Earnest and industrious Beavers, funloving but discontented Frogs, a Lobster named Lugubrious J. Standfast and a wonderful Frog leader are some of the characters in this mythical tale about a Swamp named Canada. This delightfully illustrated and satirically sharp review of Canadian history in the late 1960s and early 1970s features some familiar faces--Lester B. Pearson, Richard Nixon, Rene Levesque, the immaculate chief-frog (chief beaver?) Pierre Trudeau--evolved slightly to survive in Swamp conditions. Frog Fables & Beaver Tales is a clever, hilarious souvenir of a particularly vibrant period in Canadian politics.
Coyote and the other land animals devise a plot to steal fire from Curlew, the keeper of the sky world, and they successfully bring fire to Earth, protecting it against the month-long rain that Curlew sends down to extinguish it.
Long ago Beaver did not look like he does now. Yes, he had two very large front teeth, but his tail was not wide and flat. It was thick with silky fur. Vain Beaver is inordinately proud of his glorious tail. When he's not bragging about his tail, Beaver spends his time grooming it, while the other woodland creatures go about their business of finding food and shelter for their families. Eventually Beaver's boasting drives away his friends and he is left on his own. But when his tail is flattened in an accident (of his own making), Beaver learns to value its new shape and seeks to make amends with his friends. Based on an Ojibwe legend.
A book that will fascinate and inform readers who love Canadian writing Part cultural history, part personal memoir, this accomplished, sweeping, yet intimate book demonstrates that the story of Canadian publishing is one of the cornerstones of our literary history. In The Perilous Trade, former publisher, literary journalist, and industry insider Roy MacSkimming chronicles the extraordinary journey of English-language publishing from the Second World War to the present. During a period of unparalleled transformation, Canada grew from a cultural colony fed on the literary offerings of London and New York to a mature nation whose writers are celebrated around the world. Crucial to that evolution were three generations of book publishers–mavericks, gamblers, entrepreneurs, political activists, and true believers–sharing a conviction that Canadians need books of their own. Canadian publishing has long made headlines—be it Jack McClelland’ s outrageous publicity stunts, American takeovers, the collapse of venerable imprints, or bold political moves to ensure the industry’s survival. Roy MacSkimming takes us behind the headlines to draw memorable portraits of the men and women who built Canada’s literary renaissance. With a novelist’s eye for character and incident, he weaves their tangled relationships with authors, agents, booksellers and each other into a lively narrative rich in anecdote and revealing personal recollection. Canadian publishers large and small have nurtured a literature of extraordinary diversity and breadth, MacSkimming argues, giving us English Canada’s greatest cultural achievement.
