Canada Books

I have alot of books on the topic but this has to be one of my favorites. The author really knows what he's talking about and lies it down what works in the real world of Northern outdoor survival/camping without all the fancy story telling aproach. It is well written, step by step along with very informative drawings which are the best I've seen. It contains tons of useful info from clothing materials to traps and shelter making methods. Really beefy stuff and all clearly explained. There's a reason this book has gone out of print, find out why.

I venture into the boreal wilderness twice a year, so this book is a natural fit (the book's setting is mainly boreal/sub-boreal). What is best about the book is it's practicality. Though there is enough information on bare-bones survival, Alan Fry assumes that, if you've headed into the wilderness whether by foot, watercraft, or bush plane, you've had enough sense about you to bring some essentials (and attached to your person!). This is a needed contrast to all the wilderness survival books out there that teach survival techniques assuming you are veritably buck naked. Why would that ever happen to you? Exactly how did you wind up in such a situation? There can only be one reason: poor planning and sheer stupidity. Thus, this book generally assumes that you've got at least some basic items strapped on to you (e.g., knife, matches, rations, compass, fishing accouterments, saw, medical kit, snare wire, and RIFLE!). AS to the latter, many survival books don't address the use of firearms at all and, the fact is, if you've got one, your chances of survival just increased 10-fold. Plus, Fry doesn't inundate the reader with pet religious philosophies (ala Tom Brown!) that have nothing to do with why you purchased the book.

Now, if you're a survivalist who enjoys bare-bones stuff, you cannot go without Tom Brown's Field Guide to Wilderness Survival. But, if you're simply a wilderness enthusiast that needs to know how to take care of yourself if you ever become stranded on one of your wilderness trips, this is the book for you, hands-down.

I have alot of books on the topic but this has to be one of my favorites. The author really lies it down what works in the real world of Northern outdoor survival and long term camping. It is really well written, step by step along with very informative drawings which are the best I've seen. It contains tons of traps and shelter making methods. There's a reason it has gone out of print, find out why.

Alan Fry is a Canadian woodsman with years of experience in the art of wilderness survival. His book is a concise and readable guide for the preparation and execution of a survival plan, especially in the extreme environment of the boreal north. Although its emphasis is on emergency situations in a particular ecosystem, many of his ideas can be readily adapted to any temperate region or contingency by the intelligent reader. Please note that this is not primarily a book for the recreational backpacker. Rather, it's a hard-core guide to survival under extreme circumstances in a particular environment. That having been said, it's still recommended reading for anyone who ventures into the outdoors. Useful, light-weight, and perfect for the field.

excerpted from Muir's The Mountains of California, is one chapter I've read many times. He climbs to the top of a Doug Fir so that he can experience a 100' tree swaying 30° back and forth "rocking and swirling in wild ecstasy" I take this book backpacking (there's no ultralight version yet...) in the Sierra most times and there's always something to read that fits the setting. EWT's intro is very sweet as are the

I really enjoyed this book as it was focused on plants and animals. My favorite chapters were "The Water Ouzel" (a bird) and "Stickeen" (a dog). However, the whole book was interesting and enjoyable, including chapters about different people he met along the way ("The Robber" and "The Blacksmith"). This book is titled as "a selection from his collected work." I enjoyed his writing so much that I will look for a complete volume of his works so I don't miss out on any other great stories.

Whether you are interested in John Muir specifically or just want to read about an interesting life, this book is an excellent place to start.

John Muir had an incredible and important life, and it is told here succinctly in his own words, excerpted to emphasize the profound. It is a glimpse into a lifestyle 99.9% of us will never know, yet it is truly important to our times. His love of nature, adventure and exploration is a reminder of why we need to experience more than our 9 to 5 workdays and why we need to apply ourselves to the protection of the Earth.

Muir was a gentle but strong man, a genius with simple needs, solitary yet influential. This book is a terrific way to look into his life and his time and to gain some inspiration into our lives and our times.

I am often asked for a recommendation of what among Muir's writings, or writings about him, one should first read. After spending more than 30 years appreciating both his writings and most of the books about Muir that have been published during that time, and after ten years editing the John Muir Exhibit online, I can only turn to the same book that originally enthalled me with John Muir: The Wilderness World of John Muir, edited by Edwin Way Teale.

This book was edited by someone who was himself an able naturalist and nature-writer, and therefore someone who could understand Muir in a way that most academics, whether professors of literature or historians, cannot. Edwin Way Teale (1899-1980), has been ranked as a nature writer with been ranked with Henry David Thoreau, John Burroughs, as well as John Muir himself. His honors include being elected as a fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, receiving the John Burroughs Award in 1943, and the Pulitzer Prize in 1966. He was the author of 32 books. Teale's sympathy for Muir's message is shown in the book's Dedication page, which is "Dedicated to The Sierra Club, The Wilderness Society, The National Parks Association, and all those who are fighting the good fight to preserve what John Muir sought to save."

This book serves as both an anthology of the very best of Muir's writings, and also a biography, compellingly provided by Teale.

The biographical value of this work is often under-stated, even by the publisher. The book is typically viewed as an anthology, and indeed it is, primarily; but it also contains a wealth of biographical information, far more than the typical anthology.

Teale commences his book on John Muir with an authoritative 10-page Introduction, that not merely identifies the key events in Muir's life, but provides an assessment and perspective of how Muir stacks up with other nature writers. He provides facts you won't find elsewhere: "While visiting friends, Muir sometimes would talk four hours at breakfast." Teale, writing in 1954, was able to talk with several people who knew Muir personally. He noted that everyone he talked to had a different view of which phase of natural history held first importance in Muir's mind. Some thought it was trees; another thought it was geology, another plants. Teale points out the fourth view, probably the nearest right of all: "... the whole interrelationships of life, the complete rounded picture of the mountain world. Today, Muir probably would be called an ecologist." Teale 's assessment of Muir as an "ecologist" pre-dates the "ecology movement" of the 1970s by at least 15 years. Teale admirably tells of the scope of the places, glaciers, plants, and animals named after him, and Muir's contributions to science and conservation. Although public appreciation for Muir has grown dramatically since Teale's book was first published in 1954, The Wilderness World of John Muir still provides the best introduction to Muir's life and writings.

Following the admirable Introduction, each of the 51 excerpts from Muir's writings commences with a preface by Teale, of up to a page in length, presenting in chronological order the story of Muir's life, and putting each of Muir's writings into context.

Although serving as a biography, the Wilderness World is, in fact, primarily a superb anthology. Rather than simply re-printing the full text of such of Muir's works as The Story of My Boyhood and Youth, A Thousand-Mile Walk to the Gulf, My First Summer in the Sierra, Travels in Alaska, Our National Parks , and the Journals, Teale provides short snippets from the best of Muir's writings, arranged into seven broad categories:

I. Memories of Youth - reprints Muir's writings about his boyhood in Scotland, life on the Wisconsin Farm, seeing immense flocks Passenger Pigeons, nearly dying of choke-damp while digging a well, his inventions, and his enrollment at the University of Wisconsin.

II. University of The Wilderness - Excerpts from A Thousand Mile Walk, including people by the way, camping among the tombs of Bonaventure Cemetery in Savannah, Georgia, and Muir's visit to Cuba and New York.

III. The Range of Light - Muir's adventures in the Sierra, including his first glimpse from Pacheco Pass and crossing the bee pastures of the Central Valley, his first visits to the High Sierra, climbing on the brink of Yosemite Falls above the Valley, tributes to wildlife including bears and grasshoppers, and his telepathic experience sensing the presence of his former University Professor Butler in the Valley.

IV. The Valley - Muir's glorious tributes to Yosemite Valley's waterfalls, the water ouzel, the earthquake, and Ralph Waldo Emerson's visit.

V. Forests of the West - Including Muir's adventure high atop a Douglas fir during a wind-storm, and writings about Silver Pine, the Douglas Squirrel, Sequoia, Nevada Nut Pines, and Muir's clarion call to protect the forests, "Any Fool Can Destroy a Tree."

VI. Glacier Pioneer - Muir's discovery of the Sierra glaciers, his climb of Mount Ritter, his perilous night on Mount Shasta, and his travels in Alaska, including his discovery of Glacier Bay and his adventure with Stickeen.

VII. The Philosophy of John Muir - excerpts from many scattered sources focusing on Muir's views on mankind's relationship to Nature. For many, this is the favorite part of the book, the part one returns to again and again for inspiration.

Despite this, the book does have some failings. The book belies the importance of Muir's family and friends, which becomes so evident upon reading his extensive correspondence. Nor does the book do more than barely mention some important places in Muir's life, such as his global travels to such places as the glacial mountains of Europe, the forests of Siberia, the Himalayas and forests of India, Australian and New Zealand forests, and, the fulfillment of his life-long dream, his last trip to see the forests of South America and Africa. The book emphasizes Muir's appreciative writings about Nature, and only briefly mentions the conservation battles which consumed so much of his life, including his long campaign to protect Hetch Hetchy. To obtain a whole picture of Muir, the reader will need to also read another work about Muir's conservation campaigns, such as Roderick Nash's chapter on "John Muir: Publicizer" in Wilderness and the American Mind, Stephen Fox's John Muir and His Legacy: The American Conservation Movement, or John Muir and the Sierra Club: The Battle for Yosemite by Holway R. Jones.

Since the book was originally published in 1954, it is not informed by some of the more recent research resulting from Muir's unpublished journals and correspondence, published in the John Muir Papers in 1980. Given the popularity of this book, fifty years after its first publication, the publishers should consider a second edition, again using a nature writer rather than a literary critic or historian to update the book.

Overall, in this book Muir comes alive, as someone who can can at once write inspiringly and poetically about trees, storms, mountains, glaciers, and forests, but yet also show the attention to detail of an analytical scientist. Muir is revealed as adventurer, a lover of nature, a person who can still excite the imagination of readers. As Teale concludes, "Rich in time, rich in enjoyment, rich in appreciation, rich in enthusiasm, rich in understanding, rich in expression, rich in friends, rich in knowledge, John muir lived a full and rounded life, a life unique in many ways, admirable in many ways, valuable in many ways.... In his writings and in his conservation achievements, Muir seems especially present in a world that is better because he lived here."

August, 2004

Follow the young RN pilot's rise thru the ranks of the fleet air arm during WW-II. This is a great story about a Royal Navy escort carrier and the men who sail in her and the missions assigned to it; from Norway into the south west Pacific.

I thoroughly enjoyed reading this novel. Reeman's ability to get into the head of Tim Rowan, the Fleet Air Arm fighter pilot, was amazing. I felt that he had gotten completely into Rowan's mind and gave the reader a full appreciation of the perils a naval aviator faces on the high seas in wartime. The secondary characters (e.g. Tim's closest friend, the arrogant admiral, and some members of the carrier's crew) stood up well on their own and rounded out the story very nicely.

I thoroughly enjoyed reading this novel. Reeman's ability to get into the head of Tim Rowan, the Fleet Air Arm fighter pilot, was amazing. I felt that he had gotten completely into Rowan's mind and gave the reader a full appreciation of the perils a naval aviator faces on the high seas in wartime. The secondary characters (e.g. Tim's closest friend, the arrogant admiral, and some members of the carrier's crew) stood up well on their own and rounded out the story very nicely.

This is the story of pilots who served in Royal Navy escort carriers in World War II. These ships were not the head-line attracting fleet carriers; rather these were the "Woolworth Carriers" turned out by the dozens by Henry Kaiser's shipyards on both coasts. A number of these ships were sent to the Royal Navy and this is the story of one of them.

The charecters of the pilots and ship's officers are well developed and complex, like all of us. It is a mix of old professionals and young amateurs who rapidly gain the skills and instincts of their long serving shipmates. There is conflict along the way, from the lowest pilot to the admiral commanding the operations. There is the added mix of several Dutch aircrew into the mix that adds both to the tension and humor of the story. There is the added distraction, for the men, of having to fit domestic problems into their already full plate of matters to be dealt with, and it isn't always easy for some of them. Finally, there is the sense of loss you will discover when after an operation, the returning pilots are celdbrating on the flight deck and someone notices the support crew of one aircraft that didn't return, just standing on the flight deck looking into the distance on the off chance that "their" aircraft would return.

The scope of operations is vast, ranging from the North Atlantic to the North Sea, the Southwest Pacific and finally home in the UK.

This story is a fine rendition of the trials and tribulations of a little known type of ship in the Royal Navy. It rings with authenticity on every page. This should be in every person library who has an interest in Naval operations during World War II.

I began to read The Winter People because it is on my school reading list. It is not the type of book I would normally pick up to read for pleasure. However once I got into the book I found it quite interesting. The book takes place before people were civilized like they are now, and is about people who have a completely different way of living. I can actually say I learned about another culture, by reading this book.

The story is about an Indian tribe that gets torn apart by white people. But specifically the book tells about a boy names Saxso that, in my opinion, truly becomes a man by the end. He gets separated from his mother and two sisters while escaping, and as the head of the family it is his job to get his family back together. After learning they had been taken by whites, Saxso sets off for a long, difficult journey to rescue them.

The Winter People is the type of book that is hard to start, but once you get into it, you'll be glad you kept reading.

I thought was a beautifully written story by Joseph Bruchac, about the Indian tribe, the Abenaki's. The simple and yet complex way he wrote it from the point of view of 14 year old Native American named Saxso, made it all the more interesting. Saxso is probably the most interesting character in this book aside from his cousin and grandfather. The description of what the British (the white people, or the winter people, the people with winter/cold in their hearts) were doing to the Native Americans after they captured them from the village upon their raid, actually brought tears to my eyes (I've never even heard of the British eating the Native Americans until I read this book. More genocidal things the world continues to hide from the people about what the Europeans, and British, among others who wronged these people, hide.). I continued to read the book until the very end which was satisfying in aspect of the word. I recommend this book to anyone who has a interest in Native Americans and their lives during the many wars that took place on the land they lived on.

This is a truly fasincating story told in a different perspective, through the eyes of a Native American. The novel shows us a totally opposite side of the stories and documents recorded and still used today in life. After I finally finished reading "The Winter People", I had an unique and new perspective towards the Abenakis. You will too, and I still do, hold a strong respect towards these people and their way of life.

I found this to be both an easy to read book, and historically accurate as well. Bruchac is an amazing writer, and teaches many lessons while the the story is told. This book should definately be read by middle school-high school students because it will help teach about both the native peoples and the Seven Years war, and help to wash away some of the stereotypes that have plagued native peoples for many years.
Justin

I bought this book in the hardcover edition in 1988. It has been, by far, the best self-help book I've purchased! The book is written in short chapters, each addressing a particular problem. The advice is sound, rational, helpful and hopeful.

I send this book to every woman I know to help her face difficult times...and who hasn't? Jennier James writes clear and identifiable descriptions of the life crises that give us the blues, and then provides survival strategies to live through the crises.

I received this book from a friend about 15 years ago when I was having life changing issues. I was not the self-help type and was very skeptical. What I found was that you do not have to read this from cover to cover and you are cured. You get to pick what ails you and get sound advice with some humor attached. This is the one and only self help book that I recommend to friends that are hurting.

Like another reviewer I have the hard copy and have had it for many years. Just recently I reread it to see if I would get as much from it as I had many years prior. I am happy to report that the book is timeless. Every women should have a copy in her collection of books.

Sound advice that passes the test of time. Easy to read and thought provoking as well as comforting and inspiring.

Compiled and edited by Nic Maclellan, Louise Michel: Rebel Lives is the dramatic biography of Louise Michel, the fiery leader of the 1871 Paris Commune, a short-lived workers' government created when the city population rose up to exert its will. Also known as "The Red Virgin", Louise Michel was a rebel who spent much of her life on the run, in exile, in jail, or in danger of being locked in a mental asylum. "Louise Michel" tells the story of her life by directly collecting and editing her own words from her memoirs and the insights of her contemporaries. Her story is presented with her sharp-eyed criticism of a society and an era where the only lucrative trade for a woman was prostitution, and tributes to her life and efforts from such prominent figures as Emma Goldman, Victor Hugo, Karl Marx, and much more.

As the treatment of mental health disorders continues to expand outwards, beyond the domain of psychiatric institutions, the nature and implications of intensified psychiatric intervention is a cause for concern for all of us.

A social worker, teacher, and community activist, Diana Ralph takes on contemporary community mental health systems. In a meticulously researched and highly readable work, the growth and change in the definition and treatment of mental health disorders is subjected to a concerned and scholarly scrutiny.

Ralph finds available theories, from the liberal to the Marxist to the radical antipsychiatry approaches, inadequate in accounting for these changes. Instead, she locates the ideological origins of community psychiatry within the tradition of industrial psychology, and is able to show how its operation is linked to the needs of contemporary industrial management in their efforts to diffuse dissatisfaction and alienation in the workplace.
--- from book's back cover

"Since it seems that any heart which beats for freedom has the right only to a small lump of lead, I demand my share. If you let me live, I shall never stop crying for vengeance, and I shall avenge my brothers by denouncing the[ir] murderers" (p.101).

So said Louise Michel before the court passed sentence on her for participating in the rebellion that became the Paris Commune. The court did not execute her. Instead, it sent her into exile at the prison colony in New Caledonia 20,000 miles from Paris. Even there Michel advocated for the indigenous people of the island (the Kanaks) in their struggle against the French occupiers.

Michel was dubbed the "Red Virgin": "red" because she was an anarchist and "virgin" because her sexual orientation was unclear (as if this mattered) and because she was unattractive. I don't see it. She had a great and beautiful spirit, and I have fallen in love with her.

Ocean Press is to be commended for providing a good introduction to the person of Louise Michel and the times that stirred her and she helped to shape. Through the writings of such notables as Bakunin, Kropotkin, Marx, Engles, Lenin, Emma Goldman, Howard Zinn, the editor's introduction (Nic Maclellan) and Michels herself, we learn about her mixed proletarian and bourgeoisie background, her undying devotion to her mother, her days as a school teacher, her militancy and leadership role during the Paris Commune, her exile in New Caledonia, her return to Paris and her prescient feminism. All in a mere 115 pages. It is quite a feat.

Kliatt, November 2004

MACLELLAN, Nic (ed): Louise Michel (Rebel Lives) Ocean Books.

Louise Michel. a relatively unknown figure outside of her native France, was an activist, an anarchist, and a fighter against racism who is known principally for her role in the short-lived French Commune in the spring of 1871.

A local rebellion, the Paris Commune was a reaction against the provisional government set up by the French after the defeat of Napoleon III by the Prussian armies in the Franco-Prussian War. Michel, a schoolteacher who had read widely in political theory, was fully embroiled in this brief moment of revolutionary ferment, organizing meetings, writing tracts, speaking, and even firing her gun as a fighter in the ranks.

Deported to New Caledonia at the fall of the Commune. she continued to write; and alone among her fellow deportees, championed the native Kanaks, a local tribe that attempted to rebel against French colonial rule. Back in France, she continued to live as she believed, travelling and speaking for the radical and anarchist causes she promoted.

What makes the Rebel Lives series valuable is its presentation of primary source material once the historical background has been carefully laid out in an introduction. Not only are excerpts from Michel's autobiography and letters included, but also brief pieces taken from the works of Engels and Marx writing on the Commune as well as short citations from many others, including Lenin, Emma Goldman (who calls Michel "a complete woman"), and Howard Zinn. Selected reading lists contain books and Web sites in both French and English. A unique resource.

Patricia Moore. Brookline, MA

I was happy to read this fourth installment in the 44 Scotland Street books. It was back to the form of the 1st book. VERY enjoyable!

I've read all of Alexander McCall Smith's books written for adults. "The World According to Bertie" is a wonderful example of this author's intelligence, understanding, knowledge and Scottish wit.

Although Bertie is the only one named in the title of this book, all of the 44 Scotland Street regulars are here. The title refers to a charming essay that Bertie was asked to write in school.

I loved this book! It is far and away the best in the series so far. To begin with, the book, at 343 pages, is long enough to allow for deeper development of the characters. The plots have a time to work themselves out. Every character gets full play. And there are some interesting plots and surprises this time around.

There are some funny moments which actually had me laughing out loud. But, there is also a lot thoughtfulness that went into this book as well. There are many gentle lessons the author shares with us. He laments all the killing that goes on in the world. He wishes for more human kindness. He asks us to see the world through the eyes of a child like Bertie.

At one point, while discussing the theme of kindness, Domenica offers Angus this quote from Auden:

"If equal affection cannot be
Let the more loving one be me."

McCall Smith suggests that this sentiment is precisely what we all need in life to guide us.

This is really a wonderful book, with both an entertaining story and words of wisdom to ponder. Highly recommended!

Please, if you haven't read any of the novels in the 44 Scotland Street series, you should immediately go order and read 44 Scotland Street and then move on to Espresso Tales and Love Over Scotland before reading The World According to Bertie. Before making that decision, let me explain a little about the series. It began as a serial novel in The Scotsman newspaper. As a result, the writing is broken up into little vignettes that are loosely tied to each other by the relations the characters have with each other.

There's no doubt about it, Bertie Pollock makes this series work. He is the young (perpetually six so far), and blameless, example of what we all aspire to be . . . honest, fair, serious, humble, and considerate. Bertie has a problem (and we have a source of humor) in Bertie's mum, Irene, who wishes to make Bertie into a PC version of what a 21st century boy should be . . . despite Bertie's preferences and instincts to the contrary. As a result, Bertie's bedroom is painted pink, his mother encourages him to play with girls rather than boys, he takes Italian, saxophone, and yoga lessons, and he sees a psychotherapist. Irene also organizes his life . . . over much.

In this book, Irene decides that she wants to encourage Bertie to play with Olive, his nemesis at school. The consequences reverberate throughout the book.

In addition, Bertie's little brother, Ulysses, is someone Irene wants Bertie to have a close relationships with. Bertie finds an unexpected surprise while changing Ulysses' diapers that reveal fundamental flaws in his parents.

Bertie also has questions about the birds and the bees . . . but not the ones you expect.

Another major theme in the book is the genuine concern that the painter Angus Lordie has for his dog, Cyril, who faces legal proceedings for biting. You'll notice that no one in the novel cares for another human being nearly as much.

Big Lou's boyfriend is tied up in a Jacobite group and is devoted to Bonnie Prince Charlie.

After flaming out in London, Bruce is back and quickly puts the touch on an adoring young woman. Pat notices him . . . and finds she still feels excited.

Domenica is finding it very annoying to have her friend Antonia living across the hall. Antonia learns to communicate with her Polish builder in ways she hadn't expected.

Matthew still drinks a lot of coffee and feels like he needs to make changes in his romantic life. He also develops a bit of whimsy when it comes to modern art.

For me, the parts where neither Bertie nor Angus were present didn't work nearly as well. Without a lot of those two, this would have been a four-star book. The humor was aimed in more directions than usual . . . and touched on some very sensitive (and thus, very funny) topics that I didn't expect to find in the book. Two of the scenes involving Irene are ones that I'll laugh about for the rest of my life.

Enjoy!

(4.5 stars) Alexander McCall Smith always succeeds in charming his readers with warm and humorous tales of almost normal life, lived by people who care about each other and share the values that make life worth living. Like the other novels in this series, the "plot" here consists of episodes in the lives of several loosely connected characters from 44 Scotland Street as they face separate problems of crucial importance to them (and sometimes them alone) in their everyday lives.

Little Bertie Pollock, six years old, "just wants to be normal." Forced by his domineering mother Irene to go to advanced music classes, yoga, and psychotherapy once a week, he cannot be a rough-and-tumble boy. Irene has even enlisted his help when she pumps breast milk for the baby. In the past Bertie has found some comfort from Cyril, a dog with one gold tooth, who belongs to Angus Lordie, a painter who lives in the building, but Cyril is in the pound, and Angus is in the midst of legal proceedings to reclaim him.

Other characters at 44 Scotland Street and its neighborhood are also dealing with problems. Matthew, a quiet young man who runs an art gallery, hopes that Pat, who works in his gallery, will become more fond of him--and that he will become more fond of her--given enough time. Bruce, a devastatingly handsome narcissist with few financial resources, takes advantage of Julia by moving in with her. Big Lou Brown, who runs the local coffee shop, falls in love with a construction worker who wants to return the Stuarts to the throne, and Antonia, who has previously rented Dominica's flat, buys her own place in the building and finds new "love."

McCall Smith's "ordinary" characters with almost-ordinary problems are just absurd enough to keep the reader interested in their lives while remaining just "normal" enough that the reader can smile in recognition at their folly. Far too gentle to be considered a satirist, McCall Smith nevertheless pokes fun at Edinburgh life--the clubs, intellectual pretensions, and social activities--placing his characters in the context of the city and using irony to give their problems perspective and humor. Occasionally, he shares wry asides with the reader so subtly they feel like "throwaways." A guest at the home of an art "connoisseur" suggests, for example, that "Perhaps there are minimalist things here already--it's just that we can't see them."

Ultimately, the characters' domestic problems are resolved--for now--and the reader is left to reflect on the comfortable "old-shoeness" of McCall Smith's novels with their gentle good humor. As one resident of 44 Scotland Street says, "Every so often, in a moment of insight that can be very nearly mystical in its intensity, we see others...in a way which makes us want to cherish them as joint pilgrims on a perilous journey." McCall Smith's characters feel like joint pilgrims with the reader. n Mary Whipple

Tea Time for the Traditionally Built: The New No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency Novel, due April, 2009.
The Miracle at Speedy Motors, 2008.
Portuguese Irregular Verbs, first of the Dr. von Igelfeld Entertainments, 2003
The Comforts of a Muddy Saturday: An Isabel Dalhousie Novel, 2008
Love Over Scotland (44 Scotland Street), 2006

As a Canadian who has experienced living in England (and an avid Anglophile), I jumped at the chance to read an account of a Brit's experience of living in my own culture. I was in for a treat...

Not only is Carolyn Steele's story about her experience moving from England to Canada (with kid in tow), it is largely set in the city I live in. Seeing my community through a visitor's eyes made for a fascinating read full of hilarity. And I mean that. Steele's writing is hysterically funny - I found myself laughing out loud on many occasions. But the book is more than that: it is an endearing story of a single mother and her child trying to find their place in the world and the challenges they face in the process, the characters they meet, and their adventures around each corner. Seeing Canada from the perspective of an "outsider" was refreshing and helped me to gain a "re-appreciation" of the great country I live in and that Steele now calls home. An added glossary of terms at the back of the book is helpful to translate Steele's "Brit-speak" into Canadian English.

Overall, this is an excellent book that I would recommend to anyone, especially those who are looking to explore a new genre of literature. I am really looking forward to the second installment!

Prior to reading Carolyn's book, I knew little about Canada other than it was up there north of the USA and it was huge. However when a good friend of mine emigrated there with his Canadian wife, my curiosity was piqued and I found myself wanting to know more about this country which features so little in the global news despite being the second largest in the world.

Carolyn's book provides a fascinating insight into Canada and a little bit of its history from the point of view of a British born woman and her son coming to the country for the first time. It chronicles her encounter with a culture that is alternatively both comfortingly familiar and also refreshingly modern which, in itself, summarises Canada's complex relationship with both Britain and the USA. The Canadians that she encounters come across as cheerful and patiently willing to both induct and tolerate this newcomer and her exuberant and inquisitive 9 year old son.

The book is based on a series of articles that Carolyn wrote for the British Mensa magazine over the period of a year. Carolyn originally moved to Ontario to care for an elderly lady suffering from Alzheimers, hence the title of the book. But despite the seriousness of the disease, her anecdotes telling of how she patiently coped and shepherded her new ward day in and day out are humorous and well written. However the book is more than that. In addition to a detailed look at life around Kitchener and Waterloo, Carolyn takes us on a brief trip to British Columbia for an observation of how, despite being part of the same country, the culture shifts as subtly as the vast geography of the land.

This book is heartily recommended for anyone who wants to understand Canada, its people and its culture. I give the book five stars!

This is one of the best books I've read in a long time. It's also one of the only books I've read that made me laugh out loud, and I read a lot of books!

This book charts the ups and downs of relocating to a new continent. I was moved by the courage of the author and the upbeat manner in which she faced every hurdle along the way. It is the candid and witty manner in which she writes about coping with a new life that makes Carolyn Steele's book so entertaining.

Hopefully you'll enjoy the journey with her as much as I have.
I'm looking forward to reading about her next adventures.

This is one of the best books I've read in a long time. It's also one of the only books I've read that made me laugh out loud, and I read a lot of books!

This book charts the ups and downs of relocating to a new continent. I was moved by the courage of the author and the upbeat manner in which she faced every hurdle along the way. It is the candid and witty manner in which she writes about coping with a new life that makes Carolyn Steele's book so entertaining.

Hopefully you'll enjoy the journey with her as much as I have.
I'm looking forward to reading about her next adventures.

I bought this book when I started collecting Canadian commemorative dollars and the book has been a big help providing information like mintage figures, images of the coins, and prices. It also gives the sizes in mm for the different coins which makes ordering albums or holders a lot easier.
I would recommend this book to beginners and long term collectors a like if they are buying Canadian or Mexican coins. I have several other world coin books and this book provides more useful information and is easy to follow.
I just finished a US modern commemorative collection and I wish I had had this book when I was buying coins for that. The pricing of the coins in this set aren't correct in this book but the other information is valuable.

I have ordered this book year after year for my dad for several years. This year he told me that the book has more information about the mexican coins, in fact, he order several books for all his friends.

If you had an older edition or you are interested in mexican coins, you should buy this book.

Terrific little book, I use it all the time. If you have been collecting coins for years then you may not need this book but you are going to want it. It catalogs all (as the title suggests) the North American Coins (U.S., Canada & Mexico). On the other hand if you are just getting started in coin collecting then this book is an essential. Either way, it's well written and accurate, enough said.

Finally, someone uses more research-based information than personal opinion to discuss the field of sales. This book was extremely helpful and the author hit a home run. Hope there is a second book like the first.

The number is essentially unimportant. Canada could have focused on seven (out of respect to Covey) or on 14 or on 34 "sales traps." In fact, there are hundreds of incorrect or inappropriate actions and strategies undertaken by salespeople or a sales organization because of incomplete or false information, illogical thinking, "tradition," poor decision-making, and/or not knowing what they don't know. Canada brought to the writing of this book a wealth of real-world experience in sales and sales training. He also drew upon extensive published research (e.g. a sales research project sponsored by Xerox) as well as studies conducted by the Dartmouth Group, Ltd. and the Institute for Global Sales Studies. In the Introduction, Canada asserts that "It is not what sales and marketing people don't know that is most likely to significantly hurt their performance; it is what they think they know that turns out to be a partial truth, a fallacy, or a mistaken belief that affects their results more."

According to Canada, the most successful salespeople, sales teams, and sales organizations are guided and informed by six principles: Focus outside, get the most out of the best people, train effectively, create value, offer feedback and create opportunities for learning, and use the Internet and databases effectively. He illustrates each of these six by identifying and then examining 24 different sales traps, each of which violates one or more of the principles. He then explains how to avoid them. For example:

Sales Trap #6: Either Sales People Have It or They Don't

Action Points: Be patient, Give constructive feedback, and give consistent feedback that doesn't exclude anyone.

Sales Truth #6: Sales people are developed [in italics], not born [also in italics]

Canada uses this same format for the other sales traps, devoting a separate chapter to each of the 24. He provides brief annotations with each Action Point throughout the book and also inserts observations, suggestions, and examples so as to create a context for each combination of Sales Trap/Action Points/Sales Truth. He concludes with an Epilogue in which he shares his thoughts about the next generation of performance change programs, suggesting that there are two unique points that should be carefully considered when devising a program by which to move sales performance and sales results to the next level. First, performance change programs must incorporate a customer survey that is customized for the program, and performance change programs should also examine the success factors from the customer's perspective." Although Canada does not italicize the last four words, I would. "Second, the program must incorporate into each case study the 'best practices' of your top salespeople. In other words, we must leverage the insights of an organization's best people in order to help others within the company." I could not agree more, presuming to add that the aforementioned "best practices" would also be of substantial to those not directly involved in sales (e.g. receptionists, telephone operators, CSRs, accounting) who also have direct and frequent contact with customers.

After reviewing the 24, many readers will probably have a few sales traps to add to the list. Perhaps if enough readers share them with Canada (he is a member of the marketing faculty at the Kelley School of Business, Indiana University), he will accumulate enough new material for another book. My own rather extensive experience in sales and sales training suggests these troublemakers:

MISTAKE A: Negotiating Against Yourself (i.e. assuming what a customer can and cannot afford)

TRUTH A: Let the customer say "No."

MISTAKE B: Constantly "Cultivate" Customers

TRUTH B: Contact a customer only when there is a legitimate reason to do so.

MISTAKE C: Ask Lots of Questions

TRUTH C: Do your homework. Lots of it. Request only the answers you cannot be expected to know already.

MISTAKE D: Closing Skills Are Most Important

TRUTH D: More often than not, so-called "closing skills" work best when used to pre-qualify a prospect.

Although this book will be of great value to relatively inexperienced salespeople, especially to those without the safety nets and air cover of an established sales organization, I also think it will be of substantial value to sales managers and to peak performers who can so easily become entrapped by what Jim O'Toole refers to as "the ideology of comfort and the tyranny of custom." Probably the worst sales trap of all is to continue to think and sell the same way, day after day, and then expect better results. Even the most experienced of salespeople should constantly be challenging their own assumptions, premises, etc. about sales...but seldom do. Canada's book can guide and inform such a re-evaluation.

Especially for organizations with limited resources and a small sales force, Canada's book can serve as the basis of an especially effective sales training program. Larger organizations can also use it as the focal point of a workshop. Obviously, those who understand what the 24 sales traps are and why they are so dangerous are most likely to avoid them.

This is a fantastic book. It is so hard to find any books in the sales or marketing field that are actually based on facts versus opinions. If you like this book you should check out books by Neil Rackham.