Secondary Sources in the History of Canadian Medicine: A Bibliography – Volume 2 (review)

246 LETTERS IN CANADA 2000 puzzling over the latus clavus; her book, like his, fails to advance as quickly as the child; and Locke is her reigning influence. The novel has shifts of tone. Its earlier pages have a satirical bite that resembles Elizabeth Hamilton=s Memoirs of Modern Philosophers; subsequently , its death scenes, faintings, temporary madness, and parental curses are much more like the sentimental novels of the period. Opie has been compared to Jane Austen, but Austen skewered fainting and running mad in her juvenilia. Despite these shortcomings, and perhaps because of them, I recommend this novel. Its contradictions illustrate the conflicting opinions even Godwin=s friends had about his theories. (MARTHA F. BOWDEN) Secondary Sources in the History of Canadian Medicine: A Bibliography B Volume 2. Compiled by Charles G. Roland and Jacques Bernier Wilfrid Laurier University Press. xxxiv, 246. $74.95 Bibliographies, collection guides, repository directories, and historiographical essays are important reference tools in identifying and assessing source materials. Such reference tools are few in the field of Canadian medical history. Thus the long-awaited publication of Secondary Sources in the History of Canadian Medicine: A Bibliography B Volume Two, compiled by medical historians Charles G. Roland, MD and Jacques Bernier, PhD, constitutes a significant contribution and welcomed resource for scholars, students, and others working in this field. Volume 2 of Secondary Sources in the History of Canadian Medicine: A Bibliography is a continuation and an expansion of an earlier bibliography of the same title (now referred to as Volume One). Roland and Bernier state that both volumes are required for a full view of the scope of historical writings related to Canadian medicine. Volume One was published in 1984, and contains references to the Canadian medical-historical literature published until that date. Carrying on from there, the second volume contains references published between 1984 and 1998. Volume Two also includes material published prior to 1984 that was omitted from the first volume. Both volumes cite only secondary source materials, such as books, book chapters, journal and magazine articles, pamphlets, brochures, and theses, and not primary source materials whether they are published or not. In terms of format, both Volume One and Volume Two are divided into biographical , subject, and author sections, and include tables of subject classification codes to assist the user in accessing material in the subject section. Volume Two indeed complements and improves upon the first bibliography . In this second volume, a concerted effort was made to include more French-language material as well as related social history work. That is, in addition to the expected medical-scientific references, entries on subjects such as poor relief, famine, medical economics, folk medicine, philanthropy, HUMANITIES 247 ethnicity and health care, and other such topics constitute a more encompassing overview of work being done in the field of medical history. This reflects the expanding research interests and broadening parameters of the field during the past two decades. New scholarship in such areas as the history of nursing in Canada, which is covered much more comprehensively than was the case in the first volume, as well as Amerindian and Inuit medicine, mental health, folk and popular medicine, hygiene, maternal health, sex behaviour, and social welfare, among other categories, is again evidence of the growth of this discipline. Users may be disappointed to learn that there are no annotations in this bibliography. In the introduction, Roland and Bernier state that this is an enumerative bibliography, and that they have made no attempt to exclude >bad= or badly written history. Fair enough, and it is admirably inclusive of the editors. Arguably, the onerous task of writing annotations for this bibliography would perhaps have delayed its publication yet another sixteen years! More often than not, users can quickly assess by page length and publication source the suitability of a reference for their research. Still, it is my contention that annotations in bibliographies are highly desirable, so as to clarify content and identify works of differing theoretical frameworks or methodologies, which is not always evident from titles. It is hoped that the next volume of this bibliography will be available electronically, preferably on-line. Researchers in the field of medical history...