Fond Treasure ... Free Publicity!

Here is the Canadian author Yann Martel, (he of the Life of Pi fame/notoriety, replete with accusations of lifting another author's plot as his own), infused with the ardour of a very specific mission - along with an ineluctable sense of pure reason, applying this to his years-long pursuit of Prime Minister Stephen Harper's literary education.

Through, as we know, Mr. Martel's personal dedication to introducing Mr. Harper to Mr. Martel's unerring selection of great literature. Some people who consider themselves to be well-balanced, moderate and sensible, might consider this extremely well-publicized hounding of the prime minister to be intrusive, presumptuous, unforgivably, errantly, inexcusably arrogant.

On the other hand, there is also a contingent of like-minded individuals, many perhaps representing the creative class of society; artists, writers, actors - and just plain left-liberals who applaud Mr. Martel's concerned pursuit of literary excellence on behalf of Mr. Harper. The concern here, after all, is that Canada's Prime Minister be suffused with an appreciation of the arts, and literature in particular.

That Mr. Harper's attention is often elsewhere, on world affairs mayhap, when not actively engaged in sorting out the country's affairs, is something else again, evidently. Presumably he has little time to spare for the selection of appropriate reading material for himself. It might then follow that he could make requests of his wife to obtain for him reading material she is aware might be of value to him.

That Mr. Harper, whose intelligence level is not to be underestimated, may have his own acute and individual pleasure in reading, and may wish to select for himself - his edification, enlightenment and entertainment - specific types of literature that appeal to him, is without doubt. Yet Mr. Martel has his doubts, feeling certain that in his own great good wisdom and aesthetic redoubt, he is more capable of making selections on Mr. Harper's behalf than is the man himself.

Some may see Mr. Martel's attitude as insufferably aggravating of reason. He is, after all, generally acknowledged to be an outstanding writer of excellent fiction. Alas, his reputation appears to have left him in an actively acute state of hubris. This may be incurable, poor man, representing a case study in fatal self-esteem. But wait, there is more to this man's craft than meets the eye, and perhaps he is also sufficiently crafty to foresee an additional advantage to himself.

Think of the free publicity, after all, when a local newspaper clued in on this project of forwarding a book selection every two weeks to the Prime Minister. Accompanied by a personal letter, on each such occasion, succinctly outlining precisely why these selections would benefit Mr. Harper. The content of which missives were dutifully published in said newspaper, which also accepted letters from the public, pro and con.

In all these exchanges, Mr. Martel's name, reputation and intent were writ large. What a noble preoccupation; to set out to educate the premier executive administrator of the country. But wait, there's more...! What a splendid idea this is, to collect all of the letters reflecting the issue and its public attention reflecting agreement/disagreement, and publishing it.

Yann Martel's new book, What is Stephen Harper Reading? available at a book shop near you, come next week. Watch for it! That is, should anyone care.