Heart of the Cariboo-Chilcotin: More Stories Worth Keeping

Description

256 pages
Contains Photos, Bibliography
$19.95
ISBN 978-1-894974-28-8
DDC 971.1'75

Publisher

Year

2009

Contributor

Edited by Diana Wilson

Nikki Tate-Stratton writes children’s picture books and novels for
preteens. Her most recent novels are Jo’s Triumph, Raven’s Revenge,
and Tarragon Island. Her latest picture book is Grandparents’ Day.

Review

In the introduction to Stories Worth Keeping, editor Diana Wilson describes why she took up the challenge to compile a collection of writings about the Cariboo-Chilcotin. Wilson wanted to share something of the region’s “vital and palpable lives … largely unknown to outsiders, and unsung …” As someone who grew up in the interior of B.C., Wilson’s sensitivity to the place and the people who live there is evident.

Both volumes are eclectic collections drawn primarily from previously published sources. They include references to pregnant cows, frontier law, mechanics, improbable marathon journeys, gold strikes, heartbreaks, and birchbark baskets. Straightforward reportage is interspersed with personal stories, anecdotes, and oral histories. Some writers, like Eric Collier (“Three Against the Wilderness”) are well known, while others are quite obscure.

The writers and the stories they tell describe a wild, open place where resourcefulness and good humour are necessary for survival. The descriptions of area residents and visitors collectively paint a picture of a far-flung community of eccentric individuals who, nonetheless, give the impression of being good neighbours, the kind you could trust even during the most difficult of times.

Each piece is accompanied by a brief note about the author, a photograph or illustration, and an introduction that provides a context for the selection.

The Foreword for More Stories Worth Keeping is by the books’ publisher, Rodger Touchie, who comments that “the writing is most enjoyable when both the land and its people are part of the story.” In these volumes, Diana Wilson gives outsiders a glimpse into the personalities of both.

Unfortunately, neither book includes an index or a map. Both would have helped make these titles even more useful to those less familiar with this fascinating region and the intriguing people who have chosen to call it home. Otherwise, these are fine collections that make for good reading in themselves and whet the appetite for those who may wish to search out the original sources whence Wilson drew her selections.

Citation

“Heart of the Cariboo-Chilcotin: More Stories Worth Keeping,” Canadian Book Review Annual Online, accessed November 22, 2024, https://cbra.library.utoronto.ca/items/show/28795.