NOVEMBER 2008
www.celtic-connection.com
Page 23
The Story of the
SCOTUnD
Xatgjnal lea in h
mm
Havoc and Chaos Reign in this Northern B.C. Novel
HIGH NOON IN STEWART
- Irish trouble in Northern Canada
By Brendan Gillen
Published by Ballymote Books
THE story opens in the skies over northern British Columbia, as Martin Maguire flies away from his life butcher in Vancouver to work at a construction job in the little town of Stewart, close to the Alaskan border.
Prompting his life-altering journey is a broken romance with his meat wrapper girlfriend.
Also aboard this small aircraft is Pierre who is, unaccountably, travelling to face the wrath of the delectable Danielle, with whom he had an affair, when he should be staying home and trying to make amends with his wife and children.
And therein lies the situation for the first misunderstanding in this novel of havoc and chaos.
Or rather the second: the first being the bumpy landing of the small aircraft and the subsequent difficulty in opening the door to allow its passengers to disembark.
Danielle the delectable, who runs the airstrip in Stewart, is lusted after by most of the men we meet in this novel, other -1 hasten to add - than her brother and father, who behave like a pair of witless heavies in their determination to rough up the villain who broke Danielle's heart.
From this rocky start onwards, the story is an account of mistaken
HIGH NOON IN
STEW/
Brendan Gillen
identity followed by misadventure followed by misfortune followed by brawl followed by misunderstanding.
The blame for a great deal of this chaos can be laid squarely at the feet of our hapless hero.
For how else can I describe someone who answers the question "who are you?" with the reply: "Let me explain...."
Or how to describe the man (remember, this is 1973, and not some remote era before books, movies and television) who, on encountering an unconscious, beaten, and bleeding man lying in
the street actually picks up the knife lying on the ground beside the body just in time for the police to find him?
But I'm running ahead of the story. Let's get back to the airstrip, where the aforementioned hapless hero manages to get himself stranded.
The witless heavies duly arrive and mistakenly identify our hapless hero as the cad who done their woman wrong.
They immediately launch an attack, resulting in their being carted off to hospital (due to their target's agility in evading blows rather than his pugilistic skill).
This is quickly followed by a wrangle with Constable Copps, and a little dalliance with Danielle. At last, Martin finally takes the next step in his journey, managing at last to get away from the airstrip along with the lady who is now increasingly the object of his desires.
Their conveyance is a dog sled, which quite soon sheds its driver and hurtles uncontrollably and perilously through traffic into the night, ultimately dumping its terrified passengers into the snow, where Martin's blood is further stirred by having to give his delectable companion the kiss of life.
And so the novel progresses to its rueful end, scarcely a page not describing a conflict or row or disaster.
Poor Martin. But at least he does manage to get the object of his desire into the sack, an event that he does seem to manage without the usual accompanying disaster - until, that is, her policeman admirer pounds at the door of her cabin demanding immediate entry.
Will Martin find true love in the turbulent snowy northern landscape, or will confrontation continue to dog his faltering footsteps?
McNab: An Historical Novel Based in 1800s Upper Canada
MCNAB
by David Mulholland
General Store Publishing House
ISBN#1-897113-46-3
ISBN#9781897113462_
Reviewed by Linda McKale Mulholland informs his readers that this book is primarily a novel, written for readers' enjoyment but it is also partially based on historical facts. The story takes place in what is now called the Ottawa Valley, Ontario.
McNab, Chief and Laird of the Clan McNab, emigrated to Upper Canada [Ontario] in the 1820s, eluding his creditors in Scotland.
Due to his charm and Clan title, he gained the confidence of the Family Compact - the British clique that controlled the local government and he convinced them to entrust him with the settlement of a nearby township.
He then proceeded to bring over crofters from his homeland to clear the bush and work the land.
Although the township land was only entrusted to him for development, he claimed ownership
^^^^^
By
LINDA McKALE
DAVID MULHOLLAND
and imposed the feudal system in which his settlers were to pay rent to him and his heirs forever.
For the next 16 years the farmers struggled to free themselves from this bondage and gain rightful title to their land and verbally battle the aristocratic clique.
Excellent research by the author gives us a very accurate record of this era and of the emigrants who had escaped from the cruel and harsh conditions of their lives in Scotland in the hopes of a better life in this new country, Canada.
Several actual documents are reproduced in this book which give the readers much insight into the psyche and lifestyle of the crofters.
On a lighter side, we follow the romancing of the piper MacGregor and his fervor in winning the hand of a local Irish lass. MacGregor is very torn between his loyalty to the McNab Clan and his longing for justice for the settlers.
There is also the eyebrow raising account of the relationship between the laird and his housekeeper.
David Mulholland has produced a great novel and has truly achieved his goal in giving us a "good read."
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