Raincoast Chronicles Fourth Five, Collector’s Edition IV, Stories and History of the BC Coast
Edited by: Howard White
420 pages, softcover
Harbour Publishing
The continuing collection of stories, poems, superstitions, recipes and life along B.C.’s coast are in fact a touchstone of the provionce’s identity. The stories are snapshots of what life on the coast was like as it was being settled. Some are modern while others go further back into the recesses of the provincial archives.
The Raincoast Chronicles have been a staple for history buffs since 1972. The stories are not academic in tone but readable and interesting, making our history approachable and real. The stories span the province from hiking the West Coast Trail to miners in Barkerville. What makes these chronicles so interesting is the variety of stories and the broad time span, reaching from the birth of the province to tales of those seeking an Eden.
The chronicles feature the writing of Howard White, Doreen Armitage, Tom Henry, Dick Hammond, Vickie Jensen and Bus Griffiths. Two longer features are included, one on the history of Telegraph Cove by Pat Wastell Norris and one on frontier women of B.C. by Stephen Hume.
Past volumes of the Raincoast Chronicles are available from Harbour Publishing.
Caring and Compassion
A History of the Sisters of At. Ann in Health Care in British Columbia
Author: Darlene Southwell
296 pages, hardcover
Harbour Publishing
What may seem to some to be a book on the religious order, the Sisters of St. Ann is actually a meticulously well-researched and informative book on the beginning of health care in British Columbia back in the 1870s. There is little to do with the religious aspects of the order and everything to with how they provided nursing care at a time when none existed. The sisters were responsible for hospitals in Victoria, Campbell River, Smithers and Oliver and care homes in Victoria and Nelson.
As in many other places in Canada nuns were historically the primary health care providers. They ended up in remote, inaccessible and wild areas of the country where they actually practiced what they preached. Hardships and deprivation amidst racism, war and financial crises faced these selfless sisters. This book is actually a mirror of those times in the history of the province.
No Sailing Waits and Other Ferry Tales
30 Years of Ferries Cartoons
Author: Adrian Raeside
126 pages, softcover
Harbour Publishing
Anyone who has ever had to ride BC Ferries will appreciate Adrian Raeside’s humourous take on this subject, so dear to the hearts of ferry patrons. For 30 years, Raeside has been poking fun at the Ferry Corporation and in that humour there is always a whole lot of truth. From two-sailing waits, the Sunshine Breakfast to engine troubles, Raeside gets to the heart of the matter. He says it all and has us laughing. His cartoons are the jokes we all want to tell, when we’re frustrated with our watery highway management. Grab this one at the ferry terminal when you are waiting in line, it won’t make the ferry come any faster but you’ll love the laughs. It’s been a long time coming.
