As you are madly rushing about Charlottetown this week shopping for last-minute Christmas gifts, allow me to recommend Hon. Marion Reid’s new book These Roots Run Deep.

I bought a copy two weeks ago, and one night last week, with nothing on television and a touch of a cold coming on, I sat down to start the book. I didn’t put it down until I finished, four hours later.

Marion spins a good tale, and the book, a review of her life from birth to present, is a compelling read, full of adventure (I think I counted four episodes where, by all rights, Marion should be dead now) and the joys and sorrows of growing up first a member of her parents’ large family and then leading her own.

These Roots Run Deep should be required reading for all new Islanders, as it effectively conveys one sense of what growing up in rural Prince Edward Island during the 20th century was like; for those of us who are sometimes bemused by how PEI works, understanding that history is a useful tool for understanding.

These Roots Run Deep is published by Tangle Lane, and is available at bookstores across the Island. I’m sure if you gave Marion a call she would be happy to sell you a copy too.