Here is an excerpt from the introduction to Roaming The Big Land that provides a taste of the book’s flavour:

“It would be far-fetched to suggest that Canada’s age-old problems of regional and cultural cleavage can be overcome by sitting its people down together to share some meals and good conversation. But perhaps there is something to the notion that it would be beneficial to Canadian unity if all of its people could at some point in their lives strike out across–and up and down–our half of the continent, eating and talking along the way. Everyone should see first hand the effect the collapse of the fishery has had on small coastal communities throughout the Atlantic provinces

“and the impact of global warming on Arctic ecology.

“We should all have the chance to stroll the streets of old Quebec, the loveliest urban landscape in the country, at least once, and to discover for ourselves that the prairies aren’t as flat as conventional wisdom would have it. And at some point in their lives, everyone should gawk at the giant Douglas firs and red cedars of the British Columbia coast, trees that pushed above the dripping forest floor long before the voyages of Cabot and Cartier.

“This book is a collection of stories that are in essence a celebration of Canada. It takes the reader on a vicarious journey throughout the country in the hope that it will whet the appetite for experiencing Canada from coast to coast to coast. The stories cover every province and territory, and attempt in a very personal way to capture the essence of each…The picture of Canada painted here is not complete, for it is impossible in such a vast country to visit every city, town, and hamlet, to paddle every lake and climb every mountain, to get under the skin of every distinct community. But I hope the resulting canvas is reflective of the character and diversity of the country and offers a sense of its multifaceted identity.”

To order Roaming The Big Land Flavours of Canada, please go to www.penumbrapress.com.

Winner Gourmand World Cookbook Award for culinary travel.