A Few Acres of Snow: Documents in Pre-Confederation Canadian History

by Thomas Thorner (Editor), Thor Frohn-Nielson (Editor)

A Few Acres of Snow allows readers to experience early Canadian history in the words of those who first explored, created, and documented the nation. Providing coast-to-coast representation and featuring a diverse range of social groups, the editors offer a refreshing look at the major events leading up to and including Confederation. Throughout, they rely on a careful selection of personal, formal, and legal documents to tell the story, including early travel narratives, literary writings by Susanna Moodie and Catherine Parr Trail, government reports on slavery in Canada, official letters on Irish immigration, and newspaper articles and speeches on the creation of the Dominion of Canada in 1867.

In this trim new edition, each document is introduced with biographical information about the creator. Brand new chapters discuss the Loyalists in Nova Scotia, the War of 1812, and the Beothuk. Also new is a guide to critically reading and engaging with historical documents.

320 pages, Paperback

First published September 1, 1997

Reviews

[Joanne · Rating 2 out of 5]

read for uni.

[Brittany · Rating 4 out of 5]

In the context of being read for school it was interesting. I liked that it gave you an insight to who the people were that were about to talk and how they fit into whatever the topic was. The chapters were split up in a sensible way and each came with a nice little introductions to the topic. Overall I enjoyed this text much more than some others I have read for school.