Few among the city’s myriad cultural communities had trouble relating to Montreal photographer Edward Hillel’s pastiche The Main: Portrait of a Neighbourhood when it was released in 1987. It focused on our city’s fabled boulevard melting pot where immigrant dreams often came to fruition yet were sometimes dashed as well.

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There with you then. Here with you now. As a critical part of the community for over 245 years,The Gazette continues to deliver trusted English-language news and coverage on issues that matter. Subscribe now to receive:

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Now 38 years later, Hillel has come up with a followup, the bilingual Holding the Main, wherein he returns to the ‘hood and using the same modus operandi as in his first book, he documents its evolution with similarly striking, often quirky photos and narrative snippets of the stories of those residing and/or working on St-Laurent Blvd. and environs.

Hillel likes to think of his work as “an installation in a book.” That works.

Not surprisingly, Hillel’s first tome sold out quickly and was much acclaimed to........

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