O Little Town

From Model Ts to the information highways, box socials to virtual reality, our prairie past is in danger of obliteration because the speed of change from one generation to the next. In O Little Town, Harlo Jones combines youthful innocence and wonder with adult awareness and insight to create a work of witness, chronicling small-town life as seen by a child int eh 1920s and ’30s. He recalls the characters universal to this place in time, from the lonely Chinese immigrant to the mysterious “remittance man,” as well as teachers, friends, and even the family dogs. But he also moves beyond characters to describe the social, religious, educational and commercial institutions of a prairie town with affection and accuracy.

Through Harlo Jones’ eyes, we explore the prairie landscape from coulee to slough; watch the construction of the first buildings, with basements dug by fresnos, and walls insulated with wood shavings; and peer inside village landmarks, from that “most excellent of jakes” with the knothole that turned the structure into a giant pinhole camera, to his father’s garage, scene of many semi-official town-hall meetings. We learn how the town’s electrical system worked, during what hours, and why, and discover the dedication of the volunteer fire department, where the men pulled the engines while the horses hauled the water tanks. We explore the town and come to know it with the author as he grows from a boy hunting gophers to a young man newly enlisted as a pilot, leaving the familiar behind as he departs for service overseas.

O Little Town is much more than one man’s story of childhood. Harlo Jones’ perceptive recollections evoke a sharp picture of village life, enabling those who shared that time with him to remember it anew; and allowing others a glimpse of a past come vividly alive with colourful detail, humour and poignancy.