In 1915 eleven-year-old Sam and his father arrive in an undeveloped part of western Canada and begin to plan a new farm for the family waiting back in Iowa.
Winner of the Canadian Library Association Book of the Year Award and the Geoffrey Bilson Award for Historical Fiction for Young People It is 1915, and Sam Ferrier and his father arrive by train in Curlew, Alberta, to build a new home for the family. When they finally reach their parcel of land, Sam can see nothing but endless stretches of grassland and blue sky. It is nothing like their old home in Iowa, and he wonders why his restless father ever decided to bring the family to this lonely, barren land. In time, though, the house is built, and the rest of the family joins them. Gradually Sam discovers that there is much more to the flat and featureless prairie than he realized -- gleaming white skulls, torrential thunderstorms and, best of all, a new friend and a brave, resourceful horse named Prince.
"Years have passed since the Ferriers moved to Curlew and built a homestead in the Alberta prairie. Eleven-year-old Josie is glad when a new girl her age moves to the area - someone to go to school with, explore an abandoned house and dream about the future. A sequel to the award-winning 'Ticket to Curlew'" Cf. Our choice, 1997-1998
In Acts of Courage, Connie Brummel Crook dramatizes the life of one of Canada's most enduring heroines, Laura Secord. From young Laura Ingersoll's early days in Great Barrington, Massachusetts, amidst the turmoil that followed the American Revolutionary War, the story outlines her father's difficult decision to move his family to Upper Canada. Laura's subsequent meeting and courtship with James Secord is described against the backdrop of homesteading in the Niagara Peninsula and of enduring the imminent threat of American invasion. These first sections of the book provide the background for Laura's courageous rescue of her husband from the battlefield at Queenston Heights, and her even more amazing trek to warn Col. FitzGibbon of the American's secret plans to attack the British outpost at Beaver Dams. Laura's extraordinary life, peopled with characters like Joseph Brant and Col. Fitzgibbon, is given even more poignancy and interest by the author's inventive and surprising characterization of the young FitzGibbon, by her acute eye for historical detail, and through her insights into the character of a young woman whose acts of courage have captured the imagination of generations of young Canadians.
The Silver Curlew is one of Eleanor Farjeon's finest works, an intriguing re-telling of the classic story Rumpelstiltskin. Mother Codling lives with her children in a small, Norfolk windmill. One day, the Codlngs receive a surprise visit from the king of Norwich, who insists that eighteen-year-old Doll Codling must spin a certain amount of flax for him, or he will cut off her head. Doll, terrified of dying, makes a deal with a spindle-imp, in order to save herself and her family. The only clincher is, that he returns to the castle when Doll's daughter is born and insists that he take the newborn child as payment for his work. Doll, and her younger sister Poll, try desperately to keep the baby...
When ten-year-old Journey Song hears that two pandas are being held in a warehouse in her neighborhood, she worries that they may be hungry, cold and lonely. Horrified to learn that the pandas, originally destined for a zoo in Washington, might be shipped back to China because of a diplomatic spat between China and the United States, Journey rallies her friends and neighbors on the poverty-stricken Eastside. Her infectious enthusiasm for all things panda is hard to resist, and soon she's getting assistance from every corner of her tight-knit neighborhood.
Life is hard for ten-year-old Safiyah in the Kibera slum outside Nairobi. Too poor to go to school, she makes a meager living for herself and her grandmother Cucu by selling things she finds at the garbage dump. After using scavenged paper to fix up the inside of the hut, Safiyah starts a mural on the outside. As word of the paper house spreads, Safiyah begins to take pride in her creation. When Cucu collapses after a fire, Safiyah stays at the hospital to help care for her grandmother. While Safiyah is away, her friend Pendo works on the mural, which upsets Safiyah. But when Pendo attracts media attention to the paper house, Safiyah and her grandmother are given a chance of a better life.
The Wild West was home to many men and women looking for adventure and a new life. Back then, in a place of danger and intrigue, there were several characters that made their mark on the frontier. One woman was Calamity Jane. Born Martha Jane Cannary, Calamity Jane would become one of Americas best-known sharpshooters and horse riders. Her life is told in here in easy-to-read language and vivid illustrations sure to engage young readers.
DIVThere’s no such thing as a colt with wings—is there?/divDIV When Charles arrives at his Uncle Coot’s Texas ranch from back East, he’s sure that books have taught him everything he needs to know about horses. He wants to prove he’s a cowboy just like his uncle, a retired movie stunt rider, who knows Charles is out of his element. But when a neighbor’s mare gives birth to a miraculous colt with wings, Charles and Coot realize that they both have much more to learn. They grow to love the colt, named Alado, or “Winged One.” Still, it’s no easy feat caring for a mythical creature, especially when it can fly. Can Charles and Coot protect Alado—and each other?/divDIV /divDIVThis ebook features an illustrated biography of Betsy Byars including rare images from the author’s personal collection./div
Angry over his family’s recent move and current enforced holiday in Halifax, twelve-year-old Laz Berenger rebels against a guided tour of the Citadel and sets out to explore on his own. In one dark tunnel, his St. Christopher medal burns suddenly hot. There’s a strange smell, and Laz blacks out. When he wakes up, everything happens at once. A sword is put to his throat. Men who look like extras from Pirates of the Caribbean hand him over to a ship’s captain who strips him and takes his medal. He is declared a French spy. Laz realizes, to his horror, that it is 1745 and he is trapped in time. These English colonists, still loyal to King George, are at war with the French. To earn his freedom, Laz must promise to spy on the French at the fortification of Louisbourg. But once in Louisbourg, Laz earns a job as runner to the kind Commander Morpain and learns to love both the man and the town. How will Laz find a way to betray the inhabitants of Louisbourg? How else can he hope to earn back his St. Christopher medal, which is surely his key to returning to his own time? The award-winning author of The Hill and Graffiti Knight has written an enthralling, swash-buckling time-slip adventure for middle-grade readers centered on a fascinating period in North American history.