Author: Neil J. Lehto

ISBN: 0-595-36132-3

Publisher: iUniverse

One of Canada’s greatest artists was Tom Thomson, who accidentally died in 1917 in Canoe Lake, Ontario. If he accidentally died has always been a question mark among many historians and art connoisseurs.   Neil J. Lehto’s novel Algonquin Elegy: Tom Thomson’s Last Spring is an ambitious effort to meticulously present multiple perspectives in fictional format as to what really happened to this great Canadian artist. Did he accidentally die or was there foul play?

If you don’t know who was Tom Thomson, David Silcox, author of Group of Seven and Tom Thomson, whom I interviewed a few years ago, best sums him up in our interview as follows:

“Tom Thomson was an odd personality, quiet and shy, but with a sharp sense of humour. He did not begin to show any real talent as an artist until he ran into some of the artists who later became the Canada's Group of Seven. From them he learned many things, since they had received formal educations and training (he had not), and they had seen a lot of art in Europe and elsewhere. Suddenly, although he was older than all of them, he caught fire. At that point, the student became the teacher-they began to learn from him.

Two things I think Thomson gave his colleagues: the first is a great love of the north; Algonquin Park became his favorite place after his first visit in 1912. Harris and the others were able to transform the passion of Thomson into an Idea of North. And the North kept moving further and further north, until it finally reached the Arctic. Harris in both his paintings and his writings propagated the idea of Canada as a great northern nation.

Second, Thomson died in 1917 in a canoe accident during the Great War. As soon as the war was over, his friends, having already erected a cairn at Canoe Lake, organized a memorial exhibition of his work. A few days after the exhibition closed in March 1920 at the Art Gallery of Toronto (now the AGO), the Group of Seven was formed in Lawren Harris’s house. I believe the formation of the Group was in large part a tribute to Thomson, and that the inspiration and friendship he had given each of the original members was repaid in part by their agreement to show together and to present a vision of Canada that was bold and distinctive.”

Getting back to Algonquin Elegy: Tom Thomson’s Last Spring, Lehto interweaves quite a narrative concerning a fictional character, Jon Kristian who visits Canoe Lake to research the mysterious death of Tom Thompson. Kristian is a recovering alcoholic who has been recently divorced from his wife Tess. Unfortunately, his wife commits suicide on the day their divorce is finalized.

As the novel unfolds, we learn a great deal about Algonquin Park and the kind of lifestyle Thomson enjoyed during the years he painted here. We also learn about his friends, coworkers, and associates throughout the north whom he came in contact, particularly those closely connected with him at Canoe Lake.  And as we tag along with Kristian, we read the many theories surrounding Thomson’s mysterious death. Was he in fact struck across the right temple and was it done with a thin edge of a blade? Was there someone who watched him topple over from his canoe and sink slowly out of sight without a struggle? Perhaps, he committed suicide? Even his final resting place is a matter of doubt and some would have us believe that he was not buried in the family plot located at the United Church Cemetery at Leith, Ontario.

Lehto’s novel greatest strength is that it is an extremely well researched book depicting an accurate portrayal of time and place. However, unfortunately, it is in need of a great deal of professional editing. The entwining of the personal life of the narrator Kristian considerably slows down the pace of the novel and candidly, unless I am missing something, I don’t comprehend its relevance. There is also from time-to-time a lack of focus as the story is embellished with the insertions of all kinds of characters and their yarns that have very little to do with the investigation of what happened to Tom Thomson. However, on the other hand, the novel can be appreciated for its insights and understanding of what made Thomson tick and why he was considered Canada’s greatest artist. In addition, Lehto demonstrates admirable skill with his strong descriptions of Algonquin Park and its surroundings, which, as I mentioned earlier, is an attestation to Canada’s bold and distinctive features.

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