A Magical Place

Toronto Island and Its People

by Bill Freeman

photographs by David Laurence

A Magical Place is a celebration of Toronto Island--and islanders--past and present. It highlights important moments in island history and offers an appealing selection of archival and contemporary images.
Toronto Island occupies a special place in the hearts and minds of Torontonians: a fifteen-minute ferry ride across the harbour takes the visitor to a peaceful crescent of green where willows overhang the water, ducks and geese ply the lagoons, and people stroll the beaches and boardwalk.
Yet despite the idyllic setting, Toronto Island has experienced more than its share of conflict. Over the years, there have been many competing visions that have shaped its complex and colourful history. Today, the island is both a unique public park enjoyed by over a million visitors yearly as well as home to a thriving community on Ward's and Algonquin Islands.
A Magical Place is a celebration of Toronto Island--and islanders--past and present. It highlights important moments in island history and offers an appealing selection of archival and contemporary images.

About the Author

Bill Freeman

BILL FREEMAN is an award-winning historian, novelist, and screenwriter. Among his previous publications are Far from Home: Canadians in the First World War, which he co-authored with Richard Nielsen; A Magical Place: Toronto Island and Its People, winner of a Certificate of Commendation from Heritage Toronto in 2000; Casa Loma: Toronto's Fairy-Tale Castle and Its Owner Sir Henry Pellatt, which received the Heritage Toronto Award of Merit in 1999; Their Town: The Mafia, the Media and the Party Machine, a study of political power in Hamilton co-authored with Marsha Hewitt; and 1005: Political Life in a Union Local. Bill Freeman is also a popular children's author who has won the prestigious Vicky Metcalf Award for "a body of work" and a Canada Council Award for Juvenile Literature.

Reviews

"...illustrated with excellent archival material and brilliant contemporary photographs that capture the island's exquisite beauty and scenic variety. Freeman's text describes the island's often-turbulent development and brings to life the many struggles of its people. This excellent history of 'a magical place' will interest and entertain Torontonians and visitors alike."
Julie Rekai Rickerd, Canadian Book Review Annual

Subjects (BISAC)

Subjects

Shopping Cart
Scroll to Top