(signed 1983 reprint McClelland & Stewart pb; photo: Nova Scotia Bureau of Information)
(2004 McClelland & Stewart/Douglas Gibson dj; illustrations: Peter Rankin)
Born in North Battleford, SK, Alistair MacLeod (1936-2014) is considered to be Cape Breton Island’s best and most famous writer. He certainly considered that place to be his emotional and spiritual homeland through his Scottish family heritage. His No Great Mischief, was voted Atlantic Canada’s greatest book–something which Rex Murphy concurs with, but he, like me, prefers Macleod’s masterful, artistic short stories featured in The Lost Salt Gift of Blood (1976) and As Birds Bring Forth the Sun (1986). MacLeod became a respected fixture at U of Windsor teaching creative writing there for more than 3 decades.