Canada Books

This is a book about one of the all time great male figure skaters. The author has written book that will be enjoyed by either adult or child. The text is informative and the book is filled with pictures of this great skater. I thoroughly enjoyed this book, as well as the three other books in the series. Anyone who loves figure skating will enjoy this book

This is a fantastic book written by Linda. She sent me a copy of it (and the other three books - Scott, Michelle (Kwan), and Oksana), and this is deffinately my favorite. There's a lot of fantastic pictures, and great writing on Elvis, and who he is. At the beginning of each chapter, there's also a quote (by the skater), which really reflects his (or her) personality. If your just starting to learn about skating, don't worry, this book has been written in a way that is easy to understand, even by the beginner, and has a glossary at the end.See ya on the ice, -Kathy :)

What an interesting book that is based on a true story of a silk train that derailed in 1927 along the Fraser River in Canada. Back then " Silk Trains" would speed through towns across the country to New York carrying bolts of finished silk, raw silk and even carried live silkworms. The silk trains moved very fast, they where insured by the hour and the faster they made it to New York, the shippers paid less money! Even today the speed records these trains made have still never been broken! And all trains, even a royals train was even delayed because the silk trains always came first.

I enjoyed this book and it's story about a little girl named Emma who father worked on rail station and knew all about the silk trains. Emma's Mama had a made a silk blouse and with the scrapes left over Emma had a ribbon for her hair and 3 squares for her parchwork quilt and so began Emma's fasination of silk and wanting more silk possibly her own silk shirt. So, when a silk train derails and a reward is offered for any silk found. She does find some and I really like the ending of this story that is more than a fiction, it's history!

I found this book while doing some research on children's books, and it was a complete surprise. My grandmother is from the area discussed and used to watch the Silk Train when she was a little girl. She had only mentioned this recently, and my brother and I were interested enough to look on our own, but came up empty. I'm buying three copies, one for my brother, one for me and one for gran!

This book is very unique as it is one of the very few written on the subject of Alberta history. It is very interesting, and an excellent resource for teachers. I would also recommend the book "Feasting on Misfortune", also by David Jones, if this subject interests you. I have taken University courses from David Jones, and have never met a man more enthusiastic and having such love of subject as him.

Empire Of Dust: Settling And Abandoning The Prairie Dry Belt by David C. Jones (Professor of History, University of Calgary, Alberta, Canada) is an impressive compendium of Canadian agricultural history. Tracing the inevitable result of over-expansion in towns such as Alderson, Alberta, Empire Of Dust is a real-life cautionary tale of the dangers of depleting the land to the point where it can no longer nourish the livestock and the people. Carefully researched, engagingly presented, and, enhanced with black-and-white photography, Empire Of Dust is very highly recommended reading and a welcome addition to Agricultural Studies and Canadian History reference collections.

Ms. Dohner has written a well-researched book on a topic that has begun to catch the attention of many -- historic (and now rare) breeds of livestock. In the past, people dug up roots and bulbs from the old family homestead and transplanted them to new locations. They could go to grandpa and get some of those "dominicker" chickens that his daddy started with.

For many, the homestead and the dominickers are gone now, just like the items the Smithsonian that were once part of every day life. But for some, like the author, "dominickers" and other historic livestock are still a part of life on the farm.

Perhaps that is why Jan Dohner has been able to write a very readable book, giving the reader the profiles and histories of over 200 breeds of poultry and other livestock (goats, sheep, swine, cattle, horses, other equines)and even accounts of their original domestication along with their current status. The illustrations only add to the text.

If you are interested in agriculture or farmsteading, if you have been thinking about becoming involved in small farm livestock, poultry raising, or rare breeds conservation, I recommend this book. Or if you are interested in these endeavors and cannot find the book in your local library, ask your librarian "Why not?" Maybe the local library needs a donation!

An eyeopening look at the diversity of livestock we may lose if we're not careful. Looking for stock that has survived the test of time, but has been left behind in the handful of homogenized varieties beloved by big farming? This is the book for you! This book is a must have for recreation and historical groups throughout the states, and I firmly recommend it.

I read Welborn's book and was truly touched by her sincere desire to help people who are struggling financially to better save when buying prescription drugs. Of course, even the wealthy could significantly save after reading this book! "Everything You Need to Know..." needs to be on an Oprah show so people everywhere can benefit from it!
Dr. Rosemary Calard-Szulgit

I was really skeptical when I first saw the title of this book- How can a book help me with buying prescription drugs? However, since I don't have insurance, and I have to pay for all my medications myself, I thought I would give it a chance. Well, the consumer advice in the book was great! I saved $20 alone on my very next prescription drug purchase. I would recommend this book to anyone who takes more than 1 or 2 prescription drugs.

The Shepardsons (including their children, Tina, 8, and Randy, 5) had the determination and skills not only to undertake paddling from New Hampshire to Alaska, but to succeed at it! As fellow paddlers, my husband and I enjoyed reading their story on a much shorter canoe camping trip with our son, Matt (3 1/2), in the Adirondacks. Their trip, however, covered a huge variety of terrains from relative civilization to northern mountains and tundra. This book almost makes you want to be there despite the inevitable hardships and mishaps. It is spellbinding.

A leisurely canoe trip across the North American continent. Hey honey let's take the kids. It'll be fun! X-treme eco challenge for the whole family. No one can be voted out of the boat. What are you goig to do.....leave one of the kids beside the river 1000 miles from home? They are all survivors! Did I mention they almost beat the French canoe racing team that was attempting to set a new record. Awesome! I guess they were in a hurry to get back before school started in the fall. What did you do on your summer vacation? I've canoed Texas, Washington, and Minnesota but nothing like this. I borrowed this book; Now I want my own copy. Do you want to feel alive, get closer to your wife and family, or maybe just bond a little with Mother Nature. Let the Shepardsons show you how as they take you along on The Family Canoe Trip. If you like Camping, Canoeing or Adventure I recomend you read this book.

Excellent source of Genealogical information on family surnames, helps you find the places that you should be looking for your family. Doesn't do your genealogy for you but most certainly helps.
Names are listed in Alphabetical order, no index necessary
There are 4 editions available but the 1988 corrected Edition is the best

Seary's in-depth study of nearly three thousand family names of Newfoundland, arose from his work on the study of place names of the island. As his study progressed, Seary became fascinated with tracking families as they migrated along the coast or changed their names to avoid detection by Britain and France. His pursuit of the rise of Newfoundland surnames illustrates that relationships, place of origin, occupation, and even nicknames played very important roles.

The core of his research comes from the Official List of Electors 1955 chosen because it was the most comprehensive list of names and the communites to which they were linked before the massive resettlement programs of the 1960's. The sources of his information are vast as he quotes from scholarly works from England, Wales, Ireland, Scotland, France and the Channel Islands as well as the many censuses taken in Newfoundland since 1675 in his attempt to get at the origin of the name.

Family Names of the Island of Newfoundland attempts to trace each name to a geographical origin in England, France, Ireland, etc. as well as trace its linguistic origin. This will provide the reader of this text with answers to such questions as; What does the name mean? Where is the name found in Newfoundland? When was the first recorded incidence of it in a particular region? Of course, this information is invaluable to any researcher of family history.

The real value to the student of genealogy, is that as Seary lists the early instances of each name in various places in Newfoundland, he provides us with all kinds of tidbits of information about the person - how they were killed, where they worked, their father, etc. And as expected from a scholar such as Seary, all of this information is referenced back to an original source document!

This book is both wonderful and horrifying at the same time. In today's global environment, the lessons of Korea are all the more important for the Government of Canada, the high command and the Canadian public to remember! This book should be read and sit on the corner of every desk in the Department of Defense. Canadian should also reflect on the government's callous disregard of the navy's helicopter pilots (i.e. the Sea King Episode), or the fact Canadian troops were sent to Afghanistan in green uniforms. These episodes clearly demonstrate that politics wins over the lives of the service personnel every time, just as it had in Korea. Here we sit over 60 distant from the Korea war and the Canadian Government and military are still making many of the same mistakes.

Far Eastern Tour: The Canadian Infantry In Korea 1950-1953 by Brent Byron Watson (History Teacher, Okanagan University College) is a tautly written and serious-minded examination and history of Canada's involvement in the Korean War, including the hardships Canadian infantry suffered which included inappropriate training, stark living and combat conditions, and the deadly blood toll of the war itself. Far Eastern Tour is very highly recommended as being an extensively researched, carefully written, and scholarly accurate look into what living amid such combat was like, the pressures it demanded, and the extraordinary people who faced the horrors of war and did not back down from what had to be done.

I will confess at the start a personal bias; I am currently the webmaster for the regimental website of the Calgary Highlanders (www.calgaryhighlanders.com), the very unit in which Mr. Williams began his lengthy military career. I have not yet met Mr. Williams, however, though I have enjoyed his book THE LONG LEFT FLANK very much. I have yet to read his histories of the Patricias or of Lord Byng of Vimy.

I have, however, read this volume with considerable interest. In addition to the very rare photos of historical figures drawn in broad strokes by regimental historians such as Copp, Bercuson and Farran, this book really does paint those same figures in more human ways. One wishes Williams went into more detail regarding the figures he didn't like, but I suppose only the hard core regimental historians would have had the foggiest of who he was talking about.

As it stands, the book is the perfect length and discusses his entire life in detail. Those hoping for a rootin' shootin' story will be disappointed; the prewar days of the Great Depression are covered in equal time, and Williams served overseas in a very important role - away from the front lines.

Williams has the eye for detail that sets apart the great historians from the good ones, and is clever at spinning interesting tales. If one had to find something to criticize, perhaps one or two of his tales don't have as much of a punch line as one would like, but overall this Highlander has done his old regiment, and himself, very proud.

Congratulations to Mr. Williams for an excellent book, one hopes not the last in a string of fine works by this distinguished Canadian.

Far From Home: A Memoir Of A 20th Century Solider by Jeffrey Williams (winner of the 1983 Governor General's Literary Award for Non-Fiction), is his personal story as a man who served his country as an officer in the Canadian army from the 1920s to the 1970s both in times of war and periods of peace. A thoroughly hands-on, down-to-earth memoir recounting personal experiences, reflections on the history of a great nation, and a close-up look at war itself, Far From Home is a vivid and unforgettable reading experience. Far From Home is a welcome contribution to the growing library of Military History & Biography collections.