First in a series of four articles dedicated to books that crystallize the essence of a Montreal neighborhood. To get things started, we take you to the streets and alleys of the inimitable Mile End.
The official territory would be more extensive towards the east, but most people agree that Mile End, which is part of the Plateau-Mont-Royal borough, is bounded by Hutchison Street to the west, Henri-Julien and de Bullion Street to the east, the Canadian Pacific Railway to the north and Mount Royal to the south. Often praised for its quality of life, the neighbourhood is home to approximately 24,000 residents over 1.6 km².
Mile End is inseparable from the career of historian Yves Desjardins. “I was only three years old when my family left the building that my great-grandfather had built in 1912 on Laurier West, a stone’s throw from Parc Avenue, but I returned to live in Mile End in 1974, while I was studying at UQAM. The first apartment I lived in, until 1985, was on Saint-Viateur, just east of Saint-Laurent. It faced the former Peck clothing factory, now the Canadian headquarters of Ubisoft. Since then, I moved to de l’Esplanade, then to Waverly, where I still live.”
After a 34-year detour into journalism, Desjardins reconnected with his first passion by signing History of Mile End (Septentrion, 2017), a work in which he deploys the multiple identities of the district. “It was considered in the 19the century like the Montreal countryside, and people went there to have fun, he explains. Crossed by Saint-Laurent Boulevard and Parc Avenue, the neighborhood was for a long time a buffer zone between the two solitudes and a welcoming corridor for several generations of immigrants who left many traces, particularly the Jewish community, as evidenced by the abundant work of Mordecai Richler.
After being considered a rundown area, Mile End became a creative district and a mecca for the alternative scene during the 1980s and 1990s. “Which inevitably led to a swing back,” explains the historian. “People didn’t hesitate to caricature Mile End by calling it a haunt of bobos and hipsters, or by calling it a vector of the accelerated anglicization of Montreal. And that’s without taking into account the contemporary challenges related to its gentrification and touristification.”
When asked which book he thinks depicts the neighborhood most authentically, the historian can’t help but name two. First, Our Lady of the Mile End (Anvil Press, 2023), a collection of short stories by Sarah Gilbert that “eloquently describes the transformations that have taken place in the neighborhood in recent years.” I can’t wait for a publisher to decide to translate it into French! Then, Hadassa (Leméac, 2006), the novel that earned Myriam Beaudoin the Prix littéraire des collégiens and the Prix France-Québec. “Between 2001 and 2005,” explains Desjardins, “the author taught French in a Hasidic Jewish elementary school located on Ducharme Avenue. This was the source of inspiration for a novel in which Mile End serves as the backdrop for two intertwined love stories: that between a teacher and her brilliant students and that between Jan, a Polish immigrant who has recently arrived in Quebec, and Déborah, a Hasidic woman who has broken away from her roots.”
The author of the very moving Hadassa feels privileged to have been able to collect the many anecdotes of her young students. “I quickly felt that I possessed priceless treasures, worthy of being told in a book. The action takes place partly in the streets that little Hadassa made me discover, Bloomfield, Durocher and Querbes, but also in the shops of Saint-Viateur Avenue. I really like Groll Alley, between de l’Esplanade and Waverly. I set an important moment in the improbable love story between Jan and Déborah there.” For Myriam Beaudoin, it is essential to read Lekhaim! Chronicles of Hasidic Life in Montreal by Malka Zipora (Éditions du Passage, 2006). “We discover the daily life of a mother who raises a dozen children in a modest home, her concerns as well as her simple joys. Between fundamentalist rituals and maternal devotion, her humanism moves me.”
Pierre-Marc Drouin lived in Mile End from 2008 to 2010. “I lived right next to the Social Club, on de l’Esplanade. It was the darkest period of my life. My mother, with whom I had a conflictual relationship, had just died. And I had recently broken up with a narcissistic pervert. I was in self-destruction mode and Mile End, at the time, was the perfect place for that: alcohol, drugs, partiesunhealthy sex, everything could happen in the blink of an eye.” With his setbacks and his losses, the author wrote Mile End Stories (Québec Amérique, 2011), a cathartic novel with several pages set in the now-defunct Snack N’Blues. “This Saint-Laurent bar was a pocket of resistance to gentrification, to laws and to the evolution of certain musical trends that at the time stank in my face,” explains Drouin.
Drawing Mile End
Author of a comic strip that is both humorous and historical entitled Mile End (Pow Pow, 2011), Michel Hellman has lived in the neighborhood for nearly 20 years. “I live on Fairmount, right next to the iconic Wilensky restaurant. When I moved in, there was a village feel that I liked, with a community life, small businesses, independent cafes. At the time, rents were still affordable and that attracted students and artists (especially musicians). The population was diverse, multicultural, and this mix ended up giving the neighborhood an identity, even a soul, that is unique in its kind.” The author recommends diving into The Collector by Pascal Girard (La Pastèque, 2014). “Since the story takes place largely in my home, it is in some ways a sequel to my own comic strip.”
Isabelle Arsenault is the author of a series of children’s albums entitled The Mile End GangThe three titles published to date by La Pastèque are Colette’s Bird (2017), Albert’s Quest (2019) and Maya’s scene (2021). “I lived in Mile End for eighteen years,” explains the illustrator. “First on de Bullion, near Laurier, then on Clark, between Saint-Viateur and Bernard. We were treated to one of the best qualities of life in the world, near Saint-Viateur bagels, the Latina grocery store, the Olimpico café, the Drawn & Quarterly bookstore, Lhasa-De Sela Park, the Kem Coba creamery, neighbourhood restaurants, clothing boutiques, thrift stores, art galleries and performance halls. All within a stone’s throw of my studio, the daycare and the children’s school.”
It was precisely seeing his children grow up in Mile End that led Arsenault to his drawing board. “Having spent my early childhood surrounded by nature, in Sept-Îles, it seemed inconceivable to me to offer them a simple alley as a horizon. Then, I quickly noticed that they were thriving in this urban space. The back alley at our house was a wonderful playground that came to life. Everything was a source of a new adventure. A pile of branches, an empty box, an old abandoned kitsch painting. They took ownership of this territory and transformed it through their imagination into something beautiful. This way that children have of transcending reality and being creative inspired me a lot.”
Isabelle Arsenault highly recommends The stars by Jacques Goldstyn (La Pastèque, 2019). “This is a children’s album that tells the truly touching story of a Jewish boy and a Muslim girl who meet in a Mile End park. They discover a common interest in astronomy, a passion that leads them to consider what is greater than themselves, beyond religious questions. Through a very subtle story, supported by Goldstyn’s magnificent illustrations, we dive into the unique atmosphere of the neighborhood.”