Basil Johnston, author of a dozen books including The Manitous and Indian School Days, is one of North America's most renowned native writers and storytellers. Crazy Dave tells the story of Johnston's Uncle Dave and grandmother Rosa. Through their stories we are given an engrossing, moving portrait of life on the reservation through the better part of this century. The last of Rosa's five sons, David was born with Down's Syndrome. Unable to take care of himself, Rosa was to be forever bound to him, conscripted by love and duty to a life already defined by harsh and tragic circumstances. And yet, David would become as large and has a colourful personality as anyone else in the Cape Croker community. Possessed of the normal range of human emotion, capable of almost astonishing gentleness and fierce anger, he aspired to learn, and struggled to be part of a world in which he would never entirely belong. In that regard, David was - and remains - a poignant and unsettling reflection of his people, engaged in the nearly impossible struggle to sustain and preserve families, a language and a way of life while accommodating the increasingly intrusive ways of white society. Peopled with vivid characters, and beautifully woven stories that are funny and heartbreaking, Crazy Dave is an enchanting and unforgettable portrait of a culture struggling for survival.

Basil Johnston is cherished as an esteemed Anishinaabe writer, storyteller, language teacher and scholar. He was born in Wasauking First Nation in 1929, and was a member of the Chippewas of Nawash Unceded First Nation. Basil wrote fifteen books in English and five in Ojibway.
For his work, Johnston received numerous awards including the Order of Ontario and three honourary doctorates. Basil's accolades include the 2013 Ontario Arts Council Aboriginal Arts Award, the 2007 Anskohk Aboriginal Literary Lifetime Achievement Award, the 2004 Aboriginal Achievement Award for Heritage and Spirituality and the 125th Anniversary of the Confederation of Canada Medal.
Basil Johnston was one of the foremost Anishinaabe writers and storytellers, and his comedic stories about life in residential school, Indian School Days, is a classic. Candies is another of his delightful humourous works. In Think Indian, Basil highlights the critical importance of preserving Indigenous language and culture. Basil passed away at Wiarton, Ontario in 2015 at the age of 86.

Basil Johnston's profile page