Canada and Quebec: One Country, Two Histories: Revised Edition

Relations between the rest of Canada and Quebec have never been easy. Beginning with the Conquest and working through the many political permutations before Copnfederation and since, there has always been conflict between the two governments, and, in particular, two points of view. The rebellions of 1837-38, conscription, the Quiet Revolution, language laws, endless constitutional wrangles, and Meech Lake are but a sampling of the issues that have divided the nation. A fascinating cast of characters has also emerged: Pierre Trudeau, Brian Mulroney, Robert Bourassa, and René Lévasque have all played center stage. Now as a separatist provincial government plans yet another referendum on the possible independence of Quebec from Canada, the question is complicated by the division of the huge national debt, the rights of the First Nations peoples, and the specter of what has happened in recent years in Eastern Europe.

Through interviews with a wide variety of politicians, journalists, and academics, Robert Bothwell skillfully weaves together a coherent account of the relationship between Canada and Quebec. Altogether this is a scintillating collage of personal accounts and considered opinions, one that acquaints us with the many different facets of this complicated yet crucial question: How did Canada and Quebec get to this crisis, and where do we go from here?