Stone Country: An Unauthorized History of Canada by Bowering, George - 2003

Toronto, ON, Canada: Penguin Canada, 2003. First Edition . Hardcover. Fine/Fine. 8vo - over 7¾ - 9¾" tall. Fine green hardcover. Fine green color pictorial DJ. (2003), 8vo, [8], 1-344pp. illustrations, maps ; 24 cm. :Beginning with our beginnings, George Bowering offers theories about the genesis of life in Canada, bringing to life dinosaurs, woolly mammoths, Kennewick Man and the Clovis people. He describes the coming of the Europeans: a handful of Norsemen at first, then a centuries-long gap before the arrival of explorers such as Cabot, Cartier and Champlain. He takes us from New France to a federal Canada of the 21st century, and shows how the agricultural, religious and economic systems put in place by the first European settlers became the backbone of Canadian society. Bowering leavens his history lesson with characteristic humour and irreverence, with cheeky chapter titles such as Mackenzie Kink and Get Riel, an entertaining imagined meeting between Alexander Mackenzie and George Vancouver, and a healthy dose of poetry and baseball box scores along the way. But it s not all fun and games, for Canada s history has never been despite our fondest wishes a peaceful saga of exploration and settlement. From the fur wars to the FLQ to native blockades, violence and revolution are woven into the tapestry of our past, together with the self-serving ambitions of ruthless politicians, businessmen and our not-so-friendly neighbours to the south." jacket