''No Great Mischief'' is a 1999 novel by Alistair MacLeod.

Plot synopsis

The novel opens in the present day, with successful orthodontist Alexander MacDonald visiting his elderly older brother Calum in

Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the anch ...

Ontario Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central Ca ...

. The novel explores the emotional bonds of family through flashbacks to their childhood in

Cape Breton Island Cape Breton Island (french: link=no, île du Cap-Breton, formerly '; gd, Ceap Breatainn or '; mic, Unamaꞌki) is an island on the Atlantic coast of North America and part of the province of Nova Scotia, Canada. The island accounts for 18. ...

and young adulthood spent in the mines of

Northern Ontario Northern Ontario is a primary geographic and quasi-administrative region of the Canadian province of Ontario, the other primary region being Southern Ontario. Most of the core geographic region is located on part of the Superior Geological Pro ...

, clan history dating back to 1779, and present-day interactions between the two brothers and a sister. Though written primarily in English,

Scottish Gaelic Scottish Gaelic ( gd, Gàidhlig ), also known as Scots Gaelic and Gaelic, is a Goidelic language (in the Celtic branch of the Indo-European language family) native to the Gaels of Scotland. As a Goidelic language, Scottish Gaelic, as well as ...

and French are used in dialogue and songs. The novel also mirrors

Canadian history The history of Canada covers the period from the arrival of the Paleo-Indians to North America thousands of years ago to the present day. Prior to European colonization, the lands encompassing present-day Canada were inhabited for millennia by ...

as a whole, taking its title from

James Wolfe James Wolfe (2 January 1727 – 13 September 1759) was a British Army officer known for his training reforms and, as a major general, remembered chiefly for his victory in 1759 over the French at the Battle of the Plains of Abraham in Quebec. ...

's assertion in the

Battle of the Plains of Abraham The Battle of the Plains of Abraham, also known as the Battle of Quebec (french: Bataille des Plaines d'Abraham, Première bataille de Québec), was a pivotal battle in the Seven Years' War (referred to as the French and Indian War to describe ...

that Scottish soldiers should be sent into battle because "they are hardy, intrepid, accustomed to a rough country, and no great mischief if they fall." The enduring linguistic and cultural tensions that have defined Canadian society are also reflected in the novel; during their time working in the

uranium Uranium is a chemical element with the symbol U and atomic number 92. It is a silvery-grey metal in the actinide series of the periodic table. A uranium atom has 92 protons and 92 electrons, of which 6 are valence electrons. Uranium is weak ...

mines of

Elliot Lake Elliot Lake is a city in Algoma District, Ontario, Canada. It is north of Lake Huron, midway between the cities of Sudbury and Sault Ste. Marie in the Northern Ontario region. Once dubbed the "uranium capital of the world," Elliot Lake has since ...

, the brothers are frequently in conflict with their

francophone French became an international language in the Middle Ages, when the power of the Kingdom of France made it the second international language, alongside Latin. This status continued to grow into the 18th century, by which time French was the l ...

co-workers. The novel explores the themes of brotherhood and the conflict between the rise of individualism and family in the post-modern world. Alex loves his

alcoholic Alcoholism is, broadly, any drinking of alcohol that results in significant mental or physical health problems. Because there is disagreement on the definition of the word ''alcoholism'', it is not a recognized diagnostic entity. Predomina ...

brother, Calum, despite his problems because Alex sees the potential in Calum. Alex lets his brother die in peace and with dignity even though he is a convicted murderer and alcoholic. The author uses Alex as an example for all human beings. MacLeod wants the reader to realize that "all of us are better when we're loved" and that forgiveness and love for humanity are the only weapons humans have against the destructive forces of evil. Calum is posited as a contemporary clan chief of the MacDonalds defending the lost cause of Gaelic culture. His defence of Highland values parallels the devastating consequences of the Highland support for Charles Stuart in 1745. Throughout the book, Calum defends clan values in spite of the personal consequences. His distant

California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...

n nephew, who has no idea of these values, steals from the

Quebec Quebec ( ; )According to the Canadian government, ''Québec'' (with the acute accent) is the official name in Canadian French and ''Quebec'' (without the accent) is the province's official name in Canadian English is one of the thirte ...

miners. Calum's defence leads to murder and hard time, while the nephew blithely returns to California. Calum becomes the beaten alcoholic shell of a formerly strong man due to his reflexive support of the old clan values that have long since vanished as guiding principles, even among his own direct family. The title, "No great mischief if they fall", is found most easily in Findlay, J.T., "Wolfe in Scotland in the '45 and from 1749 to 1753." London: Longmans, Green and Co., 1928, p. 226. An earlier use of the citation that MacLeod used for his title appears in Gibson, John G. "Traditional Gaelic Bagpiping 1745–1945." Montreal and Kingston: MQUP, and Nat. Mus. Scot., 1998, p. 59.

Awards and nominations

Trillium Book Award The Trillium Book Award (french: Prix littéraire Trillium or ''Prix Trillium'') is an annual literary award presented to writers in Ontario, Canada. It is administered by Ontario Creates, a Crown agency of the Government of Ontario, which is o ...

, 1999 *

Thomas Head Raddall Award The Thomas Raddall Atlantic Fiction Award is a Canadian literary award administered by the Atlantic Book Awards & Festival for the best work of adult fiction published in the previous year by a writer from the Atlantic provinces.

, 2000 * Dartmouth Book Award * Atlantic Provinces Booksellers Choice Award *

International Dublin Literary Award The International Dublin Literary Award ( ga, Duais Liteartha Idirnáisiúnta Bhaile Átha Chliath), established as the International IMPAC Dublin Literary Award in 1996, is presented each year for a novel written or translated into English. ...

, 2001 * Canadian Booksellers Association Libris Award for Fiction * In October 2009, ''

Atlantic Canada's 100 Greatest Books ''Atlantic Canada's 100 Greatest Books'' is a non-fiction book by Trevor J. Adams and Stephen Patrick Clare, published by Nimbus Publishing. The first book of its type, it ranks and reviews the top 100 books written by Atlantic Canadian writers, pu ...

'' selected ''No Great Mischief'' as the greatest

Atlantic Canadian Atlantic Canada, also called the Atlantic provinces (french: provinces de l'Atlantique), is the list of regions of Canada, region of Eastern Canada comprising the provinces and territories of Canada, provinces located on the Atlantic Ocean, Atla ...

book of all time.

References

External links

Barnes & Noble - Overview & Editorial Reviews

Randomhouse.com - ''No Great Mischief''
- reading & discussion guide

- An Overdue Debut review by Sienna Powers
Review - ''No Great Mischief'' by Adam Mars-Jones - ''The Observer'' - July 23, 2001
* {{s-end 1999 Canadian novels Novels by Alistair MacLeod Canadian historical novels Novels set in Nova Scotia Novels set in Northern Ontario