The Birch Bark Caper

John North was Librarian at Ryerson Polytechnical Institute, Toronto.

Burke and Peterson’s four previous assaults on Canadian current affairs have achieved a wide and loyal readership among those who regard the often witless gyrations of our politicians with alarm and scepticism. The latest in the series of Swamp Fables continues the saga and puts the energy crisis and the early skirmishes of the constitutional patriation issue under the magnification of Peterson’s incisive illustrations and Burke’s serpentine logic and continuous puns. Although the standards are as high as in the previous books, the impact of the series may have been diminished by repetition. Despite the possible staleness of the approach, the reader may still be excused for asking, “Why did we elect these people?”