Their Canada and Mine

Mordecai Richler

1961

My grandfather, like so many others, came to Canada by steerage from Poland in 1900 and settled down not far from Main Street in what was to become a ghetto. Here, as in the real America, the immigrants worked under appalling conditions in factories. They rented halls over poolrooms and grocery stores to meet and form burial societies and create sh…

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Creator Bio

Mordecai Richler

1931–2001

Mordecai Richler, a Montreal-born writer who captured the essence of that city’s Jewish community, was the author of novels, screenplays, children’s books, and numerous essays. His often-satirical fictional works featured Jewish Canadian protagonists, and his journalistic essays frequently criticized Canada. Richler received many honors, including a 1974 Academy Award nomination, the Giller Prize, the Stephen Leacock Award, and the title Companion of the Order of Canada.

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