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September 2024 Vol. 62 No. 1

Before Canada the nation was formed, northern North America was engaged for millennia with continental trade and population movements and for almost a millennium with cross-Atlantic traffic. These well-written essays—pleasures to read—document in detail a series of broad areas of exchange in eastern North America from 12,300 BCE, followed by the movement of Athabascans from the Northwest to the US Southwest, and later European commercial fishers, whalers, and traders interacting with Northeastern First Nations, which comprises the bulk of the book. Competitive and independent, these poorly documented thousands of Europeans are partly known from archaeology; the book weaves artifact and site data with letters and descriptions into rich tapestries. A theme repeats: First Nations had economies with practices as firm as those of Europeans, but not congruent with capitalist debt bookkeeping. The well-documented Hudson's Bay Company used that system; in contrast, the numerous Basques and other mariners onshore every summer traded directly, their goods including hardy small boats integrated into First Nations' lives. With its fully documented sources and endnote clarifications, Before Canada is a must-read volume for everyone teaching Canadian history before Confederation (1871). This is altogether a fascinating read; its breadth and lively details are enthralling.

--A. B. Kehoe, emeritus, Marquette University

Summing Up: Essential. General readers, advanced undergraduates through faculty, and professionals.