Pamela Wallin, The Author
Speaking Of Success
In Speaking of Success: Collected Wisdom, Insights and Reflections, acclaimed broadcaster and journalist Pamela Wallin shares the collected wisdom of many of the celebrated – and successful – people she has interviewed over the years.
Success in life has many definitions. For Pamela Wallin, success is not finding the Holy Grail of fame and fortune, but becoming a successful human being.
Inspired by many of the extraordinary people she has interviewed, Wallin has written a book on living life successfully – and with purpose – that weaves together her own insights with those of a vast and eclectic array of people.
Divided into fifteen chapters, each highlighting a particular aspect of living life successfully, this book is an illuminating tour of the human condition as seen through the eyes of one of Canada's most entertaining and thought-provoking journalists.
Along this tour, you'll hear the voices of many fascinating people, including: Jann Arden on the importance of family; Elvis Stojko on mental focus; Al Purdy on the importance of "staying stupid"; Gloria Steinem on being too nice; Itzhak Perlman on how he dealt with polio contracted at the age of four; Sarah Ferguson on taking responsibility for your actions; and Umberto Eco on our need for moments of solitude. Their words have informed and shaped Wallin's world view, and in this book she shares these moments of insight and reflection with us.
Speaking of Success wonderfully captures Pamela Wallin's curiosity and respect for people, as well as her ready sense of humour. As it celebrates conversation as a vehicle for imparting ideas, it offers a refreshing and challenging look at the meaning of success.
Since You Asked
Since You Asked is an intriguing and intimate recounting of how a small-town girl from Wadena, Saskatchewan, rose to become one of Canada's most prominent media figures. Pamela Wallin credits her hometown with instilling in her the values that have made her who she is today. Her powerful work ethic has helped her to succeed in a fiercely competitive business. And a close family, combined with a strong sense of community, created the unique prairie lens through which Pamela continues to view the world.
Pamela has never been bashful about expressing her opinions – even her childhood report cards noted her talkativeness. A desire to make change was her dream from a very early age. And her determination, resilience and prairie good sense have seen her through a personal and professional life lived on fast forward. From the comfort zone of Wadena to her heady university days, from the creative environment of As It Happens to the political machinations of the Hill, Pamela has never stopped running toward the next change.
Pamela was an accidental recruit to the world of journalism. She arrived on the scene during the great age of CBC Radio, and today she is an ardent citizen of the multi-channel universe. In between, Pamela was Ottawa bureau chief for the country's largest private television network – the first woman ever to be appointed to that position in Canadian television history – and she helped define morning television in Canada. She asked politicians the questions no other journalist dared voice, reported from war zones around the world, endured a public firing from CBC Television, and went on to build her own business, independently producing her acclaimed television programs Pamela Wallin and Pamela Wallin & Company.
Since You Asked is Pamela's answer to the many questions she's fielded about her life. As well, she examines her own influences and aspirations. Intelligent, thought-provoking and down-to-earth, Pamela's story inspires. And it clearly illustrates her uncanny ability, in this world of information overload, to uncover the truth.
The Comfort Of Cats
Often revered, sometimes feared, cats have been companions to us for over 5000 years. As the old saying goes: Thousands of years ago, cats were worshipped as gods and they have never forgotten this. Cats are very discriminating in their relationships with us. Much is made of the unconditional offering of love and affection from a dog. By contrast, cats are very conditional, demanding, self-centered. Cats spend a lot of time keeping their options open and making us oblige them, but can give comfort like no other. The Comfort of Cats explores the bond between Kitty, a creatively named Siamese cat, and the woman who lives with her, Pamela Wallin (notice we dared not say owner). Kitty has been at Pamela's side through many of the traumas that life offers up – divorce, being fired and battling cancer – and countless other emotional crises that punctuate a life story. Someone once said, in order to keep a true perspective on one's importance, everyone should have a dog that will worship him and a cat that will ignore him.
In fact, the words of Albert Schweitzer more accurately reflect the sentiment of this book: “There are two means of refuge from the miseries of life: music and cats.” Through the words and experiences of cat lover Pamela Wallin and through the eyes of award winning photographer, Anne Bayin, witness the strange beauty, history, elegance and humour of our feline friends.
The First Man In My Life
For many women, fathers are a mystery that puzzles and haunts us. They are “the other,” neither lover nor son, defined more often by silence than words, by emotional absence than physical presence – until now.
In twenty-two original narratives, some of Canada’s most acclaimed writers share stories, memories, insights, and revelations – from the comic to the tragic, and every shading in between – about the first man in their lives. Complex, compelling, unforgettable, these stories will open a fresh and intense conversation with daughters everywhere about the men they’ve observed since childhood: their fathers.
Contributors
Katherine Ashenburg, Anita Rau Badami, Christie Blatchford, Mary Anne Brinckman, Nancy Dorrance, Jane Finlay-Young, Camilla Gibb, Catherine Gildiner, Rebecca Godfrey, Rachel Manley, Sandra Martin, Lisa Moore, Sarah Murdoch, Marina Nemat, P.K. Page, Emma Richler, Eden Robinson, Rebecca Snow, Tina Srebotnjak, Susan Swan, Emily Urquhart, and Pamela Wallin