I was thrilled to read the up-dated version of this classic Canadian book  (just re-issued), not least because it seems that a young kid in publishing named Doug Gibson helped the author in some way. I’ll take any credit that’s going, because what Donald Cameron (there was no “Silver” in those hills, in those days) went on to produce was something really new — a serious look from the water level at a little, local strike in Canso that grew to shut down work, and set people marching all across Nova Scotia in 1970-71.

It’s clear that what drew him to research and write this book was a deep anger at the sight of the old Nova Scotia power system at work, encouraging a provincial judge, incredibly, to sentence hard-working fishermen in Canso to go to jail, because they chose to show that they were not slaves by tying up their boats and going on strike.

Yet although he writes with deep sympathy for  the working men and women involved (people we get to know very well) he’s determined to be fair to the other side, which means we follow the infuriating ups and downs of the negotiations.

The result is a superb piece of reporting that makes THE EDUCATION OF EVERETT RICHARDSON one of the great books of our times — well worth a new generation of readers.