I Was a Teenage Katima-Victim: A Canadian Odyssey

Speaking as a past participant of the Katimavik program myself, I can from my own personal experience tell you that Will Furgusons book about his experience should be a mandatory item included in the inventory of every katimavik project house. Even if you are never planning to participate in the program (which probebly means you are smarter than the thousands of crazy adventurous canadian youth who have subjected themselves to this , as Furguson words it, "government sponsored endurance test), you will laugh out loud as you go along with Furguson on his riotous adventure. For those of you unfamilliar with the program, Katimavik is a Federally Funded youth volunteer corps, that places groups of 11 youth in a 7 - 9 month project in which they volunteer full time at a job, and spend the rest of their time doing learning programs as a group. Oh yeah, and you move to a different province every three months. Oh yeah, and half your house dosnt speak english. And did we mention that you cant buy bread, you have to make it from scratch? Or that you get thrown into a strangers house for two weeks every rotation? An incredibley rewarding experience, the program focuses on teaching the youth of Canada both the lessons of the program, relating to community service, the environment, healthy lifestyle, second official language, and leadership, but also the lessons of life. It builds character, and Furgusons book illustrates how far you can come when forced into the reality-tvshow world of this program. A good read for future participants, past participants, or anybody, I definatley reccomend you pick this one up.

As a new member of the Katimavik alumni, I found this book absolutly facinating! Although the rules have changed, this program still has the same family-like feel to it. I read this book while in my second trimester of Katimavik and was amazed at how different the rules are from then to now! Will is an amazing authour (I've read 3 other books of his). He manages to get the feel of the setting you're in while in Katimavik very well. I recomend this book to absolutly everyone! Canadian or not!. As someone who went from being an only child to having 10 'siblings'( and misses them all!!!) I can honestly say I wouldnt have passes up this expearance (the good, the bad, and the insane) for absolutly anything, and loved reading about Will's own expearance in the 80's.

I am astonished to find that this book is no longer being published. Get a copy now, before they become valuable - and they will, believe me, because this book is fantastic.The book covers Will Ferguson's experiences in Katimavik, a Canadian youth program which lets young adults work and travel around Canada, expanding their horizons and hopefully turning them into fine upstanding Canadians. His trademark brand of sardonic humour is in fine form throughout, and he does an excellent job of portraying the other people in his Katimavik group, from the arrogant boy from Quebec to the good-hearted but criminal-minded guy who joined Katimavik on court's orders.Yes, they sound like caricatures, but it's obvious that they're based on real people, and it's the sympathy and skill with which their interaction is recorded which makes this book so great. It's a unique and unmissable work, beautifully combining travel journalism, autobiography, and sharp observation into a brilliant whole. Get it now!