The DCB/DBC biographies make it clear that although there is no standard mould that shapes Canadian prime ministers, prime ministerial success depends on both “character and circumstance.” Pragmatism in making policy and in devising strategies of survival, rather than principle or ideology, often seems the guiding determinant in the success of Canada’s federal political leaders. For a Canadian prime minister there is usually no higher ground than the claim to be the defender of national unity against threats of disruption and disintegration.
These fifteen biographies of Canada’s prime ministers is an important historical reference tool, providing details about personal lives, sketches of close associates, a narrative of major events, and an assessment of accomplishments and failures set against the backdrop of economic and demographic growth, the social crisis of depressions, and the impact of world events. Told through the lives of Canada’s leading politicians this is a remarkable, engrossing, documented account of modern Canadian history.
Written under the direction of Ramsay Cook and Réal Bélanger. Published by University of Toronto Press, 2007.
