Separation

Joseph Roussel #2

by Richard Rohmer

Book by Rohmer, Richard H

Genres: Canada, Fiction

240 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1976

About the author

Major-General (Ret'd) Richard Heath Rohmer, OC, CMM, DFC, O.Ont, KStJ, CD, OL, QC, JD, LLD (born in 1924). Canada's most decorated citizen, an aviator, a senior lawyer (aviation law), adviser to business leaders and the Government of Ontario and is a prolific writer. Rohmer was born in Hamilton, Ontario, and spent some of his early youth in Pasadena, California as well as in western Ontario at Windsor and Fort Erie.

The Peterborough Examiner's lead editorial of 14 January 2009 says this: "Rohmer, one of Canada's most colourful figures of the past half-century, was a World War II fighter pilot, later a major-general in the armed forces reserve, a high-profile lawyer and a successful novelist and biographer."

Reviews

[Matthew Laur · Rating 2 out of 5]

Overall this book is one that many should skip over. Its prose, style, and structure are not enjoyable to read. The concept of Quebec separation is an interesting one, and certainly one that in 1976 was on the minds of many Canadians, though the premise of why and how they would separate in this novel is unworthy of the drama the author attempts to make.

[Dominick · Rating 2 out of 5]

Direct sequel to Exodus/UK, and about as good--which means, not very. Rohmer tries to throw in some action with an unlikely subplot involving a gorgeous Palestinian assassin (well, she starts out stupendously ugly but undergoes plastic surgery; yes this is about as cringe-worthy as it sounds) hired to eliminate the King of Saudi Arabia. She succeeds, which leads to a complete reversal of everything that predicated the actions of the previous book, including the grounds for separation. Much of the book is taken up with rather tedious documenting of how Canada would be divided up with an independent Quebec. Rohmer's notion that a negotiated separation would be as civil as this rather flies in the face of what the recent history of the time would suggest (the FLQ crisis was only six years in the past).Rohmer is also not exactly an impressive prose stylist, so his dialogue (and therefore characterization) and exposition are clunky.

[Reading Rohmer · Rating 4 out of 5]

The decision teased at the end of Exodus/UK kicks off this book. PM Jeremy Sands of the UK sheepishly apologizes for dividing the country, to which PM Roussel responds “Divided! Mon Dieu, this must be the worst crisis since Confederation!”. Obviously, he has forgotten what happened in Ultimatum! Canada agrees to accept the two million, setting in motion a fierce battle for national unity between Quebec and the Rest of Canada, culminating in a referendum on the question. Before we can get to that nail-biting vote, we have to endure interminable, acrimonious negotiations between Quebec and Canada that take up far too many pages. Luckily we have a subplot which switches continents to check in on the story of Rashida, an “exotic Arab Terrorist” whose ugliness is cured by the miracle of plastic surgery, allowing her to enjoy a jet-set vacation in a casino in the South of France.

More: Separation discussed at the Reading Richard Rohmer blog