Robert Harris (2) (1948–)

While the title suggests this is all about Canada's National Anthem, the largest portion of the book is a biography of the man who wrote the music, Calixa Lavallee. Born in Quebec, he became a Quebec nationalist who felt the best way to preserve the French language and culture was to join the United States. He wrote O Canada as an anthem for Quebec and I wonder how he would feel about it now being the National Anthem of the country he did not feel part of.

The remainder of the book covers how Lavallee's song became our anthem including who wrote the words and how they have been changed over the years.… (altro)