Power Notes: Leadership by Analogy

Elizabeth Rollins Epperly recounts her experience of leadership as the president of the University of Prince Edward Island in this beautifully written creative memoir—a book that is both funny and moving.

When she became president of UPEI in 1995, Epperly began to reshape the university into a more vibrant, forward-looking and inclusive institution. Her tenure was a success, but she met many obstacles along the way. Epperly’s narrative considers analogies of leadership, particularly her own past experiences, as ways of understanding the challenges she faced as president. She also draws insight from the 2500-year-old meditations of Chinese philosopher Lao Tzu, a search for the middle path between contending forces.

Her account of the kinds of people who often oppose change, and her mindful use of Lao Tzu to bring resolution, makes for nothing short of mesmerizing reading. Known for her profound and sensitive literary readings, Epperly also has an intuitive understanding of body language and of unseen flows of energy that adds layers of fascination to the narrative. Running a large institution is challenging enough; doing so as its first female president required fortitude and insight (not to mention patience).

This book will interest those contemplating power and authority in their own lives. If you have ever signed a contract or worked against behind-the-scenes politics, Power Notes may help you to think about analogies of leadership, and positions of power, in new ways.

ELIZABETH ROLLINS EPPERLY is a scholar, author, curator, English professor, and former president (1995-1998) of the University of Prince Edward Island. She taught at Memorial University of Newfoundland for eight years and at the University of Prince Edward Island for 22 years where she founded the L.M. Montgomery Institute and served as UPEI's fourth ( and first female) president.