This is my first question on this forum, so I apologize if I have worded this incorrectly or in the wrong forum. As a Canadian, I did of course learn about my own history throughout public and high school, however all we really had were textbooks that didn't go into the full details of history (essentially a summary), so that in the next grade you could learn more about it.
Is there any specific books, documentaries, or websites where I can find more information? Ranging from pre-colonial times to Modern times if possible, of any topic (warfare, architecture, daily life, ect.)
From my perspective — and it's biased toward the Yukon/Alaska — I'd recommend working your way through Pierre Berton's bibliography. While he wrote some duds here and there, most of his 50 titles are pretty good.
I'd recommend The Klondike Fever, The Promised Land: Settling the West and Marching As To War as three to get you started. Those three condense a lot of his bibliography. Once you've gotten through those, grab his two volumes on the War of 1812 (one covers 1812-1813, the other 1814-1815) his two volumes on the Canadian Pacific Railway, The Arctic Grail, Vimy, Niagra and The Great Depression.
You may be interested in the figure of Louis Riel.
Riel was a Metis -- a people of mixed First Nation and European descent, often the result of European fur traders mixing with and living alongside indigenous peoples. He is known for having been the charismatic leader of two resistance movements, between 1869 and 1885, fighting for Metis rights against the Canadian government. His legacy is alternately remembered as either martyred folk hero or mad traitor.
The work I'd like to recommend is a bit unorthodox:
Louis Riel: A Comic Strip Biography
This was a really well-done graphic novel treatment of the historical figure and the world he rose up to prominence within. I learned so much from it. At the end, there is a 23 page appendix where the author discusses his life and times and the choices he made in portraying Riel. I think it is especially good for someone looking to begin an inquiry into Canadian history.
Here is a great and in-depth 3-part interview with the author, Chestor Brown, reproduced here:
Here is a Time Magazine article discussing the work
Here is a site with excerpts from the strip
And here is a non-comic biography of Louis Riel in the Dictionary of Canadian Biography. This is great -- very long, tons of info, and balanced.
If you're looking for a history of early French exploration and settlement, Champlain's Dream, by David Hackett Fischer is a good read.