People have nitpicked about inaccuracies and liberties that Berton has taken with his subject matter over the years, but that overlooks his towering strength: the ability to make potentially dull Pierre Berton was one of Canada's most popular historians, from the Donald Creighton school which opted for abandoning footnotes and references and dry overviews in favor of relating history like a good story—full of anecdote and big personalities—written more to appeal to fiction lovers than scholars. Let’s face it, 2020 is making us long for other timelines. The ceremony marked the completion of the transcontinental CPR and was a muted affair at which a group of company officials and labourers gathered at Craigellachie near Eagle Pass in the interior of British … At the time, I wondered what it was all about. Published )the continuation of the building of Canada's railroad ans a major part of Canada's history Read this a long time ago, back when I wrote an essay on this topic in grade 8.A fine book about our country's unique history in the 1880's, written by one of the hotest ladies men I know of...(seriously, his dong was longer than the CPR line! The stories about how cities like Winnipeg, Regina and (one of my hometowns), Revelstoke were settled were fascinating.
As a Canadian it further drives home just how significant the Canadian Pacific Railway was in cementing us a unified and geographically diverse young nation. Be the first to ask a question about The Last Spike As the morning of 7 November dawned, these officials — along with some of the workers who had completed the track only the night before — gathered at the western entrance to the mountain pass, at a spot Van Horne called Welcome back. The book was written to Berton's normal standards, however I was expecting more of the nuts and bolts of physically building the road - more construction talk, more engineering talk, more talk about the men who lived and died building it.
As this strange summer of staying put winds down, one thing remains truer than ever: Books offer us endless adventure and new horizons to explore...In the four years between 1881 and 1885, Canada was forged into one nation by the building of the Canadian Pacific Railway. Aug 14, 2001 | ISBN 9780385658416 Just a moment while we sign you in to your Goodreads account.
From narrative histories and popular culture, to picture and coffee table books to anthologies, to stories for children to readable, historical works for youth, many of his fifty books… Sign up for news about books, authors, and more from Penguin Random HouseVisit other sites in the Penguin Random House NetworkBy clicking Sign Up, I acknowledge that I have read and agree to Penguin Random House's The only disappointment was the lack of detail in the every day life of railway construction. I think my dad had just finished this book and wanted to visit the site he had read about. There was some, with a chapter for the Chinese and one for the surveyors, but more time was spent on the political and economic aspects of it.
At the time, I wondered what it was all about. Just a moment while we sign you in to your Goodreads account. The Last Spike, winner of a Governor General's award for non-fiction, is the second of Pierre Berton's lively two-volume history of the Canadian Pacific Railway.Sequel to The National Dream, which was on best-seller lists for 80 weeks, The Last Spike finishes the story of how a fledgling nation pushed over 3,000 kilometres of steel across the continent in record time. Seriously, what a great legacy Pierre Berton has left behind for all generations. This book needs to be read in conjunction with the National Dream and concerns the building of the Canadian Pacific Railway. box in The famous photographs of the Last Spike ceremony depict such historic figures as Before the Last Spike ceremony, Mallandaine had quit school in A few years after the Last Spike was driven, Mallandaine helped establish the town of The Last Spike reconstructs the incredible story of how some 2,000 miles of steel crossed the continent in just five years — exactly half the time stipulated in the contract. I wish every high school in Canada could get this into the History curriculum.Berton always paints the fine line between novel and history text book, and he again pulls it off here. In the four years between 1881 and 1885, Canada was forged into one nation by the building of the Canadian Pacific Railway. Some believe that the missing spike fell into the hands of a Canadian patent officer in Ottawa, who passed it down to his children. March 24th 2015 Now, over 40 years later, I found myself prompted to pick up this old book and learn about history from one of Canada's best story tellers.This is "it's not you it's me" situation. Click Download or Read Online button to get the last spike book now. The CPR was a massive undertaking and it is amazing what they accomplished in so short a time. Good Press publishes a wide range of titles that encompasses every genre. There are actually four Last Spikes.
I found some of the chapters on the financing a little dense, but overall he has a brilliant ability to craft a historical narrative and describe one-of-a-kind individuals.I found this to be a very accessible history considering that as a native of the southern United States I am not part of the book's target audience. 0385658419 Learning about the lives of all the men who visioned and financed the undertaking are equally engaging. The Last Spike book.
The Last Spike reconstructs the incredible story of how some 2,000 miles of steel crossed the continent in just five years — exactly half the time stipulated in the contract. This is an exhilarating read of the building of the Canadian Pacific Railway across the entire country. We’d love your help. Pierre Berton has made Canadian history resonate. But, my fine friends, it is exactly that. It made Canada the way it is today.Pierre Berton has made Canadian history resonate. This is "it's not you it's me" situation.
There was a little more politics and a LOT more finance than I was expecting. Viva Canada!A very good read. Reads like a fiction, extremely well researched.As a child, my family visited the historic site at Craigellachie, B.C., where the last spike in the Canadian Pacific Railway was pounded in 1885.
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