Canadian Disasters: 43 True Stories. René Schmidt. Toronto, ON: Scholastic Canada, 2013. 170 pp., pbk., $7.99. ISBN 978-1-4431-2440-9. Subject Heading: Disasters-Canada-History-Juvenile literature. Grades 7-11 /Ages 12-16. Review by Amy Trepanier. ***½ /4

excerpt:

The worst storm to hit Canada’s Great Lakes took the lives of 244 sailors and destroyed nineteen large freight ships, twelve of which sank with all hands. Nineteen other ships were run aground. Nothing since has even come close to the Great Lakes Storm of 1913.

On Lake Huron, eight of the world’s largest freight ships sank or broke up, drowning their entire crews. American Freighters Isaac M. Scott and Charles S. Price rolled over, the wreck of the Price floating upside down in the lake for days.

When the storm ended almost 300 sailors had lost their lives. There are still unsolved mysteries and heroic tales of this storm… A memorial gravestone in a Goderich graveyard stands above the spot where five unidentified seamen lie buried. The single word proudly and simply tells what these people were: SAILORS.

Canadian Disasters details 43 of the largest-scale, most devastating catastrophes, storms, and accidents ever to occur in Canadian history. Beginning with the most well-known historical event, the sinking of the Titanic, Schmidt goes on to give a very human face to historically significant fires, landslides, coal mine collapses, ice storms, shipwrecks, airplane crashes, disease outbreaks and vehicle crashes.

     Each account includes details of the manner in which the event affected one or more individuals or families directly involved, as well as a description of the impact of the disaster at a local and national level. Death tolls and economic losses are a particular focus throughout the book. Each event is recounted in such a way so as to build a sense of dread and foreboding in the reader. The stories are engaging, informative, and succinct, while inspiring empathy for the victims of each tragedy. The majority of these disasters (with the exception of the Titanic sinking) never appear in present-day news or textbooks, thus, I feel this book would be an excellent addition to a middle or high school Canadian history curriculum.

Highly Recommended.

Amy Trepanier is the Teen Services Manager at Red Deer Public Library in Red Deer, AB.

To comment on this title or this review, send mail to cm@umanitoba.ca.

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Published by The Manitoba Library Association ISSN 1201-9364

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