Kirjahaku

From the jetliner and the snowmobile to the pacemaker and the BlackBerry, Canadians have long been at the forefront of innovation and invention. Canadians are behind a variety of cutting-edge products, life-saving medicines, innovative machines, and fascinating ideas. Although our inventions have typically been created with little fanfare, financing, or expectation of return, they have often gone on to play important roles in day-to-day life. Our "greatest invention" is probably insulin, which millions of people depend on for life and health. But the light bulb, the Canadarm, and the BlackBerry certainly vie for that honour as well. Some of our inventions are small: the paint roller, the Robertson screwdriver, and the crash position indicator – the forerunner of the black box on planes. Others are larger: the jetliner, the snow-blower, and the snowmobile. Some, such as Standard Time, are really just complex ideas while others, such as the pacemaker, are triumphs of complex technology. Put simply, Canadians are supremely innovative!

They come from the cities and farms, military bases and tourist towns, seaside bungalows and urban apartments. All are ordinary people who did extraordinary things. Not one of them sought recognition, yet all are worthy of our admiration. They are Canada's heroes, recipients of the presigious Star of Courage, and these are the stories of their bravery. Passionately told by John Melady, the tales of their courage span the nation and beyond: a heart-stopping rescue on the storm-tossed Atlantic, a plane crash on a mountain peak, a robbery and cold-blooded murder on the Saskatchewan prairie and a dramatic rescue at the very brink of Niagara Falls, to name just a few. Whether the quick-thinking seven-year-old who foiled a molester, the quiet young woman who disarmed a killer, or the soldier who became a human shield: these courageous individuals will inspire readers and prove to Canadians that there are great heroes in our midst.

A dozen years before the Black Donnellys were butchered at Lucan, Ontario, another murderous rampage took place a few miles away. On June 6, 1868, three men robbed and killed a rich farmer, his wife, and her unborn child. They concocted an alibi, stuck to it, and almost got off. In fact, two of them did. The third, Nicholas Melady, went to prison and fell in love with a beautiful woman in a nearby cell. There to entrap him, she listened, learned, and led him to the gallows. When he was hanged in Goderich, hundreds watched, but thousands were late for the spectacle. They were bitterly disappointed because they had missed the last public hanging in Canada.

On 5 October 1984, Marc Garneau became Canada's first astronaut when he rocketed into space from a launch pad at Cape Canaveral, Florida. In doing so, Garneau became a national hero. Seven of his fellow citizens followed in his footsteps, many more than once. Julie Payette, a young mother and adventurer from Montreal was the first Canadian woman to visit the International Space Station. Chris Hadfield, a former fighter pilot from Ontario, was the first Canadian to do a spacewalk, while Saskatchewan-born Doctor Dave Williams performed surgery on test animals while his shuttle sped around the globe. This book was written as a 25th anniversary tribute to these brave men and women who defied tremendous odds, risked their lives, and soared from earth on sheets of flame. By leaving the only planet known to be habitable, they became true explorers in an ever-expanding universe we will never completely know.

Marc Garneau, Roberta Bondar, Julie Payette, Robert Thirsk, Chris Hadfield, and more recently, Guy Laliberte, the founder of Cirque de Soleil, all have one thing in common: they're some of the very few Canadians who have been in space. The launch of a spaceship is terribly exciting. That's why thousands of people come to watch. They laugh, cheer, and applaud as the rocket rises. They see the smoke, steam, and white-hot fire as millions of litres of fuel burn in seconds. They feel the chest-thumping impact of the sound. Then they stare upward for a long time until they can no longer see even a tiny speck in the distant sky. By that time, the craft is in space. Canada's astronauts come from across the nation: from farms, cities, and little towns. They went to large schools and to small ones. Maple Leaf in Space showcases these amazing Canadians who have ventured off our planet and delivers some of the thrill of what that's like.