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Peggys Cove (Munn)
Photographer: Scott MunnPublisher: Nimbus Publishing$12.95Seasoned photographer Scott Munn documents the iconic landscape of Peggys Cove in this gorgeous book of colour photography. Features 46 colour photographs with descriptive captions, and an introduction by award-winning journalist Quentin Casey.
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Mary Morrison’s Cape Breton Christmas
Publisher: Nimbus Publishing$19.95The Halifax Chronicle-Herald calls award-winning comedian Bette MacDonald “a superlative actress, a polished ad libber…making the audience howl with delight by a lift of her eyebrows, a shift of elbow or a single word.”
For years, Bette has delighted audiences with her irreverent and lovable Cape Breton character Mary Morrison. Now Mary is here to entertain readers with her stories and memories of the Christmas season. Mary Morrison’s Cape Breton Christmas is a treasury of all things holiday, including Mary’s advice for coping with family, gift-giving dos and don’ts, and even her favourite seasonal recipes. This new softcover edition of the popular books is a hilarious and colourful collection of Cape Breton Christmas humour.
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Duffy Stardom to Senate to Scandal
Publisher: Nimbus Publishing$21.95Mike Duffy made his name as a political reporter, and in the process became one of Prince Edward Island’s most famous exports. He cast himself as the ultimate insider, Parliament Hill’s man in the know. It made him a household name and one of the Canada’s bestpaid journalists. But Duffy wanted to get even closer and lobbied his way into the Canadian Senate, with dire results. Veteran journalist Dan Leger tells the story of Duffy’s rise to the top in Canadian media, his entanglement with the Harper Conservatives, and the scandal that made him one of the most controversial figures in contemporary politics. This paperback edition includes a new chapter on the 2015 expenses trial, a foreword by CBC’s Peter Mansbridge, and an 8-page colour photo insert.
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Atlantic Canada’s Unusual Place Names Place name origins, attractions, legends, characters, history and firsts
Publisher: Nimbus Publishing$17.95A collection of unusual place names from the four Atlantic provinces! The origins of each of these 477 strange names are explained and any notable or quirky history is described in detail. Of course, many of these names become “unusual” only when they are at a distance from the place of their origin. Joe Batt’s Arm, for example, may seem unusual to a Manitoban (not to Newfoundlanders!). Pokemouche could sound odd to an Ontarian (but familiar to New Brunswickers!). This book also includes little-known facts, trivia, and occurrences from the Atlantic provinces, and also 18 mini-biographies of famous, infamous, and not-so-famous-but-still-interesting Atlantic Canadians.
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Nova Scotia Place Names
Publisher: Nimbus Publishing$19.95Washabuck is not a place to launder money; Ecum Secum is not a children’s game; Joggins has nothing to do with anything athletic.
They are just some of the 1,421 Nova Scotia place names whose origins, where they are known, are explained in this book. The history of each name is succinctly chronicled with an emphasis on events past and current that are historically significant, offbeat, or humorous. This quirky and informative guide also contains a treasure trove of the province’s little-known facts and occurrences and 95 mini-biographies of famous, infamous, and not-so-famous-but-still-very-interesting Nova Scotians, folks who achieved something outstandingly positive, or negative, during their lifetimes.
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Mister Nightingale
Publisher: Nimbus Publishing$21.95When self-described mid-list Newfoundland author James Nightingale makes a brief sojourn to his St. John’s home for the re-release of his seminal novel, he’s forced to confront his failings, both familial and artistic. Imbued with the language of literature and the imagery of a Newfoundland in flux, Mister Nightingale is at once a fitful meditation on the writing life, and a keen and poignant exploration of one man’s coming to terms with la vie quotidienne.
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Pantry and Palate Remembering and Rediscovering Acadian Food
Publisher: Nimbus Publishing$34.95In Pantry and Palate, journalist Simon Thibault explores his Acadian roots by scouring old family recipes, ladies’ auxiliary cookbooks, and folk wisdom for 50 of the best-loved recipes of Acadians past and present. Recipes run the gamut from Acadian staples such as potato pancakes called Fring Frangs, Rappie Pie, Chicken Fricot, and various forms of meat pies; old-fashioned foodways, such as how to render your own lard, and make the most of out a pig’s head; and sumptuous sweets take the form of Rhubarb Custard Pie or a simple Molasses Cake. Thibault not only discovers the past lives of his immediate and extended family, but their larders as well.
Including essays celebrating the stories behind the recipes, a foreword by bestselling author Naomi Duguid (Taste of Persia), and photos by noted food photographer Noah Fecks (The Up South Cookbook), Pantry and Palate is magnifique from page to plate.
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Then and Now
Photographer: Len WaggPublisher: Nimbus Publishing$29.95Wallace MacAskill (1887-1956) is one of Nova Scotia’s foremost photographers, lauded for his portraits of seascapes, sailing and fishing ships, and picturesque landscapes. In this remarkable collection of then and now photographs, Len Wagg follows in the footsteps of 50 of MacAskill’s best shots, recreating them in colour contemporary portraits. Through side-by-side comparisons, readers see how much has changed, and how much has remarkably remained the same. Included are urban streetscapes, important events and monuments, and spectacular scenery from around the province, Halifax to Louisbourg, Chester to Pictou. The 100 photographs in this book are captioned with short anecdotes conveying the significance of the images and the process of finding the location for some of MacAskill’s original work. Includes a foreword from Garry Shutlack.
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What Kills Good Men
Publisher: Nimbus Publishing$21.95On an October night in 1899 the body of a well-regarded city councilman is found floating under a Halifax wharf. Chief Inspector Culligan Baxter embarks on an investigation that leads from the waterfront, through the city’s streets, and out into the surrounding countryside. Aided by the young but surprisingly astute Kenny Squire and an odd assortment of barkeeps, petty thieves, and prostitutes, Baxter’s sleuthing takes him into the station’s back files and along a path of connections and corruption, linking some of the city’s most prominent businessmen. From the well-to-do parlours to the seedy taverns to the public spaces that still dominate the city’s downtown today, author David Hood has created a vivid portrait of late-Victorian Halifax. With pointed observations on human behaviour and on the changing character of his hometown, Detective Baxter conducts a sardonic inquiry into morality, justice, and the space in between.
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The Little Book of Newfoundland and Labrador
Photographer: John SylvesterPublisher: Nimbus Publishing$17.95In The Little Book of Newfoundland and Labrador, photographer John Sylvester beautifully captures the quintessential fishing villages, magnificent natural landscapes, and stunning array of wildlife that “The Rock” is famous for.
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Restoring the Acadian Forest 2nd edition
Publisher: Nimbus Publishing$32.95Restoring the Acadian Forest is a comprehensive resource for woodland owners in New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island, eastern Quebec, Maine, and northern New England. It explains how to maintain a healthy Acadian Forest woodlot, while restoring its economic and ecological value. The book includes practical advice on woodlot planning, tree harvesting, promoting wildlife habitat, and finding revenue sources, along with a guide to the trees of the Acadian Forest. This new edition includes new sections on legal obligations of owning woodlots and suitable small-scale equipment. This edition is fully illustrated with 120 photographs and illustrations.
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Nova Scotia at War, 1914-1919
Publisher: Nimbus Publishing$26.95When the First World War ended in 1918, its profound impact did not. The war continued to haunt a nation. Nova Scotia at War, 1914-1919 is an in-depth study of Nova Scotia’s role that was, at the time, the most traumatic collective experience in the history of Canadians. As Tennyson explores in nine fascinating chapters, the war effort was more than just the brave soldiers and sailors who went overseas; it was also the civilians who worked in the fishery, on the farms, and in the forests, coals mines, and steel mills.
A specialist in early twentieth-century Canadian political history, author and historian Brian Tennyson examines the economic impact of the war, which shattered Nova Scotia’s dream of becoming the Atlantic gateway and the industrial heartland of Canada. Includes 30 black and white photos.
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Stubborn Resistance
Publisher: Nimbus Publishing$24.95When New Brunswick became its own colony in 1784, the government concluded several peace treaties with the Mi’kmaq and Maliseet in the territory that protected First Nations lands. But as settlers, loyalists, and disbanded soldiers moved into New Brunswick, they moved onto the reserves, often without official sanction. This squatter problem led the New Brunswick government to pass an act in 1844 that allowed them to sell reserve land. Author Brian Cuthbertson explores the history of the defense of reserve lands by the Maliseet and Mi’kmaq of New Brunswick, from eighteenth-century peace treaties to the present. With reference to the 1844 act, Cuthbertson examines the legality of the sale of reserve lands using specific cases from Buctouche, Red Bank, Tobique, and Burnt Church and Eel Ground. Includes 60 images, including maps and contemporary paintings and sketches.
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Nathan MacKinnon The NHL’s Rising Star
Publisher: Nimbus Publishing$17.95A dominant minor hockey player from Cole Harbour, Nova Scotia, Nathan MacKinnon was ticketed for NHL stardom from an early age. He did not disappoint. MacKinnon would lead his hometown team, major junior’s Halifax Mooseheads, to their first Memorial Cup in 2013, and fulfilled the dream of every young hockey player when he was selected first overall in that summer’s NHL draft. In his first season (2013-2014) for the Colorado Avalanche, MacKinnon met the considerable expectations placed upon him by scoring 63 points and winning the Calder Trophy as the league’s top rookie. While his second season was largely a disappointment before a broken foot ended his season prematurely, MacKinnon’s future is bright.
In this stat-packed biography, TSN correspondent Paul Hollingsworth traces the development of one of the NHL’s most exciting young stars. Starting with MacKinnon’s jaw-dropping minor hockey career and continuing through his NHL career to date and his play as part of Team Canada at world championships, the book includes 40 colour photos, as well as interviews and analysis from well-known hockey commentators. With a foreword from broadcaster Dan Robertson.
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On Both Sides of the Law (new edition)
Publisher: Nimbus Publishing$19.95As a boy in the 1920s, Hugh H. Corkum anticipated every summer when he could sail from Lunenburg and work with his father on cargo ships. When he quit school at 15, his got his ideal job at sea. The cargo wasn’t what he expected, however, and Hugh found himself initiated into the world of rum-running.
In this memoir, Hugh recounts the volatile captains, honourable crewmen, and gangsters whom he dealt with while fleeing police and enjoying New York nightlife. Although he trained in railway telegraphy, the money and excitement of smuggling drew him back in.
After his third arrest, Hugh became a police officer in Lunenburg. Drawing upon specific events, he explains how his past gave him a keen understanding of people and morals that enabled him to become Chief of Police. With 25 photos, including rare pictures of rum-running ships.
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Black Water Rising
Publisher: Nimbus Publishing$17.95When heavy November rains threaten to flood the small town of Black River, New Brunswick, the community calls on the hydroelectric company to open the gates of its dam and drop the water level. But local management has been overruled by their parent company and ordered to keep it closed. It’s got some people hinting it’s time they took things into their own hands.
Seventeen-year-old Stanton Frame is caught in between: his father is manager at the dam, but his girlfriend, Jessica, has joined an environmental group that’s taken an interest in the matter. With just hours until the town floods, things come to a violent clash between police and protesters. The next morning the dam has been sabotaged, Jessica is missing, and Stanton has more questions than answers.
Suspenseful and authentic, with a fine ear for the nuances of local politics and teenage sensibilities, celebrated YA author Robert Rayner’s new novel combines activism, love, and mystery.
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Short History of Fredericton
Publisher: Nimbus Publishing$21.95Sitting along the scenic St. John River and tucked into the surrounding wilderness, Fredericton bristles with history as New Brunswick’s capital. With Maliseet, French, and British origins, this colonial garrison town quickly became the political centre for the area as it grew with the efforts of Loyalist settlers and others in the 1780s. In an engaging narrative style, author Dan Soucoup traces Fredericton’s development through the contributions of leading citizens and the significant events that saw commercial growth and the first Canadian literary movement.
Through the social and political tensions of the 1960s and 70s up to the present, A Short History of Fredericton records the entire history of the city in a highly accessible manner. This book is ideal for tourists seeking a concise historical overview of Fredericton, as well as for citizens wanting to know how their city came to be. Includes 30 black and white photos.
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Sea Glass Summer
Publisher: Nimbus Publishing$19.95A gentle, lyrical story about Molly, who, after moving far away, yearns to be back on the beach with her Gram, searching for sea glass. Vibrantly illustrated, this picture book explores the powerful lure of the ocean, and the meaningful treasures within.
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Georges Island The Keep of Halifax Harbour
Publisher: Nimbus Publishing$29.95Georges Island has long stood guard in Halifax Harbour. Used in the seventeenth century as a place to dry fish by a nearby Acadian/Mi’kmaq village, the island came under control of the British with the founding of Halifax in 1749. The first wooden battery, established in 1750 and rebuilt as a stone fortress in the 1790s, was continuously modernized and manned by both British and Canadian soldiers right up until the Second World War.
The historical tour describes the fascinating evolution of Georges Island, from the site of the town’s first gaol and quarantine station, to a detention centre from which Acadians awaited their fate. Further chapters describe the features that bring the island to life, such as secret tunnels, ghosts, and the lighthouse that still guides ships to port. Includes over 150 photos, paintings, maps, and contemporary letters.
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Cyrus Eaton Champion for Peace
Publisher: Nimbus Publishing$19.95Award-winning artist Richard Rudnicki uses vibrant imagery and accessible text to tell the true story of Nobel Peace Prize-winning billionaire Cyrus Eaton. From Eaton’s roots in rural Pugwash, Nova Scotia, the book introduces a new generation to the industrious pacifist who helped make the world a safer place.
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Aftershock
Publisher: Nimbus Publishing$24.95On December 6, 1917, harbour pilot Francis Mackey was guiding Mont Blanc, a French munitions ship, into Bedford Basin to join a convoy across the Atlantic when it was rammed by Belgian Relief vessel Imo. The resulting massive explosion destroyed Halifax’s north end and left at least two thousand people dead, including pilot William Hayes aboard Imo.
Who was to blame? Federal government and naval officials found in Pilot Mackey a convenient target for public anger. Charged with manslaughter, he was imprisoned, villainized in the press, and denied his pilot’s license even after the charges were dropped. A century later he is still unfairly linked to the tragedy.
Through interviews with Mackey’s relatives, transcripts, letters, and newly exposed government documents, author Janet Maybee explores the circumstances leading up to the Halifax Explosion, the question of fault, and the impact on the pilot and his family of the unjust, deliberate persecution that followed.
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Chasing the Phantom Ship
Publisher: Nimbus Publishing$12.95Matt has two weeks left to enjoy summer with his best friends, Danny and Emma, but he has to include his younger cousin Adam. Matt’s summer takes on an unexpected adventure when he and Adam spot a burning, ghostly ship and become determined to unravel the mystery. Recruiting Danny and Emma, the four set out to find the ship, only to encounter other, very real dangers on the Northumberland Strait.
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In the Spirit Reflections on Everyday Grace
Publisher: Nimbus Publishing$19.95The wonder of a human hand; the tenacity of trillium; the restorative power of a hymnal: these topics and many more are explored in this thought-provoking collection of 80 spiritual essays from author-journalist Monica Graham.
Taken from the best of the Chronicle-Herald column of the same name, In the Spirit explores with wit and wonder our human relationship with spirituality and religion. With a journalist’s curiosity, Graham asks the tough questions on a variety of subjects, from the implications of declining church membership, to Sunday shopping, to the merits of curiosity and acceptance in faith, but urges readers gently to come to their own conclusions. Whether we pray out loud or in silence, at the pub or the pew, this collection boldly holds each of us accountable to and responsible for our own spirituality, however we may choose to practice.
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Genius at Work
Publisher: Nimbus Publishing$25.95In 1885, nine years after his invention of the telephone, Alexander Graham Bell and his wife built a house and laboratory in Nova Scotia, where they summered for the next thirty-seven years. In Genius at Work, Eber weaves together the reminiscences of neighbours with excerpts from family journals, diaries and letters, to create an engaging account of this energetic, exuberant and occasionally eccentric man. Equally fascinating are the photographs that document his work and family. Together with the text, they shed new light on the career and character of this great inventor.
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Little Book of Sea and Soul
Publisher: Nimbus Publishing$12.95Lifelong seaside gardener Denise Adams shares 70 ocean-inspired reflections, each paired with an original photograph, in this unique gift book.
Musings on coastal life include both tender and humorous observations that will appeal to seadogs and landlubbers alike. Highlighted by Adams’s stunning photographs of Atlantic seascapes, The Little Book of Sea and Soul invites quiet contemplation. Dive into it boldly or comb it carefully, either way you’ll discover beauty and wisdom in these gentle seaside gems. A perfect gift for the ocean lover in your life.
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The Saddest Ship Afloat The Tragedy of the MS St. Louis
Publisher: Nimbus Publishing$15.95The latest in the Stories of our Past series explores the WWII Jewish refugee ship refused safe harbour at Halifax’s Pier 21. Illustrated with photos and sidebar features on the voyage, the lives of passengers, a look at Canada’s postwar refugee policy, and memorials of this tragic event in Canadian immigration history.
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Prisoner of Warren
Publisher: Nimbus Publishing$14.95When his dad decides to hire a German prisoner-of-war to help out on their New Brunswick farm, thirteen-year-old Warren Webb is pretty sure the family is doomed. Who invites a Nazi to sleep under their roof? But Martin is not the German Warren expected. After his early attempts to get rid of Martin fail, Warren takes his dead brother Pete’s advice and finds himself learning more from his enemy than he ever expected. Soon Martin, a promising track-and-field athlete before the war, is coaching Warren for his provincial summer games race. And when a trio of local bullies threatens their lives, Warren and Martin are forced to rely on each other like never before.
In Prisoner of Warren, acclaimed children’s author Andreas Oertel captures the inner life of a thirteen-year-old boy with frankness and humour. With its 1940s rural setting, this funny, suspenseful middle-grade novel is a highly engaging look at friends, foes, and all the grey areas in between.
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Fire in the Belly How Purdy Crawford rescued Canada, and changed the way we do business
Publisher: Nimbus Publishing$29.95Purdy Crawford’s name is synonymous with Canadian business and law. But even after education at Mount Allison and Harvard, Purdy arrived on Toronto’s Bay Street as an outsider, the son of a coal miner from tiny Five Islands, Nova Scotia. So how did young Purdy ascend so quickly and so far to become one of Canada’s top lawyers and best-known business mentors? In this biography of Purdy, bestselling business writer Gordon Pitts begins with the moment in 2007 when Crawford was enlisted by some of the country’s leading corporate officials to stave off financial market catastrophe. The book describes the role Crawford has played in mentoring several of Canada’s brightest economic thinkers, and his contribution to changing the way business was done in the boardroom, particularly in opening the door for women. Includes a photo insert of highlights from Purdy’s professional career and private life.
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Niniskamijinaqik / Ancestral Images The Mi’kmaq in Art and Photography
Publisher: Nimbus Publishing$29.95The Mi’kmaq of Atlantic Canada were here for thousands of years before the arrival of European peoples. Niniskamijinaqik / Ancestral Images: The Mi’kmaq in Art and Photography presents their unique culture and way of life through the remarkable and sometime complex lives of individuals, as depicted in artwork or photography.
The opening images in this collection were created by the Mi’kmaq themselves: portrayals of human beings carved into the rock formations of Nova Scotia. Then there are the earliest surviving European depictions of Mi’kmaq, decorations on the maps of Samuel de Champlain. Finally we see portraits of Mi’kmaw individuals, ancestors in whom we see their “humanity frozen in the stillness of a photograph,” as the writers of the book’s foreword describe.
Niniskamijinaqik / Ancestral Images includes 94 compelling pieces of art and photography, chosen from more than a thousand extant portraits in different media, that show the Mi’kmaw people. Each image is an entry point to deeply personal history, a small moment or single person transformed into vivid immediacy for the reader.
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A Real Newfoundland Scoff Using Traditional Ingredients in Today’s Kitchens
Publisher: Nimbus Publishing$19.95Inspired by her desire to stay connected to the food of her home province, culinary writer Liz Feltham goes back to her roots to bring fresh and modern twists to favourite Newfoundland meals. A Real Newfoundland Scoff provides recipes using traditional ingredients from the sea, land, air, bakeshop, and bar to create non-traditional dishes. Above all, Liz encourages readers to use this cookbook as a guide to exploring, discovering, and creating new versions of their old Newfoundland favourites.
Packed with fifty-six new recipes, thirty colour photographs, and a guide for buying Newfoundland ingredients in Atlantic Canada, this cookbook will appeal to all Newfoundland chefs, traditional and adventurous alike.
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History of Annapolis Royal Volume 2 1749-2005
Publisher: Nimbus Publishing$34.95In spite of its status as capital and chief military post in Nova Scotia, Annapolis Royal in 1749 remained a small community, with its early development influenced by its origins as a military settlement. The town would continue to experience tremendous change over the next two hundred and fifty years, witnessing the commercial boom of ship and rail and then the challenges facing rural Canada due to urbanization. Through it all Annapolis Royal has remained nationally significant and quietly dignified. From the devastating fires that ravaged sections of the community and in the spirit of rebirth, Annapolis Royal has emerged as a leader in heritage preservation in Canada. A History of Annapolis Royal, 1749–2005, explores some of the main themes of the town’s story and attempts to understand how and why the town evolved as it did to become the community that it is in the early twenty-first century. The text is accented with 20 historical and contemporary photographs and illustrations and includes an index.
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The Nova Scotia Home for Colored Children
Publisher: Nimbus Publishing$22.95In 1921, prominent lawyer and Nova Scotia Black leader James R. Johnston’s vision of a place welcoming of Black children came to reality. In an era of segregation and overt racism that saw most orphanages refuse to take in Black children, the Nova Scotia Home for Colored Children fulfilled an important role.
But despite its good intentions, today the Home is mostly known for a troubling past. Former residents launched a class action lawsuit alleging sexual and physical abuse suffered at the Home over a period of several decades. In The Nova Scotia Home for Colored Children: The Hurt, The Hope, and The Healing, author Wanda Taylor interviews former residents participating in the lawsuit and upcoming public inquiry and connects their stories to her own relationship with the Home. The former residents in this book provide an unsettling, and sometimes graphic, description of what life was like inside the Home and describe the many ways the government system designed to protect them instead exacerbated a culture of abuse and neglect.
