The anonymity of a phone line is the secret to success for Darrell Bricker and John Wright of Ipsos Reid, the largest market research company in Canada. Ipsos’ accuracy in gathering people’s thoughts and predicting trends makes the company the go-to source for almost everyone seeking answers to strange but intriguing questions such as: What would your ideal lover look like? What would you never bring on a romantic holiday? Would you rather touch the Stanley Cup or Dorothy’s ruby slippers fromThe Wizard of Oz? Does attending university make people less religious? And, if the phone rings at dinner, who is the last person you want it to be? (Hint: it’s not a pollster!)

In We Know What You’re Thinking, Bricker and Wright, the bestselling authors of What Canadians Think About Almost Everything, let us in on the insights they’ve gleaned from thousands of polls and the unlikeliest of characters they’ve encountered— including the retiree who still believes in Santa Claus, the childless person who vehemently complains about toy safety, and the woman who would rather take her dad to a movie premiere than George Clooney.

Filled with fascinating insights about Canadians from every province and territory, in cities and towns, of every age, gender and economic standing—and peppered with fun graphs, factoids and quizzes—We Know What You’re Thinking is compulsive, must-have reading for all Canadians.

QUICK FACTS FROM WE KNOW WHAT YOU’RE THINKING

• The more formal education you have, the more beer you drink.

• 25 percent of Torontonians name Vancouver as their favourite potential place to live; 3 percent of Vancouverites

name Toronto as their favourite place to live.

• Calgary leads the nation in broccoli consumption.

• 3 percent of Canadians believe that Elvis Presley is still alive.

• Less than 1 percent of Canadian parents with young children hope their kids will grow up to be writers.

DARRELL BRICKER is CEO of Ipsos Global Public Affairs. At the Ipsos-Reid Corporation since 1990, Bricker holds a PhD in political science from Carleton University and is the co-author (with Edward Greenspon) of Searching for Certainty: Inside the New Canadian Mindset. He is the co-author (with John Wright) of Canuckology: From Dollars to Donuts—Canada’s Premiere Pollsters Reveal What Canadians Think and Why. Follow him on Twitter @darrellbricker

JOHN IBBITSON, chief political correspondent for The Globe and Mail, has served as the paper’s Queen’s Park columnist, Ottawa political affairs correspondent and bureau chief in both Washington and Ottawa. His numerous political books include Open and Shut: Why America Has Barack Obama and Canada Has Stephen Harper and The Polite Revolution: Perfecting the Canadian Dream. His novel The Landing won the Governor General’s Literary Award for Children’s Literature. He lives and writes in Ottawa. Follow him on Twitter @JohnIbbitson.

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