Red Tory Blues: A Political Memoir

Ashley Thomson is a full librarian at Laurentian University and co-editor or co-author of nine books, most recently Margaret Atwood: A Reference Guide, 1988-2005.

Born in Prince Edward Island in 1919, Macquarrie became hooked on
politics at an early age, and later chose to become a professor of
political science. In 1957 he abandoned that career to represent a
P.E.I. constituency in Parliament, and since 1979 has served in the
Senate, a body more suited than the Commons to a man with an independent
cast of mind. Throughout his professional and political career, he has
had an ongoing interest in foreign affairs that fills many pages here; I
found his sympathetic comments on the Palestinian question of particular
interest.

Macquarrie would appear to be in a unique position to write about the
history of his party over the past half century, and in fairness, Red
Tory Blues represents a nice update (at least until 1990) of his earlier
book, The Conservative Party, which I enjoyed.

But, as this book’s title suggests, within the Progressive
Conservative party, Macquarrie is a bit of a maverick. At no time when
the party held office did he ever hold cabinet rank, and while he is
acquainted with Conservative leaders for the past half century, he
appears to have enjoyed the unquestioned confidence of only one: Robert
Stanfield, a fellow Maritimer. The result is that, except for that era,
readers who turn to this book for the “inside scoop” about the party
will be largely disappointed. And further, the senator writes with a
workmanlike style that unfortunately doesn’t soar.