Down Home

Janet Arnett is the former campus manager of adult education at Ontario’s Georgian College. She is the author of Antiques and Collectibles: Starting Small, The Grange at Knock, and 673 Ways to Save Money.

Down Home is a free-association patchwork of related thoughts,
observations, and memories. It is history, personal and family memoirs,
travel guide, rehashed political tales from 30 years ago, and nostalgia,
all interwoven to convey the essence of the Maritimes today.

Although Bruce makes much of being a native son, he also positions
himself as an objective observer. He would like to be accepted as a Nova
Scotian yet be given points for the Upper Canada perspective acquired
during the years he lived in Ontario. With this self-granted status, he
proceeds to examine the language, attitudes, geography, and history of
Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, and Prince Edward Island. A lot of this is
personal opinion. Too much of it is reworked newspaper and magazine
material from the 1960s. Some of the strongest material is the accounts
of personal experiences, which interrupt the somewhat condescending
narrative on history and politics.

The book includes an extensive wander through some of Halifax’s
unique features, a look at the historic rivalry between Fredericton and
St. John, and a brief detour into the murky field of P.E.I. politics.

Bruce would like to explain the Maritimers to the rest of Canada,
perhaps even to fellow Maritimers. He wants to say that although they
are a bit quirky and have both an accent and rough edges, they (usually)
have warm souls. He points to bluenose attitudes and folksy expressions
while trying hard not to keep his distance. His Toronto friends may
consider him a Maritimer, but he lived out of the area for too many
years—“down home” he’s definitely “from away.”