The Canadians [Paperback]

Andrew H. Malcolm (Author)

Product Details

• Paperback: 416 pages
• Publisher: St. Martin's Griffin; 3 edition (December 15, 1991)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0312069219
• ISBN-13: 978-0312069216
• Product Dimensions: 9.5 x 6.5 x 1.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.9 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,613,303 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

8 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Canadian Travelogue, March 3, 2002

By 

Jeffrey Leach (Omaha, NE USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: The Canadians (Paperback)

My hopes for this book centered primarily around history. I wanted to get a good introduction to Canadian history from the earliest times to recent developments. Alas, `tis not so with this Andrew Malcolm book. Malcolm makes it known to all that he is of Canadian ancestry, although he spent most of his life here in the U.S. He mentions in the text that he taught history at a university and that he was a "Canadian Bureau Chief" at the New York Times. Despite his association with anything New York, he is still eminently qualified to do some serious work on Canada and the Canadian mentality. "The Canadians" is the result.

This is more travelogue than history. Malcolm spent four years rattling around Canada trying to get a feel for the country. The scope of the book is impressive. Malcolm examines geography, people, and economics to show his readers where Canadians have been, and where they are going. The chapter on geography is definitely illuminating. Most of us, especially here in the U.S., probably don't have an adequate idea of how huge Canada really is. Almost the entire population of Canada lives right along the border. Behind them stretches an amount of territory that is amazing to behold. Even all of the provinces of Canada are enormous. Most of the provinces could hold several major U.S. states within their boundaries with room to spare. The northern regions, namely the Yukon and the Northwest Territories (isn't it known as Nunavit now?) are almost beyond description, with many areas unexplored by man. The task that Canada has had since its inception has been making use of the vast resources within these regions while preserving the fragile environment. Most of the natural gas mined here goes to other places, such as the U.S. Actually, most of the stuff scraped, panned, cut or dug goes other places, as Canada's main source of economic livelihood is trade. Of course, the U.S. is Canada's biggest trading partner, with billions of dollars of goods flowing across the border. The U.S reciprocates this trade. This trade and emphasis on Canada's economic condition is detailed by Malcolm in his chapter on Canadian economics. Malcolm spends a huge amount of page space showing how Canadian business has moved into the U.S., buying up real estate and companies with impunity. The Canadian banking system is discussed in detail (it's monolithic) as is the growing trade relationships with Japan and the Pacific Rim. The best factoids from this section: Canadian beer. Most of the Canadian beer we see in the U.S. isn't even available in most of Canada due to strict production laws at the provincial level. Buying alcoholic beverages in Canada is a bit different, too. Special stores are set up strictly for alcohol. People go in and order what they want from the clerk. The drinks then come through the wall on a conveyor belt. I laughed when I read this because I remembered the scene in "Strange Brew" when Bob and Doug went to the liquor store and tried to claim they found a mouse in a beer bottle.

Malcolm spends a lot of time discussing the psychology of Canadians. It seems that most Canadians suffer from living in the shadow of the U.S. Canadians are quick to criticize the United States, even though they benefit from our presence. They also seem to suffer from an inferiority complex. Canadians are less competitive and less willing to attempt new things for fear of failure. They don't want to toot their own horn, but they hate criticism of their culture and country. Malcolm also makes much out of the regionalism of Canadians. Due to the vast geography and inclement conditions, Canadians tend to stick closer to home and have not developed the type of national unity that the U.S. or other countries have come to take for granted.

Malcolm has a great love for Canada, although some of his writing has an "aw, shucks" mentality to it that can be annoying at times. His descriptions of life in the Arctic Circle are fascinating and informative. I give this book three stars, not because it isn't good, but because it wasn't what I was looking for. To be fair, that's more my fault than his.

4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Not accurate enough on some things, September 11, 2002

By A Customer

This review is from: The Canadians (Paperback)

Comments on the previous review and the book. Overall it should serve as a warning to check the author of the book carefully. While Canadian by birth, having lived in the USA for most of his life, skews his perspective to say the least. That he didn't know the size of "his" country is one such example. The obtaining alcohol from a store clerk that is distributed via conveyor belt?? That I would have to see in person to believe. I lived most of my life in Canada and have never witnessed such a thing!

Regarding comments about the Canadian psyche - it is amusing how some people assume that aggressiveness equates competitiveness or pride. Mr. Malcolm commits a cardinal error in assuming that his Americanized interpretation of events, characteristics and values is the same for Canadians. That is not necessarily the case. For instance, that Canadians do not go around bragging about their country does not mean they have an inferiority complex or that they don't love their country - just that they don't feel the need to get in someone's face about it. They are much more aware and tolerant of the existence of other countries and customs in the world and realize that, while they love their own country, others may enjoy theirs just as much. This is something Americans seem to find difficult to understand and assume it means they have no pride or are unpatriotic. The 'defensiveness' he refers to is not an 'inferiority complex' but an annoyance of American assumptions. It's rather funny actually since it is the pot calling the kettle black. Having lived in the USA for a couple of years now I have noticed that Americans are the least likely to accept any kind on negative observation about their country whether it's true or not. But here it wouldn't be called defensiveness, it would be called patriotism!! :-) (and in many cases, rightfully so!)

The list of examples could continue but shouldn't be necessary. The bottom lines is that while there are great similarities between the two countries, there are fundemental cultural differences that are not often apparent at first glance, but they do exist. There are pro's and con's to each. Don't make assumptions about motivations or belief's and everyone will be just fine.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars An Americanized Canadian goes home, November 6, 2003

By 

Joanna Daneman (Middletown, DE USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: THE CANADIANS (Hardcover)

The author was born in Canada but grew up in the US. He takes his sons on a long trek through Canada to learn about his origins. What is this second-largest country that is Not-US? First Malcolm discusses the geography that shapes the country's history and challenges. Typically, the British who founded Canada didn't give a fig for geographical considerations. The population clings to the shallow souther border except for the native residents, the Inuit. Malcolm visits with a number of people to get a sense of the Canadian character, but the most interested segment is his stay with Snowbird, a native whose knowledge of dogs and the wilds is unparalleled. And his fundamental philosophy of life is elemental and honest.

The other interesting part of the book is about the vast differences between the provinces; gigantic Quebec, with its French-speaking population, the impoverished Maritimes that once were the most important part of Canada, the vast prairies and oilfields of Manitoba, Saskatchewan and Albert, and the rainforested British Columbia. Plus the unincorporated territories the Yukon and Northwest. Each is practically a country on its own, and it wasn't only Quebec that wanted to secede--so did Nova Scotia at one time.

While this is mostly a travelogue, it is an interesting view of Canada from one man's point of view. Interesting reading if not a factual history of Canada.