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2010 ROCKY MOUNTAIN BOOK AWARD SHORTLIST |
Alien Invaders: Species that Threaten Our World |
On the Road Again! |
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Alien Invaders: Species That Threaten Our World From killer toads, feral felines, and brown tree snakes to multiple invaders in Lake Victoria and the Great Lakes, Alien Invaders focuses on wave after wave of invaders that affect our ecosystems and the side-effects of climate change and modern global travel on our world today. Environmentalists and coauthors Jane Drake and Ann Love present the concepts of endangered species and biodiversity in this informative look at alien invaders and how they impact our world. From the days of sailing ships and shipboard rats to the fungus that sparked the Irish potato famine to the beautiful but deadly purple loosestrife strangling native wetlands, they examine extinctions and endangerments directly attributable to these alien invaders. Learn where the invaders originated, how they traveled, where they settled, what they displaced, why the invaded natural system was vulnerable, and what can be done. Kids can determine if they themselves are invaders or savers and how they can help. |
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All-Season Edie Meet Edie. She's eleven years old and heading to the lake with her mom and dad, but without her sister Dexter. This summer Dexter's ballet camp conflicts with the family vacation, so she will be staying with Mean Meagan for the 2 weeks that the family is gone. Also, the lake is not exactly the Grand Canyon, but Grandpa just had a stroke, and Edie's dad doesn't want to be too far away. |
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Amelia Earhart: Legend of the Lost Aviator "Amelia Earhart remembered seeing her first airplane when she was eleven years old." So begins the story of one of the greatest aviators of all time. The year was 1908 and the airplane was still a primitive method of travel. It was 1920 before she took her first flight--after a stint nursing WWI veterans in Toronto and trying medical school--but after one flight she was hooked. She began flying lessons, bought her own plane and practiced whenever she could--becoming a social worker to support her hobby. In 1928, as the first woman passenger to cross the Atlantic by plane, she became a star. Her next challenge was to cross the Atlantic flying her own plane. In May, 1932, she touched down in a farmer's field in Ireland after a tense 13-hour flight. Amelia's last flight, an attempt to circumnavigate the globe, ended in her mysterious disappearance in 1937. Author Shelley Tanaka includes the latest research--that she and her navigator landed on an island in the South Pacific and lived as castaways for several years, a tragic end to an amazing woman. Tanaka's writing is confident and engaging. Amelia comes across as the determined woman she was, allowing no obstacles to get in her way of flying. The story flows seamlessly and with much interesting detail, covering her many accomplishments in five chapters. There are a few informative sidebars but they never interrupt the flow of the narrative. The book is designed as an oversized picture book with photographs as well as attractive colour illustrations by David Craig, who also illustrated First to Fly about the Wright brothers. There is a bibliography and index. Amelia's greatest legacy was to inspire young people, especially girls, to follow their dreams -"Think for yourself," she would say. "Figure out what you love to do. And then go out and do it." |
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Animals at the Edge In the absorbing pages of this trailblazing book, readers will meet eleven of the most extraordinary animals facing extinction on our planet. EDGE species are truly distinct and one of a kind. They are evolutionarily unique, which means that if they don’t survive there will be nothing similar left on Earth and our global biodiversity will be weakened forever. |
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Ingrid Lee's novel, Dog Lost, is a fast-moving and moving account of the life of a pit bull terrier named Cash. Cash and the human and animal characters that surround her move quickly from episode to episode, drama to drama. Yet, Ingrid Lee's writing is sufficient that, despite the fast pace of the novel, the reader is able to develop feelings for the characters and, indeed, to feel moved as the characters lurch from one disappointing setback to another. Although about two hundred pages in length, I found the novel an ideal read aloud as I read the story to my family. The short chapters (there are 30 in all) and high drama are ideally suited to a read aloud approach, and many middle years teachers will find this book ideally suited to classroom use. Eleven-year-old Mackenzie O'Rourke leads a tough life. His mother has passed away. His older brother has abandoned him. His father is a mean-spirited drunk. In this context, it is easy to understand why Mackenzie so quickly falls in love with his new puppy, Cash. Young Mackenzie, however, is dealt another harsh blow when his enraged father tosses the dog into an abandoned lot after the father and dog clash when Cash leaps to Mackenzie's protection one night. Cash then leads a miserable, cold and wet existence, scrounging for food scraps from garbage cans. All the while, the community is whipped into frenzy as the local council seeks to enact a bylaw to ban pit bulls after a series of attacks on humans. With a backdrop setting that encompasses the turmoil of dysfunctional families, the sinister underworld of dog fighting, and the despair of terminal illness, Lee's motley collection of human characters reminded me somewhat of S. E. Hinton's collection of misfits in The Outsiders. Lee skillfully manages to weave together a variety of subplots and, eventually, to merge the lives of the various characters, culminating in a search for the lost dog, Cash. The book, we are told, is based on a true story. It is a story well told. It gives the reader many reasons to pause, to wonder at story events, and to wonder at the way that different people think and act in relation to animals. Lee's characters are carefully constructed. Each character is believable. The gritty, three-dimensional character construction adds many extra layers to the book. I highly recommend this book to pre-teen and early teen dog lovers and, indeed, to lovers of a good story, regardless of their age. Gregory Bryan is a dog lover who teaches in the Faculty of Education at the University of Manitoba in Winnipeg, MB. Copyright © the Manitoba Library Association. Reproduction for personal use is permitted only if this copyright notice is maintained. Any other reproduction is prohibited without permission. |
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Drum Calls Softly Have you danced the round dance yet? Beloved children's author David Bouchard has teamed up with emerging writer Shelly Willier to create a heart-warming tale in his newest book, The Drum Calls Softly. Discover the beauty of the traditional Round Dance through the lush descriptive verse of Bouchard and Willier that leads you through the cycles and seasons of life, the forming of new friendships and the understanding of values. Illustrations by internationally acclaimed painter Jim Poitras colorfully grace the pages, bringing the words alive through the intricate movements of the Round Dancers. And Northern Cree teams up once again with David Bouchard, providing the translation from English to Cree and the haunting drum music on a bound-in book CD. |
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Lucas has dinosaurs on the brain, but he's a little short on friends. When he gets a new book on how to make model dinosaurs, he's inspired to make one immediately. He's not so inspired by his new dinosaur-making kit: all the box contains is a test tube of clear liquid and a few instructions. But when he mixes the liquid into his papier-maché goop, he gets much more than he bargained for, including the most unlikely friend. |
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Inside Hockey Keltie Thomas, author of the best-selling How Sports Work series, introduces us to the wild side of professional hockey past and present. Humorously illustrated and accompanied by exciting photographs, Inside Hockey explores the facts, adventures, and one-of-a-kind anecdotes that continue to make hockey one of North America’s most popular sports. |
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Jolted: Newton Starker's Rules for Survival The Starker family is infamous. They've been chronicled on blogs, profiled on TV and researched by paranormal investigators. They appear to be cursed: everyone of Starker blood has died after being struck by lightning. Fourteen-year-old Newton Starker is the last of his line--except for his great-grandmother, Enid, a woman as friendly as a pickled wolverine--and he's determined to survive. Newton has spent all of his life surviving, following a list of rules for self preservation, guidelines passed down through generations of Starkers. But Newton wants to try something new. He has enrolled at Jerry Potts Academy of Higher Learning and Survival in Moose Jaw with the hope that he'll be able to beat the odds--he has a dream of becoming a great chef someday. If he wants to go beyond just getting by, Newton is going to need more than rules. He's going to need friends. From the creative mind of award-winning writer Arthur Slade--author of Dust, Tribes and Megiddo's Shadow--comes a quirky, laugh-out-loud story about dreaming big, standing out and knowing when you need help. |
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A moving story about determination and hope, "Libertad" is a stunning free verse novel by the author of "Walking on Glass." It follows a boy and his younger brother who set out to cross the Rio Grande into the United States from Mexico to find their father after their mother is killed. |
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On the Road Again! Charlie, the young narrator in this family saga, a sequel to Travels with My Family, is excited by the news that his family’s next trip will be to France. That brings thoughts of Paris – climbing the steps to the top of the Eiffel Tower, looking "at the spot where the Hunchback of Notre Dame took the plunge," taking a boat ride through Paris’s sewers. "Not to mention French Disneyland." The truth about the proposed trip is less than thrilling for Charlie. The plan is that he, his younger brother Max and their parents – writer dad and artist mum – will spend a year "somewhere in the hills in the southern part of France." The name of the remote village is Celeriac. "Sell-air-ee-ack," is how Charlie pronounces the name. "I think," he says, "that’s some kind of a vegetable. Imagine coming from a village that’s named after a vegetable. And not even a famous one either!" Of course, getting settled into school and friends and life in general in Celeriac is fraught – and hilariously so – at first, but then Charlie’s sense of dislocation evolves into a sense of belonging, what with mushroom hunting, and collecting chestnuts, village eccentrics, new friends and the Christmas Eve service at the local church whose heretofore unopened door had been used as a goal in the village games of street soccer – such a sense of belonging that the thought of travels farther afield to Spain, for instance, is slightly horrifying. Embellished with Marie-Louise Gay’s pen-and-ink squiggle drawings, full of good humour, much of which involves the Charlie-Max sibling relationship, and keen observation of Celeriac’s flora, fauna and humans, this novel will hit a home run with almost any reader, but especially one facing a "sabbatical" year away en famille. The Globe & Mail’s Susan Perren reviewed On the Road Again! on May 31,2008. |
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One Hen is the inspiring story Kojo, a young boy from Ghana, Africa. Kojo and his widowed mother collect firewood to sell. They live: in a mud-walled house with an open fire for cooking. Beside it is a garden where they grow their own food. They never have much money or much to eat. The families in Kojo’s village come up with an idea. Each family contributes a small amount of savings so that one family at a time can borrow the money to buy "something important." Kojo’s mother uses the loan to buy a cart with which to carry firewood to the marketplace as well as rent out to those who need to transport items. His mother allows Kojo to have the "few coins left over" to buy something also. He decides to buy one hen and sell the eggs at the market. Slowly, slowly, Kojo’s egg money grows. After two months he saves enough to pay his mother back. In four months he has enough to buy another hen. Now Kojo can sell five eggs a week . . . One year later, Kojo has twenty-five hens. He is able to save enough money to return to school. Eventually he wins a scholarship to an agricultural college where he learns about farming. After college, Kojo starts a poultry farm. Over the years the farm grows—eventually employing villagers. In an afterword, readers learn that the real Kojo—and inspiration for the story—is Kwabena Darko. Kwabena, like Kojo, lost his father at an early age. With the help of a scholarship, he attended college and later started a poultry business. As he became successful, he never forgot how important it was to make loans available to people who wanted to start their own businesses, and he knew that banks were nervous about such loans. So he decided to start Sinapi Aba (Mustard Seed) Trust to give out loans. The loans were small, only about $200 each, but they made a big difference. In 2006, Sinapi Aba provided loans to more than 50,000 Ghanaians, mostly for small businesses such as selling fruit or firewood, sewing clothes, baking snacks, transporting goods or raising small livestock, like the hen that Kojo bought . . .Today, Sinapi Aba is part of the global microfinance nonprofit organization Opportunity International. Milway does an outstanding job taking an adult topic—microlending—and weaving it into a child-friendly tale. The illustrations are equally inspiring. Fernandes’s exuberant, acrylic paintings, done in a rich, colorful pallet, burst off the page. Both text and artwork combine to paint a vivid, moving story of courage, cooperation, and community. |
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One Peace: True Stories of Young Activists One Peace celebrates the "Power of One," and specifically the accomplishments of children from around the globe who have worked to promote world peace. Janet Wilson challenges today's children to strive to make a difference in this beautifully illustrated, fact-filled and fascinating volume of portraits of many "heroes for today."
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Robots: From Everyday to Out of This World The editors of YES Mag are back with their fourth non-fiction title for young readers. And like their previous books – which include The International Space Station and Science Detectives – Robots is a lively read that mixes history, technical information, and fun facts. The book takes an intriguing subject and manages to be both comprehensive and entertaining. Robots begins with a definition of what a robot is – namely, a machine with moveable parts that can be programmed and reprogrammed to do a task. Most young readers have become so accustomed to robotics in daily life that they take them for granted, and don’t realize that these mechanical aides have had a long and complicated development process. The book’s early pages brilliantly illustrate this journey, showing robotic concepts through the ages – ranging from a “robot-knight,” run by pulleys, wooden disks, and gears, that was designed by Leonardo da Vinci in the late 1400s, to “Shakey,” a late-1960s mobile robot from the Stanford Research Institute in California that could locate objects and avoid obstacles in a room. That sets the stage for detailed descriptions of how modern robots work, the kinds of jobs they do, how they are put together, and, perhaps most importantly, how “roboticists” are making huge strides in constructing lifelike robots that mirror human movement and activity – to a degree that can seem downright C3PO-esque and a little scary. The book concludes with chapters on the future of robots, including one section on a scientist who implanted silicon chips in his arm that allow his movements to be monitored by computers. (It’s no accident that this spread is entitled “Cool or Creepy?”) Also included are a concise glossary of terms and a comprehensive index. Robots will be a satisfying read for many youngsters, and will be especially enjoyable for those who like their technology served with a healthy dose of context – why we need robots, where they came from, who’s responsible for making them what they are today, and, above all, what they’re likely to be able to do in the near future. |
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SCOOTER KING UNDERSTANDS illusions. In the midst of the Roaring Twenties, he performs them behind the scenes at his mother’s séances, giving the impression that Madam King communicates with the dead. Scooter also admires Harry Houdini and can hardly wait to see the famed magician escape from his razzle-dazzle Burmese Torture Tank. But when Scooter stumbles upon a dead body in the visiting Houdini’s tank, it’s no illusion. Who could the murderer be? And did he—or she—kill the right person? |
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Submarine Outlaw Submarine Outlaw takes YA readers on a unique journey when Alfred, a young boy who wants to be an explorer — not a fisherman as his family demands — teams up with a junkyard genius to build a submarine that he sails around the Maritimes. The book takes the reader through the detailed hands-on process of submarine construction into the world of real ocean navigation, replete with a high-seas chase, daring rescue and treasure hunting. Children will identify with Alfred’s desire for an adventurous life and the sense of empowerment that comes with building his own submarine and operating it independently. They will also love the unusual crew — a rescued dog and a quirky seagull. The First Prize Winner of the Atlantic Writers Competition, Submarine Outlaw shows how any great goal in life takes a good deal of patience, determination and hard work. But also how hard work on one’s dream becomes an act of joy. Another important theme is the importance of good judgment. The main character learns first hand that he is equally able to make good and bad choices, and must quickly identify the difference. The theme of choosing a career of one’s own in the face of familial or societal opposition is also well developed. There is an element of mystery and intrigue intrinsic to submarines that makes for compelling reading. When the main character is mistaken for a Russian spy sub and chased by the Canadian coastguard, the plot takes many exciting twists, making the book difficult to put down. Children will identify with the main character because he is an average young teen filled with desire and enthusiasm, and driven to follow his dreams. Step by step they will see how a typical, average young teen comes to live a very extraordinary experience. |
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Super Crocs and Monster Wings The surprising prehistoric origins of six common animals. It’s hard to imagine, but about 99% of all the species that ever lived are already extinct. Some died off suddenly during global catastrophes, while others gradually disappeared as the world evolved. But some animals didn’t vanish altogether, and their distant relatives live among us today.What were these ancient animals like? In a word, surprising. Ground-dwelling sloths were so tall they could nibble the leaves in treetops. Rabbit-sized camels scampered through the underbrush. Giant dragonflies the size of hawks were masters of the skies, swooping down on flies as big as chickadees. These six modern animals are compared to their ancient ancestors: •Dragonfly •Armadillo •Camel •Beaver •Crocodile •Sloth. Why did these fabulous creatures change? What did their world look like? How do scientists make the connection to each one’s extraordinary past? Author Claire Eamer distills millions of years of global history on the astonishing evolution of six modern-day animals. At the same time, readers are treated to a visual feast of artists’ renderings of the ancients, together with images of their modern-day counterparts. Claire Eamer is an editor, short-story writer, and author of non-fiction who has also worked in radio. This is her first book for young readers. She lives in Whitehorse, Yukon. |
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After a mean collector named Swindle cons him out of his most valuable baseball card, Griffin Bing must put together a band of misfits to break into Swindle's compound and recapture the card. There are many things standing in their way — a menacing guard dog, a high-tech security system, a very secret hiding place, and their general inability to drive — but Griffin and his team are going to get back what's rightfully his … even if hijinks ensue. This is Gordon Korman at his crowd-pleasing best, perfect for readers who like to hoot, howl, and heist. |
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War Brothers Sharon McKay sets her new novel in Uganda, where Joseph Kony’s Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA) has, since 1987, abducted up to 30,000 children from their villages and homes for use as soldiers and slaves. It is in these nightmarish times that the fates of 5 boys and a girl are entwined. Captured from their school by the LRA, the boys wait for rescue only to discover that if they are to survive they must rely on themselves. But friendship, courage, and resilience might not be enough to save them. Based in part upon interviews with child soldiers in Northern Uganda, War Brothers is a stunning depiction of the human cost of wars fought by children. |
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Twelve-year-old Ambrose is a glass-half-full kind of guy. A self-described “friendless nerd,” he moves from place to place every couple of years with his overprotective mother, Irene. When some bullies at his new school almost kill him by slipping a peanut into his sandwich — even though they know he has a deathly allergy — Ambrose is philosophical. Irene, however, is not and decides that Ambrose will be home-schooled. |