In a doubly centenary life--not only nudging one hundred years itself but drawing its life-blood from the hearts of two centuries--William Douw Lighthall was an articulate witness to Canadian literature's romantic and modernist developments and an original contributor to the arcana of aboriginal history and idiosyncratic philosophy. In his professional roles as a lawyer, historian, novelist, poet, philosopher, and editor, Lighthall distinguished himself as a Canadian achiever, mastering whatever trades he undertook. That life happened to cast him some fairly superficial and tangential tasks is attributable more to his acceptance of hazard than to any lack of ambition or ability on his part. In fact, history may eventually come to acknowledge his philosophic and historical contributions not merely as peripheral accomplishments but as the periphery defining his core accomplishments as a writer, as a poet, and especially as an editor. Lighthall was very much a territorial figure, his...