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Born into debilitating poverty, Smallwood is sustained by a bottomless faith in his own industry. His unabashed ambition is to "rise not from rags to riches, but from obscurity to world renown." To this end, he undertakes tasks both sublime and baffling--walking 700 miles along a Newfoundland railroad line in a self-martyring union drive; narrating a homespun radio spot; and endlessly irritating and ingratiating himself with the Newfoundland political machine. His opaque and constant incitement is an unconsummated love for his childhood friend, Sheilagh Fielding. Headstrong and dissolute, she weaves in and out of Smallwood's life like a salaried goad, alternately frustrating and illuminating his ambitions. Smallwood is harried as well by Newfoundland's subtle gravity, a sense that he can never escape the tug of his native land, since his only certainty is the island itself--that "massive assertion of land, sea's end, the outer limit of all the water in the world, a great, looming, sky-obliterating chunk of rock."
The Colony of Unrequited Dreams bogs down after a time in its detailing of Smallwood's many political intrigues and in the lingering matter of a mysterious letter supposedly written by Fielding. However, when he speculates on the secret motives of his peers, or when he reveals his own hyperbolic fantasies and grandiose hopes--matters no one would ever confess aloud--the novel is both apt and amiable. Best of all is to watch Smallwood's inevitable progress toward a practical cynicism. It seems nothing less than miraculous that his countless disappointments pave the way for his ascension, that his private travails ultimately align with the land he loves. This is history resuscitated. --Ben Guterson
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Book Description Paperback. Condition: Very Good. 'They should have called it Old Lost Land, not Newfoundland, but Old Lost Land.' So says Charlie Smallwood of the birthplace to which he had himself contributed thirteen children. 'Thirteen', he would say, 'A luckless number for a luckless brood.' But the eldest of the thirteen was Joseph, born on Christmas Eve 1900 and fated to lead the colony out of English rule and into the arms of its giant neighbour Canada. Grandson of a bootmaker, son of an impoverished drunk, wrongly expelled schoolboy, failed journalist, would-be socialist firebrand and trade-union pioneer, Joey Smallwood suffered chronically from bad luck and poor judgement. Yet his rise to power, seen through his own eyes and those of Sheilagh Fielding, satirical columnist and scourge of Newfoundland politicians of every hue, seems in retrospect to have been inevitable. THE COLONY OF UNREQUITED DREAMS uses the unlikely career of Newfoundland's first premier as its starting point to create a mystery, a love story and a tragi-comic elegy which is nothing less than the national history of an impossible country stranded on the brink of the world. The book has been read, but is in excellent condition. Pages are intact and not marred by notes or highlighting. The spine remains undamaged. Seller Inventory # GOR002032992
Book Description Paperback. Condition: Very Good. The Colony of Unrequited Dreams This book is in very good condition and will be shipped within 24 hours of ordering. The cover may have some limited signs of wear but the pages are clean, intact and the spine remains undamaged. This book has clearly been well maintained and looked after thus far. Money back guarantee if you are not satisfied. See all our books here, order more than 1 book and get discounted shipping. Seller Inventory # 7719-9781862300637
Book Description Condition: Very Good. 1710282795. 3/12/2024 10:33:15 PM. Seller Inventory # U9781862300637
Book Description Paperback. Condition: Used; Good. Dispatched, from the UK, within 48 hours of ordering. This book is in good condition but will show signs of previous ownership. Please expect some creasing to the spine and/or minor damage to the cover. Seller Inventory # CHL1256943
Book Description Paperback. Condition: Very Good. This book is in very good condition and will be shipped within 24 hours of ordering. The cover may have some limited signs of wear but the pages are clean, intact and the spine remains undamaged. This book has clearly been well maintained and looked after thus far. Money back guarantee if you are not satisfied. See all our books here, order more than 1 book and get discounted shipping. Seller Inventory # 6545-9781862300637
Book Description Paperback. Condition: Very Good. Seller Inventory # 978186230063U
Book Description Paperback. Condition: Good. As the decades pass and Smallwood's rise converges with Newfoundland's emerging autonomy, these two vexed characters must confront their own frailties and secrets - and their mutual (if doomed) love.'--BOOK JACKET. Owner's name on fep. 576 pages. Seller Inventory # 1008789
Book Description Paperback. Condition: Good. All orders are dispatched the following working day from our UK warehouse. Established in 2004, we have over 500,000 books in stock. No quibble refund if not completely satisfied. Seller Inventory # mon0006189037