10 Days That Shaped Modern Canada

Books that examine a nation’s turning-point moments are fairly commonplace these days. Heck, I edited two myself — 100 Photos That Changed Canada in 2009 and 100 Days That Changed Canada in 2011. But it’s rarer to read books that cover days so recent that they feel ripped out of yesterday’s news headlines.

In 10 Days That Shaped Modern Canada, author Aaron W. Hughes explores the far-reaching impacts of ten moments that range from 1970 to 2018. From Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau’s “Just watch me” declaration during the 1970 October Crisis, to the patriation of the Constitution in 1982, the Quebec referendum of 1995, and even the Tragically Hip’s last concert in 2016, Hughes expertly weaves these individual threads into the larger tapestry of Canadian history.

The book does not contain photographs, but Hughes — a Canadian scholar of religion at the University of Rochester in New York State — includes useful suggestions for further reading. 10 Days that Shaped Modern Canada is a great reminder that history doesn’t happen in a vacuum. Unfolding all around us, it is constantly shaping our collective future.