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Being With Henry

By Martha Brooks

 "You can stay" says Henry Olsen firmly, then clears his throat, "for as long as it takes to get yourself together."

"That might be quite some time", Laker says quietly.

"I’m in no rush, son. Time is something I’ve got more of than I know what to do with."

Thus begins the heart warming relationship between sixteen year old Laker Wyatt and eighty-three-year old Henry Olsen. What begins as an act of kindness (helping a young boy off the street) turns into a unique and sensitive friendship between a young and trouble teenager and a lonely, needy senior. This realistic fiction revolves around the struggles and decisions of two very different families. Laker’s abandonment issues serve as an interesting contrast to Henry’s overbearing daughter and grand-daughter. Eventually, Laker’s stay with Henry leads him to the revelation of a long kept family secret and a better understanding of the complexities of love, family and relationships.

This novel is a challenging read, recommend for Grades 7 and up

The Clay Ladies

by Michael Bedard

 "And on the top shelf, resting side by side, two plaster women sit and watch us all. Grandmother calls them the Clay Ladies. And this is the story she tells:"

The Clay Ladies is actually two stories in one. One story is about that of a little girl who finds a wounded bird and takes it to two women who live in an old church on her street. The women, known the Clay Ladies because they are sculptors, help the girl to heal the bird while also teaching her the art of sculpting. Their "church" is full of statues of every different size and shape, in various stages of completion. The essence of the sculptor’s lives are captured perfectly with Les Tait’s detailed illustrations. Our eyes are drawn to the clutter, dust and bits of clay on everything within the old, high-ceilinged building, while at the same time we see the softness of an artist’s touch, their passion for their art and even the feel and smell of clay.

The second story is found within the names of the Clay Ladies. They are Frances Loring and Florence Wyle, both of whom were well-know Canadian sculptors who lived in Toronto from 1913 to 1968. "They lived together in a board-and-batten building that still stands today and is called the Church." Their sculptures can be found around the world in parks, public galleries and private collections. While the story of The Clay Ladies is fictitious, the main characters and their accomplishments are not!

This would be a great story to motivate students to do research on sculptors such as Frances Loring and Florence Wyle. It also portrays the art of turning clay into form and inspires one to want to mold a lump of clay into something more. "Once you get the feel of the clay in your hands", Miss Loring said, "there’s nothing else you want to do."

How can a brilliant detective shine in the dark?

by Linda Bailey

 Stevie Diamond, thirteen year old detective and her best friend Jesse, discover a map hidden in one of their long lost uncle's old books. Because they are detectives, they naturally decide to go in search of the cave that is marked on the map. Besides, it will give them something to do at the boring family reunion.

The reunion doesn't stay boring for long. Stevie and Jesse stir up a mess of trouble and get involved in an intriguing mystery. Why did Uncle Archie run away 45 years ago and why is he back now? Is there really gold hidden in the cave? Was someone murdered years ago?

Join the detectives as they head for adventure.

Note: This book is the 6th in the Stevie Diamond Mystery series. The stories before were also excellent but they do not have to be read first to enjoy this book.

Kit: The Adventures of a Raccoon

by: Shirley Woods

This truly is an adventure book. The hero is a ring-tailed, masked bandit with 20 fingers named Kit. The life of this wild animal is never dull.

Together with his sisters, Kit discovers the world around him. One thing they discover is what tastes good for lunch and how to get it, but they also find out out the hard way how not to become lunch themselves.

There are tragedies, heartaches and many adventures along the way to becoming an adult raccoon. Nightly raids on corn fields and garbage cans bring Kit in contact with one of his most terrifying enemies - humans.

You will enjoy this little, furry hero and learn many interesting things about raccoons.

The Nose from Jupiter

By Richard Scrimger.

 Alan Dingwall was just an ordinary 13-year-old boy until one day a tiny alien from Jupiter moved into his nose. Then things all changed when Norbert moved into Alan’s nose, and parked his spaceship in the "garage" of the nose. It was a life changing experience for Alan.

The first thing to happen was people thought Alan was talking to himself a lot, in a high squeaky voice (aka Norbert). Alan tried to tell people that the voice was Norbert, but no one believed him. Norbert could be quite forward, especially with Alan’s friend, Miranda.

Before Norbert’s arrival, Alan had been scared of the school bullies and avoided them at all costs. After Norbert made his home in Alan’s nose, Norbert (and Alan) were heard taunting the bullies and making fun of them. That made the school bullies confused and angry.

This humorous story is revealed through Alan’s attempt to recover his memory, after nearly drowning. While in hospital, he was awakened every hour because he had been in a slight coma.. His divorced parents don’t make things any easier by their quarreling at the side of Alan’s hospital bed. And the doctors in the hospital are puzzled by a strangely shaped object which showed up on the x-rays of Alan’s nose.

Alan Dingwall was just an ordinary 13-year-old boy until one day a tiny alien from Jupiter moved into his nose.

The Other Author Arthur

by Sheree Fitch.

Can you say "Other Author Arthur", five times fast? If you can you will love this book. If you can’t you will love this book. Everybody gets mixed up with everyone else in this story! The teachers, the principal, and the school custodian all get mixed up!

Sheree Fitch is the master of word play and she uses that to full advantage here. The Upper Millidocket Elementary School has been planning an author visit. Mrs. Reed the librarian is the key organizer. The author, Arthur T. Inkpen is due to arrive the very day the furnace breaks down. Arthur T. Inkpen’s main character is named Mr. Fix-it, and the author comes dressed in a "Mr. Fix-it costume". Mr. Bob, the custodian, obviously thinks Mr. Inkpen is the furnace repairman and takes him down to the furnace room, gives him a cup of coffee and leaves him alone. Meanwhile the real furnace repairman, Arthur Good, arrives and is mistaken for the visiting author. The web gets somewhat more tangled before it unwinds with a happily ever after ending.

Ms. Fitch uses puns (Mrs. Reed the librarian), "lipslipping" ("I’m often know to jiggle at my very own gokes"), mishearings (writer and rider), words that sound similar (author and Arthur) and general confusion to make this a delightful romp for early chapter book readers.

Jill Quinn adds some black and white illustrations to make this an outstanding choice for the solo reader or a read aloud. As a read aloud this book would be suitable for grade two and up, for a read alone it would be best for grade three and up. Lots of fun word play activities would be the obvious extension of this book in the classroom. Teamed up with some of Miss Fitch’s other works, this would make a great unit. This is the sequel to The Hullabaloo Bugaboo Day.

The Prince of Tarn

By Hazel Hutchins

This fantasy adventure deals with friendship, sadness and bravery in a way that students in grades 4 – 6 will really enjoy and identify with.   The Prince of Tarn arrives in Fred’s bedroom on May 17th at twelve minutes before midnight. Fred had just turned eleven and was asleep trying to forget the half-cooked birthday cake his father had made him.

Fred soon realizes that the Prince is a character from one of his dead mother’s stories. Fred and his friend Rebecca have their hands full, between trying to send the Prince back to his world and keeping him out of trouble in their world.  Fred and Rebecca travel to the magical world of the Prince in an effort to keep it from being destroyed. The Prince is a character that students will love. The conclusion of this novel is not only exciting but also surprising.

Sunwing

By Kenneth Oppel

Shade’s back in this sequel to Silverwing. The young bat continues the search for his father and the secret of the mysterious human building that contains a vast forest and an unlimited food supply. What is the deadly secret of this bat paradise?

This superb sequel continues Shade’s quest to find his father in a fantasy world in which good confronts evil. Shade, Marina, Ariel and Frieda soon find the human bat paradise is not what it seems. In an escape attempt they discover that the building also contains many enemy owls. Then they discover that the seemingly benevolent humans are attaching explosives to owls and bats, and using the creatures to bomb enemy cities.

Shade and Marina are swept up on a perilous journey that takes them to the far southern jungle. There they are once again forced into conflict with Goth, now king of all the Vampyrum Spectrum. Where cannibal bats with metre long wingspans exist. Bats, owls and rats must learn to work together to defeat Goth and his dreadful army.

Shade leads his multi-species army in a fast paced adventure against Goth who is attempting to harness the dark powers of Cama Zotz to create eternal night. Shade also finally rescues his father who is being held prisoner by Goth.

Those who have already read Silverwing will love the continuation of this terrific fantasy action adventure. Sunwing stands by itself, but young readers will undoubtedly want to read both parts of this exciting story.

War of the Eagles

Eric Walters.

 Jed and his mother move in with his Tsimshian grandmother in a village near Prince Rupert, while his father is flying planes in Europe during World War II. Fourteen-year-old Jed enjoys hunting for game, sometimes alone and sometimes with his friend, Tadashi. Jed’s mother works as a cook in an army camp near Prince Rupert. Jed misses his mother when she is away for the four-day stints. Jed is asked to do some hunting for the camp, since he is already hanging around the camp. He is also allowed to help his mother in the kitchen.

One day, Jed sees a crowd of army men bring in an injured eagle. He is given the job of taking care of it and feeding it. He is reminded by his grandmother, Naani, that eagles are very important to her, her tribe, and to him.

Unrest in the rest of the world makes things difficult for Tadashi, whose parents were born in Japan. Tadashi is allowed to work in the camp too, but only for a little while. Things change drastically when Pearl Harbor is bombed. Suspiciousness is replaced by racism and even hatred for the Japanese. Jed has trouble dealing with his own feelings, and the attitudes and feelings of those he is around, especially at the camp.

Teachers can use this book to illustrate the effects of World War II in Canada, and also as a starting point to discussions of racism, especially during that time. Jed and his mother move in with his Tsimshian grandmother near Prince Rupert, while his father is flying planes in Europe during World War II. Jed spends much of his time either with his friend, Tadashi, or at the army camp where Jed’s mother works.

When Night Eats the Moon

By Joanne Findon

What do you think would happen if you went to visit your family in England, you went out to the barn to practice your flute and the next thing you knew you were transported in time back to the time of Iron Age, a time of brutality, superstitions, rituals and magic?

Holly and her mother are visiting with Holly’s aunt, uncle and cousin on the farm, near Salisbury, owned by Holly’s grandparents until their deaths. Holly is a budding flautist. Her interest in music is supported by her father and discouraged by her mother. One evening, against her mother’s wishes, Holly decides to practice her flute in the barn. A humming sound draws her through a passageway that leads to a small room. Inside this room Holly is surprised to find the humming emanates from a row of pots sitting on a shelf. Startled by the sound of her mother’s voice Holly drops the pot she has in her hands. The next thing she knows she is face down in the wet grass a stone’s throw from the ancient Stonehenge. Each pot holds a finite amount of time. When the time in the pot runs out Holly is swept back to modern day. The Iron Age people believe Holly is the Maregi, destined to save them from the Celts, as they gather at Stonehenge to celebrate the lunar eclipse, when night eats the moon.

Holly is in distress over the possible separation of her parents and infuriated they would consider leaving her alone with relatives she barely knows in a country where it rains all the time. Holly’s mother stays in Salisbury long enough to warn Holly about practising in the barn. Her mother’s sister, Aunt Sally, holds valuable information about her mother’s past. Cousin Frederick annoys Holly until he becomes an ally in the time travel.

The Iron Age is home to some interesting characters. Borakarek is the great Sorcerer the Seer and the Caller. It falls to him to try to save his people from the invasion of the Celts. Evaken is the Sorcerer’s young assistant and Avartha, Evaken’s sister are the same chronological age as Holly, with, as the time demanded, adult responsibilities.

Findon excels at evoking Britain past and present. We smell the wetness, the smoke and the diesel fuel; feel the mud, grass and the dampness in our bones.

This is a well-crafted, engaging read, making it a great read aloud for grades 5 and up, and a read alone for grades 6 and up. An historical note at the end of the manuscript notes the time travel portion of the novel is not based on fact. This book could be used in conjunction with units on ancient Britain, time travel, or creative writing.

52 Days by Camel

by Lawrie Raskin with Debora Pearson

Open this book and take a journey through the Sahara desert. Many adventures await you. You will see ancient cities, eat with your hands, take part in a snowball fight just a couple hours away from the desert, get caught in a sand storm, visit a nomad in his tent, and of course, learn all about camels, including how to get on and off them. It's not as easy as it sounds!!

Timbuktu-52 Days. That is how long it took in the old days to get there by camel. Your days will not be spent entirely on a camel. You will travel by bus, jeep and boat. But you will eventually arrive in the ancient, mysterious city of Timbuktu. Once at Timbuktu you will travel even further to the salt mines of Taoudenni, over a part of the Sahara that is called "a desert within a desert". This is one of the world's hottest, driest areas and there's nothing here except earth and sky - no signs, no palm trees, not even any litter. Many people and camels have died of thirst along this route.

You will pass thousands of camels, some with no salt on their way to the salt mines and some returning carrying their salt burdens. There are wonderful photographs that will make you feel as though you are standing with the photographer as he takes them.

Colour maps help you follow the trail of the writer as he explores Africa.

Happy adventuring!

Animals Eat the Weirdest Things

by: Diane Swanson

Some of the delicious items on the menu tonight include: mucous, vomit, dead hair, toenails, newspapers, and rotten flesh. Hungry yet? These are just a few of the strange meals that animals enjoy every day. While these diets may sound really gross to us, they provide animals with important nutrients for survival.

And speaking of animals, not all humans eat cheeseburgers and fries. There is a tasty sounding recipe for grilled tarantulas that will make you drool. This book is packed with interesting facts about the weird things that animals eat and is sure to provide you with lots of disgusting things you can tell your friends, just as they are about to eat their lunch. Or at the dinner table when your mom is just about to bite into her lasagne, tell her about all the animals that actually eat their own children for dinner.

Of course, animals don't find these meals gross or disgusting; indeed, they need this particular diet in order to thrive and live to see another day.

Survival of the fittest is the rule out there and the animals in this book have adapted in wonderful ways in order to survive. You may think dung is not such a tasty treat, but to the dung beetle, it is life itself.

A BARNYARD BESTIARY

Written by David Bouchard

"We are the voices from the barn…" so starts this unusual and fascinating prose about domestic animals (including both rare and extinct) and their relationship to man. Written in first person, David Bouchard makes us feel like the animals are speaking directly to us about their value and significance. This tale encourages mankind to take a closer look at what domestic animals have done for us and to not take them for granted. It is powerful message written in a clever and interesting way.

This book is not only a literary treat but a visual one as well. The illustrations by Kimball Allen are so detailed and realistic that you find yourself wanting to reach out and touch the pictures for a chance that they might be real.

As with all poetry, something is lost when it is not read aloud. This book needs a voice because it has a rhythm and a sensitivity to it that should be shared with children of all ages. It may also serve as a springboard for research projects of domestic, rare and extinct, animals.

By Truck to the North

By Andy Turnbull and Debora Pearson

This is a truck book that goes way beyond the usual descriptions of various 18-wheelers. The author takes us on aunique trip into the Canadian North with trucker Bill Rutherford and his companion, TD, sometimes known as "The Dog." Bill buys fresh produce in Vancouver and delivers it to ice-bound Tuktoyaktuk, near the Arctic Circle. The author brings to life this long-distance trip that includes blizzards, northern lights, sightings of many kinds of wildlife and Bill's efforts to keep the truck running in the bitter cold. The experience is driving the large truck down frozen rivers called "ice roads" to reach Tuktoyadescribed in vivid detail.

This book shows us a side of life in the far north that is rarely described. The experience of people happily shopping in the back of the truck and leaving fresh produce that is both rare and expensive in this remote part of the earth, will be an eye-opening to most children who take supermarkets for granted.

This is a very well designed book with many great pictures of trucks, wild animals and the land of the north. Many of the pages have sidebars that give information about trucks, animals, geography and historic events and places along the route.

Most of the pictures are accompanied with factual captions that greatly add to the interest of the book. A series of maps keep the reader informed about the progress of the trip. An adequate index and list of websites make this book a useful research tool to young students interested in knowing more about the far north.

The Last Safe House

By Barbara Greenwood

This is the story of the Underground Railroad - the network of hiding places and forest trails that allowed slaves from the Southern United States to escape to freedom in Canada and the free northern states. The story is revolves around the lives of two young girls - Eliza, a runaway slave from Virginia and Johanna, whose family gives Eliza refuge in their home in St. Catharines, Ontario. Interspersed throughout the book are sections of factual information about slavery, cotton plantations and life in the 1800’s. Instructions are also included on how to make gingerbread cookies, a tin can lantern and a cornhusk doll.  Johanna has never before understood the horrors of slavery until Eliza tells her story about life on a cotton plantation and her escape north. The horror is especially real when the girls are alone and a slave-hunter appears at the door. As the story unfolds readers will gain an understanding of what it was like to be a slave. They will also be introduced to the brave deeds of those who risked their lives and homes to help free the slaves.

The Last Safe House brings history to life with a tale of friendship, kindness and cruelty. The clear black and white illustrations compliment both the fictional and historical elements of the story.

Secrets of the Mummies: Uncovering the Bodies of Ancient Egyptians

By Shelley Tanaka

Secret of the Mummies is the latest in the I Was There Book series by Shelly Tanaka. Tanaka explains how the Egyptians prepared mummies and the reason mummification was important to their religion. She describes the burial process and the reason that valuable objects were often buried with the mummy.

This exquisitely illustrated book contains illustrations or photographs on every page. Sidebars explain many concise facts about mummification, archeology and life in Ancient Egypt. Tanaka describes how the hundreds of thousands of Egyptian Mummies were destroyed over the centuries. Grave robbers and others have removed nearly all the mummies from their burial places. She explains how mummies were ground up as a medicine, the 19th Century European custom of mummy unwrapping, and the collecting of mummies by European tourists. She explains how today’s scientists are using high-tech methods such as x-rays, CAT scans and computer recreations to study mummies without destroying them. Tanaka describes how modern scientists have used these techniques to find more about the lives of four Ancient Egyptians. These techniques give an idea of why these Egyptians died, as well as a more detailed description of what their health and everyday life was like.

Secrets of the Mummies is a motivating fact book that children in grades 4 - 7 will find hard to put down. Other books in this series include On board the Titanic, Discovering the Iceman, Buried City of Pompeii, Graveyards of the Dinosaurs, Lost Temple of the Aztecs and First on the Moon.

Shooting hoops and skating loops : great inventions in sports

By Alannah Hegedus & Kaitlin Rainey

These questions and many more are answered in this book on inventions in sports. Ten inventions are described in detail, from their origins to any modifications to equipment used in those sports. Scattered throughout the main text are pictures and information boxes which give some interesting facts or further information on a specific aspect of that sport.

European explorers saw that the Native peoples used birchbark canoes and kayaks to traverse the many rivers and lakes of Canada. The Europeans adopted these lighter and faster boats to explore Canada, and to transport people and furs in this vast land. Other sports which came from the Native peoples of North America were lacrosse, snowsnake, and snowshoeing.

Hockey was a game adapted from other similar games played by Europeans, and a stick-and-ball game of Oochankunutk played by the Native peoples. With the addition of skates and the formalization of rules, hockey eventually became the fast moving and competitive game it is today. Information boxes in this chapter tell about when women began to play hockey, why the goalie mask was invented, and the possible origin of today’s hockey puck.

Invented in 1967, the laser sailboat was very lightweight, traveled fast, and could be easily put together after being carried on top of a car. These boats have been called the most popular sailing craft in the world, and are used regularly in races. Other chapters in the book cover the sports inventions of basketball, five-pin bowling, snowmobiles, and modern skates. This book is full of interesting facts about sports inventions which affect the way persons do sports professionally and in their leisure time.

Do you know when and where hockey was first formally organized? This question and many more are answered in this book on inventions in sports.

The Tempest for Kids

By Lois Burdett

Take a duke, a king, a hideous monster, a magician, a beautiful duchess, and a handsome prince. Have the magician cast a spell to produce a violent sea-storm and you have a story of magic, anger, jealousy, and love.

If you know anything about Stratford Ontario, you know that everything is Shakespeare. So it is not a surprise that a teacher from Stratford has developed a series of books called "Shakespeare Can Be Fun!" Lois Burdett has rewritten the plays in rhyming couplets designed for presentation as class plays or for reading aloud.

The rhyming couplets follow Shakespeare’s text very closely, nicely handling some of the more mature situations and language of the original work. In addition to the abridged version there are illustrations of various scenes and compositions (letters, diary entries, and prose) created by Ms. Burdett’s students, ages 8 to 10. These illustrations and compositions reveal the understanding and delight of the children who have been exposed to Shakespeare in this form.

As well as the play itself, Ms Burdett has included a list of activities that can be used in the classroom or at home in conjunction with the play, (e.g. creative writing, geography, drama, magic tricks).

Ms. Burdett has been recognized for her work by the National Council of Teachers of English, The International Reading Association and has received Canada’s Meritorious Service Medal and the Encyclopedia Britannica’s National Award for Early Childhood Education.

Too Young to Fight : memories from our youth during World War II,

complied by Priscilla Galloway. Stoddart Publishing, 1999.

What if your mom said, "yes, your friend can stay to dinner but, you will have to share your portion of the meat." What if each member of your family had a bowl of sugar for a month and when that was gone, you didn’t get any more, and if your mom baked a cake she took part of what she needed out of each bowl? What if the government didn’t allow your family enough gas for your car? Believe-it-or-not this is what it was like growing up in Canada during World War II.

While visiting a school, a grade eight student said to author Priscilla Galloway, "We looked up when you were born. You were our age when World War II was going on. Did the war make any difference in your life?" This sewed the seed for this amazing, insightful, sober look at World War II through the eyes of children.

With one exception Too Young to Fight is a series of memoirs (the exception being a short story) by children’s authors who now make their home in Canada. The stories span the nation and the globe. The stories of Jean Little and Dorothy Jean Harris begin in the far east, Monica Hughes story is set in the UK and Janet Lunn’s in the US. Budge Wilson tells of the Canadian east coast; Joy Kogawa and Priscilla Galloway of the west coast; Roch Carrier of Quebec; and Christopher Chapman, Claire Mackay, and Brian Doyle of Ontario.

The stories have many things in common: rations; separation of families; death of soldiers; the impact war had on family income, some for the better, some for the worse; fear. But the stories are all unique, bound together by the profound change these children experienced at the hands of a war started and fought by adults.

A key aspect to this book that Ken Setterington noted in his review on the back of the book is: "The simplicity, honesty and humour revealed by some of Canada’s greatest writers will help build a better understanding between generations."

This would be useful for units on Remembrance Day, Canadian History, Canadian authors, and human nature.

There is some mature subject matter in some of these stories but should not be overlooked as they are important to share with those too young to remember the war. As a read aloud these stories would be suitable for grades 4 and up, as a read alone, grades 6 and up.

WOW CANADA! Exploring This Land From Coast To Coast

Written by Viven Bowers

WOW CANADA, just as the name implies is an exciting and colourful look at our country, as seen through the eyes of a twelve year old boy and his family as they tour across Canada by car. It is packed full of fascinating facts, historical tidbits, and eye catching artwork. Its scrapbook like format includes everything from maps, license plates, stamps and souvenirs to spectacular photographs, realistic postcards, cartoons and so much more. This appealing and informative book is a delight for the senses that leaves one feeling proud to be Canadian!

Teachers, this would be a great book to leave on the corner of your desk and pick up and read whenever you have a few minutes. You could do Canadian trivia one day, geography the next or take a trip across the country, day by day, province by province, throughout the school year. This is a must read, must see, must share book, that all ages would enjoy!