Pierre:: Colleagues and Friends Talk about the Trudeau They Knew

By Justin Trudeau

Book Overview

Pierre: Colleagues and Friends Talk about the Trudeau They Knew It has been more than three decades since the heady days of Trudeaumania, and yet Pierre Elliott Trudeau is still a subject of intense public fascination. When Trudeau died in 2000, the outpouring of emotion was extraordinary. Thousands of people across Canada and all over the world mourned the loss of one of our greatest prime ministers, a man who touched the hearts and challenged the minds of a nation. As Trudeau's close friend, Nancy Southam has gathered more than one hundred and fifty reminiscences and anecdotal narratives about him from all over the globe. Included in this astonishing collection are stories from people who worked for Trudeau in the PMO, long-time friends, journalists, former world leaders, politicians who battled and debated him, his sons' friends, RCMP bodyguards, girlfriends, canoeing buddies, the household staff at the prime ministerial residences, and those who glimpsed his religious life. With the blessing of his sons, Justin and Sacha, Southam has put together a remarkably transparent account of an intensely private man that is funny, affectionate, moving, startling, and emotional. Among the contributors are Monique B?gin, Conrad Black, Jimmy Carter, Jean Chr?tien, Joe Clark, Leonard Cohen, Jim Coutts, Joyce Fairbairn, John Kenneth Galbraith, Ivan Head, Jacques H?bert, Margot Kidder, Toni Onley, Christopher Plummer, Karen Kain, Marc Lalonde, Harrison McCain, Gordon Pinsent, Roy Romanow, Ed Schreyer, and Barbra Streisand. These pieces are accompanied by over a hundred photographs and illustrations some published here for the first time. Honest, illuminating, and heartfelt, this collection adds greatly to the historical record of Trudeau, and sheds fresh light on the private man.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0771081650
• ISBN13: 9780771081651
• Release Date: March 2005
• Publisher: McClelland & Stewart
• Length: 408 Pages
• Weight: 1.68 lbs.
• Dimensions: 9.1" x 1.3" x 6.4"

Customer Reviews

A wonderful portrait of an amazing person

This book is a memorable, entertaining, and moving compilation of memories of Canada's most intriguing and charismatic prime minister. Southam, a close personal friend of Trudeau, asked former colleagues, staff, lovers, friends, and fellow heads of state to write about the man that they knew. The result is a portrait of an amazingly gifted, shy, feisty, complex man with an insatiable love and curiosity for the world, and a deep love and closeness with his children. Whether you're Canadian or not, I promise you that you will enjoy reading this fascinating compilation of stories and thoughts about one of the most accomplished and intriguing people of the 20th century.