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The concubine's children: portrait of a family divided
By Denise Chong. 1994
Chong traces her family's history from China to Canada. Her grandfather left his wife and emigrated to Canada, accompanied by…
the concubine he bought in 1924. In Canada, they stinted and sacrificed to support his family in China. Chong tells of her grandparents and parents, and the visits she made to China to try to unite the strands of her family's past. Winner of the 1995 CNIB Talking Book of the Year Award. 1994.The bite of the mango
By Mariatu Kamara, Susan McClelland. 2008
Sierra Leone. At the age of 12, Mariatu Kamara was raped by a family friend, then captured by rebels who…
cut off her hands. Despite her wounds, Kamara walked out of the bush and sought help, ending up in an amputee camp, where she gave birth to a son who died of malnutrition. When foreign journalists interviewed Kamara in the camp, her story garnered international interest and assistance, which eventually brought her to Toronto. Her autobiography testifies to Kamara's horrific trauma, but with the aim of fostering hope and reconciliation. Winner of the 2011 Red Maple Non-Fiction Award. For junior high and older readers. Some strong language, some descriptions of sex, and some descriptions of violence. c2008.Ten green bottles: the true story of one family's journey from war-torn Austria to the ghettos of Shanghai
By Vivian Jeanette Kaplan. 2002
For a brief period between 1938 and 1941, roughly 20,000 Jews found refuge from the Nazis in the one place…
not requiring visas, police certificates or proofs of financial independence: Shanghai. In 1939, the author's family made a month-long, 7,000-mile journey to Shanghai, struggling with heat, disease, poverty, and fear. With the war's end came the shock of learning what became of family and friends left behind in Europe. Descriptions of violence. 2002.Shake hands with the devil: the failure of humanity in Rwanda
By Roméo A Dallaire, Brent Beardsley. 2003
As former head of the 1993 U.N. peacekeeping mission in Rwanda, Canadian general Dallaire's initial proposal called for 5,000 soldiers,…
to permit orderly elections and the return of the refugees. Nothing like this number was supplied, and the result was an outright attempt at genocide against the Tutsis that nearly succeeded, with 800,000 dead over three months. Dallaire's argument that Rwanda-like situations are fires that can be put out with a small force if caught early enough will certainly draw debate, but the book documents in horrifying detail what happens when no serious effort is made. Explicit descriptions of violence. Winner of the 2004 Governor General's Award for Non-fiction. Canada Reads 2012. 2003.Shadow maker: the life of Gwendolyn MacEwen
By Rosemary Sullivan. 1995
Using the personal impressions of the poet's intimate friends, Rosemary Sullivan builds a composite portrait of Gwendolyn MacEwan, the Toronto…
poet who died in 1987 at the age of 46. The daughter of an alcoholic father and mentally ill mother, MacEwen's story is a painful one, yet the richness of her art and inner life redeemed the pain. Winner of the 1995 Governor General's Award for Non-fiction.Sailors, slackers, and blind pigs: Halifax at war
By Stephen Kimber. 2002
In May 1945, the city of Halifax erupted in a riot - a two-day orgy or boozing, looting, window-smashing, dancing…
in the streets, public fornication, and mindless mayhem to 'celebrate' the end of the war. The paternalism, privations, overcrowding, and tensions of a city at war created a situation waiting to explode, and an admiral's pride provided the match that set it off. Includes interviews with the people who lived through it - sailors, slackers (civilians), street urchins, prohibitionists, spies, profiteers, reporters, and just plain local folks. Some strong language. Winner of the 2004 CNIB Talking Book of the Year Award. 2002.Un ouvrage qui s'adresse aux historiens, universitaires, chercheurs et professeurs. Un autre ouvrage sur Groulx me direz-vous? Je répondrais :…
enfin une analyse complète sur Groulx. Figure incontournable de l'histoire du nationalisme au Québec, quiconque s'intéresse à l'histoire des idées ne peut ignorer Groulx et doit absolument lire cet essai de Michel Bock. Prix du Gouverneur Général 2005. 2004.Northrop Frye: a biography
By John Ayre. 1989
Northrop Frye authored three of the most influential books of literary criticism and his revolutionary theories established his international fame.…
In this biography, Ayre describes Frye's impoverished childhood and traces the progression of his work. Nominated for the City of Toronto and Trillium Awards.Molière
By Roger Duchêne. 1998
Molière n'a pas laissé de confidences. Pas une lettre, pas un mot. Il a près de quarante ans quand il…
commence à faire parler de lui. Sa vie et son oeuvre font scandale. On l'accuse de ruiner la religion, la famille, la morale. Et d'avoir épousé la fille de sa maîtresse, sa propre fille... Qui ne se priverait pas de le cocufier abondamment. Ses ennemis forgent sa légende noire, ses amis une légende dorée. Cette biographie les replace enfin dans leur contexte. En les prenant au sérieux, sans les tenir pour vraies, en les présentant au lecteur pour qu'il puisse juger à son tour. 1998.Canadian Tire was founded by A.J. and John Billes in 1922 and grew to become a national institution. In 1986,…
one of A.J.'s sons decided to sell his company shares to a group of Canadian Tire dealers, sparking a feud with his sister, Martha. 1990 winner of the National Business Book Award. Strong language.De Kooning: an American master
By Mark Stevens, Annalyn Swan, Willem De Kooning. 2004
Biography of Dutch-born artist Willem de Kooning (1904-1997), who became a major figure in the mid-twentieth-century New York abstract expressionism…
scene. Explores de Kooning's bohemian habits, friendship with Gorky, financial backing from Hirshhorn and Fourcade, only marriage, and passion for painting. Some descriptions of sex. Pulitzer Prize. 2004.Canada: a story of challenge
By J. M. S Careless. 1991
A brief history of Canada, covering the period from Cartier and Champlain to the arrival of Pierre Elliott Trudeau on…
the political scene. It covers the major historical events and the forces which have shaped our country. Originally written in 1953, this is the updated 1970 version. Winner of the 1953 Governor General's Award for Non-fiction.The private capital: ambition and love in the age of Macdonald and Laurier
By Sandra Gwyn. 1984
A compelling account of private life in the age of Macdonald and Laurier. The author has used personal letters, diaries,…
scrapbooks, memoirs and social columns. 1984 Governor General's Award winner. c1984.Wow, Canada!: exploring this land from coast to coast to coast (Wow Canada! Ser.)
By Vivien Bowers. 1999
12-year-old Guy keeps a journal as he tours Canada with his parents and younger sister, Rachel. Learn about each province…
and territory, with information about major cities along the way, and other fun Canadian facts in sections like "According to Mom/Dad", "Exceedingly Weird", and "Food I Was Introduced to for My Own Good". Also included is "Guy's Family Car Trip Survival Tips". Grades 3-6. 1999.The year of magical thinking
By Joan Didion. 2005
Writer reflects on her emotional response to the unexpected death of her husband, John Gregory Dunne, after a visit to…
their comatose daughter. Discusses the shock of suddenly facing a crisis, the memory of their time together as a family, and the meaning of marriage. National Book Award. Bestseller. 2005.With Borges
By Alberto Manguel. 2004
During the 1960s, Manguel, then a teenager, spent many evenings reading to Jorge Luis Borges, a giant of modern literature,…
because Borges had gradually become blind. As the author describes his visits to Borges in his dark, modest apartment, reading out loud and talking about books, we have a privileged look into the inner world of a literary legend, a window into the private life of one of the greatest authors of the twentieth century. Winner of the Prix du Livre en Poitou-Charentes 2003.Confessions of an immigrant's daughter (Social History of Canada. #34.)
By Laura Goodman Salverson, K. P Stich. 1981
Salverson's autobiography describes the struggles of a young Icelandic woman to rise above an early life of poverty, isolation and…
upheaval. It also depicts the sometimes agonizing process of the immigrant, adjusting to a life in a new country. It discusses the discrimination against women and ethnic minorities she encountered as she attempted to fulfill her own dreams. Winner of the 1939 Governor General's Award. (Social History of Canada ; 34)The life and death of Adolf Hitler
By James Giblin. 2002
Biography of the German political leader whose racial prejudice and personal ambition shaped World War II. Traces Hitler's life and…
career from his birth in Austria in 1889 to his death in Berlin in 1945. Briefly discusses this tyrant's legacy. Some descriptions of violence. Grades 5-8 and older readers. Siebert Award. 2002.In Persephone anything can happen, and often does. The Township's history stretches back to before the birth of Canada, and…
is connected to such famous people as Sir John A. Macdonald, Sir Wilfrid Laurier, and the future King Edward VII. It has also been home to more shady characters. Winner of the 2003 Stephen Leacock Memorial Medal. 2002.Willie, the life of W. Somerset Maugham: The Life Of W. Somerset Maugham
By Robert Calder. 1989
An examination of writer Maugham's homosexuality and unhappy marriage, his Victorian sense of propriety, his wanderlust, his verbal and financial…
generosity, and his turbulent relationship with his daughter. Winner of the 1989 Governor General's Award for Non-fiction. 1989.