Overview

WINNER 2014 Ottawa Book Award for Non-Fiction The definitive portrait of Stephen Harper in power by this country s most trenchant, influential and surprising political commentator. Oh, he won, but he won t last. Oh, he may win again but he won t get a majority. Oh, his trick bag is emptying fast, the ads are backfiring, the people are onto him, and soon his own party will turn on him. And let me tell you, it couldn t happen to a nicer guy . . . Despite a constant barrage of outrage and disbelief from his detractors, Stephen Harper is on his way to becoming one of Canada s most significant prime ministers. He has already been in power longer than Lester B. Pearson and John Diefenbaker. By 2015, and the end of this majority term, he ll have caught up to Brian Mulroney. No matter the ups and downs, the triumphs and the self-inflicted wounds, Harper has been moving to build the Canada he wants the Canada a significant proportion of Canadian voters want or they wouldn t have elected him three times. As Wells writes, He could not win elections without widespread support in the land. . . . Which suggests that Harper has what every successful federal leader has needed to survive over a long stretch of time: a superior understanding of Canada. In The Longer I m Prime Minister, Paul Wells explores just what Harper s understanding of Canada is, and who he speaks for in the national conversation. He explains Harper not only to Harper supporters but also to readers who can t believe he is still Canada s prime minister. In this authoritative, engaging and sometimes deeply critical account of the man, Paul Wells also brings us an illuminating portrait of Canadian democracy: glorious, a little dented, and free.

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9780307361325

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Reviews

Praise for Paul Wells: <br><br> A commentator for whom I have the highest regard. <br>--Mordecai Richler<br><br> A first-class Ottawa reporter. <br>--Robert Fulford<br><br> One of the country's most original jourmalists. <br>--William Johnson, The Globe and Mai l

NATIONAL BESTSELLERFINALIST 2014 - Writers' Trust Shaughnessy Cohen Prize for Political Writing Thoroughly absorbing and intensely readable. --Robert Collison, Toronto Star A lively new book about the secrets of Harper's survival and success. -- CNN Opinion Throughout, Wells gets the politicking and electioneering down perfectly. His signature casual prose style, interspersed with more than a few genuine laughs, makes reading more than 400 pages of bumpy Canadian politics a breeze. -- Quill & Quire One of the most readable and thorough accounts of a man on a mission to change Canada forever.... [ The Longer I'm Prime Minister is] a political book that should be read by every Canadian with a shred of political awareness.... Wells goes well beyond the dime-a-dozen political theories that line the nation's bookshelves and offers rare glimpses of the man behind the myths to the point of (gasp) humanizing him. --James Baxter, Policy Magazine A fascinating, must-read book.... With detailed accounts from his trove of sources, Well describes a period of politics in a style that is at times hilarious, often biting and always informative.... Wells does an important service.... The book is also an excellent play-by-play chronicle of the last 7 years in Canadian politics. -- Policy Options

NATIONAL BESTSELLER Thoroughly absorbing and intensely readable. --Robert Collison, Toronto Star A lively new book about the secrets of Harper's survival and success. -- CNN Opinion Throughout, Wells gets the politicking and electioneering down perfectly. His signature casual prose style, interspersed with more than a few genuine laughs, makes reading more than 400 pages of bumpy Canadian politics a breeze. -- Quill & Quire One of the most readable and thorough accounts of a man on a mission to change Canada forever.... [ The Longer I'm Prime Minister is] a political book that should be read by every Canadian with a shred of political awareness.... Wells goes well beyond the dime-a-dozen political theories that line the nation's bookshelves and offers rare glimpses of the man behind the myths to the point of (gasp) humanizing him. --James Baxter, Policy Magazine A fascinating, must-read book.... With detailed accounts from his trove of sources, Well describes a period of politics in a style that is at times hilarious, often biting and always informative.... Wells does an important service.... The book is also an excellent play-by-play chronicle of the last 7 years in Canadian politics. -- Policy Options

Praise for Paul Wells: A commentator for whom I have the highest regard. --Mordecai Richler A first-class Ottawa reporter. --Robert Fulford One of the country's most original jourmalists. --William Johnson, The Globe and Mai l

NATIONAL BESTSELLERWINNER 2014 - Writers' Trust Shaughnessy Cohen Prize for Political Writing Veteran political columnist Paul Wells has crafted a fast-paced, romping great read about a Prime Minister who is frequently described by the Parliamentary Press Gallery as dull, plodding, and inscrutable. Though viscerally funny and often biting, this book is never partisan or unfair. Impeccably researched, gorgeously written, and deeply insightful, The Longer I'm Prime Minister is an essential read for all political junkies. --Writers' Trust Shaughnessy Cohen Prize for Political Writing Jury citation Thoroughly absorbing and intensely readable. --Robert Collison, Toronto Star A lively new book about the secrets of Harper's survival and success. -- CNN Opinion Throughout, Wells gets the politicking and electioneering down perfectly. His signature casual prose style, interspersed with more than a few genuine laughs, makes reading more than 400 pages of bumpy Canadian politics a breeze. -- Quill & Quire One of the most readable and thorough accounts of a man on a mission to change Canada forever.... [ The Longer I'm Prime Minister is] a political book that should be read by every Canadian with a shred of political awareness.... Wells goes well beyond the dime-a-dozen political theories that line the nation's bookshelves and offers rare glimpses of the man behind the myths to the point of (gasp) humanizing him. --James Baxter, Policy Magazine A fascinating, must-read book.... With detailed accounts from his trove of sources, Well describes a period of politics in a style that is at times hilarious, often biting and always informative.... Wells does an important service.... The book is also an excellent play-by-play chronicle of the last 7 years in Canadian politics. -- Policy Options

Author Information

PAUL WELLS, political editor of Maclean's magazine, has reinvigorated Canadian political writing for more than a decade. His career began in Montreal at The Gazette in 1989; in 1997 he became The Gazette 's national affairs columnist, then moved to the National Post for its launch in 1998. In 2003, he joined Maclean's, where he has won two gold National Magazine Awards for his writing on politics. A regular commentator for both English- and French-language television and radio, he is also the author of the bestseller Right Side Up: The Fall of Paul Martin and the Rise of Stephen Harper's New Conservatism. His blog, Inkless Wells, set the standard for political blogging in Canada.

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