You know the James mink story is not based on a novel but is it based on any book?

Answer 1

The book is simply Pearson's remembered history (like an oral history or diary) of the life and times of Toronto, when he lived there in the 1800's. In the book, Pearson walks through all the streets of Toronto and recalls who lived where and recites he local rumors. On less than 2 pages (in a 420 page book) Pearson mentions James Mink living on Adelaide Street. Me mentions Mink ran a livery stable next to the post office, and kept a hotel. Pearson recalls that Mink was a "black man" with a "violent temper", and his daughter was "very black'. Pearson makes no mention of any wife, white or otherwise, as depicted in the movie. Pearson recalls that Mink married his daughter off to a "white man" to whom he paid a "considerable sum of money" for marrying his daughter. The husband then took her on a trip to South Carolina and sold her -- also for a "considerable sum of money". Mink found out about the sale and "took immediate steps to repurchase her and brought her back to Toronto". End of story. The movie, a dramatic fiction, stretches much longer than the very very short facts.