Crazy About Canada!: Amazing Things Kids Want to Know

Patricia Morley is professor emerita of English and Canadian Studies at
Concordia University. She is the author of several books, including The
Mountain Is Moving: Japanese Women’s Lives, Kurlek and Margaret
Laurence: The Long Journey Home.

The subtitle for this large-format, copiously illustrated book could
well have been “Things that will fascinate kids.” This is history
served up with drama, humour, and a cast of cartoon characters, such as
the beaver who, surprised by seeing a “Bruce Trail” sign in Ontario,
comments, “I thought Bruce was his first name.”

A wealth of fine photographs is also included—some with whimsical
captions. One shows two irate bull moose going head-to-head in mating
season and says, “Should we call it a day?” and “Sure, I’ve got
a wicked headache.” Others pose provocative queries, such as the one
of the Alaska Highway from an excellent vantage point that asks “Why
isn’t Alaska part of Canada?”

The book’s three chapters deal with animals, geography, and Canadians
themselves in a question-and-answer format. A cartoon student
(12-year-old Morton) talks with a teacher beside cemetery slabs that
have been engraved with names of extinct species. Difficult words such
as “extinct” and “threatened” are defined and clarified.

The Canadian Geographic Kids series is sponsored by the Royal Canadian
Geographical Society, which is dedicated to imparting broader knowledge
and a deeper appreciation of Canada’s people and places. Crazy About
Canada! treads lightly between drama, comedy, and scholarship. It is, in
short, an excellent book for both school and home libraries. Highly
recommended.