When Emily was Small by Lauren Soloy Toronto: Penguin Random House, 2020 (Tundra Books) $21.99 / 9780735266063 Reviewed by Ginny Ratsoy * Lauren Soloy is both author and illustrator of this lovely adaptation of Emily Carr’s “White Currants” from The Book of Small (1942), which Doris Shadbolt, in the introduction to The Emily Carr Omnibus,…
Read more #923 Return to the Book of Small
The Unbroken Hearts Club by Brooke Carter Victoria: Orca Books, 2019 $9.95 / 9781459820616 Reviewed by Zoe McKenna * In The Unbroken Hearts Club, Brooke Carter highlights the healing power of community and art in the face of grief and loss. Brooke Carter is the author of several novels for young adults, including the Runecaster…
Read more #907 An all-encompassing loss
You Suck, Sir: Chronicles of a High School English Teacher and the Students who Schooled Him by Paul Bae Vancouver: Arsenal Pulp Press (Robin’s Egg Books), 2020 $19.95 / 9781551528076 Reviewed by Myshara Herbert-McMyn * A comedian, podcaster, writer, and actor, Paul Bae also taught English at Vancouver’s largest public school. He co-created and co-wrote…
Read more #877 A primer for modern teachers
Maison Rouge: Memories of a Childhood in War by Liliane Leila Juma Vancouver: Tradewind Books, 2020 $12.95 / 9781926890302 Reviewed by Howard Macdonald Stewart * Like many of us, I often find myself reading a couple of books at the same time. So, when I picked up Leila Juma’s thin tome I was also reading…
Read more #864 Crossing Lake Tanganyika
Girls Like Me by Kristin Butcher Victoria: Orca Books, 2019 $9.95 / 9781459820555 Reviewed by Carol Anne Shaw Trigger warning: rape, sexual coercion, miscarriage * Kristin Butcher of Campbell River has written more than twenty books for young people, and has been shortlisted for a variety of Canadian literary awards during her career. She writes…
Read more #830 Sweeping rape under the rug
Secrets in the Shadows by Heige S. Boehm Vancouver: Ronsdale Press, 2019 $14.95 / 9781553805724 Reviewed by Valerie Green * Secrets in The Shadows is the story of two boyhood friends, Michael and Wolfgang (Wolfie), growing up in Nazi Germany in the 1930s. But it is also so much more. Author Heige S. Boehm has…
Read more #810 Pawns in the Hitler Youth
The Vegetable Museum by Michelle Mulder Victoria: Orca Books, 2019 $10.95 / 9781459816794 Reviewed by George M. Johnson * Michelle Mulder cultivates rich soil (sorry I couldn’t resist that) in her middle-grade novel about 13 year-old Chloë Becher, forced to move from Montreal to Victoria with her Dad when her parents separate. Initially she finds…
Read more #724 Postwar gardening therapy
10 Sure-fire Ways to NAIL Your First Draft by Carol Anne Shaw * After several years of reading, scribbling, blogging, Facebooking, and trying to look serious on LinkedIn, I’ve come to realize that this writing-a-novel thing is actually a no-brainer. Because there are only ten necessary rules for success. I’m not lying. (I’ll get to…
Read more #713 Writing tips from Cowichan
The Princess Dolls by Ellen Schwartz, with illustrations by Mariko Ando Vancouver: Tradewind Books, 2018 $12.95 / 9781926890081 Reviewed by Michael Kluckner * Best friends Esther and Michiko and their longing for two dolls of the English princesses, Elizabeth and Margaret, provide subjects for a wartime tale of friendship, racial injustice, and displacement set in…
Read more #710 Four Strathcona princesses
Here I Am! by Pauline Holdstock Windsor, Ontario: Biblioasis, 2019 $21.95 / 9781771963091 Reviewed by Valerie Green * Rarely does a book draw me in from page one, but such was the case with Here I Am! by Pauline Holdstock. The protagonist is a delightful six year-old boy, Frankie West, and the reader soon learns…
Read more #691 Frankie goes to New York
Scallywag on the Salish Sea by Sara Cassidy, with illustrations by Mike Deas Victoria: Heritage House, 2019 $9.95 / 9781772032789 Reviewed by Valerie Green * This delightful little book, written by Sara Cassidy with illustrations by Mike Deas, is aimed specifically at a six to nine year-old demographic who love pirate stories and somewhat gruesome,…
Read more #649 Pirates of the Gulf
The Horse of The River: A Camp Canyon Falls Adventure by Sari Cooper Madeira Park: Harbour Publishing, 2019 $12.95 / 9781550178777 Reviewed by Margot Fedoruk * “Riding is where your heart is. Go. Commune with the horses and live in the woods,” says Gillian’s mother as she encourages her daughter to enjoy a month-long trip…
Read more #638 Adventures at Canyon Camp
Tiny House, Big Fix Victoria: Orca Books, 2019 $9.95 / 9781459821200 by Gail Anderson-Dargatz Reviewed by Valerie Green * This small book by novelist Gail Anderson-Dargatz is a delightfully quick read for young adults. The story is told in just 136 pages. In the book, the author describes many aspects of rural life while at…
Read more #632 Living small on a tired planet
The Grizzlies of Grouse Mountain: The True Adventures of Coola and Grinder by Shelley Hrdlitschka and Rae Schidlo, illustrated by Linda Sharp Victoria: Heritage House, 2019 $19.95 / 9781772032772 Reviewed by Theo Dombrowski * Grizzly bear! Ursus arctos ! Or is it, more correctly, Ursus arctos horribilis? The first is the species name, the second…
Read more #616 Captive mountain grizzlies
The Girl and the Wolf by Katherena Vermette (text) and Julie Flett (illustrations) Penticton: Theytus Books, 2019 $19.95 / 9781926886541 Reviewed by Irene Watts * What inspired this empathetic tale? Katherena Vermette, a Métis writer from Winnipeg, says in her author’s note that this “completely made-up story” was influenced by traditional ones. The Girl and…
Read more #567 A Métis Red Riding Hood
Stowaway by Pam Withers Toronto: Dundurn, 2018 $12.99 / 9781459741911 Reviewed by Irene Watts * Pam Withers has a staunch following for her many adventure novels. Fans will not be disappointed in Stowaway from Dundurn Press. Two sixteen-year-old boys of diverse backgrounds, both mourn a lack of friends, and are burdened with secrets they have…
Read more #556 Gangs, pirates, smugglers
Growing Up in Wild Horse Canyon by Karen Autio, illustrated by Loraine Kemp Vancouver: Crwth Press, 2018 $25.95 / 9781775331902 Reviewed by Ken Mather * At the heart of Growing up in Wild Horse Canyon is the beautifully illustrated story of the life of a Ponderosa Pine from a seed in the year 1780 to…
Read more #512 A Ponderosa Pine time capsule
First published Sept. 1, 2018. The Night the Forest Came to Town by Charles Ghigna, illustrated by Annie Wilkinson Victoria: Orca Books, 2018 $19.95 / 9781459816503 Reviewed by Carol Anne Shaw * Nature reclaims and transforms a city in Charles Gigna’s The Night the Forest Came to Town, illustrated by Annie Wilkinson. Carol Anne Shaw notes…
Read more #362 City night magic
First published Aug. 28, 2018. Up In Arms by Amanda Spottiswoode, illustrations by Molly March Victoria: Heritage House, 2017. $12.95 / 9781772032024 Reviewed by Steve Pocock * In 1939 and 1940, some 6,000 British children, known as child evacuees and British guest children, were sent to Canada to escape the threat of German invasion. The…
Read more #357 Refugee kids meet Cougar Annie
First published August 28, 2018. Fifteen Point Nine DCB Book, 2018 $14.95 978-1-77086-523-5 A debut YA novelist wants society to not turn a blind eye in the hallways. “I’ve seen more money spent on new basketball uniforms than on workshops and classes that could address the increasingly harsh reality of bullying,” says Holly Dobbie, “that…
Read more #356 Bullying must be stopped