The Prairie West: Historical Readings. 2nd ed

Joe Cherwinski is a history professor at the Memorial University of
Newfoundland.

Despite its late entry into Confederation, the Prairie region has a
strong sense of identity, largely because of deeply held grievances
against “the interests” in central Canada. For this reason, a
considerable amount of historical scholarship emerged to buttress this
position, and to portray the Prairies as unique. University courses with
similar objectives and the need for texts followed. Gerald Friesen’s
The Canadian Prairies: A History is the best of several surveys to
appear, and this book of readings is a worthy supplement. The first
edition (1984) was a significant work in its own right. This volume, the
result of consultations with those teaching Prairie studies, is an
improved sampler that showcases most of the prominent writers involved
in interpreting the Prairie region, past and present.

The range of the book is broad, both chronologically (from the earliest
Native–white contact to the rise of the Reform Party) and topically
(from the fur trade to urban development and modern Prairie culture),
and indicates the complexity of Prairie society. The essays discuss the
principal features of the region—its diverse ethnic past, its
agricultural character, its political reform tradition—while
demonstrating that it is also part of Canada and thus is affected by
developments elsewhere.

The introductory comments preceding each section integrate often
disparate essays, primarily because the editors are so experienced in
balancing traditional literature with works that reflect new scholarly
directions. On the one hand, many of the chestnuts are here, including
Rod Macleod’s much reprinted essay on the role of the North-West
Mounted Police in Canadianizing the West and Alan Artibise’s (once
novel) discussion of the impact of boosterism on Prairie urban
development. There is also the almost mandatory piece by Kenneth Norrie
on the impact of the National Policy on the region. On the other hand,
new material on Métis culture, Prairie women, and the working class is
included, as is David Laycock’s significant reinterpretation of the
agrarian protest movement. Unfortunately, there is nothing on business
development—an omission that is especially surprising in view of the
region’s political adherence to independent entrepreneurship.
Nevertheless, with Friesen’s survey, this book should be mandatory
reading for every student interested in the Prairie region, and for
every central Canadian politician and bureaucrat who ventures beyond the
Lakehead.