The Republic of Nothing

By Lesley Choyce

1994

First Published

4.02

Average Rating

382

Number of Pages

11H39M

Audio Length

A small Canadian island declares its independence to the world and benign anarchy reigns. A god-like ocean deposits many a thing, yet it also takes away. The 1960s blaze off shore and draw the island’s inhabitants into politics, the Vietnam War, and the peace movement. Sound impossible? Not on Whalebone Island, AKA the Republic of Nothing. Where else can a dead circus elephant, a long-dead Viking, the discovery of uranium, a raven-haired castaway who may be psychic, an anarchist turned politician, and refugees fleeing from the United States all be part of everyday life? Where else is eccentricity embraced with such open arms? In this new readers’ guide edition, complete with an afterword by Neil Peart, Lesley Choyce’s novel about resilience, independence, and anarchy comes alive, leading readers to discover once again that everything is nothing and nothing is everything.

Avg Rating

4.02

Number of Ratings

182

5 STARS

43%

4 STARS

29%

3 STARS

17%

2 STARS

1 STARS

goodreads

Author

Lesley Choyce

Author · 48 books

Lesley Choyce is a novelist and poet living at Lawrencetown Beach, Nova Scotia. He is the author of more than 80 books for adults, teens and children. He teaches in the English Department and Transition Year Program at Dalhousie University. He is a year-round surfer and founding member of the 1990s spoken word rock band, The SurfPoets. Choyce also runs Pottersfield Press, a small literary publishing house and hosted the national TV show, Off The Page, for many years. His books have been translated into Spanish, French, German and Danish and he has been awarded the Dartmouth Book Award and the Ann Connor Brimer Award. Lesley Choyce was born in New Jersey in 1951 and moved to Canada in 1978 and became a citizen. His YA novels concern things like skateboarding, surfing, racism, environmental issues, organ transplants, and rock bands.