Nice things people have said about The Never-Ending Present
"This is a remarkable, moving and excellent book." — John K. Samson, the Weakerthans
"Music is so often the true story of our times and no one tells that story better than Michael Barclay. The Never-Ending Present is an original, riveting history of our culture and country as seen through the wild eyes of the Tragically Hip. Like a great song, the propulsive book has a melody to its intelligence. The best music book I’ve read in years. Full stop." — Evan Solomon, host, CTV's Question Period and Power Play
"I think it's important for storytellers to tell stories about storytellers. This book is so personal, so meaningful, so beautiful, written with passion and commitment. Narrating the audiobook was particularly emotional; I had to stop myself from crying many times. The Hip have done a masterful job telling us their story, and it's deeply important for their friends and fans to do the same. It's one of the ways we celebrate."
— George Stroumboulopoulos,
The Strombo Show
"Barclay is the perfect inside outsider, pulling back the cloak on an iconic, insular rock band to reveal its hold on a country's conscience and the poetic genius of its heroic front man. A fascinating story, masterfully told." — Nicholas Jennings, author of Lightfoot and Before the Gold Rush
"An essential addition to every music fan's bookshelf. It's a thorough and beautiful love letter." — Andrea Warner, author of Buffy Sainte-Marie: The Authorized Biography
"Reading this was so painful, and yet there are great, funny stories in here. The more you knew Downie, the greater impact this story has. It's not a normal read. It's an amazing read." — Terry David Mulligan, Mulligan Stew
“A clever, touching, and very informative book that may well be the definitive work on an important piece of Canadian pop culture.”
— Publishers Weekly starred review
"The Never-Ending Present is much more than a love letter to a fallen Canadian hero. It's an ambitious chronicle of a moment in our cultural history, a richly detailed and clear-eyed invesetigation into why this music and these people mattered, and still do."
— Paul Wells, Maclean's
“Barclay’s remarkable chronicle of the Tragically Hip is as wide as it is deep. He sets down their story with a historian’s care and an artist’s rambling curiosity, revisiting each note with wit, expertise and so much heart. It's eminently readable, clever and funny — what an achievement.” — Sean Michaels, Giller Prize-winning author of Us Conductors
“This is an immensely pleasurable read, full of anecdotes, info and lyrical insight I had never seen before. Curious, casual fans and serious Hip heads will find so much to love about this book. This is a monumental, definitive chronicle of the band.”
— Stephen Dame, HipMuseum.com