| RUOI Home | Back | Continue with theme (page 3 of 5) |
Denotes that the book is either a
translation or is available in translation.
Cora Taylor
Saskatoon: Western Producer Prairie Books, 1987
125 p. ISBN 0888332319
Ages 9 to 14.
Ten-year-old Meg makes her real acquaintance with Jessie, the "Invalid Doll", during the days she spends at her grandmother's recuperating from rheumatic fever. Meg finds something both fascinating and repulsive about this doll that has passed from generation to generation in the Shearer family. In addition to combatting the physical exhaustion that is part of her illness, Meg is also struggling to fathom the tension between her parents. Are they planning to separate?
Meg's grandmother is the obvious and immediate source of warmth, caring and stability. However, Jessie begins to adopt this role as well and in many ways offers access to solace far more attractive than the present time. Jessie is the talisman that permits Meg's journeys to the pioneer days of her own family.
James Houston
Toronto: McClelland & Stewart, 1992
150 p. ISBN 0771042833
Ages 12 and up.
After a summer of adventures living in the traditional way with an Inuit group on the coast of Baffin Island, Elizapee discovers her true family. She had been separated from them since babyhood when she received medical treatment in the south for her tuberculosis.
Brian Doyle
Toronto/Vancouver: Douglas & McIntyre/A Groundwood Book, 1988
119 p. ISBN 0888990650
Ages 11 to 15.
In the housing shortage after the war, Hulbert O'Driscoll, known as Hubbo, moves from Lowertown to Ottawa's Uplands Emergency Shelter, a temporary haven for the poor, along with the guardian he considers "Mother" and fondly calls Mrs. O'Driscoll. Hubbo attends Glebe Collegiate Institute where coincidently his guardian is a cleaning lady; only at the close of the novel does he publicly acknowledge their relationship. Throughout Easy Avenue the young protagonist struggles with the tension between gaining ground with those he perceives as the "in" crowd and revealing his true background and friends.
Easy Avenue Copyright © 1988 by Brian Doyle. Cover art by Paul Zwolak. Douglas & McIntyre/A Groundwood Book.
Joseph Bruchac
Illustrations: Paul Morin
Toronto: Oxford University Press, 1993
30 p. ISBN 0195410009
Ages 6 to 11.
Although the sun peeks into Jamie's window early in the morning, she doesn't dare open her eyes. Grama Bowman, her great-grandmother, has died and she feels sad and alone. She remembers the nice times they had together, the stories she was told, the explanations of Abenaki customs and the fox song. It is this song that marks the passage between life and death in the mind of the little girl. When the sun reaches her face, Jamie gets up and runs to the tree where her great-grandmother used to sit and she starts to sing the fox song.
In a note at the end of the story, the author explains that this story was derived from various childhood memories. Paul Morin's illustrations are always outstanding and their textured look complements the text perfectly.
Reproduced with the permission of Stoddart Publishing Co. Limited, Don Mills, Ont. M3B 2T6
Maryann Kovalski
Illustrations: Maryann Kovalski
Toronto: Kids Can Press, 1990
32 p. ISBN 0921103980
Ages 5 to 8.
Frank and Zelda own a pizzeria that thrives until the neighbouring hat factory closes. After days of quarrelling, then of silence, they are startled to see an unassuming man sitting at one of their tables, waiting for service. He pays for his pizza with wishes. What follows is an overwhelming stream of customers and waiters—indeed a magnificent new pizza emporium! While at first thrilled by the ever-expanding business, Frank and Zelda soon begin to long for the "good old days". With the help of the little man, the wish giver, they realize just that and make plans that keep them happy for a long time. One feels that this couple, though childless, is nonetheless a real family—one who lives, works, and in the end, relaxes together.
The lively colourful illustrations mirror the drama that is unfolding in the text. There is also a sure sense of fun, time and place in Kovalski's style.
Frank and Zelda written and illustrated by Maryann Kovalski. Copyright © 1990 by Maryann Kovalski.