So, You Want to Be Canadian: All About the Most Fascinating People in the World and the Magical Place They Call Home

by Kerry Colburn, Rob Sorensen

So, you want to be Canadian? Who doesn't these days? Canucks are enjoying a major renaissance in attention, from their enlightened social policies to their wild and wooly pop culture. This playful, trivia-packed book is a long-overdue celebration of all things Canadian, from the mysteries of "eh?" to the difference between an Ogo Pogo and a Windingo to how to prepare moose stroganoff (mmm!). Featuring a dreamy list of Canadian hotties, a toe-tapping roundup of Canadian smash hit songs, a handy CanadianAmerican translator, and pointers on how to eat, dress, and apologize like a Canadian if you weren't lucky enough to be born a Canuck, So, You Want to Be Canadian demonstrates once and for all why Canada is so cool (formerly just cold).

Genres: Canada, Nonfiction, Humor, Travel, Cultural

96 pages, Paperback

First published September 2, 2004

Reviews

[George]

HUMOROUS IN A CANADA DRY SORT OF WAY.

In honor (more properly 'honour', perhaps) of Canada Day [July 1], 2012, Barnes and Noble offered this bit of Canadian humor (i.e. 'humour')--an oxymoron regardless of the spelling--in its NOOKbook edition, for a special promotion price of 99¢. A hard to resist bargain for this self-admitted Canada-phile with Scotch inclinations.

You have to admire the fortitude of writers Kerry Colburn & Rob Sorensen in trying to polk fun at the most humorless (humourless?!) people in the world and the very cold place they call home.

Recommendation: In Canada, this book should be read only on Canada Day, while the brain is relatively frostbite free.

NOOKbook edition, 41 pages

[Rachel]

I was born in Canada but didn't live there. I never knew much about my hometown so when I saw this book, I was excited and bought it.
I learned a lot of things and I got reconnected to my Canadian roots. I love how this book was crafted and made. It cracked me up from time to time.

[alana]

Hmm...I guess I'm not in love enough with Canada to really think this is fabulous. This book is a "humourous" look at Canadian...stuff. While a bit low on history and actual cultural practices, it focuses instead on pop culture, hockey, and faux-patriotic looks at holidays. At least, I think it was faux-patriotism...maybe Canadians really do that? I don't know! The pro-Canada humor makes it a bit ambiguous what you can take away as reality and what was just written by a Canada-loving-American painting stereotypical pictures. Cute, but I wish I had borrowed it rather than buying it.

Oh, I bought this because I'm about to relocate to Canada for a few years and have no sense of the country beyond Dudley-Do-Right, a love of pot and hockey, and a strange pronunciation of the short "a" sound. I now know Canadians like beer. That's about all I got that was new. Oh, and they added another territory since I was in grade school!

[Shélah]

Very funny book with amusing illustrations, but WAY too focused on America - this book only looks at Canada in terms of how it is different from the United States. It also has some very irritating errors (i.e., calls 'Canada Geese,' 'Canadian Geese' - grrrr!) and is overly simplistic (although given it's size, this is to be expected and they do a decent job). It's a good book to give to your American or Canadian friends (wouldn't recommend for anybody else) as a joke - but edit and add to it first.

[Chriss]

This little book CRACKS me up. I read and re-read it often. Being Canadian but now living in the USA, I find it silly and comforting to flip through. It's well written and laid out, and quite comical.

[Pamela]

Absolutely lovely.

Tickled by how sensible, and peaceful by comparison, the national history is for Canada. Charming cultural touchstones. Thanks for inventing ginger ale, and producing kickass comedians.

[Dante]

Who would not review this book five stars?? It's got jokes, it's short and the pictures are nice to look at! What's not to like ya hoser?

[Vados]

I expected a bit more humour or more picturesque mentality features explained, cuz it's known, Canadians are one of most polite folk on the planet. Though the book's purpose is to feed the people with this patriotism satisfaction feeling (with is more typical for Yankees, though, but the book states it's not).
Still interesting how people get proud of every tiny detail, even though the history of Canada is not that long. But I m sure a lot more to come! :)
This book is actually quite nice, it's focused on Canadians, not perfect for tourists or foreigners, I bet there are better ones ;)

[Andrew Keen]

A not-too-serious primer on Canadian culture, this book re-introduces you to all the things you already are familiar with but didn't know had their origins in Canada. Who knew that the paint roller, chocolate bar, and Yahtzee had their origins in Canada? Or beloved celebrities like Pamela Anderson, Matthew Perry, Kim Cattrall, and Shania Twain? With a less-than-serious tone, this short book will give you a greater appreciation for America's northern neighbor. Can easily be finished in one sitting.

[EmberJenn]

This is a super-short book with various, random facts about Canada (including a few recipes). The only thing I thought was really redeeming about it is the cute illustrations. If you do get it- I recommend the print version vs. the ebook. The ebook loses a lot of the "charm" of the print copy because of the formatting changes/layout.

[Shaun]

Quirky funny little book that reminds me of all the sterotypes of Canadians. Some of the references need to be updated (published in 2014) but overall a good stab at the subject given the brevity of the book.
- Canadian expat

[Alaska]

Interesting except for two major errors.
1. North of the US. Should be north of the contiguous United States and east of Alaska
2. Elsewhere the Yukon is east of Alaska the fiftieth state. Should be east of Alaska the 49th state.

[Karen Kettner]

Quick amusing read for those interested in Canada, or for those wanting to blend in with the locals.

[Maggie]

It's not the most information-packed, but it's short and funny and overall what I expected from a ninety-page "all about" book with "magical" in the title.

[Zoe]

Short but sweet, this is just a snapshot of what the differences are - from the holidays and foods to why hockey is SUCH a thing. Some interesting differences in the language are illustrated as well.

[Bertrand]

Assez drôle mais peut être trop court. Dans tous les cas, j'ai passé un agréable moment et peut-être que ce livre m'a conforté dans l'image que je garde des canadiens.

[Neelza Angmo]

Funny and informative

[Brenda]

Short book full of factoids about Canada.

[Gaston G.]

a light hearted book on what it's like to be a canadian.

[Jess]

Shine on, you crazy maple leafs

[Nicky W. (Bookstacks_and_Coffeecups)]

An amusing, comedic look at life in Canada.

[Gabby kampman]

Really funny and cute. Makes you realize what are not international terms/food/culture etc. I love being Canadian

[Lynn W]

Informative and Fun

Lots of fun to read. All the little bits you need to know. I love hockey, curling, poutine, butter tarts, and Tim's.

[Frodis]

It was a cute, funny read. You absolutely need to read this in print format as the illustrations are more than half of the humor content.

[Julia]

only 40 pages but packed with wit!

[A.J.]

An impulse-download from the library. It's a very quick read - only 41 pages and had some interesting facts and figures in it. There are some useful tips for wannabe Canadians and a handy list of Canadian celebrities with which to confound those annoying clever types who say (sneeringly) 'But can you name ten famous Canadians?'.

I need to raise my book-reading total for this year (five books behind schedule, eek), so this quick, light-hearted read was welcome.

[patricia]

So You Want to be a Canadian by Kerry Colburn and Rob Sorenson is only about 41 pages long. It is a look at our neighbor to the north. At times it seems a little tongue in cheek and at times just the facts. I gave it 3 stars because we should know more about our northern neighbor. Not only did they help in 1980 with the Iranian hostage situation but they've sent us good tv programs, newscaters, actors etc.

[Jess]

This book was amazing! l live abroad and found this in the library. This book did exactly what I wanted. It gave me some great laughs and smiles and helped the homesickness!!! I recommend this for all Canadians and their non Canadian loved ones !

[Tes]

Sometimes I just need a little silliness & I also learned a little something too!

[Carrie]

I got this book from paperbackswap.com