Coming to Canada
About the Book
From the first Stone Age "immigrants" and right up to the present day, people have been coming to Canada from all over the world-by foot, boat, car, train, and airplane—to make this land their new home. The lavishly illustrated Coming to Canada brings together the compelling stories of our major ethnic groups and waves of immigration. Interspersed throughout the chronologically arranged stories are “spotlight” spreads, which look at special historical events, neighborhoods, and individuals.
From coast to coast to coast, it is the newcomers to Canada who have shaped, and continue to shape, the country's character with their contributions. Coming to Canada traces these stirring human tales of immigration and it's through this lens that the country's story unfolds. Susan Hughes' spirited and always thorough text takes an evocative look at the human dramas and offers clear explanations of the historical events that shaped peoples' lives.
Throughout this striking, colorful book, stunning visuals help tell the story—compelling archival photographs, beautiful artwork, rare memorabilia, documents, posters, tickets, craftwork, recipes, tools, clothing, toys, and more. A timeline at the close highlights significant events and waves of immigrants arriving from different parts of the world, to help readers put it all in context.
Coming to Canada is part of Maple Tree Press' WOW Canada! collection. Richly varied, yet intrinsically connected, the books in the Wow Canada! library celebrate different aspects of the country's story. Together, they weave a rich tale as diverse and exciting as the country itself.
Maple Tree Press - Coming to Canada
978-1-897066-45-4
978-1-897066-46-1
Buy "Coming to Canada" online from Amazon
Reviews
What they say
Globe & Mail
"Another in the lively, information-packed WOW Canada series, this capacious book begins by addressing who the first immigrants to Canada were....Aided by archival photographs...Hughes charts the cavalcade of immigrants to Canada, from Samuel de Champlain's colony at Quebec to the many Somalis who have recently found a haven from civil war and starvation in Canada."
Quill & Quire
"It's both sophisticated and accessible, well suited to ages 9 to 14. The combination of factual detail and personal narratives makes for a compelling text supported by beautifully reproduced photos, posters, and maps. The antithesis of a dry history book, Coming to Canada makes for interesting and informative pleasure as well as educational reading."
School Library Journal
STARRED REVIEW. "Another fabulous offering in this series. The child-friendly approach of this comprehensive and informative book at how and why people went to Canada makes this nation’s immigration history come alive. ...The lively text is well supported by an abundance of color and black-and-white photographs. This appealing book stands above others in its genre and is a must-buy for all Canadian libraries."
Book Loons Reviews
"...richly illustrated…Coming to Canada does a commendable job of presenting the patchwork quilt of immigration that built and sustains the country..."
Resource Links
"The book is lavishly illustrated with well captioned historical photographs and documents...This is a wonderful book for introducing the multicultural nature of Canada to elementary and junior high age children."
Canadian Teacher Magazine
"... spirited text and stunning visuals."
Canadian Children's Book News
"Coming to Canada is an honest look at the immigration history of Canada - the good with the ugly, resulting in the multi-ethnic patchwork nation we have today."
Today's Parent
"This book is thorough and fascinating and will undoubtedly educate not just the kids in the family, but adults who snoozed through a few too many Canadian history classes."
Voya
"An interesting and informative glimpse into Canada’s multicultural makeup."
Okanagan College
"This is a richly detailed and valuable book, which should certainly be in every school library, celebrating the courage and the skills that children's parents, grandparents, back through several generations, brought to enrich the country."
Norma Fleck Award Jury
"A sophisticated book that covers a highly important issue… Hughes' writing is excellent and the accompanying photos and illustrations beautifully complement the text... Wow!"
Our Choice
"This lavishly illustrated book offers stirring accounts of human immigration..."
Awards
2007
British Columbia Library Association, Finalist, Red Cedar Book Award
2006
The Hackmatack Children's Choice Book Award, Finalist, English Non-Fiction
Canadian Children's Book Centre, "Our Choice" selection
Norma Fleck Award for Canadian Children’s Non-Fiction, Shortlisted
2005
Library Associaton (OLA), Best Bets List, Top Ten Canadian Children's Books, Non-Fiction