The Cordova daily times., 1922-12-15
FRIDAY, DECEMBER 15, 1922
cANADA's BOOK WEEK

Special publicity weeks are not monopoly of our own country. Or perhaps they are con tagious. Canada has recently celebrated a book week which was either primarily or in cidentally for the purpose of refutlng the gross German libel that our northern neighbor IS an uncultured desert. The point is that the book week had that satisfactory result for since the typical Teutonic accusation was made in 1913 we conclude that the Dominion of Canada did not take the taunt seriously. The alternative, of course, is that it was taken very seriously, indeed, to the point of deliberation and nine years carefully nurtured culture. We incline to the interpretation that the book weeks mastering of native talent IS but throwing off nonchaant denial to the ex- German government After all, it takes more than nine years to grow even an indifferent anthor and we notice no Daisy Ashfords among this northern constellation.
 A pamphlet published by the department of education of Ontario for the Canadian min ister of education presents fair summary of current Canadian books-notable ones only being included And we venture to say that a similar epitome of any other nations con tribution to the phenomenon of culture would be no more imposing. And, with relative census figures considered we would hesitate to match a similar investigation of our na- tional output in the past year or two. We can boast more best sellers, but It must be remembered that one of the most remarkable of those phenomena was the Canadian "Mara Chapdelaine'' book that achieved the dis tinctlcn of becoming classic and best seller immediately on publication. And it is surpris- ing how many old friends reveal themselves as Canucks in this bulletin of the Ontario depart ment of education. We wonder how many people know that Bliss Carman halls from New Brunswick or that Harvey O'Higgins- though he resides in New Jersey is from On tario Lord Beaverbrook, as every one ought to know. is also from New Brunswick, and Sir Gillert Parker. as every American novel read CT does know, is Canadian. In fact when one thinks of Canadian literature he thinks of Sir Gilbert There are doubtless many well-ln- formed people who think of him as the sole representative of Canadian letters. But he IS only one of several dozen distinguished nov elists listed by the department of education m its efforts to give the lie albeit beatey. to Germany's kultur map in which "Canada shared with Africa the distinction of being black, that is of having no assienable cul- ture.''' Robert Service and Vilhiomar Stef- ansscn are two more noted Canadians the in trepid explorer having first seen light in Arnes, Manitoba the poet being Canadian and Vancouverite by adoption.
 The low temperature, which is doubtless conducive of clear thinking, seems to pro- duce an unusual proportion of rather solid books by comparison with our publishers output, which is so largely fiction. Fiction oc- cupies less space in the book week bulletin than do the serious classes of education, agri- culture, government, history, sociology, etc. Nor is Our Lady of the Shows without her representative women writers. We are pleased to note that two of the most charming books that came our way during the past year are listed to Canada namely, Elizabeth Monti- zambert's "Unnoticed London'' and Mazo De La Roche's delectably funny Explorers of the Dawn" But of course humor is not an unknown Canadian quality, as witness Stephen