Weerdest Day Ever!

First there was the Seven Series.

Then came the Seven Sequels.

Today the long-awaited Seven Prequels launches! 

Get a taste for the Seven Prequels with my review of  

Richard Scrimger's contribution to the series here.

Written by Richard Scrimger

Orca Book Publishers

9781459811553

216 pp.

Ages 9-12

September 2016

Reviewed from advance reading copy

Weerdest Day Ever! is a story that Bunny (Bernard) is writing for his Grade 10 English class about a camping trip with his Grampa and brother Spencer.  It begins with an “Oops. Sorry.” that is pure Bunny.   But as weird as his tale might be, he makes a point of clarifying that it is essentially true, though knowing Bunny, he does tend to misinterpret much since he often takes things literally and at face value.

This story is true–mostly its true.  You wont think so but it is.  Like the war. Yah there reely was a war. Or the cow.  Or the hollow tree. Or what happened to the 1 arm man. (pg. 3)

Since I know he’s got you hooked with that beginning, his story is off to a great start.  And, if I were his teacher, I could easily disregard his spelling mistakes because the content of his story is so engaging.

Grampa doesn’t tell them much about the trip except that there will be surprises at the park that weekend.  His only rule is that, if they go out on their own, that they must stay close and check in.  When Spencer loses his new and distinctly yellow-cased smart phone, Bunny goes exploring by himself and discovers some guys in blue jackets and white pants and tall hats armed with guns that looked longer and fancier than rifles he knew.  He meets two kids, Beth and her quiet brother Tyler, both dressed in fringed leather clothing and with makeup, sneaking through the woods.  Beth tells them they are with the British and those men in blue are the Americans and there would be in battle tomorrow.  Beth then introduces Bunny to their father, Tecumseh, a general with an impressive sword, at a community of tents, wagons, horses and a log house in a large open area.

Most readers would get that what Bunny is witnessing is a re-enactment from the War of 1812 but Bunny truly believes a war is about take place and feels he must warn his Grampa.  But, Bunny knows how to recognize a bully and, when a blue-coated, one-armed man comes by and taunts Beth’s father and uses discriminatory and rude words like "savages" and "red skins", Bunny calls him out on it, making an enemy of the “reactor” (i.e., re-enactor) whom they learn is an American called Brasher.  Later when Bunny and the silent tracker Tyler go snooping and Bunny sees Brasher with Spencer’s distinctive cell phone, Bunny’s mission becomes two-fold: warn Grampa about the war, and get Spencer’s phone back.  Along the way, though, Bunny and his new friends have another mystery to solve, that of the theft of Tecumseh's sword, solved all the more easily because of Bunny's astute observations.

I can’t possible go into all the layers of Richard Scrimger’s plot but it does encompass a war, a one-armed man, a cow, as Bunny mentions at the onset, but also Laura Secord, a sword, a phone, horseback riding, a re-enactment, budding romances for all three campers, an elderly woman with hearing issues, antagonism with Americans, meaningful ice-cream, a hollow tree, a bully, and a familial rivalry.  It must have seemed like the “weerdest day ever!” for sweet and trusting Bunny who spends most of the weekend worried.  He’s worried about Spencer and his lost phone; about a war they may lose and who might get killed; about Beth and a horse-handler named Clod; about the mean bully named Brasher; and more. But even with all these worries, Bunny’s perspective allows him to see circumstances with wisdom and the humour with which Richard Scrimger’s writing is always imbued.

     “What if we lose?” I said. “What then?”
     Wuld we become American? And what would that mean–being American?
     If I was American Id have a different anthem. O say can you see.  I didnt know it all but I knew that part.  No more standing on gard.  If I was American Id have a president.  My capital city wuld be Washington.  Id have green money. (pg. 104)

How can you not love Bunny?  He may have spelling challenges and trust others too quickly, but he is wise beyond his years (he’s in Grade 6 when the camping trip takes place), recognizing that the only rule he needs to live by is you should do what you want unless it hurts somebody.  

It’s very satisfying to learn a bit about Bunny’s earlier story, as well as get hints of his grandfather David McLean’s covert and romantic entanglements, in this book of the Seven Prequels.  I suspect readers of the remaining Seven Prequels will feel the same after learning a bit more about Spencer, DJ, Webb, Adam, Rennie and Steve.  I can only reiterate what we have said all along about the Seven series, the Seven Sequels and now the Seven Prequels:  read them in any order, just read them.

Be sure to check out all the blog stops on the Seven Prequels tour to launch the series, starting today:

• Norah McClintock at Lost in a Great Book

• Richard Scrimger here at CanLit for LittleCanadians

• Eric Walters at Literary Treats

• John Wilson at teenreads

• Ted Staunton at Young Adult Books Central

• Shane Peacock at MrsReadsBooks

• Sigmund Brouwer at Lost in a Great Book

AND

Check back tomorrow for my own blog tour stop for the Seven Prequels, my interview with author Richard Scrimger.

Brothers at War

by Don Cummer

Scholastic Canada

978-1-4431-1382-3 

204 pp.

Ages 8-14

October, 2013

There are many divisions in twelve-year-old Jacob Gibson's Upper Canada in 1811.  There are the towners and the dockers; the supporters of the Americans and of the British; those who have and those who have not pledged allegiance to the King; entitled, rich boys like William Dunwoody II and his best friend Henry Ecker and the regular boys like Jake and his friend Eli; the Iroquois and the British subjects of Upper Canada; and those itching to get to war and those opposed to it.  Sometimes the lines blur between the groups but most people differentiate themselves from others based on some criteria or another.

When Jake Gibson meets new boy Eli McCabe, son of the new tanner from America, he accepts him readily, especially after Eli helps him from a fall into a ditch during a snowball fight and then later from the frigid Niagara River when challenged by William and Henry.  Of course, Eli confirms the gossip that his father will not swear allegiance to King George, only coming to Upper Canada to be left alone and not deal in politics.  Now the McCabe family may be evicted from the Canadas.  And though William and Henry are relentless in their harrassment of Eli, calling him Turd Boy and pulling vicious pranks to make him look suspicious of vandalism and mischief, Jake and Eli are brought closer together, becoming blood brothers and determined to stand up to the menacing duo.  Sadly, with the dissolution of the Assembly by General Brock and the subsequent elections, coupled with the talk of war between across the Niagara River, Jake and Eli's friendship is tested and loyalty questioned.

Predictably, Upper Canada in 1811-1812 was no less corrupt than some political regions in Canada today.  There are those with wealth who happily use their money to corrupt others and the electoral process, without any concern for the rights and freedoms of all.  And though there are many who are forthcoming and demonstrate much integrity, the unscrupulous ones first must be challenged and blocked. Don Cummer has written a credible story of two boys whose friendship both spans their different worlds and resists that separation. Though it is difficult to always know the appropriate action when balancing friendship and country, Mr. Willcocks who publishes the Upper Canada Guardian advises Jacob,

"Stay close to your friends.  Protect them and keep them out of trouble.  No matter how difficult that may be at times.  In the end, they will thank you." (pg. 134)

This is wise advice, particularly as the War of 1812 will still not have begun at the conclusion of Brothers at War.  But the boys will need to wrestle with their loyalties to their families and their friendship, as well as to their own evolving politics, and fight themselves and each other when dealing with extraordinary circumstances that put those for whom they care in jeopardy. They are indeed brothers at war.

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I came across this quirky video titled Don Cummer arrested for Brothers at War on YouTube and thought readers might enjoy a chuckle as Don Cummer, the author of Brothers at War, attempts to sell copies of his book and is challenged by Mr. Joe Willcocks.  Luckily, the ending indicates that books are good for everything!

 Don Cummer arrested for Brothers at War

Uploaded by Don Cummer on November 2, 2013 to YouTube.

A Call to Battle: The War of 1812, Alexander MacKay, Upper Canada, 1812

by Gillian Chan
Scholastic Canada
978-1-4431-0006-9
195 pp.
Ages 8-12
September, 2012

When the War of 1812 began, Alexander "Sandy" MacKay was only 13 years old, and helping on the family farm near Ancaster.  As clearly as he hears A Call To Battle, determined to join his father and older brother, Angus, in the militia, Sandy is instructed to stay behind with his mother, three younger siblings and two older sisters.  So begins Sandy's recount as he looks back on the events that have lead him to his current journey to Pennsylvania in 1820.

While 1812 progresses from the president's declaration of war in June through to the victory at Queenston, the loss of General Brock and the Yankees' fear of Tecumseh, Sandy knows little of battle experiences except as recounted to him by those returning home.  When his father is stricken with a debilitating case of gaol's fever, as is Angus but less severely, Sandy is disappointed to hear few details about heroic deeds and the glory of war.  He sees shame in the retreat of the British when the Americans capture York in the spring of 1813 and cowardice in his new brother-in-law, Eric, who does not go to war.  Regardless how his father urges him not to be so quick to judge and to look for vain glory, Sandy pursues opportunities to engage in the War.

As the War of 1812 moves into 1814, Sandy finds himself on the outskirts and then in the midst of battles, and sees the reality of war.  His enlightenment is slow but sure, seeing the death toll and drudgery of moving and burying the dead, and then the horror of death in both the British and American ranks.  He may finally experience the reality of war as he craves but Sandy can see beyond his initial expectations and ...

"cried for shattered dreams of glory and adventure that had ended with a bloody, broken boy in a wood. I cried for oblivion ..." (pg. 152)

A Call to Battle is an exceptional edition in Scholastic Canada's I am Canada series.  In any novel of historical fiction, there is the danger of emphasizing the historically-accurate events and characters rather than the story elements, particularly plot.  Gillian Chan's research and poignant emphasis on Sandy MacKay's perspective of the War of 1812, not the detailed events documented in the history textbooks, takes the book from a dry read of a military action to a compassionate look at how boys and young men may see the glory of war, that is, until experienced first-hand.  By allowing Sandy to experience war by dealing first with the dead and injured, then running errands and finally pressed into assisting the surgeon in amputating limbs, rather than just engaging in combat, Gillian Chan has made the War of 1812 in A Call to Battle more of the setting rather than the plot, enabling the reader to see the commonality of young men seeking glory from all manner of military action, be it war, battle, skirmish or attack, defense or offense.  Alexander MacKay's story could be set during World War I, the Boer War, the Seven Years' War or the War of 1812 because the lessons he learns and incorporates are universal.  Sadly, the lessons learned always seem to come after exposure to the conflict, rather than before it.  I can only hope that there are some young people who, after reading A Call to Battle, are moved to rethink their attitudes about war and weaponry and power, hopefully before first-hand experiences destroy more than just their false impressions.

Acts of Courage: Laura Secord and the War of 1812

by Connie Brummel Crook

Pajama Press

978-0-9869495-7-9

261 pp.

Ages 10-14

2012

With the bicentennial of the War of 1812 starting this year, new volumes of historical fiction and non-fiction related to the war's significant events and personalities will be jumping off the presses for the next two years (after all, the War of 1812 lasted from 1812 to 1814).  An early contribution to this list includes Pajama Press' Acts of Courage: Laura Secord and the War of 1812 by Connie Brummel Crook, author of an impressive list of award-winning historical fiction.

Though most readers will know the basics of Laura Secord's fame (no, not chocolate) from the Heritage Minutes that occasionally pepper Canadian television, many will know little besides Laura's struggle through treacherous conditions to warn of an American attack.  By staying true to Laura's undertaking while adding an interesting twist (fictional, of course), Connie Brummel Crook has taken this book from biography to historical fiction with an "Aha!" moment or two.

This story of Laura begins in 1787 when she is only twelve-years-old and living with her father, first step-mother, Mercy, and little sister, Mira, in Great Barrington, on the boundary between Massachusetts and New York.  Laura's father, Thomas Ingersoll, is the judge and captain of the local militia, and often away dealing with the rebels and farmers forced from their lands by exorbitant taxes put in place after the American Revolutionary War.  Laura evades the notice of one such rebel group with the help of a young boy of twelve, who Laura names Red.  Red had come from Ireland to help his uncle farm but, with unpaid taxes, his uncle lost the farm and they have joined the rebels. In return, when the rebels get taken by the militia, Laura takes Red to a neighbour's to hide him, trying to keep him warm and safe and fed.  Though Red leaves promptly the next day, he reappears months later, again trying to keep Laura safe, as well as rescuing her little sister from a fall in the river.

Eight years later, Thomas Ingersoll decides to move the family, now with third wife, Sally, to Upper Canada, tired of the unfairness of America's taxes and courts.  Settling the family in Queenston, with the assistance of a helpful general-store keeper, James Secord, from St. David's, he takes Laura with him to select and prepare the land they've been granted for farming.  Captain Brant, the Mohawk chief, and his people, generously help them clear the land and build their first cabin, though Laura learns about the inequities levelled against the Mohawks, who'd helped the British, and the resulting hardships.

By 1812, Laura is living in Queenston with her husband, James Secord, and their three children, while across the ocean the British are fighting Napoleon and the French.  With the relentless seizure of American trade ships and seamen by the British, America declares war on Britain and Upper Canada readies itself for attack.  After a failed invasion by General William Hull and the Americans from across the Detroit River, an attack on Queenston has Laura heroically rescuing an injured James from behind enemy lines.  But, it isn't until the spring of 1813 that Laura becomes a fixture on the battle stage.  While tending to James, still recovering from his injuries, and her children, Laura begrudgingly feeds soldiers who request or demand food.  It is while one particular group of nasty soldiers stuff themselves on her food that Laura overhears them talking of a surprise attack on Fitzgibbon and his men.  After James tells her that an attack on Fitzgibbon could lead to the taking of the Niagara Peninsula and all of Upper Canada, Laura sets out on her famous trek to warn Fitzgibbon.

Because Connie Brummel Crook has chosen to introduce a fictional character, Red, from Laura's childhood to her story, the plot-line may leave the reader jerked from one time to another.  First we share in the events of a single time in Laura's childhood, until we read of her family's move to Upper Canada when she is a twenty-year-old single woman, and finally moving through her life as a wife, mother, and heroine.  Though I wish the transitions had seemed flawless, Connie Brummel Crook appropriately streams from one to the other as best as possible while telling a life story, with fictional enhancements, in a mere 261 pages.  As such, no subplot or component of the story is gratuitous, each important in explaining and moving the plot to Laura's climactic walk, probably best described as a combination trudge, plod, wade, slog and creep.  Luckily Connie Brummel Crook's telling of Laura Secord's story lacks the toil and anguish of our heroine's defining moment and instead takes the reader through Laura's life's journey to better understand the choices and connections she has made throughout.

The War of 1812 in CanLit

For the next two years, many organizations on both sides of the border will be commemorating the bicentennial of the War of 1812, which lasted from 1812 to 1814.  A variety of events on both sides of the border will keep any student of history intrigued for months to come.  A small sampling of activities include:

• re-enactments (Battle of Queenston Heights in Niagara; Militia Training at Gananoque);
• museum exhibits (Kingston War Ships 1812-1814 in Kingston; Petticoats, Boots and Muskets in Niagara Falls);
• walking tours (Stories in Stones cemetery tour in Hamilton; Ghost Tours at Fort George);
• film festivals (Fort York National Historic Site October in Toronto);
• dances (Fanshawe Frolic in London);
• plays (The War of 1812 at the Stratford Shakespeare Festival);
• festivals (Capture of Detroit Commemoration Festival in Windsor);
• lectures and talks (Ghostly Tales in Cayuga; Laura Secord and the Tales of 1812 in Jordan);
• book launches (The Loxleys and the War of 1812); and
  
• concerts (1812 Concert in Greater Fort Erie).

Great sites for events include:

• Discover 1812
• Western Corridor: War of 1812
• Ontario Festivals: War of 1812
• Ontario Historical Society

To provide some context for these activities and background information about events and individuals involved in the War of 1812, this book list should provide enough resources to introduce young readers to the "Forgotten War."

PICTURE BOOKS

Laura: A Childhood Tale of Laura Secord
by Maxine Trottier
Illustrated by Karen Reczuch
North Winds Press
28 pp.
Ages 4-8
2000

Laura Secord: A Story of Courage
by Janet Lunn
Illustrated by Maxwell Newhouse
Tundra
32 pages
Ages 7-10
2001

Laura Secord’s Brave Walk
by Connie Brummel Crook
Illustrated by June Lawson
Second Story Press
24 pp.
Ages 8-10
2000

FICTION

Acts of Courage: Laura Secord and the War of 1812
by Connie Brummel Crook
Pajama Press
261 pp.
Ages 10-14
2012
Based on the true story of Laura Ingersoll Secord who undertook a dangerous journey to warn the British of an attack by the Americans.

Billy Green Saves the Day
by Ben Guyatt
Dundurn
157 pp.
Ages10-15
2009
When the War of 1812 breaks out, eighteen-year-old Billy Green takes it upon himself to warn the British of the massive American forces camped at Stoney Creek, the last stronghold of the British in Upper Canada.

The Bully Boys
by Eric Walters
Puffin
978-0143168621
227 pp.
Ages 9-13
2001
Tom Roberts looks after the family farm while his father fights for the British army during the War of 1812.

A Call to Battle: War of 1812, Alexander MacKay, Upper Canada, 1812 (I Am Canada series)
by Gillian Chan
Scholastic Canada
200 pp.
Ages 10-14
Release date: September 01, 2012
Jealous when his father and older brother go off to fight the Americans attacking Niagara, thirteen-year-old Sandy sneaks away to Lundy's Lane to join the militia.  But, Sandy could not have imagined the brutality of war from which his father had tried to protect him.  And now, Sandy must find the means to survive.

Fire Ship
by Marianne Brandis
Porcupine's Quill
119 pp.
Ages 9-12
1992
Describes the 1813 devastation of York by the Americans, from the point of view of Dan, a boy who has recently emigrated from the United States.

Jeremy's War 1812
by John Ibbotson
Kids Can Press
208 pp.
Ages 9-13
2000
(Originally published in 1991 as 1812: Jeremy and the General)
Fifteen-year-old Jeremy joins the British army in 1812 and becomes the batsman (personal servant) to General Isaac Brock, fighting for his life and country through the War of 1812.

Legend of the Paymaster's Gold
by Jo Shawyer
Dundurn
136 pp.
Ages 10-14
2012
Two hundred years after the War of 1812, twins Sam and Eadie learn that an army paymaster had mislaid a chest of gold during a skirmish near their new home in London, Ontario.  With a little help from a neighbour and other locals, the two's sleuthing educates them about the War of 1812.

The Loxleys and the War of 1812: Graphic Novel
by Alan Grant

Illustrated by Claude St. Aubin, Lovern Kindzierski and Todd Klein

Renegade Arts Entertainment

978-0-9868200-0-7

175 pp.

Ages 10+

2012
The Loxley family is living on the Niagara Peninsula when the War of 1812 is declared, tearing the family apart. See the book trailer here.

The Other Elizabeth
by Karleen Bradford
Gage Publishing
160 pp.
Ages 10-13
1982
After slipping into the past during a school visit to a historical site, Elizabeth wishes she'd paid better attention in class, particularly to the details regarding the Battle at Crysler's Farm during the War of 1812. 

A River Apart
by Robert Sutherland
Fitzhenry & Whiteside
184 pp.
Ages 10-13
2000
When the War of 1812 separates friends, Jamie Shaw in Canada and siblings Jared and Leah Jackson across the St. Lawrence River in America, they fear that their choices to defend their homes and families could lead to even more tragedies.

Son of the Hounds
by Robert Sutherland
Fitzhenry & Whiteside
128 pp.
Ages 10-15
1988/2004
After Jimmy and his father are taken from their Niagara Peninsula farm by the Americans in 1813, he escapes, determined to fight them whatever way he can, including acting as a spy and a messenger for the famous Band of Bloody Boys.

Under a Shooting Star (Circle of Silver Chronicles)
by Maxine Trottier
Stoddart Kids/Fitzhenry & Whiteside
212 pp.
Ages 12-14
2001

En route to delivering Kate and Anne Kimmerling to their home in America via Lake Erie, British-Oneidan Edward MacNeil's simple task becomes more complicated when a storm shipwrecks them on an island in the midst of conflict during the War of 1812. 

Whispers of War: The 1812 Diary of Susanna Merritt (Dear Canada series)
by Kit Pearson
Scholastic Canada
220 pp.
Ages 10-12
2002
The story of the Merritt family's experiences on the Niagara Peninsula during the War of 1812.

NON-FICTION

Laura Secord (Remarkable Canadians series)
by Jennifer House
Weigl
24 pp.
Ages 9-11
2009

Laura Secord, Heroine of the War of 1812 (A Quest Biography Book)
by Peggy Dymond Leavey
Dundurn
224 pp.
Ages
May 2012

To Stand and Fight Together: Richard Pierpoint and the Coloured Corps of Upper Canada (A Canadians at War Book)
by Steve Pitt
Dundurn
144 pp.
2008

Tecumseh: Shooting Star, Crouching Panther
by Jim Poling Sr.
Dundurn
192 pp.
2009

Canada Under Attack (A Canadians at War Book)
by Jennifer Crump
Dundurn
216 pp.
2010

Captain Fitz: FitzGibbon, Green Tiger of the War of 1812 (A Canadians at War Book)
by Enid Mallory
Dundurn
208 pp.
2011

The Battles of the War of 1812: An Omnibus
by Pierre Berton
Fifth House/Fitzhenry & Whiteside
317 pp.
Ages 11-15
2006
Originally published by McClelland & Stewart as separate titles in Pierre Berton's History for Young Canadians: The Battles of the War of 1812 including The Capture of Detroit, 1991; The Death of Isaac Brock, 1991; Revenge of the Tribes, 1991; Canada Under Siege, 1991; The Battle of Lake Erie, 1994; The Death of Tecumseh, 1994; and Attack on Montreal, 1995.

Canada on Fire: The War of 1812 (A Canadians at War Book) 
by Jennifer Crump
Dundurn
208 pp.
Ages 14+
2011

OUT-OF-PRINT

(occasionally available at libraries or at used book stores)

General Brock and Niagara Falls
by Samuel Hopkins Adams
Random House
1960

The Good Soldier: The Story of Isaac Brock

by D. J. Goodspeed

Illustrated by Jack Ferguson

Macmillan

156 pp.

1967

Laura's Choice: The Story of Laura Secord

by Connie Brummel Crook

Windflower Communications

1993

Redcoat

by Gregory Sass

Porcupine's Quill

95 pp.

Ages 11-13

1985

The Rowboat War, On the Great Lakes 1812-1814

by Fred Swayze

Illustrated by Paul Liberovsky

Macmillan

128 pp.

1965

The Soldier's Son
by Terry Leeder
Dundurn
64 pp.
1979

The Story of the War of 1812
by Colonel Red Reeder
Illustrated by Frederick T. Chapman
Duell, Sloan & Pearce
1960

Treason at York
by John F. Hayes
Illustrated by Fred J. Finley
Copp Clark
314 pp.
1949

Read and learn why author and great Canadian Pierre Berton wrote, in Flames Across the Border: 1813-1814 (Anchor Canada, 2001), that. . .

History gave the conflict short shrift; and yet for all its bunglings and idiocies, it helped determine the shape and nature of Canada.

• The War of 1812 •

n.b. Teachers and anyone who would like a pdf of this posting can download one here at scribd.