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The Apprenticeship of Duddy Kravitz

Author: Mordecai Richler
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About the Work

Set chiefly in Montreal in the 1940s, this novel tells the story of a young Jewish man who strives for material success.


Challenges in Canada

In 1990, parents demanded the removal of this novel from high school reading lists in Essex County, Ont. They objected to “vulgarity, sexual expressions and sexual innuendoes” in the text. The novel, which is set chiefly in Montreal in the 1940s, tells the story of a young Jewish man who strives for material success.

Noted Canadian authors—including June Callwood and Al Purdy—defended the book. But the Essex County Board of Education advised teachers and principals to avoid using novels in class that “might provoke undue controversy.”


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Classic Canadian novel.