Taking Root: The Origins of the Canadian Jewish Community

Gerald J. Stortz is an assistant professor of history at the University
of Waterloo.

Gerald Tulchinsky teaches history at Queen’s University. Until this
publication, he has been best-known as a business historian. This book,
a seminal work in Canadian ethnohistory, should change that.

The book deals with the development of the Canadian Jewish identity
between 1760 and 1920. What Tulchinsky argues is that Canadian Jews
forged an identity separate from both their European roots and their
American counterparts. Canadians, largely because of their ethnic
origin, tended toward Orthodox Judaism, while Americans tended toward
Reform. Similarly, Zionism has been a much more accepted concept in
Canada than in the United States, largely because there was no test of
nationalism in this country. Yet, in pointing out these and other
particular characteristics, Tulchinsky does not leave Canadian Jews in a
vacuum. Exhaustive research in international sources places Canada in a
world perspective.

It is, however, the book’s literary style and fascinating array of
characters that make it a pleasure to read. My only cavil is not with
the author but with the publisher for, hiring proofreaders who allowed
Laurier’s first name to be spelled Wilfred.