Cultural Nationalism and William French's Book Reviews in the Globe and Mail (1961-66).

The early book reviews of William French, literary editor of the Globe and Mail from 1961 to 1990, reflect his years as an education and political reporter. At a time when cultural nationalism was cresting in the late 1950s and early 1960s, he refused to engage in what Desmond Pacey called the "perpetual hopefulness" of Canadian literary criticism, arguing instead that there was no Canadian literature, only literature that should be judged purely on literary merits. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]