Honouring Chuck Konkel
It is with deep sadness that we announce the passing of Chuck Konkel, a distinguished author, police officer, international crime specialist and most importantly, husband, proud son of Ann, and the late Edward Konkel, father and friend. Chuck passed away on July 21, at the age of 73.
Narcos. Tycoons. Spies. The story of the political infiltration that has become a massive title worldwide. The third edition of Sam Cooper’s Wilful Blindness!
In stores soon
October 22, 2024
Fall Releases
Wilful Blindness Third Edition coming soon
A new and updated edition of the bestselling investigation into the story of narcos, tycoons and the CCP is in the works.
In February 2023, while at Global, Sam Cooper released a bombshell report suggesting that the PRC had supported Han Dong’s Liberal nomination. The PMO and the Prime Minister showed indifference. Yet, it was revealed during the Foreign Interference Commission that Director David Vigneault was asked to modify his intelligence assessment twice.
If any one reporter is responsible for this inquiry, it is Sam Cooper, but to fully understand the context, you must read his entire book.
The Canadian Security and Intelligence Service (CSIS) confirmed in a discussion with Cooper that his book had significantly impacted the United Front Works Department and the Chinese Ministry of State Security. They launched an intelligence operation to delve into the author’s reporting and sources. What were they trying to find out?
You'll discover this when you purchase the updated third edition of "Wilful Blindness." This edition brings you up to date on the CCP’s transnational repression and infiltration operations into Canada’s political apparatus, and Cooper's seminal reporting that led to the Election Interference Commission chaired by Justice Hogue. The preliminary report is due in late June, offering new insights on the CCP’s hybrid warfare tactics in Canada. Additionally, it covers the Iranian links to money laundering and the financing of Middle Eastern terrorist proxies, including Hamas and Hezbollah.
Get the book that has sold over 20,000 copies worldwide.
Grenville, School of Secrets
Andrew Hale-Byrne, along with Ewan Whyte, students at the Grenville Christian College, tell the bizarre story of how an elitist cult on Cape Cod, founded by two self-proclaimed holy women, managed to infiltrate and take over a preppy Anglican boarding school in Ontario.
With patronage from the highest levels in Canada's government and business elites, Grenville College and their partners actively covered up abuse decades of abuse and malpractice. What followed were many years of institutional violence -- psychological, physical and sexual abuse -- against the children of the school, all under the guise of good clean Anglicanism.
Andrew attended Grenville for two years and was able to remove himself from the school. In the case of Ewan Whyte he was raised in the Community of Jesus l in Massachusetts where there were numerous reports of abused victims and attended Grenville for a number of years until he had had enough. His father drove him to Ottawa and left him on the street to fend for himself.
Andrew later exposed the school management and the Anglican Church for their roles in the tragedy as well as the Ontario establishment who clearly turned a blind eye and chose to believe the now discredited school’s Head Master and the management team who ran the school.
Coming Soon
April 2025
Canada Under Siege
In *Canada Under Siege*, Michel Juneau-Katsuya and Garry Clement leverage over 70 years of combined law enforcement and intelligence experience to delve into the surprising tale of Prince Edward Island (PEI). This small Canadian province, known for its picturesque landscapes and the legendary Anne of Green Gables, became the focal point of a complex web of international intrigue.
More Books from Optimum
Pandemic Panic shortlisted for the Donner Prize
Optimum Publishing is please to announce that Pandemic Panic was shortlisted for the Donner Prize. The Donner celebrates the best public policy thinking, writing and research by a Canadian author. Joanna Baron and Christine Van Geyn have excelled in this pursuit, and we are proud to have published such an important public policy book that will be studied by academics and policy makers alike for decades to come.
The Mosaic Effect is out now
“Canada has now become one of the pre-eminent security concerns of the U.S. government.”
With it now known that the Chinese Communist Party has sought to put Beijing-friendly candidates inside our House of Commons, is it any wonder Canadians and Americans are wanting to understand more about how we got ourselves into this mess?
The CCP isn’t just in America’s backyard anymore – they are at their backdoor: Canada. Scott McGregror and Ina Mitchell trace a shadowy world of international espionage as it bleeds into the West with shocking conclusions.
What WE Lost available now
In 2020, WE Charity was riding high. As it geared up to celebrate its 25th anniversary, the organization, which started in the basement of twelve-year old Craig Kielburger’s Toronto home, had grown into a global non-profit recognized for its work helping vulnerable communities gain access to clean water, schools, and income opportunities; and for empowering youth to make a difference in their communities and the world.
But then came a pandemic, a political scandal, and a media pile-on not often seen in Canada. Before the year was out, it had shut its doors in Canada for good.
How did so much go so wrong so quickly?
OPI was the publishing arm of the Montreal Star publishing network before it became Optimum in 1982. An award winning international publisher with a litany of best sellers through the 70’s, 80’s 90’s to present had a stable of bestselling authors including: Margo Oliver; Margo Oliver’s Most Treasured Recipes; Fred Breummer:;The Arctic, Life of the Harp Seal, Children of the North; Greg Clark, The Bird of Paradise, Greg Clarks Favorites and so many more.
“Fury to bottomless anguish to abject helplessness to a sense of betrayal to sickening fear.”
Optimum was known for delivering sensational crime and political best sellers like The Canadian Connection, 1976 by Jean-Pierre Charbonneau. Montreal Mafia/heroin trafficking: Beyond Reason by Margaret Trudeau, French Worldwide/ Global Syndication in French and English: Political best seller, Up the Hill by the Treasury Board President, Donald Johnson, 1986,: Barry Turner, MP From the Plains of Africa to the Jungles of Parliament, 2012 and most recently General Beatty’s book, Bullet Proof Flag, Canada’s Peace Keepers in Cyprus, 2014.
Optimum is now lead by Dean Baxendale after the passing of founder Michael Baxendale in January of 2017. Optimum Publishing will focus on three key subject matter areas in Non-Fiction; Canadian and International Politics, Organized and Corporate Crime, Social and Political Justice.