Non-Fiction Pick of the Week: Where the Pavement Ends

Where the Pavement Ends by Marie Wadden 2008

Prior to the 1950s a condition known as FASD (Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder)was indiscernible in Canadian Aboriginal societies. After three generations of alcoholism, the chances for these native populations to avoid suicide and violence is becoming fainter with each disappointing effort to better their lives. Wadden writes about community healing, seeking solutions, and community planning as she witnessed it in her travels from British Columbia to Labrador. Where the Pavement Ends is not about gloom; it is about hope, healing, and the role of northern activists and extraordinary, ordinary people who fight for the well-being of First Nations, Inuit and Metis people in Canada – even against the empty promises of governments.

Marie Wadden has won awards and journalism prizes in both Canada and the United States. She currently lives in Newfoundland.