Bringing the Legends home
Legends of the Capilano updates E. Pauline Johnson's 1911 classic
Legends of Vancouver, restoring Johnson's intended title for the first
time. This new edition celebrates the storytelling abilities of
Johnson's Skwxwú7mesh (Squamish) collaborators, Joe and Mary Capilano,
and supplements the original fifteen legends with five additional
stories narrated solely or in part by Mary Capilano, highlighting her
previously overlooked contributions to the book.
Alongside photographs and biographical entries for E. Pauline Johnson,
Joe Capilano, and Mary Capilano, editor Alix Shield provides a detailed
publishing history of Legends since its first appearance in 1911.
Interviews with literary scholar Rick Monture (Mohawk) and archaeologist
Rudy Reimer (Skwxwú7mesh) further considers the legacy of Legends in
both scholars' home communities. Compiled in consultation with the
Mathias family, the direct descendants of Joe and Mary Capilano and
members of the Skwxwú7mesh Nation, this edition reframes, reconnects,
and reclaims the stewardship of these stories.