Bright Horizons 7

MONTRÉAL

Buff your Quebec French skills to enhance your visit to la belle province with French Fun: The Real Spoken Language of Québec: If you grapple daily with spoken Québec French, are thinking of visiting or doing business in la belle province or would like to communicate more effectively with your Québécois friends and colleagues, French Fun is the book for you. With lively illustrations and hilarious literal translations, it introduces you to the French language of Québec through a collection of some of the most common and colourful idioms heard in Québec today. These are words from the real spoken French of Québec — some standard, some informal, others with a fascinating linguistic or cultural story behind them. The perfect complement to all French programs, French Fun is a must for anyone wishing to have a more intimate acquaintance with the French language of Québec and the people who speak it.

Canada and Québec: One Country, Two Histories: Describes the lead-up to the October 1995 referendum and traces political developments from its immediate aftermath to the present. This revised edition features an expanded chronology, and a new chapter covering two years of troubled relations between Québec and “the rest of Canada”.

Québec 1775: The American invasion of Canada The Continental Army’s first defeat: The American attack on Québec in 1775 was a key episode in the War of Independence. Capture of the city would give the Americans control of Canada — a disaster for the British. The subsequent campaign involved a 350-mile trek across uninhabited wilderness, a desperate American attack on the city of Québec that left one American general dead and another wounded, and a British counterattack that culminated in a brutal naval battle off Valcour Island on Lake Champlain. In this book Brendan Morrissey details the events of this ferocious struggle whose results would have such momentous consequences at Saratoga in 1777.

The British defeat the French in Canada, and the rest is history: Québec 1759: The Battle That Won Canada: What a scene!’ wrote Horace Walpole. ‘An army in the night dragging itself up a precipice by stumps of trees to assault a town and attack an enemy strongly entrenched and double in numbers!’ In one short sharp exchange of fire Major-General James Wolfe’s men tumbled the Marquis de Montcalm’s French army into bloody ruin. Sir John Fortescue famously described it as the ‘most perfect volley ever fired on a battlefield’. In this book Stuart Reid details how one of the British Army’s consummate professionals literally beat the King’s enemies before breakfast and in so doing decided the fate of a continent.

The Montreal Canadiens: 100 Years of Glory: The definitive history of the Montreal Canadiens — to coincide with their Centenary in 2009. Before there were slapshots, Foster Hewitt, or even an NHL, there were the Canadiens. Founded on December 4, 1909, the team won its first Stanley Cup in 1916. Since then, the Canadiens have won 23 more championships, making them the most successful hockey team in the world. The team has survived two wars, the Great Depression, NHL expansion, and countless other upheavals, thanks largely to the loyalty of fans and an extraordinary cast of players, coaches, owners, and managers. The Montreal Canadiens captures the full glory of this saga. It weaves the personalities, triumphs, heartaches, and hysteria into a compelling narrative with a surprise on every page. It sheds new light on old questions — how the team colours were chosen, how the Canadiens came to be known as the Habitants — and goes behind the scenes of tumultuous recent events still awaiting thorough examination: why Scotty Bowman was passed over as general manager after Sam Pollock resigned; why Pollock’s successor, Irving Grunman, failed; why Serge Savard was dumped as GM so hastily despite his record. Colourful and controversial, The Montreal Canadiens is the history of a team that has been making news for 100 years — and continues to do so with the return of legendary player Bob Gainey as general manager, determined to bring the Stanley Cup back to Montreal.

French Fortresses in North America 1535–1763: Québec, Montréal, Louisbourg, and New Orleans: Following the discovery of America by Columbus in 1492, European colonists brought their system of fortification to the New World in an attempt to ensure their safety and consolidate their conquests. French and British explorers came later to North America, and thus the establishment of their sizeable permanent settlements only got under way during the 17th century. The inhabitants of New France built elaborate fortifications to protect their growing towns and cities. This book provides a detailed examination of the defenses of four of them: the three largest fortified cities in Canada — Québec, Montréal and Louisbourg — and New Orleans in Louisiana.

Whether you want to make certain that you hit the top spots, or you want to avoid the top 10 places to which travelers are referred, here’s a benchmark: Top 10 Montréal & Québec City (Eyewitness Top 10 Travel Guides)

The History of Québec

Michelin Travel Guide Québec (Michelin Green Guide: Québec, (Province) English Edition)
 

QUÉBEC CITY

The History of Québec

Michelin Travel Guide Québec (Michelin Green Guide: Québec, (Province) English Edition)

Exploring Old Québec: Walking Tours of the Historic City: From the Museum of French America to the Place Royale and Notre-Dame-des-Victoires Church, this traveler's companion details the often hidden, historic gems of Quebec city. Arranged into seven walking tours, this guidebook profiles essential tourist sites and provides the opportunity to discover a new side of the nearly 400-year-old city. Four thematic itineraries, which include religious heritage, the Anglophone influence in Quebec, arts and literature, and the presence of the First Nations, are also included.

Buff your Quebec French skills to enhance your visit to la belle province with French Fun: The Real Spoken Language of Québec: If you grapple daily with spoken Québec French, are thinking of visiting or doing business in la belle province or would like to communicate more effectively with your Québécois friends and colleagues, French Fun is the book for you. With lively illustrations and hilarious literal translations, it introduces you to the French language of Québec through a collection of some of the most common and colourful idioms heard in Québec today. These are words from the real spoken French of Québec — some standard, some informal, others with a fascinating linguistic or cultural story behind them. The perfect complement to all French programs, French Fun is a must for anyone wishing to have a more intimate acquaintance with the French language of Québec and the people who speak it.

Canada and Québec: One Country, Two Histories: Describes the lead-up to the October 1995 referendum and traces political developments from its immediate aftermath to the present. This revised edition features an expanded chronology, and a new chapter covering two years of troubled relations between Québec and “the rest of Canada”.

Québec 1775: The American invasion of Canada The Continental Army’s first defeat: The American attack on Québec in 1775 was a key episode in the War of Independence. Capture of the city would give the Americans control of Canada — a disaster for the British. The subsequent campaign involved a 350-mile trek across uninhabited wilderness, a desperate American attack on the city of Québec that left one American general dead and another wounded, and a British counterattack that culminated in a brutal naval battle off Valcour Island on Lake Champlain. In this book Brendan Morrissey details the events of this ferocious struggle whose results would have such momentous consequences at Saratoga in 1777.

The British defeat the French in Canada, and the rest is history: Québec 1759: The Battle That Won Canada: What a scene!’ wrote Horace Walpole. ‘An army in the night dragging itself up a precipice by stumps of trees to assault a town and attack an enemy strongly entrenched and double in numbers!’ In one short sharp exchange of fire Major-General James Wolfe’s men tumbled the Marquis de Montcalm’s French army into bloody ruin. Sir John Fortescue famously described it as the ‘most perfect volley ever fired on a battlefield’. In this book Stuart Reid details how one of the British Army’s consummate professionals literally beat the King’s enemies before breakfast and in so doing decided the fate of a continent.

Whether you want to make certain that you hit the top spots, or you want to avoid the top 10 places to which travelers are referred, here’s a benchmark: Top 10 Montréal — Québec City (Eyewitness Top 10 Travel Guides)

The Montreal Canadiens: 100 Years of Glory: The definitive history of the Montreal Canadiens — to coincide with their Centenary in 2009. Before there were slapshots, Foster Hewitt, or even an NHL, there were the Canadiens. Founded on December 4, 1909, the team won its first Stanley Cup in 1916. Since then, the Canadiens have won 23 more championships, making them the most successful hockey team in the world. The team has survived two wars, the Great Depression, NHL expansion, and countless other upheavals, thanks largely to the loyalty of fans and an extraordinary cast of players, coaches, owners, and managers. The Montreal Canadiens captures the full glory of this saga. It weaves the personalities, triumphs, heartaches, and hysteria into a compelling narrative with a surprise on every page. It sheds new light on old questions — how the team colours were chosen, how the Canadiens came to be known as the Habitants — and goes behind the scenes of tumultuous recent events still awaiting thorough examination: why Scotty Bowman was passed over as general manager after Sam Pollock resigned; why Pollock’s successor, Irving Grunman, failed; why Serge Savard was dumped as GM so hastily despite his record. Colourful and controversial, The Montreal Canadiens is the history of a team that has been making news for 100 years — and continues to do so with the return of legendary player Bob Gainey as general manager, determined to bring the Stanley Cup back to Montreal.

French Fortresses in North America 1535–1763: Québec, Montréal, Louisbourg, and New Orleans: Following the discovery of America by Columbus in 1492, European colonists brought their system of fortification to the New World in an attempt to ensure their safety and consolidate their conquests. French and British explorers came later to North America, and thus the establishment of their sizeable permanent settlements only got under way during the 17th century. The inhabitants of New France built elaborate fortifications to protect their growing towns and cities. This book provides a detailed examination of the defenses of four of them: the three largest fortified cities in Canada — Québec, Montréal and Louisbourg — and New Orleans in Louisiana.
 

CHARLOTTETOWN

Lonely Planet Nova Scotia, New Brunswick & Prince Edward Island Regional Guide: Master 18th-century cooking techniques while soaking up music and mutiny at Louisbourg, p. 131. Discover what festival-going Scots really wear under those kilts in Halifax and Antigonish, p. 71, p. 119. Slap on a bib and loosen your belt at a PEI lobster supper, p. 205. Shore up your sea legs while spotting humpbacks and dodging icebergs on Newfoundland’s waters, p. 229. Dedicated Newfoundland and Labrador chapter. Two fearless authors, 800+ hours and 8830km on the road. Oodles of itineraries to please road-trippers, foodies, history buffs, and Anne maniacs alike. Evocative insights from a host of Atlantic Canadians.

PEI’s legendary Anne of Green Gables: When Marilla and Matthew Cuthbert of Green Gables, Prince Edward Island, send for a boy orphan to help them out at the farm, they are in no way prepared for the error that will change their lives. The mistake takes the shape of Anne Shirley, a redheaded 11-year-old girl who can talk anyone under the table. Fortunately, her sunny nature and quirky imagination quickly win over her reluctant foster parents. Anne’s feisty spirit soon draws many friends — and much trouble — her way. Not a day goes by without some melodramatic new episode in the tragicomedy of her life. Early on, Anne declares her eternal antipathy for Gilbert Blythe, a classmate who commits the ultimate sin of mocking her hair color. Later, she accidentally dyes that same cursed hair green. Another time, in her haste to impress a new neighbor, she bakes a cake with liniment instead of vanilla. Lucy Maud Montgomery’s series of books about Anne have remained classics since the early 20th century. Her portrayal of this feminine yet independent spirit has given generations of girls a strong female role model, while offering a taste of another, milder time in history. This lovely boxed gift collection comprises Anne of Green Gables, Anne of the Island, Anne of Avonlea, Anne of Windy Poplars, Anne’s House of Dreams, Anne of Ingleside, Rainbow Valley, and Rilla of Ingleside. (Ages 9 to 12) Emilie Coulter — Amamzon.com Review.

Longitude Books’ Nova Scotia and Prince Edward Island book picks.

The Mi’kmaq: Written for young people, this small book illustrated by Kathy Kaulback, is a perfect way to learn more about how the native people of the Maritimes lived before white people came to their land.
 

SYDNEY & HALIFAX

Our port of Sydney is conveniently close to Louisbourg, site of pivotal 18th-century battles between the French and British. A great book on the battle fought here is Louisbourg 1758: Wolfe’s First Siege: Louisbourg represented a major threat to Anglo-American plans to invade Canada. By-passing it would leave an immensely powerful enemy base astride the Anglo-American lines of communication — Louisbourg had to be taken. The siege itself was a tremendous pounding match. Faced with strong beach defences and rough weather, it took six days to land the troops and was only achieved by a stroke of daring on the part of a young Brigadier named James Wolfe who managed to turn the French beach position. The story is largely based on first-hand accounts from the journals of several participants including Amherst and of French Governor Drucour’s, whose excellent account has never been published.

French Fortresses in North America 1535–1763: Québec, Montréal, Louisbourg, and New Orleans: Following the discovery of America by Columbus in 1492, European colonists brought their system of fortification to the New World in an attempt to ensure their safety and consolidate their conquests. French and British explorers came later to North America, and thus the establishment of their sizeable permanent settlements only got under way during the 17th century. The inhabitants of New France built elaborate fortifications to protect their growing towns and cities. This book provides a detailed examination of the defenses of four of them: the three largest fortified cities in Canada — Québec, Montréal and Louisbourg — and New Orleans in Louisiana.

The Mi’kmaq: Written for young people, this small book illustrated by Kathy Kaulback, is a perfect way to learn more about how the native people of the Maritimes lived before white people came to their land.

My Famous Evening: Nova Scotia Sojourns, Diaries and Preoccupations : Norman writes delectably atmospheric novels set in the snowy and mysterious reaches of Canada, such as The Haunting of L. (2002), and he now pays tribute to the landscape he loves the most, that of Nova Scotia, where “the distance between unconscious and conscious is scarcely noticeable.” Several passions shape these gorgeously evocative, idiosyncratic, and witty musings. One is Norman’s ardor for birds. Another is his keen interest in folklore, which led to his once scouring the region for stories about forerunners, that is, signs of impending disasters, as well as tales about the Mi’kmaq hero Glooskap. And, finally, there’s his abiding love for literature. This inspires him to profile a freelance scholar devoted to chronicling poet Elizabeth Bishop’s Nova Scotia childhood and to tell the astonishing story of a Nova Scotia woman who left her family to make the arduous journey to New York City to hear Joseph Conrad read. Rich in mystery, irony, and beauty, Norman’s unique homage to Nova Scotia and its people is exactly what literature about place should be: utterly transporting. Donna Seaman — Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved.

Evangeline: A Tale of Acadie by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow: In 1841, the American poet Henry Wadsworth Longfellow heard the story of Acadian lovers, separated by the Expulsion and reunited at the end of their lives. He elaborated this simple tale into his long narrative poem, Evangeline: A Tale of Acadie. Published in 1847, it soon gained worldwide popularity. Longfellow offered Acadians a believable story about their ancestors. They adopted it as a true legend of their past. The tragic story of Evangeline and Gabriel has captivated Acadians and non-Acadians ever since. Evangeline, the dutiful 17-year-old daughter of an elderly Grand Pré farmer, is in love with Gabriel, the blacksmith’s son. Before the two can exchange vows, British soldiers march into the village, burn it to the ground, order the villagers into ships, and send them far from their Nova Scotia homeland. In the mayhem, Evangeline witnesses her father’s death from a broken heart and loses sight of Gabriel. Her desperate continent-wide search for her childhood sweetheart — taking her from the cypress groves of Louisiana to a forest mission in the Ozark Mountains — is one of the most affecting accounts of unfulfilled love ever written. Evangeline is a hero of mythic proportions. This sumptuously produced commemorative edition of Evangeline: A Tale of Acadie coincides with the 400th anniversary of the founding of Acadia. As well as the complete text of the poem, it features more than 40 engravings from an enchanting Victorian Evangeline published in 1866 by Bell and Daldy, London.

A Great and Noble Scheme: The Tragic Story of the Expulsion of the French Acadians from Their American Homeland: French Acadia — today’s Nova Scotia and New Brunswick — was destroyed in 1755 when British officers expelled an entire people. Here Faragher perceptively narrates the 150-year-long history of French Acadia, profiling its founding personages, significant events, and the Acadians’ gradual acquisition of a distinct identity. Grown from intermarriage with the indigenous Mi’kmaq, this identity resisted pledging fealty to the French or British sovereigns, but to say the Acadians’ fate was the consequence of being crushed between imperial millstones would be simplistic. To paraphrase the author, not inexorable forces but willful men determined what happened, a thesis supported by lenient and diplomatic British officials (Britain held Acadia after 1709) who understood the Acadians. Army officer Charles Lawrence was not such a man — with expedient though specious arguments about Acadian hostility, he ordered destruction and removal as a preliminary to the incipient French and Indian War. Faragher estimates expulsion cost about 10,000 lives; the survivors scattered to Louisiana and elsewhere. From the author of the definitive Daniel Boone (1992), this is a superior work of history. Gilbert Taylor — Copyright © American Library Association.

The Trout Point Lodge Cookbook: Creole Cuisine from New Orleans to Nova Scotia: As many readers know, Cajun cooking began with the Arcadians, French settlers who made their first home in what is now Nova Scotia. The Trout Point Lodge Cookbook offers more than 150 uncomplicated recipes, from the title’s eponymous Nova Scotia inn and dining spot. Its owners — the book’s authors — have perfected a cuisine that embodies both Cajun, Creole, and original Arcadian cooking, and offer a wide range of traditional and innovative recipes for the likes of Grilled Eggplant Tart, Finnan Haddie Jumbalaya, Creole-Stuffed Bell Peppers, and Braised Haddock with Summer Vegetables. The book emphasizes the natural foods of the region, and readers will find particularly worthwhile recipes for mushrooms, such as Grilled Oyster Mushrooms and Garlic, and Shiitake Mushrooms Rockefeller. Formulas containing more exotic natural ingredients include Sole in Wild Sorrel Velouté Sauce, and Beer-Battered Elderberry Flowers. (A source list helps readers procure some of the unusual ingredients.) Menus, and an extended section on smoking seafood, with instructions for building and using a smokehouse, round out this special exploration. Arthur Boehm — Amazon.com Review

National Parks and National Historic Sites of Canada in Nova Scotia (3.6mb PDF file)
 

BAR HARBOR

Acadia: The Complete Guide: Mt. Desert Island & Acadia National Park: The complete guide to Mount Desert Island and Acadia National Park. Author James Kaiser was born and raised near Mount Desert Island, bringing invaluable local insight to Acadia: The Complete Guide. Throughout the book Kaiser dishes out priceless insider information, recommendations, and tips. Features over 150 stunning color photographs and over two dozen detailed maps. Also includes comprehensive information on hiking, biking, sea kayaking, and whale watching, as well as in-depth chapters on the island’s fascinating history, geology, and wildlife. Whether you’re a first-time visitor or a seasoned pro, Acadia: The Complete Guide is the only guide you’ll need!

The Secret Life of Lobsters: How Fishermen and Scientists Are Unraveling the Mysteries of Our Favorite Crustacea: Some like their lobster dipped in drawn butter; others prefer their lobster laced with electronic monitors. Plunging into its cold North Atlantic home, a prizewinning alternative-press writer sheds the light of investigative journalism on a crustacean attracting as much attention in recent years from curious biologists as from hungry diners. As deftly as a lobsterman handling the coiled ropes of his trap buoys, Corson knots into a single brisk narrative the differing — often conflicting — perspectives of the fishermen who catch and sell lobsters, the marine scientists who track and explain the creatures, and the environmentalists who lobby for increased legal protections for the species. The narrative focuses particularly on the growing tensions between Maine fishermen, who harvested record numbers of lobsters in the nineties, and federal officials interpreting disputed demographic data as evidence of overfishing. The story of how these tensions intensify will teach readers a great deal about a species that deploys more than mere claws when it wages war over profits and seafood. A lively yet conceptually sophisticated work. — Bryce Christensen. Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved.

An American transcendentalist’s cross-disciplinary musings on a hike in Maine: The Maine Woods by Henry David Thoreau

Twelve Thousand Years: American Indians in Maine: Twelve Thousand Years: American Indians in Maine documents the generations of Native peoples who for twelve millennia have moved through and eventually settled along the rocky coast, rivers, lakes, valleys, and mountains of a region now known as Maine. Arriving first to this area were Paleo-Indian peoples, followed by maritime hunters, more immigrants, then a revival of maritime cultures. Beginning in the sixteenth century, Native peoples in northern New England became tangled in the far-reaching affairs of European explorers and colonists. Twelve Thousand Years reveals how Penobscots, Abenakis, Passamaquoddies, Maliseets, Micmacs, and other Native communities both strategically accommodated and overtly resisted European and American encroachments. Since that time, Native communities in Maine have endured, adapted when necessary, and experienced a political and cultural revitalization in recent decades.

Coastal Maine: A Maritime History: fascinating and comprehensive chronicle of four hundred years of maritime history along the Maine coast. Roger Duncan recounts four hundred years of Maine’s rich maritime history, from the early seafarers’ discovery of its valuable resources and the families that settled the land, to Maine’s role in the history of the US in peacetime and in war. He traces the changes in Maine’s economy over the past century: the demise of the coastal trade; the burgeoning popularity of pleasure boating after World War II; the hardships that beset the fishing and lumber industries; and the rise of tourism. This anecdotal panorama of people, land, boats, and water will absorb historians, nautical enthusiasts, and New Englanders alike. 105 black and white photographs and illustrations, 18 maps, index.
 

BOSTON

AIA Guide to Boston: Contemporary Landmarks, Urban Design, Parks, Historic Buildings and Neighborhoods: The most comprehensive guide to Boston architecture ever published, AIA Guide to Boston Architecture documents the dramatic reorganization of the city by the Big Dig and other recent projects. Lucid descriptions of more than 600 sites are enlivened with history, culture, humor, and sharp opinion and are accompanied by professional b/w photography.

The Literary Trail of Greater Boston: A Tour of Sites in Boston, Cambridge, and Concord: “A sprightly and informative little guidebook, packed with tidbits about literary figures, publishers, bookstores, libraries, and other historic sites on the newly designated Literary Trail of Greater Boston. Working with the Boston History Collaborative, Cambridge author Wilson (Boston Sights and Insights, not reviewed) has compiled a chatty, easy to follow companion to the three-part Trail. Opening with the Parker House Hotel, site of Charles Dickens’s first American reading of A Christmas Carol, Wilson guides the tour-taker through three centuries of Greater Boston’s literary history, paying homage along the way to some unexpected figures — e.g., Ben Franklin, Kahlil Gibran, and Vladimir Nabokov — as well as the expected Alcott, Hawthorne, Longfellow, Emerson, Thoreau, and Whittier. Contemporary writers have contributed essays on their favorite writers — Robert Pinsky writes about Elizabeth Bishop, Julia Child has a piece on Fannie Farmer — and brief quotes have been inserted to illustrate various authors’ styles. Besides three main tour segments in Boston, Cambridge, and Concord, there are “Off the Beaten Path” side trips to Beacon Hill and to cemeteries in the three cities where many of the famous literary figures are buried. Also included are tips on finding literary events at local bookstores, libraries, and museums, and information on contemporary local writers. Especially useful for the tour-goer is an appendix listing the addresses, phone numbers, websites, and handicap accessibility of museums and other historic sites along the trail. All that a guidebook should be: compact, easy to use, informative, and entertaining. — Kirkus Reviews with Pointers (March 1, 2000). Here’s the book’ website

Boston: A Topographical History: This urbane and delightful book covering more than 300 years of the course of Boston’s history has now been enlarged with an account of the city’s new urban design, architecture, and historic preservation and is richly illustrated with 32 additional photographs and drawings. In the last three decades momentous changes have visited this colonial city made modern. Lawrence Kennedy portrays the Boston that preserved much of the intimacy of the remembered place while creating a dramatic new skyline. Boston has been remarkably transformed while keeping the human features of a beloved city.

The Rivals: The New York Yankees vs. the Boston Red Sox — An Inside History: The Yankees vs. the Red Sox. Each baseball season begins and ends with unique intensity, focused on a single question: What’s ahead for these two teams? One, the most glamorous, storied, and successful franchise in all of sports; the other, perennially star-crossed but equally rich in baseball history and legend. In The Rivals sports writers of The New York Times and The Boston Globe come together in the first-ever collaboration between the two cities’ leading newspapers to tell the inside story of the teams’ intertwined histories, each from the home team’s perspective. Beginning with the Red Sox’s early glory days (when the Yankees were perennial losers), continuing through the Babe Ruth era and the notorious trade that made the Yankees champions (and marked the Sox with the so-called “Curse of the Bambino”); to Ted Williams vs. Joe DiMaggio; Thurman Munson and Carlton Fisk; Roger Clemens and Pedro Martinez; down to last year’s legendary playoff showdown, The Rivals captures the drama of key eras, events, and personalities of both teams. And who better to tell the story than the baseball writers of the two rival cities? For The New York Times, it’s Dave Anderson, Harvey Araton, Jack Curry, Tyler Kepner, Robert Lipsyte and George Vecsey who report on the Yankee view of the rivalry, while The Boston Globe’s Gordon Edes, Jackie MacMullan, Bob Ryan and Dan Shaughnessy recount the view from the Hub. And their stories are richly illustrated with classic photographs and original articles from the archives, capturing the great moments as they happened. For Red Sox fans, Yankees fans, or anyone interested in remarkable baseball history, The Rivals is an expert, up-close look at the longest, and fiercest of all sports rivalries.