Where to from Here? A Path to Canadian Prosperity

 Morneau, Bill. Where to from Here? A Path to Canadian Prosperity 2023. 328p. ISBN  9781770417144. 

Coming from the world of pensions, Bill Morneau was elected to the Canadian Parliament in 2015. He had been approached by the Liberals to join Justin Trudeau's team due to his strong economics background. The Liberals defeated the Conservatives and formed a majority, and Bill Morneau was appointed Ministers of Finances, where he served for five years. A combination of disappointment with government policy, political scandals that rocked the Liberal party, and the lack of political structures that promoted changes contributed to his exit of the federal political scene.

In Where to from Here? Morneau outlines a positive view of Canada, but he also points out the challenges that face the country, from low growth in prosperity due to high taxes and low dynamism, to relations between the federal, provincial, and territorial governments, to a glooming crisis in health care and pensions. Part biography, part political treatise on the steps needed to make Canada more competitive and improve the lives of its people, Where to from Here draws a vivid map that political leaders could use to guide their actions and ensure that Canada remains prosperous.

Attack on Titan., Vol. 1

Isayama, Hajime. Attack on Titan., Vol. 1. 2012. 193p. ISBN 9781612620244. Available in the graphic novels section of the library.

When Titans first appeared, humans were decimated. Titans can only be killed by hitting a specific spot on the back of their necks. Otherwise they regenerate. Not much is known about Titans. They are tall, and they like to eat humans. But they seem not to build anything, or harm any other animals. How they reproduce is unknown, and whether they are intelligent beings is questionable.

Humanity has taken refuge behind the massive walls of the last human city. Three walls of 50 meters protect the city from attacks, and in the last one hundred years the walls have never been breached. Eren and Misaka are children of the city. Eren wants to join the Survey Corps, the group of soldiers who venture beyond the walls, looking for resources and for ways to defeat the Titans. Misaka, Eren's sister, only wants to protect her brother from harm.

The sudden appearance of a gigantic Titan, taller even than the wall, throws the city in disarray. The wall is breached, Titans invade, and the first wall falls. Humans retreat to the second wall, leaving behind destruction and carnage. In the assault, Eren and Misaka's mother is killed, and their father goes missing. 

Five years later, Eren and Misaka complete their military training with top grades, and both of them elect to join the Survey Corps. Unfortunately, on their first deployment to the wall, the giant Titan returns, and once again catastrophe looms over the humans ...

The story continues in Attack on Titan, Vol. 2.

All Quiet on the Western Front

Remarque, Erich Maria. All Quiet on the Western Front. 1987, first published 1928. 296p. ISBN 9780449213940.

When the First World War erupted in August 1914, soldiers on both sides rushed to the front to deal a devastating blow against their enemies in the name of the motherland. This quickly turned into a quagmire, before evolving in trench warfare where thousands of soldiers would be mowed down by machine guns as they crossed what became known as the no man's land.

Those at home did not know of the murderous nature of this conflict, thanks to effective censorship of letters and newspapers. With no means of discovering what was really taking place, people behind the lines celebrated their soldiers and enthusiastically joined the army. Paul and his friends are encouraged to join the German army by the principal of their school, who extolls the virtues of patriotism and manly honor. After limited training, their new regiment is thrown on the front line, and Paul immediately discovers that what he's been told diverges from reality. The horrors of living and fighting in a trench are too much, and Paul wonders how he will survive.

Yet he does. Assault after assault, bombardment after bombardment, Paul witnesses his friends being killed off one at a time, until he's the last one left of his group. Through visits home during furloughs, where no one understands the reality of what he faces every day, and through the all too short respites between attacks, Paul lives one day to the next, witnessing horrors no one should ever see. But then, in November 1918, it becomes all quiet on the Western Front as the war ends in Germany agreeing to an armistice. For the first time in four years, Paul cannot hear the cannons, and he feels at peace, having survived the greatest conflict the world had known up to that point.

The violence and stupidity of men as they strike at people they don't know for the idea of a State or Country is pervasive throughout, creating a surreal atmosphere where Paul doesn't even know why he is fighting. Fans of World War I and of war stories will feel they are in the trenches as Paul describes his daily activities and his survival of one shattering event after the other.

Valkyrie: The Story of the Plot to Kill Hitler, by Its Last Member

von Boeselager, Philipp Freiherr. Valkyrie: The Story of the Plot to Kill Hitler, by Its Last Member. 2009. 211p. ISBN 9780307270757.

Many Germans were opposed to Hitler's rise to power in Germany, even in the military. As Europe descended in the flames of the Second World War, German military officers began plotting to kill their leader. Loyal to Germany, if not Hitler, they sought each other out, until a critical number of them were ready for action. Though they attempted to end Hitler's life many times, only the July 1944 bombing that partially injured the German dictator came close.

Philipp Freiherr von Boeselager was a member of a cavalry regiment with his older brother when Germany invaded Poland in 1939. An enthusiastic hunter and excellent horse trainer, Philipp loved his family and his country, and his deep Catholic faith informed all of his actions. Apolitical, Philipp at first cheered the war effort, determined to erase the humiliation Germany had suffered at the end of the First World War when the Treaty of Versailles was concluded. 

But when his regiment was transferred East to attack Russia in 1941, Philipp saw a darker side of Germany. SS divisions rolled through the plains, killing indiscriminately and hunting Jews and Communists. Appalled by what he saw, he was even more shocked to discover that these actions were not only supported and encouraged by the German leadership, but they were in fact state policy. Disgusted by these actions, Philipp sought others who, like him, had had enough. Working with his brother and the full knowledge of his commanding officers, a small group soon assembled to plot the assassination of Hitler and Himmler and plan a future for Germany.

Several attempts were planned, from shooting both men during an inspection to an army camp, to blowing Hitler's plane. When these attempts failed, the plotters determined to destroy Hitler's headquarters with him inside. In July 1944, von Stauffenberg placed the bomb and raced to Berlin, so that he could take control of the city. Philipp led his cavalry regiment away from the Russian front and rushed to Berlin as well, to support the overthrow. 

Unfortunately, this attempt too failed, and Hitler survived. SS units tracked down the conspirators, who were executed. Philipp managed to return to the front with his regiment, and thus avoided being discovered, and eventually the war ended with Hitler's suicide and Germany's unconditional surrender. 

Philipp, who survived the war, provides one of the most vivid account of German resistance and the steps they took to try to end the war sooner. Fans of history and of the Second World War will appreciate Philipp's devotion to his country and to his men, and will realize how close they came to fulfilling their goal of killing Hitler!

Naruto, Vol. 9

Kishimoto, Masashi. Naruto, Vol. 9. 2001. 184p. ISBN 9781421502397. Available in the graphic novels section of the library.

At the end of Naruto, Vol. 8, Sakura and Ito were fighting each other, and Ito had figured out a way to take control of Sakura's body. Hoping to thwart her former friend, Ito forces Sakura to raise her hand and resign, but Naruto'r goating is enough to trigger Sakura's own spirit, which had been pushed aside by Ito, to regain control over her own body. The assembled ninjas are impressed, as this feat is unheard of. The two girls resume fighting, but a particularly violent hit renders both unconscious, stopping their fight.

Naruto is eventually paired with Kira, and though the dog man's techniques are honed and tested, Naruto manages, through wiles and grit, to defeat him, and even shows off a trick he learned from Sasuke. As the third part of the Chunin examn comes to an end, Roc Lee is paired with Gaara. Will Roc's dedication and physical strength be enough to defeat the master of sand?

The story continues in Naruto, Vol, 10.

You Are Here: Connecting Flights

 Oh, Ellen. You Are Here: Connecting Flights. 2023. 272p. ISBN 9780063239081.

Twelve stories take place at the Chicago airport, and interconnect. A teen is traveling to Thailand with his grandmother, who is bringing the cremated remains of dead husband with her in a case, and he's pretty stressed about crossing the TSA security check point. A Korean-American girl and her two non-Asian fathers are traveling to Korea so she can experience the land she came from, but, not remembering anything about it, she has misgivings about the trip. A girl and her mother are moving back to Korea after a fight between her mother and father in New York City, and she absolutely does not want to leave. A boy in the dining area is harassed by security, and plays his guitar like a god to prove to them that yes, there are Asian guitarists. A boy on a traveling team feels sad about his best friend, who is an undocumented resident and therefore cannot travel.

In You Are Here, twelve Asian-American authors create loosely connected stories that explore what it means to be Asian-American in the United States in an era of Covid and anti-Asian sentiment. Some of the teens in the stories feel divided between their ethnic heritage and their feelings of being Americans. Others have never connected with their Asian side, and are feeling ambivalent about that it means to them. All of them encounter racism and side-eyed looks, and many are confronted with being asked to go back to their country, even though they have lived here for generations. Through it all, universal truths about standing up for oneself and fighting prejudice are discovered.

City of Light, City of Poison: : Murder, Magic, and the First Police Chief of Paris

Tucker, Holly. City of Light, City of Poison: : Murder, Magic, and the First Police Chief of Paris. 2017. 310p. ISBN 9780393239782.

In the 1670s, France was at its apogee. Louis XIV, the Sun King, had been ruling for decades. France had expanded through war, Versailles was under construction, and Paris was growing. Hoping to turn his capital into a beacon for the civilized world, Louis XIV assigned a dedicated public servant, Nicolas de la Reynie, to be the first chief of police for the city. Previously, law enforcement was divided among many jurisdictions, with the effect that the city was dirty, dark, and dangerous. When de la Reynie assumed his post, his first edicts were to literally clean the city of its refuse, and to install lanterns at every street corner, turning Paris into the City of Light.

de la Reynie then turned his attention to the criminals that populated the streets of the city. As he pursued dangerous individuals, he soon stumbled upon a group of poisoners, who, for a price, would provide a husband or wife with the means to "prune the family tree." This cabal was soon arrested and transported to the Chateau of Vincennes for interrogation, and de la Reynie learned that noble women were also using this group's services.

As de la Reynie investigates and conducts interrogations, he soon realizes that the currencies of violence and deceit are not limited to the lower classes. More nobles fall in disgrace or are executed as revelations rock the court of the king. Progressively, people close to the king become targets of de la Reynie, until he comes across a nefarious plot from the King's own mistress to poison the Sun King. How far can he push to get the whole truth?

A true story of passion and betrayal, of envy and destruction, City of Light, City of Poison illustrates a fascinating period in the reign of Louis XIV, where anything that could gain the attention of the King was worth gold. A spat of deaths and poisoning was followed by this investigation, which in turn was soon buried by the King for fear that France would never recover from the loss of trust and the embarrassment. Fans of history and of criminal investigations will devour this book!