Trudeau Transformed is the follow-up to the 2006 bio Young Trudeau by husband-and-wife team Max and Monique Nemni, taking the enigmatic and controversial “son of Quebec” and “father of Canada” from the shock of attending Harvard University to his decision to enter federal politics 20 years later. The introduction lays out the authors’ intention to write an “intellectual biography,” one that proceeds primarily through a close re-examination of Trudeau’s public writings, leaving aside discussion of his personal life in order to stay firmly focused on his involvement in the major political and ideological debates of the day.

It’s a fair approach, given that Trudeau was probably the last Canadian prime minister to have any claim to being an intellectual. While the narrow focus and depth of detail will make the book of interest primarily to specialists, an effort is made to explain the complex intellectual and political context to general readers (most of whom are unlikely to have any acquaintance with now dated labels like corporatism and personalism), and the authors maintain a lively and engaging tone throughout.

From the opening – “Get ready for the journey! Fasten your seat belts!” – the text is seasoned with exclamatory ejaculations: “Far from it!” “Not at all!” “Unbelievable but true!” “This is vintage Trudeau!” One appreciates the enthusiasm while remaining on guard against some pretty obvious cheerleading. As loyal friends of Trudeau, the authors can hardly be expected to be objective.

The transformation noted in the title involves an intellectual and political “180-degree turn.” Travel and education abroad had the effect of widening Trudeau’s horizons, transforming the somewhat provincial Quebec nationalist described in Young Trudeau into a cosmopolitan Canadian federalist. Along the way, old friends became new enemies and youthful prejudices were publicly tossed in the dustbin, both for reasons of principle and out of personal ambition.

The Nemnis tread lightly on the matter of Trudeau’s ambition, but they also make it very clear that he was no aimless dilettante, drifting about trying to find out what he really wanted to do with his life. In this regard, their book offers a corrective to previous Trudeau biographies (in particular, the authors frequently address works by John English and by Stephen Clarkson and Christina McCall).

Trudeau was always a man with a plan, and the plan (expressed as early as his application to Harvard) was to be a statesman. It was the content, not the direction, of that plan that changed. Luckily, given the man’s many talents, it was a change for the better, both for Trudeau and Canada.