Genius of Place: Writing About British Columbia

Ann Turner is the financial and budget manager of the University of
British Columbia Library.

The editors planned this well-researched and absorbing anthology as a
nonfiction companion to their earlier publication, West by Northwest:
British Columbia Short Stories (1998). Through substantial excerpts from
30 writers as diverse as Simon Fraser, Emily Carr, and Chief Dan George,
it captures the history, essence, and spirit of British Columbia.

The pieces include complete essays, travel narratives, and interview
notes. An introduction to each one gives biographical information about
the author and places the excerpt in the context of the writer’s life
and other writings. An extensive “Select Bibliography of British
Columbia Books” guides the reader to other works by the authors
represented, and to other authors cited in the introductions.

This collection is a must-have for B.C. studies, and a significant
contribution to the study of Canadian literature.