A Heart To Survive – George Fillis (1)

I thought your name was Nigger. They probably call me ‘Yellow Nigger.’ Do all dark-skinned people receive this treatment?” “Most of the time. There were two black women in Dresden, Ontario. They went into a restaurant and were refused service. They went to another and received the same treatment. They went to the newspapers, and a Toronto paper sent Negro “testers” back to investigate those two restaurants. They were also refused service. When the paper ran the story, do you think it did any good? Nope. Canada’s regulations are ineffective if you’re colored.”

“What about the laws, don’t they protect you?” “Are you kidding? There was a successful Negro businesswoman. On a business trip, her car broke down, and she was told her car needed a part that would be delivered the next day. With time to spare, she went to a movie theatre and took a seat downstairs. There were no signs indicating the theatre was racially segregated, and Negroes only sat upstairs. The manager approached her and said she couldn’t sit downstairs. She told him it was difficult for her to see from the balcony.

The manager called a police officer, who forcefully removed her from the theatre. She was jailed overnight and wasn’t offered bail. She was found guilty of defrauding the province of one penny for its amusement tax, which was the difference in price between sitting downstairs and upstairs. No mention was made of segregation or racism.” “What kind of place is this, where laws don’t protect everyone.

How can you live like that?” “I guess there’s hatred for more than just the Chinese,” Kai said. Jackson nodded and said, “You need to come to Collingwood. The railroad is expanding, and the shipyard is building big ships. There are ‘Help Wanted’ signs everywhere. You’ll be free there.” From this time forward, the three of us spent our free time together and looked after each other.

Some Chinese workers came daily in trucks from Chinatown. I met an older man called Suk, which means ‘uncle.’ He was short and slight, with expressive eyes. There were stained areas on his skin that might’ve been from too much sun. He wore tattered, dark green pants, a khaki long sleeve shirt, and a stiff wide-brimmed hat with netting that protected his neck. I liked him. His demeanor was calm like YeYe, so during a work break, I asked him, “Do you live in Chinatown?” He nodded.

“Historical fiction readers, particularly those interested in Canadian backdrops, are in for a treat. All the elements are here for an extraordinary read that blends a coming-of-age experience with a window into Canadian culture, race relations of the 1950s, romance, and a young immigrant’s ability to persevere against all odds. A Heart To Survive chronicles the kinds of choices that lead into danger and opportunity alike, adding a dash of thriller and mystery elements into the mix to create a multifaceted story that is engaging, engrossing, and hard to put down.”

–Midwest Book Review “The Collingwood Series is Canadian historical fiction at its best…Readers are in for an extraordinary read that blends a coming-of-age experience with a window into Canadian culture, race relations of the 1950s, romance, and a young immigrant’s ability to persevere against all odds.” –Diane Donovan, Donovan’s Literary Services “Haunting, poignant, and compelling…” –The Prairies Book Review ★★★★★ “This sharp-edged historical drama with crisp prose, first-person narrative, and tension-filled tight plotting keeps readers turning pages nonstop.

Paired with the atmospheric setting, exploring of the themes of human trafficking, racial discrimination, and individual struggles makes for a thoroughly engrossing coming-of-age tale.” –BookView Review ★★★★★ 1kitap1.com/en By George Fillis A HEART TO SURVIVE first novel in the Collingwood Series AN UNEXPECTED FATHER second novel in the Collingwood Series UNPUNISHED CRIMES third novel in the Collingwood Series SHAVANO a short story Author’s website: GeorgeFillisNovels.com 1kitap1.com/en A HEART TO SURVIVE first novel in the Collingwood Series George Fillis 1kitap1.com/en This book is a fictional dramatization based on real events and was drawn from a variety of sources, including published materials and interviews.

Some people, places and events are real, but the characters, what happened to them, the dialogues, incidents, and timelines outside of what was real are purely from the imagination of the author and have been changed for dramatic effect. For dramatic and narrative purposes, the book contains fictionalized scenes, composite and representative characters and dialogue, and time compression. The views and opinions expressed in the book are those of the author only and don’t necessarily reflect or represent the views and opinions held by individuals on which those characters are based.

Copyright © 2020 by George Fillis All rights reserved. This book or any portion thereof may not be reproduced or used in any manner whatsoever without the express written permission of the publisher except for the use of brief quotations in a book review. A Heart to Survive / George Fillis ISBN: 978-1-7359372-0-5 (Print) ISBN: 978-1-7359372-1-2 (Ebook) Printed in the United States of America Publisher: Bluerock7, LLC.

Cover Design by Berge Design Cover Image by Bulat Silvia 1kitap1.com/en This book is dedicated to Karen, my wife, my partner, and the love of my life.

This is a short excerpt from the opening of “” by Unknown, quoted for review and introduction purposes. All rights belong to the copyright holders.

Book Information

• Unique ID: 07fb912d3fc812d4
• File Extension: .pdf
• File Size: 1,592,614 bytes (1.519 MB)
• Title: –
• Author: Unknown
• ISBN: 9781735937205, 9781735937212
• Pages: 220
• Language: English (en)

Reading & Word Statistics

• Estimated Reading Time: 397.94 minutes
• Total Words: 79,589
• Total Characters: 429,830
• Average Words per Page: 361.77
• Average Characters per Page: 1953.77

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