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Discursive works

  • Author:
    Landsberg, Michele
    Summary:

    A collection of journalist Michele Landsberg's Toronto Star columns, where she was a regular columnist for more than twenty-five years between 1978 and 2005. Michele has chosen her favourite and most relevant columns, using them as a lens to reflect on the the second wave of feminism and the issues facing women then and now. An icon of the feminist movement and a hero to many, through her writing and activism Michele played an important role in fighting for the rights of women, children, and the disenfranchised. Her insights are as powerful for the generation of women who experienced the second wave as for the rising tide of young feminists taking action today.

  • Author:
    Gollner, Adam
    Summary:

    Montreal writer Dany Laferrière became "Immortal" in 2015, when he was inducted into the Académie française, the highest honour in all French literature. In these wide-ranging interviews with Adam Leith Gollner, portions of which were originally published in The Paris Review, Laferrière reveals how his life and his writing are inseparable, discussing everything from his breakout debut, How To Make Love To a Negro Without Getting Tired, to the extraordinary success of more recent novels such as The Return and I Am a Japanese Writer. Brilliant, comedic, and full of insightful advice for writers and readers, these conversations also serve as the definitive introduction to one of our greatest storytellers.

  • Author:
    Eso, David, Lynes, Jeanette
    Summary:

    Under the covers of Where the Nights Are Twice as Long: Love Letters of Canadian Poets, David Eso and Jeanette Lynes collect letters and epistolary poems from more than 120 Canadian poets, including Pauline Johnson, Malcolm Lowry, Louis Riel, Alden Nowlan, Anne Szumigalski , Leonard Cohen, John Barton, and Di Brandt, and many others, encompassing the breadth of this country's English literary history. Presented in order not of the chronology of composition, but according to the poets' ages at the time of writing, the poems in the book comprise a single lifeline. The reader follows an amalgam of the Poet from the passionate intensity of youth, through the regrets and satisfactions of adulthood and middle age, and into the reflective wisdom of old age. All the writings are about love, but love in a dizzying array of colours, shapes, and sizes. Deep, enduring love, unrequited love, passionate love, violent love. Here are odes and lyric ecstasies, tirades and tantrums, pastoral comforts and abject horrors — all delivered with the vibrancy, wit, and erudition of our finest poets. Where the Nights Are Twice as Long is more than an anthology: it is an unforgettable journey into the long night of love.

  • Author:
    McKenzie, Andrea
    Summary:

    Laura Holland and Mildred Forbes, an inseparable duo, set off from Montreal in June 1915 to serve as nursing sisters in the Great War. Over the next four years, the two cared for each other through sickness and health, air raids and bombings, unrelenting work, and adventurous leaves. This thoughtfully curated collection of their letters home paints a vivid account of nursing through the battles of Gallipoli, Passchendaele, and beyond. Mildred and Laura were remarkably forthright, revealing how they relied on friendship, humour, and professional ethics to carry on in the face of mismanagement, discrimination, deprivation, and trauma.

  • Author:
    MacMillan, Daniel, Parenteau, Bill, Dutcher, Stephen
    Summary:

    Daniel MacMillan never saw the battlefields of Passchendaele or Vimy Ridge. A farmer in the tiny New Brunswick community of Williamsburg, he experienced the Great War entirely from the "home front." War on the Home Front: The Farm Diaries of Daniel MacMillan, 1914-1927 is a portrait of the other side of war from the perspective of a man who, like countless families across North America, had no choice but keep on going with his life as sons, nephews, brothers and fathers fought and died on battlefields worlds away. As MacMillan's moving wartime diaries reveal, these years took a terrible toll on him, his family, his farm, and his community. A fascinating chronicle of wartime life, Daniel MacMillan expressed the fear, anxiety and uncertainty as well as the sense of duty and fortitude that characterized the war experience on an individual level, making the tragic four-year event much clearer in diary form than in second-hand reports. His insider's account of supplying money, men, equipment, and especially food for the country and the troops documents the often unnoticed sacrifices of rural people in wartime and their post-war struggles to recover. The diary is also a testament to the loyalty of the people of Stanley parish, who mobilized the churches, women's groups and other institutions to provide aid to the troops overseas, the Red Cross and other war-related issues. A unique historical document, War on the Home Front encompasses entries written between 1914 and 1927 in which MacMillan describes the hardships of running a farm in the face of acute labour shortages and the anguish of losing friends and neighbours in battle. War on the Home Front is Volume 7 in the New Brunswick Military Heritage Series.

  • Author:
    Summary:

    The sudden shift to remote education in response to the COVID-19 pandemic created both a unique challenge and a unique opportunity. Students and instructors alike were required to quickly adapt to the digital classroom, adjusting methods, material, and pedagogical approaches on the fly. Bringing together twenty-five interviews from the frontline of emergency remote education, Voices from the Digital Classroom portrays the struggles, innovations, and resilience of students, instructors, and educational professionals in the face of COVID-19. These interviews offer a unique, of-the-moment perspective on an exceptional time. Complemented by additional voices that expand on stories told to reflect on challenges, successes, and lessons learned, Voices from the Digital Classroom is both a time-capsule and a vision for the future. It provides new insights into pandemic teaching and learning, a remarkable lens into the daily realities of the digital classroom, and an inspiration for the future of remote education in a post-pandemic world.

  • Author:
    Walker, Melissa
    Summary:

    Upcountry South Carolina Goes to War chronicles the lives and concerns of the Anderson, Brockman and Moore families of piedmont South Carolina during the late-antebellum and Civil War eras through 124 letters dated 1853 to 1865. The letters provide valuable firsthand accounts of evolving attitudes toward the war as conveyed between battlefronts and the home front, and they also express rich details about daily life in both environments. As the men of service age from each family join the Confederate ranks and write from military camps in Virginia and the Carolinas, they describe combat in some of the war's more significant battles. Though the surviving combatants remain staunch patriots to the Southern cause until the bitter end, readers witness in their letters the waning of initial enthusiasm in the face of the realities of warfare. The corresponding letters from the home front offer a more pragmatic assessment of the period and its hardships. Emblematic of the fates of many Southern families, the experiences of these representative South Carolinians are dramatically illustrated in their letters from the eve of the Civil War through its conclusion.

  • Author:
    Heyward, Edward Barnwell, Coclanis, Peter A.
    Summary:

    The Civil War and Reconstruction eras decimated the rice-planting enterprise of the South, and no family experienced the effects of this economic upheaval quite as dramatically as the Heywards of South Carolina, a family synonymous with the wealth of the old rice kingdom in the Palmetto State. Twilight on the South Carolina Rice Fields collects the revealing wartime and postbellum letters and documents of Edward Barnwell "Barney" Heyward (1826–1871), a native of Beaufort District and grandson of Nathaniel Heyward, one of the most successful rice planters and largest slaveholders in the South. Barney Heyward was also the father of South Carolina governor Duncan Clinch Heyward, author of Seed from Madagascar,the definitive account of the rice kingdom's final stand a generation later. Edited by Margaret Belser Hollis and Allen H. Stokes, the Heyward family correspondence from this transformational period reveals the challenges faced by a once-successful industry and a once-opulent society in the throes of monumental change. During the war, Barney Heyward served as a lieutenant in the engineering division of the Confederate army but devoted much of his time to managing affairs at his plantations near Columbia and Beaufort. His letters chronicle the challenges of preserving his lands and maintaining control over the enslaved labor force essential to his livelihood and his family's fortune. The wartime letters also provide a penetrating view of the Confederate defense of coastal South Carolina against the Union forces who occupied Beaufort District. In the aftermath of the conflict, Heyward worked with only limited success to revive planting operations. In addition to what these documents reveal about rice cultivation during tumultuous times, they also convey the drama, affections and turmoil of life in the Heyward family, from Barney's increasingly difficult relations with his father Charles Heyward to his heartfelt devotion to his wife, the former Catherine "Tat" Maria Clinch, and their children.

  • Author:
    Northup, Solomon, Orr, N.
    Summary:

    Solomon Northup was born a free man in New York State. At the age of 33 he was kidnapped in Washington D.C. and placed in an underground slave pen. Northup was transported by ship to New Orleans where he was sold into slavery. He spent the next 12 years working as a carpenter, driver, and cotton picker. This narrative reveals how Northup survived the harsh conditions of slavery, including smallpox, lashings, and an attempted hanging. Solomon Northup was among a select few who were freed from slavery. His account describes the daily life of slaves in Louisiana, their diet and living conditions, the relationship between master and slave, and how slave catchers used to recapture runaways. Northup's first person account published in 1853, was a dramatic story in the national debate over slavery that took place in the nine years leading up to the start of the American Civil War.

  • Author:
    Fezzani, Nadia
    Summary:

    Journalist Nadia Fezzani spent years probing the minds of serial killers in search of answers to unsettling questions: What went on in their heads as they prepared for their next crime? What drove them to murder not once, but habitually? Were they born killers, or had they begun as normal individuals and been somehow transformed into predators? Fezzani conducted groundbreaking, uncensored interviews with multiple-murderers behind bars. The account she pieces together from interviews, psychological research, criminal profiling, and genetic studies, is as unsettling as it is undeniable. The scars of abuse, and cold-blooded logic all emerge as Fezzani dissects serial killers' personalities in a quest to understand those who have committed unthinkable crimes. Through the Eyes of Serial Killers explores the leading theories on the psychology of serial killing, victim selection, and telling signs of potentially dangerous mental disturbance. It is hoped that a clear-headed understanding of serial killings can unlock better strategies to prevent, or even predict this rarest and most evil of crimes.

  • Author:
    Meili, Dianne
    Summary:

    The reader will experience first-hand the personality, characteristics, and sometimes remote environment of these healers, visionaries, storytellers, and spiritualists through Dianne Meili’s faithful re-telling of the interviews she conducted with each during the two years she spent travelling throughout Alberta.

  • Author:
    Bivins, Jason
    Summary:

    In a world where violence in the name of religion can impact so many other people's lives, it's critical to understand the intersection between religion and violence. What's required is not to see religion as inherently violent but to recognize that the violence associated with religious groups and communities is worth exploring and interrogating. In these 24 lectures, embark on a global, multidisciplinary investigation of religious violence. Delivered with honesty and sensitivity to the diversity of spiritual beliefs, these lectures examine the roots of this phenomenon and guide you toward more informed ways of thinking about it. You'll consider how faiths like Christianity, Islam, and Buddhism view concepts like human sacrifice, martyrdom, and penitence; the ways religious violence can be directed toward specific races and genders; concepts like heresy, witch hunting, and demonology; and more. You'll probe complex ideas and concepts that will help you fashion your own interpretations, such as "religion," "Other-ing," and "cult." And you'll burrow deep into both current issues relating to religious violence -- as well as their historical and conceptual sources. Professor Bivins doesn't take a clinical or pessimistic approach to the material. Rather, he's an engaging on-screen presence with a fierce open-mindedness to the varieties of religious experience. He's also optimistic about what we can learn from a comprehensive study of religious violence. And at the individual level, it starts with approaching the topic in a way that's immersive, insightful, thorough, and important for our times.

  • Author:
    Wald, George
    Summary:

    "All men, everywhere, have asked the same questions: Whence we come, what kind of thing we are, and at least some intimation of what may become of us..." So begins Nobel Prize-winning scientist George Wald's 1970 Massey Lectures, now in print for the first time ever. Where did we come from, who are we, and what is to become of us - these questions have never been more urgent. Then, as now, the world is facing major political and social upheaval, from overpopulation to nuclear warfare to environmental degradation and the uses and abuses of technology. Using scientific fact as metaphor, Wald meditates on our place, and role, on Earth and in the universe. He urges us to therefore choose life - to invest in our capabilities as human beings, to heed the warnings of our own self-destruction, and above all to honour our humanity.

  • Author:
    Sedaris, David
    Summary:

    For nearly four decades, David Sedaris has faithfully kept a diary in which he records his thoughts and observations on the odd and funny events he witnesses. Anyone who has attended a live Sedaris event knows that his diary readings are often among the most joyful parts of the evening. But never before have they been available in audio. Now, in this book, Sedaris reads us his favorite entries.

  • Author:
    Anderson, William, Wilder, Laura Ingalls
    Summary:

    These letters illuminate the revered American author's thoughts, travels, philosophies, writing career, and relationships as never before, serving as a sequel to her beloved books and a snapshot of pioneer life.

  • Author:
    Macpherson, C.B.
    Summary:

    In his 1964 CBC Massey Lectures C. B. Macpherson examines the rival ideas of democracy - the communist, Third World, and Western-liberal variants - and their impact on one another. He suggests that the West need not fear any challenge to liberal democracy if it is prepared to re-examine and alter its own values.

  • Author:
    Whiston, James
    Summary:

    Fortunata y Jacinta is the magnum opus of Benito Pérez Galdós, acknowledged in the field of Spanish letters as second only in importance to Cervantes. This study is an analysis of the different parts of the manuscript as "palimpsest," or layering of texts from the early manuscript drafts of the work to its printed edition, produced in successive stages to create a better version than the last. The analysis seeks to lay bare important aspects of the creative process of composition in the astounding cultural phenomenon that is the nineteenth-century realist novel, assessing in what ways any changes from earlier to later drafts may provide an understanding of the genius of creation in this particular literary form.

  • Author:
    Laing, R.D.
    Summary:

    In his 1968 CBC Massey Lectures R. D. Laing discusses how and why we value society's notions of family over our own. Using concepts of schizophrenia, R.D. Laing demonstrates that we tend to invalidate the subjective and experiential and accept the proper societal view of what should occur within the family. A psychoanalyst and psychiatrist, Laing worked at the Tavistock Institute of Human Relations. His books include The Self and Others and The Politics of Experience.

  • Author:
    Lee, Philip
    Summary:

    Canadian journalist and political insider Dalton Camp left behind a powerful legacy, including books, essays, and newspaper columns on Canadian politics and public policy. To both celebrate his career and continue his passionate efforts to encourage and support the practice of journalism, St. Thomas University has held the annual Dalton Camp Lecture in Journalism since 2002. In cooperation with CBC Radio's Ideas, the series has become an annual highlight for listeners across the country. Now, for the first time, the Dalton Camp Lectures have been gathered together in one remarkable compilation. Commencing with the foundational address "The Best Game in Town" by journalist and social activist June Callwood, about her love affair with journalism, and ending with the 2013 lecture "The Next Big Thing Has Finally Arrived" by New York Times business, media, and culture writer David Carr, the contributors collectively forecast the future of news and the public discussion of ideas in a vastly changing world. Featuring contributions by Callwood and Carr as well as Nahlah Ayed, Sue Gardner, Chantal Hébert, Naomi Klein, Roy MacGregor, Stephanie Nolen, Neil Reynolds, Joe Schlesinger, and Ken Whyte, The Next Big Thing addresses the contemporary practice of journalism like no other book.

  • Author:
    Luciani, Patrick, Griffiths, Rudyard, Munk, Peter
    Summary:

    The Munk Debates is Canada's premier international debate series, a highly anticipated cultural event and feast of ideas. Launched in 2008 by philanthropists Peter and Melanie Munk, these debates bring together some of the world's greatest thinkers to discuss the most pressing political, social, and cultural issues that are shaping the course of world events. This volume includes an Introduction by Peter Munk and the first five debates in the series: British historian and bestselling author Niall Ferguson, top-ranking American diplomat Richard Holbrooke, Washington Post columnist Charles Krauthammer, and human rights scholar and Pulitzer Prize-winning author Samantha Power discuss global security and the 2008 U.S. presidential election, Former U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations John Bolton, former Foreign Minister of the Australian Parliament and President and Chief Executive of the International Crisis Group Gareth Evans, actor and humanitarian Mia Farrow, and former Chief of the Defence Staff of the Canadian Forces General Rick Hillier debate the pros and cons of humanitarian intervention. Professor of Economics Paul Collier, economist Hernando De Soto, former UN Secretary-General Stephen Lewis, and bestselling author of Dead Aid Dambisa Moyo explore the opportunities and hazards of foreign aid. Former British politician and bestselling author Lord Nigel Lawson, adjunct professor at the Copenhagen Business School and bestselling author Bjørn Lomborg, environmental activist and Leader of the Green Party of Canada Elizabeth May, and journalist and bestselling author George Monbiot tackle one of the great public policy questions of our time: how should the world respond to climate change? Intelligent, informative, and entertaining, The Munk Debates is a lively forum of ideas and opinions that aims to reinvigorate public discourse and civic dialogue, and captures the prevailing moods, clashing opinions, and most imperative issues of our time.

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