This book, which describes an exploration of the lakes of Canada, was chosen as our region’s "One Book, One Community" selection. Each chapter describes the author’s experiences with a different lake in Canada. He purposely avoids the Great Lakes, as plenty has already been written about those.

The author talks about the history and geography of each lake, but it is more a recounting of his personal journey and his interactions with the people he meets in each area of Canada. As such, it was a very enjoyable read, but I would have been happier to learn more about the lakes themselves. Because Casey touches on so many aspects of the lakes, including cultural and scientific issues, there was not enough depth for my tastes.

Nevertheless, there is one common theme that pervades all the stories, and that is how the activities of mankind, including overfishing, dumping of sewage and building of gigantic "cottages", are killing our lakes. Despite the gloomy outlook, Casey shows how individually, those living close to the lakes and the rest of us who simply want to visit occasionally to enjoy their beauty can reverse the downward trend. ( )

The author visits eleven different lake sites in Canada and discusses his experiences at each. He describes not just physical and ecological characteristics of each place, but also delves into the soul of the lake (if such a thing can be possible). We get a chance to meet the people he meets in his efforts to get a better understanding of each lake or series of lakes and its place in the grander scheme of the surrounding region. The book clearly demonstrates his assertion that most Canadians are very much lake people inhabiting a 'Lake-land' regardless of whether they live in Newfoundland, British Columbia or anywhere in between.