While many people are happy to receive the recognition they are due, there is surely no higher honour than to be recognised by one’s country for all they have done. Christopher McCreery has taken a great deal of time and effort to retell the long and complex story of how Canada adopted its own system of honours, culminating in the Order of Canada, which is handed out on a biannual basis by the Governor General. McCreery explores honours bestowed upon many who lived in what is now Canada, going as far back as facial tattoos by some indigenous groups well before Europeans arrived. As time progressed, there were honours set aside for both British and French citizenry, which the colonies adopted as their own. Into the post-Confederation era, Canadians were given honours of British origin, though there was some talk of seeking something more ‘Canadian’ for those who lived in the country, though nothing came of the early discussions. The attentive reader will know that Canada, while its own country after 1867, was still maturing as part of the Commonwealth family and had not yet shed all its colonial ties, even in the area of honour. While early discussions at a parliamentary and cabinet level went nowhere—though one Member of Parliament sought to jumpstart the discussion as far back as 1918—there was an early push between the wars to highlight the roles that Canadians were playing within the country, apart from knighthoods and other British-based honours. McCreery discusses—and HRH Queen Elizabeth II makes mention in her brief note to open the book—that George VI began discussing the need for a Medal of Canada to be bestowed by the end of the Second World War. Canadian politicians were still unsure and it took the arrival of the Centennial celebrations for the desire turned into a need. Prime Minister Lester B. Pearson took it upon himself to shuttle discussion from the cabinet table through Parliament and into open discussions with Elizabeth II about the creation of an Order of Canada to offer recognition of key accomplishments Canadians made across various walks of life. Thus was born the Order of Canada! McCreery discuses in the latter portion of the book the various permutations the Order went through, including its levelled recognition and limitations for each group. Fine-tuned and with an advisory committee, recipients of the Order at all levels could expect to be vetted thoroughly and be considered within a higher class, without the pompous nature of formal titles. The evolution of Canada and the Order ran parallel, turning it from being one of simple recognition for accomplishments to becoming a cornerstone of Canadian pride and and outward sign of unity. While some would still call the Order of Canada a gift to the affluent that misses many Canadians and their accomplishment, those who have been bestowed the honour can wear it with pride, in a country best known for its modesty. Highly recommended to those who love all things Canadian history, as well as the reader who is keen to learn something about true Canadiana.

I stumbled upon this book when searching my local library catalogue and could not pass up the opportunity to learn a little more about Canada and the Order. While I always thought that being granted the honour of the Order of Canada was something special, I was completely unaware of its political side and the fight to get Canada its own form of recognition. McCreery uses the various chapters of the book to tell the harrowing tale of the Order’s development, including the fight not to create it. While Canada live a long time under the auspices of British rule, the Order became something that Canada could use to differentiate itself from other countries, including their fellow Commonwealth cousins. McCreery offered much detail throughout each chapter as the history piles up and momentum increased for a merit-based award only Canadians could earn. The narrative tells quite the tale and McCreery lays it all out for the curious reader who is bound to take something away from this, as I have. The evolution of the award came about to ensure its neutrality was not lost, though there is a great deal of politics behind its inception and evolution, including some of the choices to earn the honour. McCreery makes this journey an fascinating one that anyone with an interest in history ought to take, if only to learn a little more about the world around them. I will definitely be looking to enrich my Canadian history knowledge with more by Christopher McCreery in the coming months!

Kudos, Mr. McCreery, for this wonderful tome that captures the need to recognize greatness while remaining somewhat bashful. You sold me on the need for the Order and I cannot wait to see what else you have to share.

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A Book for All Seasons, a different sort of Book Challenge: https://www.goodreads.com/group/show/248185-a-book-for-all-seasons