Came To Canada, Eh‪?‬

Having emigrated from Scotland to Canada in his early thirties, Ian Moore-Morrans was a Scotsman to the core―despite his love for his adopted homeland―adventurous, humorous, and determined to provide a better life for himself, his wife and two young daughters. In his first memoir, From Poverty to Poverty: A Scotsman Encounters Canada, he shared with his fascinated readers what life was like for him in the early days, from his Scottish roots to his eventual emigration.

In this sequel, we get to learn what happened next, joining him on a journey that takes him and his first wife back and forth across six provinces, with multiple stops along the way, as he struggles to survive and thrive in the face of countless obstacles that would likely have stopped a lesser man in his tracks. With love and humour in his heart, and music in his soul, this extraordinary “common” man was anything but ordinary. Throughout his life, love, laughter, and song carry him through even the toughest of times.

Even after the death of his first wife, which he describes with poignancy, he pushes on, in true Scottish fashion, eventually meeting a new love―the soulmate with whom he shares his final years, full of romance, adventure, writing, singing, a heart-felt appreciation of Canada, and a continued enthusiasm for all things Scottish.

The cover photo is of Gayle’s jewellery box that became Ian’s funeral urn, depicting Ian’s varied avocations–playing his trumpet in a Royal Air Force band; singing as a Scottish performer; displaying one of his published books; and dancing with a Scottish country dance group. The Leslie Clan tartan background represents the addition of “Moore” to Ian’s family name, as the Moore family is a sept of the Leslie Clan. (Ian’s first memoir displayed the McKinnon Clan tartan of which the Morranses are a sept.)