Canadian Who's Who 1998

J.L. Granatstein, distinguished research professor emeritus of history
at York University, is the author of Who Killed Canadian History?, and
co-author of The Canadian 100: The 100 Most Influential Canadians of the
20th Century and the Dictionary of Canad

This is simply an indispensable book. The Canadian Who’s Who provides
neat, detailed biographies on more than 5000 Canadians who are “of
current national interest for reference or inquiry. ... [Biographees]
are chosen on merit alone. Those listed are selected because of the
positions they hold in Canadian society, or because of the contributions
they have made to life in Canada.” Data are provided by the
biographee, an approach that can be a weakness, and the format can vary
from entry to entry, again a weakness. Selections are made by a
seven-person advisory committee, and ordinarily they are judicious and
fair. It does seem, however, that academics (some grotesquely
undistinguished considering the company they keep in this volume) can
more readily find their way into the listings than lawyers, sports
figures, administrators, or military figures; for example, one of
Canada’s leading labor lawyers is omitted, as is Cito Gaston, the
former Toronto Blue Jays manager who lives in Toronto.

But these are quibbles. The Canadian Who’s Who, which now comes with
a CD-ROM version tucked into the front cover, is a volume that should be
in every library and corporate office.