Mining geophysics: A Canadian story By Norman Reed Paterson Published by the Canadian Institute of Mining, Metallurgy and Petroleum, 2019, 188 pp. RRP CAN$39.95. ISBN: 978-1-926872-42-1. This book is a personalized history of many of the entrepreneurial technocrats who created a new geophysical technical service industry in the three decades after World War II. Decades during which Canada became, arguably, the world leader in mining exploration technology. The author introduces readers to most of the key participants in the exciting 1945- 75 period of initial growth in mining geophysics in Canada. Norm Paterson was a central participant in this growth era as a consequence of his early career with Hunting Survey Corporation and, subsequently, as President of Huntec Ltd. in Toronto. He is well known to many older members of the mining geophysical community and, during his long career, he met and/ or worked with many of the people described in his book. He emphasises that his book is not an attempt at a comprehensive history of geophysics in Canada, but rather a subjective, personal recollection of people and developments. It serves admirably in this regard. The book comprises four main sections: (1)  The Birth of Exploration Geophysics, which describes how Canadians and Canadian universities were early leaders in R&D. (2)  Developments and Projects 1945– 1959, which highlights some of the equipment developments, including ground and airborne electromagnetics, together with brief, personalized“case histories”of some of the discoveries in which the author was involved. (3)  The Pioneers, in which the author presents“snapshots”of many of the individuals who initiated mining geophysics in Canada (most of whom the author knew personally), including Tony Barringer, Fraser Grant, Norman Keevil Sr, Vaino Ronka, Harry Seigel and Gordon West. (4)  Developments and Projects, 1960– 1975, which describes significant instrument developments, particularly in IP and ground and airborne electromagnetics. Several typical Canadian exploration“rushes” are also described in this section, including the classic Pine Point where a number of Pb-Zn ore bodies were found with less than a couple of weeks of IP surveying, and the late ‘60s uranium rush in the Athabasca Basin. All the descriptions have numerous interesting, and often amusing, anecdotes and interpretive comments by the author. In addition, there is a short section on the author’s perspective of the Canadian ground geophysics industry and the principals involved, with particular emphasis on his experience in forming Huntec Ltd. and some of the in-house equipment developments. An appendix by William J. Scott documents very early magnetic and gravity surveys in Canada (from the 1820s) and also some early exploration geophysics done by the Geological Survey of Canada (GSC) up to the late 1930s. Another useful addition is a list of“Key Players”, which is cross- referenced to page numbers in the text. I particularly appreciated the custom drawn Deposit Location Maps at the front of the book, where all the deposits and mine discoveries mentioned in the text are clearly shown. There are six maps, covering different parts of Canada. At times the text exhibits“stream of consciousness”tendencies and, overall, it sometimes appears disjointed and lacking structure. The book contains numerous black/white photos of people and survey equipment. Unfortunately, the quality of these photos is sometimes poor, presumably because of the need to limit printing costs. However, despite these shortcomings, I would recommend the book to anyone interested in the history of exploration geophysics in Canada. Reviewed by Richard Irvine dick@condorconsult.com Book review 43 PREVIEW JUNE 2019