So Near Yet So Far

Geoffrey Hale’s So Near Yet So Far offers an original look at the public and behind-the-scenes work of Canada-US relations, but it’s probably not a pool-side read for a holiday vacation. Hale’s informative work reads more like a textbook, suited for the trade, foreign policy, and energy and resource buffs…[it] is a thoughtfully-organized read, using short chapters, concise lists and tightly-written conclusions to drive Hale’s points home.

~Michelle Zilio, iPolitics

Hale has…composed a thorough assessment of what he calls: “the three dimensions of Canada–U.S. Relations”; the political and procedural elements of the relationship; and a detailed examination of four policy fields. Highly recommended. ~Inside Queen’s Park Newsletter, For Your Bookshelf

So Near Yet So Far invites readers to rethink our relationship with an open mind, stripped of smugness or “ideological agendas.”

~Holly Doan, Blacklock's Reporter

Hale’s book is a useful commentary on the history of the bilateral relationship, and an often insightful analysis of recent and current issues…overall, an informative study of an important relationship. ~G.A. McBeath, University of Alaska Fairbanks, Choice, Vol 50, No 6

His research is comprehensive and his understanding of both countries impressive, his drafting crystalline and at times engagingly witty…he addresses with great sophistication, and amusingly, the political-strategic, trade-commercial and the psychological cultural dimensions of a relationship that has always risked inspiring fear and loathing in Canada and indifference and neglect in the United States…he is excellent on the challenges Canada faces in engaging key U.S. actors, including the administration of the day and Congress, and the instruments Canada has developed to promote its interests in the United States…Hale’s is a “must read” for any new provincial premier in Canada (and relevant political and bureaucratic colleagues).

~David Malone, Literary Review of Canada