh caught seafood for stores and restaurants. I hope that Mr. Wickham enjoys his well earned retirement in Australia and considers writing more books about his life experiences as a commercial fisherman along the North Eastern Pacific Ocean. With 25 years of experience in the commercial fishing industry myself, I am grateful for Eric Wickham's book and I would like to personally thank him for writing it and getting the truth out there for everyone to read. It has been a sad and frustrating ordeal for us to watch our livelihoods taken away by bureaucracy that is based on politics and has nothing to do with factual data. Before Eric Wickham's book only those of us in the industry have experienced the havoc that this mismanagement has produced, now maybe many others will read and understand. It is truly the end of an era and a lifestyle. I highly recommend this book to everyone... it is engaging reading, enlightening, and thought provoking.

Lee Ann Hightower
F/V Sea Otter

Well, I have never picked up a fishing rod before in my life and was quite dubious when someone gave me a copy of this book for my birthday.

However, I am interested in how we go about managing our natural resources. Dead Fish and Fat Cats is an amazing journey that examines how Canada has mis managed its fisheries, surely one of its most precious natural resources.

It is interesting, thou not suprising to take a journey through the bureaucracy that seems to plague the Department of Fisheries in Canada.

It seems that Eric Wickham, while clearly a professional fisherman, not a professional writer has a passion for the preservation of this resource. His passion while evident is not over stated and it is this that makes the book very readable. It left this reader shaking his head and saying "how could they do that".

Additionally, Wickham unlike so many of us who complain about the state of things actually proposes a solution and gives us a great example of how the fisheries should be managed. The success of the Black Cod fishery is evidence that brain wins over braun.

Read it, I am sure that you will enjoy it.

Cheers

Steve

Being a history buff,I was drawn to the cover of this intriguing book about a WW1 Canadian soldier. The accounts of Harry Hillyer as depicted in his letters home to his wife and child gave me a very real perspective on the life of a foot soldier during one of our country's most critical eras. This book is filled with history as seen and experienced by someone who was there. I laughed at many of the written exchanges between Harry and Jen; I felt their passion and pain; and I cried real tears at the finaly few pages.
"Dear Harry, First Hand Account of a WW1 Infantry Man" should be a part of every high school curriculum, it's that good.
Author Norma Shephard has done a magnificent job putting together this great literary piece and has done her grandfather a great service in the process.

I thoroughly enjoyed this captivating collection of WW1 letters. A remarkable, true Canadian story; Dear Harry reads like one long, bittersweet loveletter. I couldn't put it down.

Extremely well written and filled to the brim with usefull information concerning the War and all that you always wanted to know (and more). Black and white photographs and a bibiography help anyone wanting to learn more.

Vance's examination of post-WWI Canadian experience, and the role of religious and spiritual beliefs in endorsing the trauma of the Great War, is first class. An interesting book to contrast with that other classic, Fussell, The Great War and Modern Memory, but Vance is a better examination of the Great War from a Canadian perspective. Highly recommended for military historians and enthusiasts looking for a fresh perspective on the impact of the Great War on society.

My husband and I used this book to navigate the various anchorages around Desolation Sound and Discovery Islands this last summer. The decriptions, drawings, and photos of each area only cover a page to two pages but are very complete. The drawings illustrate the various areas one can anchor -- which was really helpful. We travel with a dog so we always looked for spots that gave us easy access to the shore for doggy visits. I would recommend this book to any traveler to this area!

I teach sailing and cruising skills, and the arrival of this terrific cruising guide is welcome. Beautiful photos and great graphic diagrams of harbors and every possible anchorage.

Should be on every charter boat, but often is not, so if you are chartering inquire.

This is an excellent book for someone just starting (or restarting) into the world of railroads (like myself). It provides not only information about diesel locomotives built before 1972, but background about each manufacturer, details of special modifications, locomotive repowerings, and even detail photos of common truck assemblies. Subjects are organized first by manufacturer, then in basic chronological order by specification (normally-aspirated, turbocharged, gas-turbine, etc). It's a fine overview of the first days of diesel.

This is the place to learn concisely and with nice pictures about all the different older diesel engines. Recommended!