Canuck Chicks and Maple Leaf Mamas: Women of the Great White North

Steve Pitt is a Toronto-based freelance writer and an award-winning journalist. He has written many young adult and children's books, including Day of the Flying Fox: The True Story of World War II Pilot Charley Fox.

In 1897, Clara Brett Martin became not only the first woman to be
admitted to the bar in Canada but also the first female barrister in the
British Commonwealth. During the 1940s, Canadian-born fashion mogul
Elizabeth Arden created a white velvet gas mask as a wartime fashion
accessory. In 1964, Montreal company Canadelle invented the push-up bra.


Those looking for a fun way to brush up on Canadian women’s history
should look no further than this wonderfully entertaining book. Ann
Douglas is the author of 21 books, including The Mother of All Pregnancy
Books and The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Canadian History. In this
volume, she dazzles the reader with both humor and hundreds of offbeat
factoids. For example, in one sidebar she gives a list of 1951 beauty
hints from Kate Aitken: if your eyes look tired, Aitken suggests, you
should dip your face (with eyes wide open) into a bowl of warm water and
boric acid; if your makeup is running on a hot day, you should stick
your head in the refrigerator to give it a chance to set. The book also
covers a wide range of subjects, from 100 years of dubious advice given
to women and bad medicine administered to trusting patients to a brief
history of housework, and it includes profiles of Canadian Playboy
centrefolds, female saints, movie stars, politicians, singers, writers,
artists, and even a few trophy wives.

Canuck Chicks and Maple Leaf Mamas is guaranteed to amuse, inform, and
sometimes even jolt you. A great read for history buffs of all ages and
genders, it belongs on the family bookshelf in every home.