When I Was Eight written by Christy Jordan-Fenton and Margaret Pokiak-Fenton and illustrated by Gabrielle Grimard

At eight years old, Olemaun helps with the sled dogs and her father’s hunting. Sometimes, her older sister reads her stories. But what Olemaun really wants to do is learn to read books for herself. She knows that you have to go to the outsiders’ residential school to do so, but it takes all winter to convince her father to let her go. When it’s finally warm enough to take the family’s furs into town for trading, Olemaun joyfully begins school — and discovers that not only will most of her time be spent working rather than learning, but one of the nuns has developed a personal grudge against her.

But Olemaun — now Margaret — is determined. She turns the same tenacity that got her into school to the task of getting her through it. Along the way, she takes every opportunity, from cluttered chalkboards to product labels, to practice her reading. In the process, she finds out that reading, and the stories it opens to her, give her resources to take on such challenges with confidence.

When I Was Eight is based on Margaret Pokiak-Fenton’s own childhood experiences, and it does a beautiful job of making a difficult part of Canadian history accessible to very young readers. The story calls for some discussion with an adult in order to provide context, but it also makes space for positive conversations about the value of reading, and of tenacity in working for the things that are important to us.

If you’d like to share Olemaun’s story with older readers, check out Fatty Legs, which tells the story at a middle grade level, and includes photographs from Margaret Pokiak-Fenton’s childhood at home and at the residential school.

See samples of Grimard’s gorgeous illustrations on the publisher’s page (just click “look inside” on the right side of the screen).

Find out what others thought at Kiss the Book and CM Magazine.

Thanks to NetGalley and Annick Press for the review copy.

Ten: Graphic Novel Biographies

Where the value of graphic novels is under debate, it may be helpful to have a few clearly educational titles to offer as an entry point to the form. Adaptations of classic novels abound, and fit beautifully into Ashley Thorne’s argument for valuing adaptations and abridgments for their ability to make substantial literature in its original form more accessible to readers. Another great option is graphic novel biographies, which not only introduce readers to some pretty amazing lives, but also, in some cases, accomplish more through the combination of printed words and pictures than might be possible in more traditional forms of storytelling. On the plus side, as is the case with classic lit adaptations, one graphic novel biography often points the way to more, either by the same author or in the same series — it seems to be an addictive sort of work!

By Jim Ottaviani
In partnership with a variety of illustrators, Jim Ottaviani has produced a long list of graphic novel biographies focused on the world of science and its intersection with society (e.g. politics, gender expectations, etc.). In addition to the titles below, look for Feynman, T-minus: The Race to the Moon, Suspended In Language: Niels Bohrs Life, Discoveries, And The Century He Shaped and more.

Primates: the Fearless Science of Jane Goodall, Dian Fossey, and Biruté Galdikas by Jim Ottaviani and Maris Wicks
You’ve heard of Jane Goodall, but maybe not the others, yet. Ottaviani and Wicks give readers a glimpse of the lives and work of these three women, as well as some insight into how their work has contributed to the movement to conserve primate habitats.

Jane, the Fox & Me written by Fanny Brit, illustrated by Isabelle Arsenault, and translated by Christelle Morelli and Susan Ouriou

Hélène is struggling with a dreary school life of no friends, teasing and poor self-image. Her current strategy for respite is in reading Jane Eyre and reflecting upon how, despite the great adversity she faces as she grows up, Jane remains resilient to the things that unfold in her life.

Much to her dismay, Hélène learns that her class will be spending four days together at an isolated nature camp in the woods. It’s bad enough to have to deal with rejection and teasing during school hours. Having to spend time away from home is something that Hélène certainly is not looking forward to.

While it is somewhat helpful to escape in reading, she is still not immune to the her classmates’ bullying at camp. She bunks with the other “outcasts,” but can’t break the ice. Just when the bleakness is starting to feel all-encompassing, she experiences a moment of connection with a fox. She is inches away from petting it when one of her bunk mates spooks it away.

Hélène is about to give up on hope entirely when a friendly face, Géraldine, comes to join the outcasts’ tent. Géraldine’s friendship helps break the spell placed upon Hélène, and a bit of colour starts filling Hélène’s life as she starts to see her life in a different way.

Simply put, a beautiful book. Arsenault’s use of gray tones, colours and various fonts captures the feelings that are represented within the words. The experience  and feelings of “not quite fitting in” and being unhappy with oneself are well addressed. Moreover, the book shines positive light on the one parent family dynamic of Hélène, her two brothers and their mother.

Read other reviews of Jane, the Fox and Me from the New York Times and Publishers Weekly.

Another blogger’s review of the novel at edge of seventeen.

Combating Bullying

Bullying Canada

Stop A Bully : Safe and Anonymous

Pink Shirt Day

20 Innovative Ways Schools Are Combating Bullying BullyingPrevention.com

Kids can play active role in combating bullying among peers, experts say Macleans magazine

Cyberbullying MediaSmarts

Do you have anti-bullying tactics that are working for your school/organization? Please share in the comments!

Ten: Lost Things

Another of the best known Arthur stories is the search for the Holy Grail. This week’s Ten highlights other stories which focus on the search for something lost.

Ella Minnow Pea by Mark Dunn
Sometimes things get lost on purpose.
Ella lives in a town founded by the creator of the famous pangram, “The Quick Brown Fox Jumps Over the Lazy Dog.” When letters from the pangram start falling off the founder’s statue, the town leaders decide that any letter no longer appearing on the statue will also be removed from the town’s vocabulary.

Ten: On a Mission

The legends of King Arthur’s knights are inseparable from the idea of questing: to slay or capture or rescue. In this week’s Ten, we share some other stories centred on a mission. The quests below vary from the weighty — a quest to save a life, or answer an important question — to the silly, and even the every day. The stories demonstrate that approaching a task as a mission can help to turn fear to determination, tedium to adventure, and entertainment to challenge. May we all do more questing!

Running out of Time by Margaret Peterson Haddix
Jessie’s quiet life in a frontier village takes a surreal turn when she is sent out alone to obtain medicine for local children dying of diphtheria, and finds that nearly everything she thought true about her life is an illusion.

Ten: Saying Goodbye

Modern kids’ and YA fiction doesn’t go easy on its readers. Some of the best books out there look honestly at topics as real and raw as war, racial injustice, and poverty, giving readers a safe space to engage deeply with these topics, and guidance to help them understand and respond in healthy, constructive ways. This week’s Ten highlights stories about loss and grief. Though the stories are sometimes painful to read, they almost always end with hope: in friendship, memory, and new things to come.

Mockingbird by Kathryn Erskine
Caitlin’s brother, Devon, used to help her understand how things worked and what she was supposed to do. A handy thing when you have Asperger’s, and a lot of what people do (and expect) really doesn’t make sense. But Devon was killed in a school shooting, and with their dad turning his back on the world in an attempt to cope, Caitlin’s left pretty much on her own to figure things out. A counselor at school helps some, and so does her friendship with a younger boy she meets at recess. But Caitlin wants closure, and she’s going to have to find it for herself.

Facing the Mountain by Wendy Orr

Raven is all alone. When she and Lily set out with Scott this morning, the plan was for the girls’ new stepfather to show them the mountains that he loved — you know, bond a bit. But when Raven reached the top first, her happy dance started a small avalanche that changed the face of the mountain and trapped Lily and Scott behind a huge pile of rocks. It’s up to Raven — with a filter bottle and a can of bear spray, and without her glasses — to find her way down the mountain to get help.

Raven’s journey is a tough one, to be sure. Over the course of two days (the novel is told in time-stamped chapters that do a great job of maintaining the sense of urgency), Raven finds and loses paths, goes over a waterfall, breaks into a house, and develops a cautious understanding with a mother bear. But the search for help is only half the story. Along the way, readers share Raven’s loneliness and courage, discover with her how much she loves Lily and Scott, and watch her begin to find the self that until now has nestled quietly in the shadows of the bolder personalities around her.

Orr’s writing has a richness of detail and emotional complexity that draws the reader right into her stories. Facing the Mountain is a small book — less than 150 pages — but the experience is a memorable one. Highly recommended for any reader looking for a believable adventure/survival story with solid character development.

Check out other reviews from CM Magazine and Ruby Rainbow Review (under the book’s Australian title, Raven’s Mountain).

Read an interview with Wendy Orr at A Tapestry of Words, or a guest post at Moonlight Gleam’s Bookshelf in which Orr talks about how Facing the Mountain came to be.

The Metro Dogs of Moscow by Rachelle Delaney

Meet JR, short for Jack Russell. He’s an embassy dog who travels with his human companion, a diplomat named George. Just as he is getting really comfortable with living in Dublin, he finds out that they are moving to Moscow. It is not too long after his arrival that he is already bored with his mundane life; he would really enjoy having more than just the short “walkies” George offers him. He wants to run freely like he did on the sea shores of Dublin.

One day, JR can’t stand it any longer and escapes from his home. While he manages to get home the first time, he begins to go out regularly. He befriends some of Moscow’s strays, who show him around town to see some of the museums and famous streets. Mostly they walk, but sometimes they jump on the subway to get around. All the while, rumours are spreading amongst the strays that an increasing number of them are missing. While his friends continue to be gracious in showing him around, even those in their close circle are going missing. He tries to help, but being a small embassy dog, JR is limited in what he can do — or so he thinks. Little does he know that he is the key to helping the strays of Moscow to cross their boundaries and rescue their friends.

Delaney’s book, inspired by real dogs that travel around Moscow, is a treat to read. Travel with JR among the streets of Moscow, and feast on the the foods and aromas within the city (especially the mouthwatering Kroshka Katroshka stuffed potato delicacies!).

See other book reviews by Quill and Quire , CM magazine and Shelf Elf.

Read a little more about the Moscow’s Metro dogs on Let’s Get Lost.

The Quiet Book written by Deborah Underwood and illustrated by Renata Liwska

When do you feel quiet? Deborah Underwood’s picture book suggests a variety of situations in which someone might encounter quiet — for example, while waiting, hiding, or processing a surprise or a disappointment. While the situations included in the book are likely to be particularly relevant to small children (jelly side down quiet; tucking in teddy quiet), most are universal enough to recall experiences of stillness and quiet to the minds of older readers as well. In fact, as you work your way through the book, it seems quite natural to slow and remember feeling this kind of quiet and that, and to feel quieter in the act of remembering.

Renata Liwska illustrates each type of quiet with one or more of a community of childlike animals. A hedgehog checks out his new brush cut. A moose waits to be picked up from school. A rabbit hides from an intimidating relative. Some illustrations are focused — only one or two characters and the necessary props — while others involve detailed backgrounds, suggesting the atmosphere surrounding this particular quiet: a time of day, another activity being missed, a place, or a bit of weather. All are presented with a softness that’s less sweet than cosy.

The Quiet Book is much more experience than story, and I suspect that it would be as useful for inspiring discussion around different experiences and emotions as for preparing a little one for bed. Underwood and Liwska have also collaborated on The Christmas Quiet Book (almost as good) and The Loud Book (which has the opposite effect). All three are well worth experiencing for yourself.

Find more reviews at Crowding the Book Truck and Quill & Quire (thanks especially to the latter for helping me to capture some of the language needed to describe this book).

Catch a glimpse of Deborah Underwood’s and Renata Liwska’s Creative Spaces at From the Mixed Up Files.

Cover image from The Quiet Book, written by Deborah Underwood and illustrated by Renata Liwska. Copyright © 2010. Used by permission of Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

One Way by Norah McClintock

I have the crazy idea that if I just hang on, everything will be okay

It’s halfway through lunch period when Kenzie rides the wrong way up a one-way street. While he is not the first person to do this, Kenzie’s choice gets him in big trouble today. One moment he’s on his bike, the next he’s on his back, on top of something that he’s hit. As it turns out, this “something” is his ex-girlfriend Stassi.

While Kenzie comes out the accident with a few bruises and scratches, Stassi has unfortunately suffered trauma to her head and despite the immediate medical action that she receives, remains unconscious. The police come talk to Kenzie, and it soon becomes clear that everyone believes that he had a reason to hurt Stassi. He even begins to doubt himself. Was this just a freak accident, or something more?

Canadian author Norah McClintock prompts us to stop and think about daily actions and decisions that have the potential to put us or others in difficult situations. Those who like suspense and fast paced action, but prefer simpler vocabulary and a shorter read will enjoy reading this high interest novel. In consideration of the complexity of the story’s situation,  it is also one that I particularly recommend as a Young Adult read. Whether on road safety, grudges or unintentional hurt, the novel is sure to bring up some interesting discussions and has potential to be a good read-aloud in the classroom or at home.

Read other reviews from the 49th Shelf and the Canadian Review of Materials.