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Biography & Autobiography Presidents & Heads Of State

John Turner

An Intimate Biography of Canada's 17th Prime Minister

by (author) Steve Paikin

Publisher
Sutherland House
Initial publish date
Nov 2022
Category
Presidents & Heads of State, Canadian, Political, General, Post-Confederation (1867-)
  • Hardback

    ISBN
    9781989555835
    Publish Date
    Nov 2022
    List Price
    $36.95

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Description

In this masterful and engaging biography, acclaimed journalist Steve Paikin brings to life John Turner (1929-2020), one of the most glamorous and successful politicians in Canadian history. Born in England, raised in BC, Turner was a champion sprinter and a Rhodes scholar who captured the national imagination as escort for Princess Margaret on her 1959 Canadian tour. Elected to Parliament in 1962, he served in Prime Minister Lester Pearson’s cabinet and as Pierre Trudeau’s attorney general, minister of justice, and finance minister. In 1984, he won a hotly-contested Liberal leadership contest and served a brief four months as Canada’s seventeenth prime minister before falling to Brian Mulroney in a Progressive Conservative landslide. In this surprisingly candid and personal book, Paikin draws on unprecedented access to Turner’s personal and public papers to show how he struggled to meet the towering expectations that came with his abundant gifts, and keep his faith in Canadian democracy despite the challenges of his own career.

About the author

Steve Paikin is anchor and senior editor of The Agenda with Steve Paikin, TVO’s flagship current affairs program since 2006. He has written three previous books on politics, including Paikin and the Premiers, and one on hockey. Paikin has spent thirty years in journalism, twenty of them at Ontario’s provincial broadcaster. He lives in Toronto.

Steve Paikin's profile page