BOOK REVIEW — Paydirt a romanticized, comprehensive account of Canadian mining industry

The intentions of Charles Pelley and Iona Wright in Paydirt: The Spirit of Canadian Mining are lofty and noble indeed: they set out to divest Canadians of their misconceptions about mining.

They come close. The result is both a presentable coffee-table book, and a brief but serviceable introduction to Canadian mining.

Author Pelley recounts how, in 1983, when he lived in Labrador City, Nfld., a writer from the monthly magazine Equinox arrived in town to gather material for an article. The product of the visit was a story that described the town as “a disgusting experience for anyone not raised there.” His brush with journalistic wrongheadedness encouraged him to put together a book that would show the real world of Canadian mining and its people.

In performing this task, Pelley is nothing if not comprehensive: he looks at the various stages of mining, from exploration to production and final closure; he leads the reader through stopes and open pits, the bush and mining towns; and he leavens the book with the history and romance of the Canadian mining industry. Iona Wright’s accompanying photographs are atmospheric and occasionally touching.

Pelley sometimes allows his enthusiasm to turn the book from exposition into polemic, leaving the reader to wonder at the sermonizing. His research into mining history could be more accurate. For example, he places the development of the Labrador iron fields earlier than the development of the gold and copper camps of northwestern Quebec.

Pelley, who holds a PhD in mining engineering, also has a tendency to slip into the sleepy passive prose of academic discourse when he should be imbuing his subject with the color it deserves. The book’s heart is in the right place, however, and, at its best, that heart beats vigorously.

Paydirt: The Spirit of Canadian Mining is $39.95 and available at most bookstores.