Product Details Synopsis John Crosbie became famous in Canada as a politician unlike the others, someone with a sharp tongue who has always spoken his mind. Now that he is out of politics, he has given us a book that will have many politicians and public figures running for coverand many readers chuckling and cheering him on. This memoir takes us from Crosbie's younger days as a medal-winning student to municipal politics in St. John's and then the crucible of Joey Smallwood's corrupt dictatorship. (And if that phrase seems too strong, the proof is in these pages.) The stories of those Newfoundland days seem almost incredible now, and affected Crosbie's attitude towards greater provincial powers. We tend to forget that John Crosbie came close to succeeding Joe Clark as Tory leader. Typically, it was his testy response ("I can't speak Chinese either") to a question about his French that crippled his campaign and gave Brian Mulroney a narrow win. But he served at the very highest levels as minister of finance, transport, justice, international trade, and fisheries and oceans. He was arguably Mulroney's most effective cabinet minister, and it is instructive to see just how progressive his legislative recordwhich included promotion of gay rights and divorce reformwas. He was not, however, the most reticent of ministers, and this book is studded with unrepentant "Crosbie-isms." Never one to worry about political correctness, he delivers powerful broadsides on such topics as patronage, feminism, and the "lazy" and "uninformed" media. In No Holds Barred, Crosbie offers trenchant opinions on issues ranging from Atlantic Canada's prospects after Quebec separation and the desirability of fostering a closer relationship with Castro's Cuba. At the same time, he shrewdly and unflinchingly assesses the politicians he has known. He describes the baseness of Smallwood, the laidback style of Frank Moores, the vacillation of Joe Clark, and the crass opportunism of the "brothel-creeping" Liberals. He evaluates Kim Campbell's disastrous leadership of the Conservative Party and discusses his epic feud with "Tequila" Sheila Copps. Nothing is withheld in this entertaining (and sometimes outrageous) memoir by one of the dominant politicians of his generation. Product Identifiers ISBN-10 0771024274 ISBN-13 9780771024276 Product ID (ePID) 1003395 Key Details Author John C. Crosbie Number Of Pages 512 pages Format Hardcover Publication Date 1997-10-25 Language English Publisher McClelland Stewart Publication Year 1997 Additional Details Illustrated Yes Dimensions Weight 8.8 Oz Height 1.5 In. Width 6 In. Length 9 In. Target Audience Group Trade Classification Method LCCN 98-107902 LC Classification Number F1034.3.C77A3 1997 Dewey Decimal 971.064/7/092 B Dewey Edition 21 USA domestic shipments are shipped USPS Media Mail with Tracking International shipments are shipped USPS First Class International Mail with Tracking