As chief parliamentary correspondent for CTV News, Craig Oliver is one of Canada’s most recognized and respected journalists, a newsman who has reported on the major political figures and news stories of our times with passion, insight, and bracing candour.

He brings those same qualities to this many-layered memoir of an extraordinary professional and personal life. The only child of two alcoholics, he spent his childhood and adolescence in the homes of strangers. A chance summer job with the local CBC station launched his broadcasting career, taking Oliver from Prince Rupert, B.C. to Ottawa, Washington, and Central America. He witnessed up close the follies, foibles and occasional brilliance of the men and women who shaped our history over four decades.

At the same time, Oliver pursued a personal passion for Canada’s wilderness rivers. For 30 years, he and a close company of companions—all political and media figures, from Tim Kotcheff and John Macfarlane to Eddie Goldenberg and Pierre Trudeau—paddled some of the remotest waters in western and northern Canada.

Most surprising is the revelation that this comfortable television presenter has been legally blind for a decade.

CRAIG OLIVER is currently Chief Parliamentary Correspondent for CTV and co-host of its weekly political affairs program Question Period. He has received the highest awards granted by his profession: the prestigious Charles Lynch Award; the Canadian Association of Broadcasters 2001 Gold Ribbon for Broadcast Excellence; the President’s Award for excellence in Canadian broadcast journalism from the Radio and Television News Directors Association; the Broadcast Hall of Fame award from the Canadian Association of Broadcasters; and two Gemini Awards. Since 1999, Oliver has been legally blind.

Craig Oliver's profile page

“Full of wit, an astute insider’s insights, and candour.” - Toronto Star

“An exhilarating inside look ride through decades of Canadian politics and history…. His anecdotes are amazing…. Oliver’s Twist is superb stuff, proving again that a word is worth 1,000 TV clips.” - Winnipeg Free Press

“A storehouse of insights, anecdotes, and eye-popping close-ups that makes for a strappingly good book.” - Lawrence Martin, author of Harperland

“Having covered and worked closely with Canadian leaders over the past half-century, [Oliver] is able to give a candid and insightful assessment of leading political figures…. This book details the Craig Oliver we all know; someone not afraid to take on tough issues, but who does so in the most genuinely respectful fashion—a true gentleman and a great Canadian. Oliver’s Twist is an enjoyable read, one I highly recommend.” - John Baird (Minister of Foreign Affairs), The Globe and Mail

“A book at once human and sharp…. It is Ottawa that stars here, and Oliver brims with insight into its’ great figures…. [Oliver] injects emotion into his taut, lively prose. He also generates laughs.” - Maclean’s

“Every young reporter should be inspired by Craig Oliver's book, Oliver’s Twist.” - Jim Munson (Liberal senator), The Montreal Gazette

“A fascinating chronicle of a life that moved from the hard streets of 1940s Prince Rupert to a place near the top of the CTV News totem pole. Oliver … pulls few punches.” - Canadian Press