Like a Rock: The Chuck Cadman Story [Paperback]

Tom Zytaruk (Author)

3.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (1 customer review)

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Product Details

Paperback: 304 pages
Publisher: Harbour; 1 edition (Mar 15 2008)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 1550174274
ISBN-13: 978-1550174274
Product Dimensions: 22 x 15.6 x 1.9 cm
Shipping Weight: 499 g

Average Customer Review: 3.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (1 customer review)

Amazon Bestsellers Rank: #494,377 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Product Description

In 1992, Chuck Cadman was regarded by his Surrey neighbours as a typical suburban couch potato, a man who, despite the ponytail left over from his days as a small-time rock musician, had settled into a nine-to-five job and seemed content to pay down the mortgage, watch TV, drink a few beers and enjoy family life. Then, on October 17, his sixteen-year-old son Jesse was senselessly murdered by teenage delinquents, and Chuck's peaceful world changed forever.

Overnight, the quiet homebody was galvanized into an inspired public spokesman, an articulate and unshakeable advocate of stricter treatment of young offenders and more compassionate treatment of victims of crime. He became a rallying figure for people across Canada growing impatient with tolerant attitudes toward youth crime, and in 1997 the people of Surrey North elected him as their Member of Parliament. In Ottawa, Chuck kept his focus and made himself one of the most authoritative voices on the parliamentary justice committee. He also kept his ponytail and blue jeans and his down-to-earth, man-of-the-people manner; his reputation as a straight-shooter earned him respect on both sides of the house. His final moment in the spotlight came on May 19, 2005 when, though in the final stages of terminal cancer, he made one last long trip to Ottawa to save the Liberal government from defeat--not because he wanted to, but because his constituents wanted him to. When he died six weeks later his loss was mourned by people from all walks of life across the entire country. In a time of deepening disenchantment with the political process, Chuck had given citizens a reassuring reminder that public service can still be an honourable calling.

About the Author

Tom Zytaruk is a staff reporter at the Now regional newspaper serving Surrey, White Rock and North Delta and is a winner of numerous journalism awards including the Suburban Newspapers of America Award for Best Election Coverage. He lives in Surrey, BC.

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3.0 out of 5 stars The Power of Memory, Aug 2 2008

Ian Gordon Malcomson (Victoria, BC) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Like a Rock: The Chuck Cadman Story (Paperback)

This is both a sad and glad story that Zytaruk, the columnist, tells about a person he would like us to accept as a glowing example of one Canada's most honorable politicians: the late Chuck Cadman. While I fully understand that it was loyalty to the memory of a dear friend that initially drove Zytaruck to produce the story of Chuck Cadman's life, I am not sure that he has actually succeeded in effectively memorializing the man's achievements. The first thing working against this story is Zytaruk's efforts to make some extraordinary out of the ordinary. Sure, we all respect the Cadman family's efforts, through CRY, to raise public awareness about the need to reform the then Young Offenders' Act. Yes, we can all feel for their terrible loss of their son, Jesse, to a senseless crime. And there is no doubt that, up to that moment in time, Chuck Cadman was a `couch potato' who, as Paul Martin said in his eulogy of the man, was only interested in paying down the mortgage and taking life easy. Much of the book covers how Cadman moved from being a political activist to becoming a Reform MP for the riding of Surrey-Whalley to taking the courageous stand to run as an Independent in 2003 when his party deserted him to deciding to vote to save the Liberal minority government in 2005, while on his deathbed. All very interesting stuff but does it actually prove that Cadman, in death as in life, was an exceptionally good person in history? He claimed that he only voted to save the Martin government out of respect for the overwhelming wishes of his constituents and not for personal gain. Fair enough, but such a personal choice may have inadvertently put his name in the history books as a politician who kept his own counsels. Those kind of people in the political world are generally called heroes so much as mavericks who can't abide being forced into doing something against their will. Don't get me wrong, but I like Cadman for that reason alone but if he were here today to explain why he single-handedly saved a shaky Martin government, he might be puzzled over all the furor that has erupted because of one decision. This book is a fair read in terms of supplying some interesting tidbits about how Cadman functioned as a human being.

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