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W.O.: The Life of W.O. Mitchell: Beginnings to Who Has Seen the Wind, 1914-1947
A biography of Canada's best-loved writer and storyteller, from his childhood in Saskatchewan to the publication of his first great literary success, Who Has Seen the Wind.
424 pages, Hardcover
First published September 10, 1999
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
April 4, 2020
the first hundred pages about his heritage are dry and dreary
If it wasn't for having met the man (~1974) and that "Who has Seen the Wind" being my favourite Canadian novel I would not have perservered. Once the book got into his boyhood and experiences was I able to enjoy the read that outlines Mitchell's formative years, the struggles of an author and insights to writing. It also gives glimpses into the roles of agents and editors, as well as the anguish of dealing with "suggested" sometimes required edits.
Some items of interest:
Went to high school in Florida - took an interest in drama
University at Winnipeg where one of his Chem professors went on to work at the Los Alamos project and died from a radiation incident - I knew about that slip in the labatory but not the fellow (Dr Slotin) who protected others from the radioactive flash was Canadian.
Diptheria prevented him from competing in Diving at the LA Olympics but later he parlayed his diving into a professional circus act
Tuberculosis required him to drop out of Med school.
In 1933 travelled to Europe via cattle train and cattle ship and his tenting adventures over there became the basis of his 1991 novel "For Arts Sake".
Was drugged and robbed by his land lady in England
Bought a motorbike he called the Rock of Gibraltar because it would not move when the engine wasn't running. When it stalled on railway tracks in Belgium it got demolished by a train
In France he tried asking a farmer if he could put up his tent in a field but mispronounced some words so it sounded like he was asking if he could mount his aunt in the bedroom
He took Journalism at the University of Washington in Seattle (1934) and failed Short Story Writing. Then when heading back to Weyburn, Saskatchewan he was robbed (rolled he called it) in Fernie, BC and hitchhiked to Calgary to get a temporapy job at CFAC where he got taken advantage of by management when making sales and dismissed for his innovative approaches.
For years he struggled with periods of only eating one meal every three years.
He sold Colliers Encyclopedias by giving them away and collecting a 75¢ a week for updates for ten years (=$390 the price of an encyclopedia set) but no updates were ever delivered. Good candidates for sales were doctors, teachers and for some reason grain elevator operators.
The last chapter provide insights into the roles of agent and editors. The Canadian edition of "Who Has Seen the Wind" had 7,000 more words than the American edition. They wanted to take out 20,000 words! It seemed the American publisher didn't really understand the sentiment of the novel and even wanted the word "wind" taken out of the title.
If it wasn't for having met the man (~1974) and that "Who has Seen the Wind" being my favourite Canadian novel I would not have perservered. Once the book got into his boyhood and experiences was I able to enjoy the read that outlines Mitchell's formative years, the struggles of an author and insights to writing. It also gives glimpses into the roles of agents and editors, as well as the anguish of dealing with "suggested" sometimes required edits.
Some items of interest:
Went to high school in Florida - took an interest in drama
University at Winnipeg where one of his Chem professors went on to work at the Los Alamos project and died from a radiation incident - I knew about that slip in the labatory but not the fellow (Dr Slotin) who protected others from the radioactive flash was Canadian.
Diptheria prevented him from competing in Diving at the LA Olympics but later he parlayed his diving into a professional circus act
Tuberculosis required him to drop out of Med school.
In 1933 travelled to Europe via cattle train and cattle ship and his tenting adventures over there became the basis of his 1991 novel "For Arts Sake".
Was drugged and robbed by his land lady in England
Bought a motorbike he called the Rock of Gibraltar because it would not move when the engine wasn't running. When it stalled on railway tracks in Belgium it got demolished by a train
In France he tried asking a farmer if he could put up his tent in a field but mispronounced some words so it sounded like he was asking if he could mount his aunt in the bedroom
He took Journalism at the University of Washington in Seattle (1934) and failed Short Story Writing. Then when heading back to Weyburn, Saskatchewan he was robbed (rolled he called it) in Fernie, BC and hitchhiked to Calgary to get a temporapy job at CFAC where he got taken advantage of by management when making sales and dismissed for his innovative approaches.
For years he struggled with periods of only eating one meal every three years.
He sold Colliers Encyclopedias by giving them away and collecting a 75¢ a week for updates for ten years (=$390 the price of an encyclopedia set) but no updates were ever delivered. Good candidates for sales were doctors, teachers and for some reason grain elevator operators.
The last chapter provide insights into the roles of agent and editors. The Canadian edition of "Who Has Seen the Wind" had 7,000 more words than the American edition. They wanted to take out 20,000 words! It seemed the American publisher didn't really understand the sentiment of the novel and even wanted the word "wind" taken out of the title.
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November 8, 2023I read the parts that discuss the subject’s interactions with Weyburn hospital, as that is a topic of interest to me.
November 5, 2012
A biography written by his children of an author who made me cry while reading "Jake and the Kid" to my children. Well researched. Very interesting as to how Mitchell wove his own life experiences into his novels and how the people around him pushed him to greatness.
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews