Paseka: A Little Elephant, Brave

Written by Ruth James

Illustrated by Kent Laforme

Page Two Books

978-1-989025420

32 pp.

Ages 6-10

May 2019

From Paseka: A Little Elephant, Brave by Ruth James, illus. by Kent Laforme

This is Paseka. After she and her mother are attacked by hyenas and separated, Paseka searches for Mama and is drawn to a large grey shape moving quickly along a tree bridge (a log road). Though fooled, the injured Paseka follows the safari jeep into the camp, causing mayhem in her desperation. To help the very young elephant, camp workers tranquilize her and tend to her injuries, and she is taken to an elephant rehabilitation camp.

When released, Paseka bounds to the matriarch, hopeful it is her mama and desperate for milk. But all the elephants need to check out Paseka first, prodding her with their trunks.

Standing quietly, Paseka sucked her own trunk, gaining comfort and helping herself to be brave.

Hungry, she listens as they discuss her, until the matriarch, who knows of Paseka's harrowing story and loss, welcomes her into the herd and matches her with a mother elephant and her older female calf. A mother, a sister, and milk.

From Paseka: A Little Elephant, Brave by Ruth James, illus. by Kent Laforme

Still, there is the solemnity of elephants lost, to poachers and predators, and amongst the bones of poached elephants, little Paseka hears and feels the heart song of her mother that had urged her, before birth, to

Be strong, my Paseka!
Be steady, have courage.
Play every day!

Connected both to her mother in spirit and to the elephants of her new herd, little Paseka learns she has the strength to belong and be saved.

From Paseka: A Little Elephant, Brave by Ruth James, illus. by Kent Laforme

Paseka: A Little Elephant, Brave is loosely based on a true story of an orphaned baby elephant that writer Ruth James heard about when she visited Kenya as a founding member of the African Children's Book Box Society. (Book sales benefit this organization.) While Paseka's true story appends the picture book, the story is not an informational text about vulnerable elephants and poaching. It's an uplifting story about finding one's place through tragedy. It's about holding onto connections with those gone and making new connections to sustain and comfort. And it's about elephants and their bonds, their losses, their resilience, and their spirit.

Ruth James's words are eloquent and emotional, from the attack by the hyenas, to Paseka's heartbreaking search for her mother and for the security and sustenance she desperately requires and finds.

A baby elephant's heart can ache with hoping.

The fragility of Paseka's story is reflected in Ruth James's elegant prose and Kent Laforme's illustrations. Kent Laforme may be more widely known as a Victoria, BC stone carver–he is currently working on a stone sculpture of Paseka (https://www.kentlaforme.com/elephant-dream) –but I hope we see more and more of his exquisite ink and watercolour artwork in children's books. Kent Laforme blends the right mix of reality with heart, telling Paseka's story of tragedy and finding hope, with an atmospheric touch that reveals but doesn't crush. That's a profound accomplishment of artistry for a story that includes predation, death, hunger, and abandonment. Moreover, by emphasizing a palette of purple, the reader is infused with both the regality of these magnificent creatures and the sorrow of the situation.

For those passionate about elephants, about showing compassion for all creatures, and for making a world that embraces all, Paseka: A Little Elephant, Brave will tell you a real story.

From Paseka: A Little Elephant, Brave by Ruth James, illus. by Kent Laforme

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A downloadable Teacher Resource Guide is available at pasekathebook.com.

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Multiple book events for the launch of Paseka: A Little Elephant, Brave will be held in British Columbia in the following weeks. I will post tomorrow with details.

The First Stone

Written by Don Aker

HarperTrophy Canada

978-0-00639-286-6

289 pp.

Ages 14+

2003

Note Bene: Published before I was even a teacher-librarian (just a teacher), The First Stone won both the 2004 OLA's White Pine Award and the Ann Connor Brimer Award.  I'm reviewing it here as it is the prequel to Don Aker's The Fifth Rule, a current White Pine nominee.  I will post my review of The Fifth Rule tomorrow.

Reef, 17, and friends, Jinks and Bigger, are not the most likeable fellows in Halifax, unless you like guys who spew profanities as easily as breathing, who think nothing of vandalizing property, and who think little beyond themselves.  Reef, a foster child since his grandmother died eight years earlier of cancer (his abusive drunkard of a grandfather died earlier), goes by his gut instincts.  Unfortunately, he makes a lot of poor choices, one which causes a horrific crash and leaves a teen broken and in a coma.

Sentenced to the North Hills Group Home, a set-up created by ex-con Frank Colville, to volunteer hours at a rehab centre, and ultimately to present talks to schools about his experiences, Reef isn't pleased; neither are many citizens, including the victim's mother, Diane Morrison, who are convinced he got away with almost murdering her daughter.  Playing the tough-guy, Reef begrudgingly does what is required of him, including following Frank Colville's rules and repairing a greenhouse on his own, but Reef continues to share very little of himself.  That is, until he begins his volunteering at the Halifax Rehabilitation Centre, where his usefulness is appreciated by staff and patients on the muscoloskeletal floor. 

He especially makes a connection with Leeza , a young woman dealing with multiple fractures and injuries which have her in constant pain.  Through their commonality in dealing with the death of a loved one, Reef and Leeza become closer, each having a positive impact on the other: Leeza making more of an effort in her rehab, and Reef finding it easier to respect himself and do the right thing.  

Frank Coville's rules (respect yourself; respect others; honor your commitments; be accountable; and do the right thing) become mantras that poke their way into Reef's consciousness, steering him to ensure he doesn't interact with his victim, to help direct Jinks and Bigger into making better choices, and to recognizing his own worth.  Meanwhile, Leeza is learning to deal with her anger, fear and pain, while accepting the attraction she feels for Reef.

Regardless of how unappealing Reef and his friends are, courtesy of Don Aker's expressive writing, the reader is compelled to read to the end, sure that Reef is one of those characters that can and will redeem himself, somehow.   Leeza can be a less sympathetic character, primarily because of her interactions with her controlling mom, but Leeza demonstrates her resiliency, grabbing the support of her readers.  Even the ending prepares the reader to accept that time is needed for characters and circumstances to resolve themselves before their story truly ends. And so, now comes Don Aker's reluctant sequel, The Fifth Rule.