"I was conceived in a green canoe on the Bay of Quinte and born in a taxi between Trenton and Belleville."¹

An auspicious beginning for a man who would spend much of his life moving around. "I grew up pretty much an outcast. For a variety of reasons, one of which was that I was rootless. My father was a librarian and went from job to more prestigious job in Belleville, Windsor, Toronto and Saskatoon, where he was chief librarian. It seemed we were always picking up and leaving. Another thing that made me an outcast was that I was very small for my age and always looked much younger. In addition, I had no interest in sports whatsoever, partly owing to my small stature. I was a passionate birdwatcher and, to cap it all off, a writer. My teachers thought this was great, but the other kids...