The Act of Writing is the only all-Canadian essay anthology. It provides an appealing alternative for those who want more than a token selection of Canadian materials in a reader. Devoting a chapter to each rhetorical mode, this reader showcases Canadian readings that exemplify the mode and bring it to life.

Chapter 1 NARRATION

GEORGE GABORI, "Coming of Age in Putnok" CAROL SHIELDS, "Encounter" PATRICK LANE, "There Is a Season" CAROL GEDDES, "Growing Up Native"

Chapter 2 EXAMPLE

MARGARET WENTE, "Busy, Busy, Busy" KAREN VON HAHN, "Self-Serving Propaganda" JEFFREY ROSENTHAL, "Poker Power" JOE FIORITO, "The Fire Hall Down the Street" GORAN SIMIC, "Goodbye Muse, Hello Prada"

Chapter 3 DESCRIPTION

CHRISTY McLAREN, "Suitcase Lady" RUDY WIEBE, "The Bull" CHARLES YALE HARRISON, "In the Trenches" EMILY CARR, "D?Sonoqua"

Chapter 4 CAUSE AND EFFECT

PATRICIA PEARSON, "Avoiding the Big C: A Little Simple Advice" MARC GARNEAU, "Canada Must Put the Planet's Interests First" PAUL D?ANGELO, "The Step Not Taken" NAHEED MUSTAFA, "My Body Is My Own Business" LINDA McQUAIG, "Killing Machines" JUNE CALLWOOD, "Forgiveness" NATHALIE PETROWSKI, "The Seven-Minute Life of Marc Lepine" CRISANTA SAMPANG, "Trading Motherhood for Dollars"

Chapter 5 COMPARISON AND CONTRAST

DORIS ANDERSON, "The 51-Per-Cent Minority" CATHERINE PIGOTT, "Chicken-Hips" STEPHANIE NOLEN, "Regine Mamba" MICHAEL CRUMMEY, "The Fish, the Fish" DREW HAYDEN TAYLOR, "This Boat Is My Boat" CATHARINE PARR TRAILL, "Remarks of Security of Person and Property in Canada" LAURENCE HILL, "Blank + White = Black" JON EVANS, "Apocalypse Soon"

Chapter 6 ANALOGY AND RELATED DEVICES

Dr. VINCENT LAM and Dr. COLIN LEE, "Dr. Lam's Perspective: Go on a Canoe Trip" BASIL JOHNSTON, "Modern Cannibals of the Wilds" SAMANTHA BENNETT, "It's Not Just the Weather That's Cooler in Canada" C. B. MacKINTOSH, "Moss Campion"

Chapter 7 CLASSIFICATION

Hon. DAVID LAM, "Pulling Together" IAN and WILL FERGUSON, "Theatre" HUGH MacLENNAN, "A Sound Beyond Hearing"

Chapter 8 PROCESS ANALYSIS

Dr. MARK BERNSTEIN, "Yes, It Is Brain Surgery" ALBERT KOEHL, "Hockey Etiquette for the Beginner" CATHERINE FORD, "Yahoo, It's Calgary" CHRISTIE BLATCHFORD, "Mother's Milk" STEPHEN LEACOCK, "How to Live to Be 200"

Chapter 9 ARGUMENTATION AND PERSUASION

MARTIN HOCKING, "Capping the Great Cup Debate" KILDARE DOBBS, "The Scar" JOY KOGAWA, "Grinning and Happy" CANDACE SAVAGE, "Stuck on the Prairies: Where Is Here?" MARGARET ATWOOD, "Letter to America" NAOMI KLEIN, "Local Foreign Policy" RITA SCHINDLER, "Thanks for Not Killing My Son" ROBERT CHRISTY, "Life with Cerebral Palsy" Lt.-Gen. ROMEO DALLAIRE, with Major Brent Beardsley, "Cri de coeur"

New to this Edition

Engaging essays: 50 current selections explore a variety of hot topics, including globalization, war, terrorism, racism, homelessness, sexism, prejudice against the disabled, and the challenges of being an immigrant. Through clear examples of high-quality writing, these readings will inspire students to do their own best writing. For the 8th edition, the author renewed the collection by replacing 35% of the essays, so this book continues to excite and challenge readers.

Stimulates discussion with questions: Motivating students to discuss readings intelligently with their peers, a section entitled Ideas for Discussion and Writing follows each selection offering themes for analysis and debate. These open-ended questions encourage exploration and can be used as a springboard for discussion.

Appeals to all students: Students will find selections on an array of multicultural topics, such as Carol Geddes' Growing Up Native and Naheed Mustafa's My Body is My Own Business.

Introduces Canadian writers and Canadian culture: A variety of selections provide an interesting take on Canada and what it means to be Canadian. Drew Hayden Taylor shows readers the insanity of canoeists through Native Canadian eyes; Albert Koehl explains male behaviour during hockey playoffs.

Encourage students to see writing as a skill: The Act of Writing offers advice about how good writing is produced in the real world?not just through blueprinting an essay before writing, but through a process of discovery, through thinking before writing. The Introduction provides an overview of the writing process based on current research.

What you need, where you need it.

Instructor Resources

McGraw-Hill Ryerson provides centralized online access to our supplemental resources. Many of our in-class solutions are supported by superior teaching aids like presentation ready PowerPoint slides, instructor's manuals, test banks, videos, and more. Text book supplements are accessible through the online McGraw-Hill Connect™ platform. Titles currently not supported by Connect are available via text specific Online Learning Centres.

Student Resources

McGraw-Hill Ryerson textbooks go beyond the traditional print format to include a comprehensive digital solution for students. Our key print titles include no charge access to the eBook and corresponding online study program. The eStore provides a full selection of McGraw-Hill textbooks along with information on the specific study program provided with each textbook. In most cases, you will also have the option go digital and save by purchasing an access card for a separate eBook and online study program.

Click here to request a review copy