This is about a surprise visit to a small town by a politician, John Diefenbaker, who was Prime Minister of Canada in the late 1950s.
I thought that Austin captured your average Canadian's apathy toward politicians pretty well.
However, the rest of the story wasn't really to my taste. Names like Crumpacker and Snodcrapper to me belong in a Seuss story. The fact that he changed the name of the town at the end really grated to me. But the part that I was least fond of was that when the narrator asked "Did he think we were a prime example of Canadian simpletons" he could have been talking about the author. I don't really know why someone would write a story about people he has no affection for. Perhaps I just didn't see that affection.
I don't think Canadian's political apathy comes from stupidity, and that's where the author and I part ways.
I tried a Commuter Lit story recently, also with little success. Their selections don't seem too promising.
ReplyDeleteSorry it fell flat for you. I think I will skip it. I enjoyed the one I read.
ReplyDelete