John A. Macdonald made mistakes . . . because he had lost Thomas D’Arcy McGee
Again this morning, on CBC radio, we heard the now familiar attack on John A. Macdonald: how in building the Canadian Pacific Railway, and not incidentally laying the foundations of Canada, Macdonald mistreated the native peoples. There is no disputing the allegation. But I would suggest, and do so in Celtic Lightning, that this was…
Read MoreHaven’t we forgotten the French? In Celtic Lightning?
The question is fair enough. In writing Celtic Lightning, and exploring the origins of Canadian nationhood, did I neglect a crucial element? Given that I am one-quarter Quebecois, with pur laine roots stretching back to the early 1600s, I could hardly forget Canada’s French Fact. But I also view myself as a realist. And I…
Read MoreCeltic Lightning strikes: ‘engaging, readable, entertaining, overdue’
Reviews turn up in Toronto, Glasgow, Winnipeg, & Victoria . . . The Globe and Mail: “Celtic Lightning is engagingly personal. We follow McGoogan and his wife as they travel enthusiastically throughout Scotland and Ireland, from Grace O’Malley’s Connemara and Jonathan Swift’s Dublin to the Dumfries of Robert Burns, and even to the St. Andrews…
Read MoreConfusing poor John Franklin with conquistador Hernan Cortes
The 2014 discovery of Erebus increased interest in the Arctic, where climate change is more in evidence than anywhere else, while inciting commentary that has sometimes gone over the top. “What the Franklin Expedition glorified,” Roy Scranton wrote recently in The Nation, “was the war of Man—white men—against Nature. Franklin was indeed a tragic figure,…
Read MoreReady or not, Our Hero is coming your way . . .
Just back from an exciting weekend in the Niagara area, thanks to the splendid Ridgeway Reading Series. What’s next? Thought you’d never ask. — Nov. 5, Cambridge, Ontario. Third Age Learning, 10 a.m. to noon. — Nov. 12, Toronto: Eh List, Toronto Reference Library. Note time change to 7 p.m. — Nov. 15, Montreal:…
Read MoreSeeking unsolicited advice? ‘Don’t quit your day job’
Meanwhile, at University of Toronto . . . . Creative Writing, School Blog With his latest book, Celtic Lightning: How the Scots and the Irish Created a Canadian Nation, author (and instructor at the School) Ken McGoogan plunges into the perpetual debate about Canadian identity: Who do we think we are? He argues that the Celtic ancestors…
Read MoreDid I vote today? Heck no!
No, I did not vote today. Instead, I voted days ago at an advance poll. I am so desperate for change that I could not wait. In Celtic Lightning, I identify Democracy as one of Canada’s five foundational values, and show how it took hold in this country thanks to such figures as Robert Burns,…
Read MoreOur Hero battles federal election AND the world’s indifference
Here we see Our Hero atop Spy Hill in Westport, Ontario. This is the morning after he had wonderful fun participating in the Westport Writers’ Festival. Our Guy looks to be leading a charge. Truth to tell, he sees himself as engaged in a two-front war. The first front is the usual one any writer…
Read MoreThomas D’Arcy McGee could have saved Louis Riel
So here we have Louis Riel’s tombstone. It’s located in the Cimetiere de la Cathedrale de Saint-Boniface. From the Fort Garry Hotel in the heart of Winnipeg, I walked through the VIA-Rail train station, crossed over the Red River on Esplanade Riel, and made my way along the river to the tombstone. I was especially…
Read MoreCeltic Lightning: what happens at the Toronto launch . . . .
Our Hero and Patrick Crean. A writer and his editor. With HarperCollins Canada, we launched Celtic Lightning last night at Ben McNally Books in Toronto. Photographer Peter Rehak took the above shot. We signed a few books (right photo: Sheena Fraser McGoogan). And (below) Havard Gould made me do it . . . ? Author…
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