Customer Reviews

Stephen Harper and the Future of Canada

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4 star:		(1)
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This is a well-written book, full of anecdotes and about an interesting subject. Many people claim that Stephen Harper has a "hidden agenda" but when reading about his life, it is easy to see a consistency in vision and a steadfast dedication to making Canada a better place for all Canadians, not just the political elite. Mr. Harper is brilliant and that comes out loud and clear in this unauthorized biography. Mr. Harper also is clearly a man with integrity and honesty. That greatest asset is also his biggest handicap, because Canadians are so used to the "what's in it for me?" style of politics that they have trouble understanding the integrity of Mr. Harper. I hope his critics will take the time to read this excellent book.

this book was originally assigned to me for a Canadian politics class, but I never got around to reading it until after I graduated. It's a solid book - it really portrays the leadership style of Stephen Harper in the context of an ever-contentious Canadian political history. Johnson does a superb job of displaying Harper as a leader unrivaled in his vision for Canada. For Americans like myself, it's a great book to gain a better grasp on major Canadian political issues such as regionalism, Constitutional politics, and of course, Quebec separatism, among others. Go for it!

Great book. Seemed to be written from an objective view point - and I really appreciate that. I came away from this book with a better understanding of Prime Minister Harper and a better hope for the future of Canada.

This book gives an insight to a man who is the leader Canada needs right now. He is not charismatic, although he is loosening up which is a good thing. The Americans got charismatic Barack Obama, so how is that working out for them? Harper is educated, very thoughtful, insightful and more. His governance got us through the huge downturn of 2008 which has left us in the best financial shape of any of the G8.

He is tough, knows what he wants, he controls his caucus so that gaffs and such are held to a minimum. He now has a majority, so we will see how things go. He is not perfect, but he is as good as it gets, for now.

The book leads to an understanding of how he got to where he is today. Dealing with Preston Manning as that relationship soured over the years. But Harper gives a great deal of credit to Manning for starting the whole reform movement. The book deals with the trials, tribulations and more as the reform movement got going, how it grew and so on.

When Deborah Gray was the first reformer to be elected, off she was going to Ottawa as a rookie. She had a lot of talent and drive, but she was still a rookie in Ottawa. Harper was studying for his masters in Calgary. Manning asked him to go to Ottawa to be Gray's assistant. With some reluctance he went and proceeded to school her in navigating the hill, he mentored her, he wrote her speeches and on it went. Gray ended up being a very good MP with the combination of her skills and the mentoring given to her by Harper. Gray was isolated, shunned and more by those in parliament who treated her very poorly. Welcome to partisan politics.

All in all, a good read. It gets a bit tedious in places. The chapters dealing with Meech Lake, Quebec, the separatists, the Liberals are enlightening. If you want some insight into what went on in Ottawa and probably still does, enjoy the book.