The Language of Canadian Politics: A Guide to Important Terms and Concepts. 3rd ed.

Stephen Field is an information services librarian in the Queen
Elizabeth II Library, Memorial University of Newfoundland.

The third edition of John McMenemy’s excellent dictionary of important
Canadian political terms and concepts is especially welcome given the
limited availability of reference works on Canadian politics and
government. Covering more than 500 subjects, presented alphabetically
with ample cross-references, the book deals with the “institutions,
ideas, concepts, programs, processes, laws, events, and so forth, both
historical and contemporary, that inform political discussion, debate
and conflict in Canadian politics.”

The book includes entries on seminal events that have shaped Canadian
politics (e.g., the October Crisis); important court cases (Morgentaler,
Smoling, and Scott v. the Queen) and statutes (Constitution Act, 1867);
political concepts ranging from liberalism to conservatism; and topics
as varied as the Royal Commission on Bilingualism and Biculturalism,
Native (First Nations) self-government, conscription, and the Meech Lake
and Charlottetown Accords. Standard definitions of terms relating to
parliamentary practice, such as “filibuster,” are also included. The
book, which includes a selected bibliography and a list of relevant Web
sites, is recommended for students, scholars, politicians, and anyone
else who has an interest in Canadian politics.