Posts by Ken McGoogan
Richard Dawkins + Celtic figurines = Who Do We Think We Are?
Whoosh! Away it goes to the copy editor. Beneath that title page, the manuscript reminds us that, despite our perpetual obsession with our collective identity, we Canadians have never investigated a crucial demographic reality — the fact that more than nine million Canadians claim Scottish or Irish ancestry. Did the ancestors of more than one…
Read MoreThe Internet has spawned a latter-day Industrial Revolution
Why is it so much harder to make a living these days? Especially if you’re a writer, a musician, a photographer, a visual artist. . . . We all know why: the Internet. Everything we once got paid to create is now available for free. OK, that’s an exaggeration. But I do like this book…
Read MoreSearching for John Franklin: 2015 should bring major revelations . . .
Why are people highlighting the search for the Terror? That’s what I found myself wondering. The most exciting discoveries will almost certainly be made aboard the Erebus. Last September, with winter coming on, time ran out before Parks Canada divers could investigate that long-lost Franklin vessel. When they return this year, they will have time…
Read MoreOur Hero explains why Canada abounds in ‘overstepping women’
Our Hero turns up in “Talking History,” a biweekly series happening over at the 49th Shelf.The series focuses on a wide range of topics in Canadian history, exploring the notion of history as a compelling form of storytelling of interest to large audiences. Ken McGoogan One of the most evocative moments of a recent circumnavigation…
Read MoreRobert Burns kicks off spring showboating
Linden MacIntyre and the McGoogans. Yes, it sound like the name of an emerging Celtic music band. But really it is the speakers line-up for this year’s Robert Burns Dinner sponsored by the Toronto St. Andrews Society. That event, slated for Jan. 23, 2015, finds Linden delivering The Immortal Memory, and Sheena and I presenting…
Read MoreCreative Nonfiction: the online face of University of Toronto?
One participant wrote that “the weekly notes were very helpful, introduced new stylistic tools, and provided clear instruction on how to complete the exercises and assignments.” Another said “this was my first online course and overall it provided me with a great learning opportunity while in virtual community with like-minded learners.” A third observed that…
Read MoreThe ROM launches a 3-year, cross-country, Franklin celebration
Ryan Harris felt a first rush of “absolute jubilation” when the sonar image of a ship popped up onto his monitor. As a senior underwater archaeologist with Parks Canada, Harris had spent the past six field seasons searching for a Franklin ship. Now, at last, he was looking at one of them. Harris and his…
Read MoreYo, Roald Amundsen! Happy South Pole Day . . . .
Hats off to Roald Amundsen, the most accomplished polar explorer of them all. One hundred and three years ago today, on Dec. 14, 1911, he reached the geographical South Pole as leader of the first Antarctic expedition to do so. Fifteen years later, in 1926, he also became the first to reach the North Pole…
Read MoreJohn Rae tie prompts expression of remorse . . .and THANKS!
I have been remiss. I received this gorgeous tie — which is embossed! — a few days ago. And, though I posted on Facebook, I neglected to check in here to say . . . THANKS! I say this specifically to the John Rae Society, which is based in Stromness, Orkney, one of my favorite…
Read MoreMan in tartan vest invites nonfiction writers to cyber-gathering
Faithful followers of this blog will know that I am reluctant to publish anything that even hints of self-promotion. But with the above quarter-page ad (!) surfacing in today’s Globe & Mail, in a good-looking section celebrating the best books of the year, I feel driven to make an exception. As you can…
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