Red River Raging by Penny Draper Published by Coteau Books Review by Shelley A. Leedahl $10.95 ISBN 9-781550-505849 It’s a dull, wet day and I’ve nowhere to be but home-hurray!-because today I’ve had the distinct pleasure of reading Penny Draper’s novel Red River Raging cover-to-cover, and it’s been a thoroughly enjoyable experience. Coteau Books published Red River Raging as part of its Disaster Strikes! Series, which includes six other Draper titles. After reading this latest book, I certainly see why Coteau keeps Draper on its publication roster: this “Juvenile Fiction” is a terrific story, skillfully told, and I’m happy to sing its praises to readers of any age. The back cover copy whet my appetite for this gripping Manitoba-flood-based, coming-of-age story. Thirteen-year-old Finn is the only child of Vancouver scientists, and while his parents are off to Russia, their reluctant son’s exiled to the rural, St. Agathe MB home of his cookie-baking grandmother and crusty-but mysterious-great grandfather. Finn quickly makes friends at school, including Clara, who becomes his girlfriend (and has an interesting side-story herself); and Aaron, who “got run over by a bale of hay” and is in a wheelchair. When a major flood threatens, Finn initially feels “It’s…

Back to Batoche by Cheryl Chad Published by Your Nickel’s Worth Publishing Review by Alison Slowski $12.95 ISBN 978-1-927756-20-1 Back to Batoche is a funny, light-hearted story about three kids who travel back in time to Batoche on the eve of the Battle for Batoche, the famous battle between the Riel Resistance and the North West Field Force. This novel sees the great battle from the point of view of the three Dory children who are the main characters of this story, so while the subject matter is serious in nature, it would not fail to keep the young reader in question engaged and amused by the children’s travels and adventures. “A century is only a spoke in the wheel of everlasting time.” – Louis Riel The novel begins by introducing the Dory siblings, Max, Liam, and Kaeleigh, who go on a trip with their grandmother to see Batoche Historic National Park. Upon arrival at the majestic National Park, the three siblings go on a tour of the landmark church and other sites around Batoche, and meet a strange and mysterious Metis fiddler boy by the name of Isidore Pilon . While exploring the old church, the children find an…

Barnabas Bigfoot: A Hairy Tangle by Marty Chan Published by Thistledown Press Review by Tavish Bell $10.95 ISBN 9781927068052 Barnabas Bigfoot: A Hairy Tangle quite surprised me. Although geared to young readers, I had difficulty putting this book down while reading it. I mean, who doesn’t want to know what the Sasquatch think about us hunting them? A nice fantasy/adventure story, this book was quite interesting, telling the story from the Bigfoot’s view; not only do we see the story from Barnabas Bigfoot’s point of view, we learn that there is a whole society of Bigfoots (Bigfeet, if you will), who live hidden from humanity. The storyline, picking up directly from Barnabas Bigfoot: A Close Shave, was fast paced and pun, but I also appreciated the level of detail in the narrative. The author of this book, Marty Chan, also penned several other juvenile novels, including The Mystery of the Graffiti Ghoul, which won the 2008 Willow Awards. Overall, I would highly recommend this book. It was definitely one of my favorite books to read, and it gave me a few things to think about once I was done, including the joys and difficulties of growing up, and friendship and…

The Veil Weavers by Maureen Bush Published by Coteau Books for Kids Review by Brinnameade Smith $7.95 ISBN 1 3-978-1-55050-482-8 The Veil of Magic series, by Maureen Bush, is a great, accessible series for young fantasy readers who are ready to start reading chapter books and novels. It’s set in Calgary and the Canadian Rockies where readers are given a chance to learn about and appreciate the nature all around them as they follow along on a fantastical story about friendship, responsibility and bravery. The Veil Weavers is the third book in the series. It follows a brother and sister called Josh and Maddy as they race to save a magical world that has been damaged by the misuse of power and magic. While much of this damage has been caused by the evil villain, Gronvald the troll, Josh and Maddy’s friends have unknowingly contributed as well. When the damage is discovered everyone is able to learn about actions, consequences and problem solving. The book easily talks about problems like global warming, environmental concern and animal rights in a simple way that kids can understand. Many of the warm and bright friends made by Josh and Maddy are animals that…

Barnabas Bigfoot: A Close Shave By Marty Chan Published by Thistledown Press Review by Colette Wheler $10.95 ISBN 978-1-897235-92-8 Young Barnabas Bigfoot is a big hairy deal.  His hands are the size of beaver tails and his seven-foot-tall body is covered with long, brown hair.  But Barnabas has an embarrassing “little” problem: in a world that believes in the power of the foot (the bigger the better!) those oh-so-important structures at the ends of his legs are unusually tiny. This fantastical first book in the new sasquatch series by award-winning author Marty Chan introduces the young reader to Barnabas Bigfoot and the rest of his colourful sasquatch family, who live in peaceful seclusion in the forested mountains of BC, and who choose their leaders by the size of their feet.  The family’s hope that Barnabas will become the next tribe leader turns to disappointment when his feet fail to “blossom” along with the rest of his body.  Young, small-footed Barnabas just wants to fit in, so his sympathetic father makes him some fake furry feet to cover up his “special condition.” One day, Barnabas is sent by his match-making mother to forage for leaves with the horrible, but big-footed, Hairyson…

JJ “Germy” Johnson, the engaging hero of award-winning author Alison Lohans, Germy Johnson’s Secret Plan, is back with a new adventure. This time, JJ’s parents are forcing him to take piano lessons, which are proving to be hazardous to his health. To be perfectly honest, piano lessons also take up valuable time when he could be battling cyber-pterodactyls or man-eating sharks on his game system. But his parents just won’t see his point of view. So JJ is forced to take drastic action.

Germy Johnson’s Secret Plan by Alison Lohans Illustrations by A.E. Matheson Published by aemworks Publishing Review by Michelle Shaw $7.95 ISBN 978-0-9784974-0-8 Germy (JJ) Johnson is facing a serious predicament. His Great Aunt Pru is coming for a long visit. She’s old and smells like medicine. Her false teeth click when she talks and sometimes she takes them out to surprise people. It’s not funny! Those false teeth give him nightmares…literally. Worst of all, she’s staying in his bedroom and he’s now forced to share a room with his baby sister, Jessica. JJ is determined to find a way to force Aunt Pru to leave and his new kitten gives him a brilliant idea. Germs…the ultimate weapon! What if Aunt Pru became deathly ill? Then she’d have to leave. JJ embarks on a quest to infest Aunt Pru with all the germs he can find. Which isn’t as easy he thought and earns himself a not-so-pleasant nickname along the way. Germy Johnson’s Secret Plan was first published in 1992 and was widely used in grade three classrooms across Canada. When it went out of print, the author, award-winning Regina-based Alison Lohans, kept getting requests for it. So she decided to…

Racing Home By Adele Dueck Published by Coteau Books Reviewed by Jessica Eissfeldt Price $8.95 ISBN: 978-1-55050-450-7 Author Adele Dueck skillfully weaves Norwegian culture and heritage into this coming-of-age story set during the Prairie pioneer days near Hanley, Saskatchewan. Intertwining the soul of the Prairies with the determination of thirteen-year-old Erik Bekker, this tale clearly shows how the human spirit prevails. Arriving from Norway, Erik at first is disappointed in the new province. No tall trees, no mountains and no ocean. Worse yet, he sees no way to get to his goal of becoming a farmer like his grandfather. And with a new stepfather named Rolf, Erik wonders how he can possibly adjust. But adjust he does. He even grows to appreciate the prairie beauty while he learns to build a sod house, thresh wheat and build a fence. He even plants trees. But just as he’s settling in to his new prairie life, his half-brother Olaf seems to become more and more mysterious – slipping away at odd hours and having little to do with his father, Rolf, Erik’s stepfather. Though it’s a tale of true pioneering spirit aimed at middle-grade readers, children of all ages are sure to…

Ice Storm by Penny Draper Published by Coteau Books for Kids Review by Donna Gudjonson ISBN 13:9781550504514 Twelve year old girls have complicated lives at the best of times, but for two cousins in Quebec during the devastating ice storm of January1998 everything most certainly changes without warning. Alice, a talented young figure skater from Montreal, finds herself stranded at home all alone during the first days of the crisis. She must quickly learn some grown up skills in order to survive in the cold and dark during the extended power outage caused by the storm. Later she heroically saves the life of one of her neighbours and finds ways to help out at the crowded shelter where she must wait out the storm. Sophie, her country cousin, finds herself pitching in to keep her family and their dairy cows from perishing in the extreme conditions and must function like an adult in a very difficult situation. Both girls’ priorities will be changed forever after the experience. The story begins just before the storm hits to give a snapshot of normal life for the two girls. Then as quickly as the storm front rolls in, the reader is taken through…