Stuart McLean and the Vinyl Cafe

"We may not be big, but we're small."
This is the motto of the vinyl cafe, hosted and written by Stuart Mclean. The Vinyl Cafe is a staple of Canadian literature that can be heard twice a week on CBC radio, and can also be found in any bookstore on disc or paperback. The vinyl cafe stories are written about a Canadian family that is originally from the Maritimes but now lives in Toronto. Dave, the husband and father of the family, owns a store named the Vinyl Cafe. The stories are a combination of knee-splitting humour about Dave's antics and mixups, as well as more serious notes about the importance of family values and culture.
The author, Stuart Mclean, was born in Montreal, Quebec in 1948. He was originally a host on the CBC radio show, Morningside, with another famous broadcaster, Peter Gzowski. Mclean teaches at the Ryerson School of Journalism and was the former director of the broadcast division at the school. He has also been honoured by Trent University, Nipissing University, and the University of Windsor.
Mclean's books about the Vinyl Cafe have won him the Stephen Leacock Memorial Medal for Humour three times, which puts him in the top position for most wins of the award. Over 700 000 people listen to the show each week, not including those who attend the live shows across the country.

Stuart Mclean is noted by some to only be a jokester, with his real contribution to Canadian literature being minimal. However, I disagree. Mclean brings people around the country together with his show. Not only can it be heard all across the country, but Mclean incorporates stories from across the country with his story exchange. People can send in their stories about Canadian life and their interpretations, and every week Mclean will read a story on the air. This gives insight into the different ways in which Canadians live their lives, and how they interpret different events.
As I mentioned before, he also tours across Canada, doing shows from coast to coast. While he is on tour, he keeps a blog to update his fans on how everything is going. On his shows, he reads one of his stories, but he also incorporates a Canadian music artist who comes on the show and performs each week. This, along with the Vinyl Cafe Story Exchange, makes for a very diverse and interesting show on Canadian culture every week.
As for his novels, Mclean has tackled many issues within each story. The family is usually grappling with a simple story, but more often than not, the significance behind it is quite large. For example, in a story in which the main character, Dave, returns home to Newfoundland when his mother gets sick, he is forced to deal with memories from his past within Newfoundland, and the ways in which his life had been different. This story links the maritimes with the metropolitan of Toronto, as Dave struggles to see the similarities and embrace the differences between his two very different ways of life. This is a struggle for many Canadians, and Stuart Mclean recognizes this.
Overall, I feel as though Stuart Mclean and his Vinyl Cafe stories are very important for Canadian culture. I feel as though far too often people only view serious and reflective novels and poetry as important when it comes to Canadian literature, however I think that the majority of the Canadian population would be more inclined to read or listen to stories from the Vinyl Cafe. Not only are they interesting and approachable, but they also give a view of our culture from a humorous standpoint. Considering the grim view that we have discovered this semester of the state in which our culture is in, who wouldn't enjoy a good laugh abuot it?