Sir John George Bourinot (1836–1902)

This review will be a bit different as it will combine two different books. The reason for this is that I highly recommend reading ‘With Wolfe in Canada: The Winning of a Continent’, by George Alfred Henty (1832-1902), immediately before reading ‘Canada under British Rule 1760-1900’ by Sir John George Bourinot (1836-1902). Both are currently free on Amazon as eBooks, and together, they take the reader through the fascinating creation of what would become the best country in the world. ‘With Wolfe in Canada’ was first published in 1922 and as with ‘Canada Under British Rule’, first published in 1900, the reader must expect that the language of the time is not politically correct by today’s standards.

Henty’s work is a historical novel, his specialty as a prolific author and journalist during the 19th century, and the reader is taken through the life of British medical student James Walsham, who is unhappy with his career choice, made to appease his mother. Twists of fate soon have him on the adventure of a lifetime however, as he finds himself in the Royal Navy on the way to America, where, similar to what happened with Forrest Gump in the popular film, he finds himself embroiled in battle during the Seven Years War. Students of history will be impressed with the historical accuracy of the novel and how Henty wove young Walsham into actual events while maintaining an accurate timeline, not surprising given the author’s time as a war correspondent.

By the end of the novel, you are ready to attack ‘Canada under British Rule 1760-1900’, which is an accurate history of Canada during those times, and you will find this a smooth transition from novel to history book. Sir John George Bourinot KCMG FRSC, a Canadian journalist, historian, and civil servant, was the first Canadian to accurately document Parliamentary Procedure and Practice, and he was also considered an expert in constitutional law.

It’s amazing how well these two books go together. It was sheer coincidence that I read them in this order, and I am sure most lovers of history will agree with me on how they flow into each other. If you have a Kindle, be sure to explore the Kindle store as it is chock full of books such as these that are either free or just a few dollars. Bear in mind however, that you are going to read the non-whitewashed version of history, written long before the concept political correctness came into being.

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