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Rudy Wiebe

Author of A discovery of strangers

38+ Works 1,132 Members 25 Reviews 1 Favorited

About the Author

A firm belief in the redemptive possibilities of history dominates Rudy Wiebe's fiction. His characters search for community, for a spiritual collective informed and strengthened by historical consciousness. This attempt to unite the present and the past stems from Wiebe's Mennonite religious show more background. Central to the Mennonite belief is the rejection of loyalty to contemporary and worldly government; personal commitment belongs, instead, to the religious community, with its hard-earned historical heritage as a nonconformist movement. Wiebe was born in a northern Saskatchewan farming community; in 1947 the family moved to Alberta, and he completed his education at the University of Alberta, where he teaches. Wiebe's first novel, Peace Shall Destroy Many (1962), addresses pacifism, a belief central to Mennonites. The novel's hero faces a moral quandary when forced to choose between religious convictions and Canadian nationalistic fervor during World War II. While The Blue Mountains of China (1970) records Mennonite history, The Temptations of Big Bear (1973) examines the destruction of Indian culture in white Canada, and The Scorched-Wood People (1977) takes up the plight of the Metis---those with mixed blood; all three novels focus on minorities who must struggle to maintain their sense of community. Ideas repugnant to the Mennonite sensibility, violence and self-destruction, figure in The Mad Trapper (1980), which recounts the hunt for a man whose isolation has driven him into madness. In 1980 Wiebe's short stories were collected in The Angel of the Tar Sands and Other Stories. Stylistically, Wiebe gives little ground to the reader, for his fiction is characterized by difficult dialects, a web of details, and a dense style. (Bowker Author Biography) Rudy Wiebe is the author of several short story collections and essays. He is also the author of eight novels, including A Discovery of Strangers and The Temptations of Big Bear, both winners of the Governor General's Award for Fiction. He lives in Edmonton, Alberta. (Publisher Provided) show less

Works by Rudy Wiebe

A discovery of strangers (1994) 164 copies
Peace Shall Destroy Many (1962) 148 copies
The Temptations of Big Bear (1973) 107 copies
Sweeter Than All The World (1656) 85 copies
The Blue Mountains of China (1970) 61 copies
The Scorched-Wood People (1977) 41 copies
The Mad Trapper (1980) 36 copies
Big Bear (2008) 36 copies
Come Back (1886) 34 copies
The Story-Makers (1970) 23 copies
First and Vital Candle (1968) 20 copies
Hidden Buffalo (2003) 19 copies

Associated Works

The Oxford Book of Canadian Short Stories in English (1986) — Contributor — 111 copies
Fruits of the Earth (1933) — Afterword, some editions — 81 copies
The New Oxford Book of Canadian Short Stories (1986) — Contributor — 72 copies
Tongue Screws and Testimonies (2010) — Contributor — 21 copies

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As much as I wanted to keep up with Big Bear I just couldn't handle Wiebe's bizarre array of form, perspectives, and format. I got bogged down, confused with the details, and frankly the moments of lyrical beauty were not worth the work, which started to feel like a trudge. I will never forget the scene where BB's son makes a horse come, even if I wanted to, which I do.
 
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b.masonjudy | 2 other reviews | Dec 5, 2020 |
This novel tells the story of Adam Wiebe, born in the 1930s in Western Canada. Adam is interested in his family history, and interspersed with his present-day story are stories of his ancestors, going back to the 1500s. I enjoyed both the modern story and the historical ones. My problem with the book, though, is that the two don't come together very well. The historical stories are disjointed and I had trouble keeping track of names of characters and was mostly unclear as to how they linked together. Overall, I feel I've read a novella (about Adam) and a series of short stories tenuously linked to it. At least the writing was good!… (more)
 
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LynnB | 1 other review | Jul 28, 2020 |
didn't quite get the purpose of this book. boring as could be.
 
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mahallett | 3 other reviews | Jul 23, 2020 |

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Works
38
Also by
6
Members
1,132
Popularity
#22,675
Rating
3.8
Reviews
25
ISBNs
97
Languages
3
Favorited
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