The Space Between Here and Now

Written by Sarah Suk

Quill Tree Books

978-0063255135

320 pp.

Ages 13-17

October 2023

I know I'm a little late to review Sarah Suk's second young adult book (she wrote Made in Korea in 2021) but I just recently heard of this novel from the Red Maple panel of the Forest Kid Committee who recommended it for their summer reading list. (Each year that I help out with this committee, I learn of new Canadian titles for young readers. These young people are amazing readers!) After checking out their recommendation, I was intrigued by the blurb about The Space Between Here and Now and was not disappointed.

 

Aimee Roh is a typical 17-year-old Korean Canadian living in Vancouver, BC with Appa, her father. She's thinking about university, she hangs with her friends, she has a passion for photography, and she and her father have a close but respectful relationship. She's typical in every way except that she has a rare condition called Sensory Time Warp Syndrome a.k.a. STWS. Those with STWS have different triggers for memories that can transport them back to the time of the memory. When triggered by smells, Aimee disappears, travels back to a memory usually for just few minutes. Some people grow out of the condition, but Aimee is finding that she's experiencing more frequent episodes and wonders if it is because of the stresses of being a senior and anticipating the next phase of her life. What doesn't help is that it is impossible to talk to her father about it or get the supports she needs to help her cope.

 

After a particularly lengthy disappearance in which she is taken to a long-forgotten memory of a family outing to Kitsilano Beach, before her mother abandoned the family when Aimee was 6, Aimee is confused. Her memory doesn't match what she remembers and she begins to wonder whether her mother perhaps had STWS. Taking matters in hand, and with the encouragement and help of best friend Nikita, Aimee embarks on a spring break trip to Korea, hopeful of finding out some answers about her mother and family that her father doesn't seem to want to share with her.

 

With Nikita researching online for clues, and Aimee reconnecting with her Aunt Gomo and childhood friend Junho, the search for Aimee's mom begins. With some new insights into her STWS and into her relationship with her father, Aimee finds herself gaining clarity and even confidence where there was once only confusion.

Teen angst is not unusual but the angst that comes from a chronic condition that unexpectedly disappears you from your life, even if temporarily, is beyond typical. It has left Aimee in a precarious position, in a space between then and now, unclear as to her memories of her past and her understanding of her present. Sarah Suk, a Vancouver author, gives Aimee a story that might appear tenuous, never knowing when she might disappear or where she will end up or even if there is a possibility of ending up in a time loop. But Aimee's story is not anxiety-driven; it is driven by a need to know. Young adults will appreciate that push to become self-actualized, to understand oneself. Aimee's life is many layered, between her issues of abandonment by her mother, being disaffected with her father, and struggling not to stand out because of her STWS. While today's teens may not have a memory-driven time-travel condition, they have their own issues that challenge them in their drive for understanding and satisfaction. They can learn from Aimee who faces peer pressures and family pressures and uncertainty and is still able to resolve things well enough for herself. She may not get the answers she was specifically looking for, but she gets what she needs and learns things that will help her, as well as others. 

Though the fantastical nature of Aimee's STWS elevates The Space Between Here and Now from the drama of teen angst to the realm of science fiction,  Sarah Suk gives a story that is both enlightening about one Korean-Canadian family as well as familiar. For that reason, I urge young people to read The Space Between Here and Now for some insight into their own lives and relationships with others, particularly parents, to see how reconciliation may be reached with patience, effort and, most definitely, compassion.

THE FACTORY: Cover reveal

Time to get excited about an upcoming book.

 

Let's get that buzz started! 

 

📘📘📘📘📘

Catherine Egan is the author of middle grade & young adult novels including Sneaks, The Witch's Child series (Julia Vanishes, Julia Defiant and Julia Unbound) and The Last Days of Tian Di series (Shade and Sorceress, The Unmaking, and Bone, Fog, Ash and Star).

 

Soon, Catherine Egan will have a new middle grade novel which will be coming out in January 2025. I'd like to help get everyone talking about this new book of speculative fiction for middle grade readers with this cover reveal.

Voila!

THE FACTORY

Written by Catherine Egan

Scholastic

978-1339034218

336 pp.

Ages 8-12

January 7 2025 

 

• • • • • • •

 

Here is a blurb about The Factory from Catherine Egan herself:

 

You make a bargain—this for that.
You think you know what you're giving up, what the risks are, and you believe the payoff will be worth it.
Some bargains are riskier than others.
Some payoffs are hard to resist.
But what if there’s a lie at the heart of the bargain? What if you’re wrong about the thing you’re giving up?

Welcome to The Factory.

Meet Asher Doyle: He made this bargain to save his mother. A dreamer with problems of his own at school, he thinks the Factory might be the answer. But he was specially recruited, and the question of who wants him here and why becomes more and more pressing.  

 
Meet Faith Ford: She made this bargain to save her family. Smart and determined, Faith thinks she can tough it out, power through, like she always does. She's wrong this time.

 
Meet Troy Sanchez: He made this bargain to save his brother. A gentle soul, Troy is nonetheless a survivor, but the price he pays will be greater than any of them, and the Factory might be one thing he can't survive.

 
Meet Violet Shu: She made this bargain to save herself. Vi is a force to be reckoned with. She doesn't wait for the fight to come to her—she brings it. Also, if anyone messes with Troy, she will end them.

Every day the kids at the Factory are shut in Extraction Containers as part of a highly classified experiment in harvesting electromagnetic energy from the human body. A risk, a bargain. The process is terrifying, but the payoff is huge. They all signed up for this. They all have their reasons. They are desperate, and this might be their only chance to change their circumstances. But the machines aren't really extracting electromagnetic energy. So what is being extracted?

Asher. Faith. Troy. Vi.
They team up to figure out the real cost of the bargain they've made.
But they're running out of time.

My new middle-grade novel THE FACTORY will be out January 2025 and I am so excited to share this creepy, evocative cover with you all - I GASPED when I first saw it! The artwork is by the brilliant Angelo Rinaldi (https://www.artistpartners.com/portfolios/angelo-rinaldi/). Much more to come, but keep your eyes out for THE FACTORY next winter! 

~ Catherine Egan

• • • • • • •

From the cover and Catherine Egan's blurb, there is much promise in The Factory for an epic read of speculative fiction for middle grade readers. Only 7+ months until its release! So put it on your TBR list and/or pre-order it to ensure you have your copy to visit The Factory in January 2025.

• • • • • • •

Oculum Echo: Guest review

This review was written by student Bronte L.

 

Written by Philippa Dowding

DCB

978-1-770866652

231 pp.

Ages 9-12

2022 

The robot Echo1 awakes from slumber and, with the help of Guide, a voice in its ear, and the robot bird Peregrine1, travels the continents’ four Oculum domes and the barren deserts. Echo1's task is to search for life and monitor the starting of a civilization of humans to make sure they don’t make the mistakes of the past. 

 

Outside of Oculum, Grannie’s farm is bombed, and Miranda1, Mannfred, and Grannie must lead the children originally from Oculum to safety. But their attackers, the UnRuly, are hunting them down, and they’ve got a new secret weapon. So, Grannie sends Mannfred and his friends to spy on the UnRuly, maybe even to try and stop them, but things soon go wrong. 

 

Meanwhile, after many weeks of travelling, Echo1 is starting to lose hope in finding life. Along the way, he learns much from his guide about Earth, humans, and his many special capabilities. But lots of questions remain unanswered, including what is life, what his name means, and what happened to the world of the Olden Begones? 

Oculum Echo by Philippa Dowding is the sequel to Oculum, the Silver Birch-nominated first book in The Children of Oculum series. It’s a middle school level dystopian, sci-fi novel, told from multiple points of view.  There's Miranda1, the oldest girl from Oculum, who now must help Grannie lead the rest of the children; Echo1, who is led by the voice in his ear and a robot bird that sends him videos of his surroundings; and Mannfred, who lived outside Oculum on the farm with Grannie before the UnRuly destroyed it. The book has important themes of leadership, curiosity, perseverance, collaboration, and showing the importance of taking care of our world and each other.

Although I haven’t read Oculum, the book before this one, it didn’t take long for me to become invested in the storyline. Each character’s experiences are so wildly different and inspirational in their own ways that it makes for quite a fun read! My favourite part of the book was definitely getting to see the world through Echo1’s and Miranda’s eyes. The lives they are accustomed to are so different from our current world, and, even though their Earth was mostly destroyed, there are hints at what it was like before the disaster, with playgrounds, paper, drum kits, pigs, fish, and all kinds of other things we take for granted. I would recommend Oculum Echo to any sci-fi loving kid that enjoys adventures. 

~ Written by Bronte L., Gr. 9

The Children of Oculum, Books 1 and 2

Made 4 You

Written by Eric Walters

DCB

978-1-77086-661-4

296 pp.

Ages 13+

September 2022

 

Except for the headaches which have started plaguing her–and for which she has had multiple MRIs–seventeen-year-old Becky James's senior year is mapped out as getting good grades, prepping for the SATs, volunteering at a seniors' residence, and partaking in extracurricular activities like school band and social justice club and managing the boys' basketball team.  Then she meets Gene Newman, a previously-homeschooled student from New York state whom she will host and offer assistance.

As smart as Gene is, he needs support to fit in at their Nobleton, Indiana high school. His first-day blue suit and shiny brief case, as well as his formal speech, make him a standout. But he's a fast learner, following Becky's advice with respect to dress and more. Soon he's not just fitting in but he's attracting attention as an exceptional student, saxophone musician and basketball player. As they spend more and more time together, and Gene reveals the research his adoptive parents have been conducting on human intelligence and strategies for learning, the two teens become closer. But it's not smooth sailing for the young couple as there are secrets that could put them both in danger and perhaps keep them separated forever.

When science fiction is written well, it becomes less fantasy and more possibility, and Made 4 You is so plausible that readers will wonder if the story is based in reality. (Of course, that's also the finesse that is Eric Walters's writing.) Research on human intelligence is vast and expanding, as scientists look to how we learn, apply and adapt, so raising a young man like Gene who can learn anything quickly and thoroughly is not surprising. However, the depth of his learning, from math to sports and social interactions, is astounding, especially as it is coupled with empathy and love. Because Eric Walters takes Gene beyond the genius he is and makes him into a teen in love, Gene is a complete, albeit extraordinary, human.  And with dangerous adversaries looking to exploit the science behind Gene's intellectual development, Made 4 You goes beyond a sci fi romance into a thriller and action adventure. It's a story that has it all: sweet moments of falling in love, mysterious scientific research, and chase scenes across land and sky. Moreover, with Eric Walters at the writing helm, not only is it a story made for any middle-grader or teen who reads across genres, Made 4 You is also complex, nuanced and full of heart. (Even the dedication will give readers an "Awww" moment of pause.)

The Limitless Sky

Written by Christina Kilbourne

Dundurn

978-1-45974-887-3

384 pp.

Ages 12+

May 2022

They may be living in the same world, but Rook and Gage don't know it. 

 

Rook lives with her family in ArHK whose descendants, the Chosen Ones, had left the Outside hundreds of OT (Outside Time) years ago. In ArHK where she lives with her father and mother and young sister Sparrow in their pod on the Knowledge Level, one of four levels in ArHK, Rook is destined to be a Keeper, running the Archives and monitoring the Great Hall of Human Records, as is her family's heritage. 

Fifteen-year-old Gage lives with his parents, younger sister Brindle and dog Scruff in a yurt at a scouts' base camp. Organized by the Scholars, scouts have been going out for generations to find the Ship of Knowledge purportedly in the ancient city of Washington. When Chief Coil's map readers believe they are at the gateway to that city, Gage volunteers to join the scouting expedition as a Reader to assist his father and others in looking for artefacts and old structures that might reveal the ancients' knowledge of curing diseases, harnessing power and communication over vast distances.

During her regular assignments and exploratory days at the Archives, Rook delves into restricted files and starts piecing ArHK's history, much of which was buried by the Governors and for which her Grandmam had been exiled to the Growing Sector. Meanwhile, just as Rook is coming to some startling revelations, Gage is making his own discovery and one that will bring their two worlds together, even if at a distance.

Christina Kilbourne has not just created one new world; she has created two. Both are borne out of poisonous air, fires, floods and winds, with one world escaping into a newly-manufactured one and the other surviving in what is left behind. Though readers will be hopeful that the two worlds, those of Rook and Gage, will ultimately come together so that they might become whole again, Christina Kilbourne does not guarantee anything. She shows us alternatives of what our world might be like after climatic change has altered our landscapes and societies and offers an opportunity to see how power can corrupt, how progress can be a setback, and how inspiration may come from our youth. How limited our world is comes down to us.

Dystopian novels have always offered us a mix of angst and aspiration, and The Limitless Sky does just this. In a gritty read that will work for middle-grade readers as well as teens, The Limitless Sky begins a new story for a future that may or may not be. And, as this is first book in the potential trilogy, it's a future I'm looking forward to reading about.

Underland

Written by Colleen Nelson and Nancy Chappell-Pollack
Yellow Dog (An imprint of Great Plains)
978-1-77337-052-1
192 pp.
Ages 12-15

October 2020 

 

So the truth lies buried in the Underland. (pg. 33)

 

Though authors Colleen Nelson and Nancy Chappell-Pollack didn't really leave us hanging at the conclusion of Pulse Point (2018), the book to which Underland is the sequel, they did hint that there was more to learn about the world they created and the inhabitants of the City protected under a dome and the Prims who lived on the Mountain outside of it. In fact, though we'd met Kaia who'd escaped from the City to find out the true nature of her heritage, there is so much more to learn about the City, from its Councillors who govern, the overseers who watch, and Citizens who generate energy through their physical efforts. And now we learn, as does Sari, Kaia's best friend, that there is an Underland to the City, unknown to its above-ground and more privileged inhabitants. 

 

Told in the alternating voices of Ama, a young Under who lives and labours in the tunnels beneath the City, and Sari, who was matched with Councillor Tar's offspring Lev who'd gone after Kaia when she'd fled the City, Underland is a story of separation and convergence. Kept hidden from the Citizens above who believe their own efforts generate power, Ama and her fellow workers, primarily "younguns" who can fit through the narrow tunnels, dig the precious brine which the City above requires to run everything. They believe in Big Mother who gives life and protects them and Old Father who shows his anger when displeased but, except for the two Prims Jacob and Noah who were captured and forced to serve, the Unders only know enslavement and nothing of the world beyond their pit where they live and the tunnels they mine.

 

Above, in the very different world of the City, Sari still feels guilty about being matched with Lev when she'd known how much Kaia and Lev cared for each other. But Tar makes it clear that Kaia was an inappropriate match for Lev and she sees the qualities of a leader in Sari. Curious, Sari looks into Kaia's birth record which reveals a special notation of "intertwining." With the help of Ren, a former classmate and now overseer, Sari learns more about Kaia's origins but also about the Underland.

 

With their worlds in danger of physically and socially collapsing, those of the City and the Underland can no longer remain separate and Colleen Nelson and Nancy Chappell-Pollack's dystopia evolves into something less dissonant, advancing towards the cooperative and diverse.

 

At this time of year, Underland offers hope that acceptance of others and compassion for all is possible. While both the Unders and the Citizens, except for the Councillors and those who oppress those of the Underland, know nothing of the others' existence and experiences, they are part of a social order of epic inequities and horrific discrimination. Based in fear and ignorance, their different worlds would not ever have come together if individuals like Ama and Sari, among a handful of others, had not stepped up and recognized the need for change. For themselves and others, they needed to see beyond themselves.

If I want to move forward, I need to make sure I'm okay with what's behind me. (pg. 157)

With suspenseful action-filled scenes and a wide cast of characters from all levels–geologists, fetal assessment technicians, diggers, mules, bureaucrats, elders, younguns, mothers and more–Colleen Nelson and Nancy Chappell-Pollack have created a grim world, borne of good intentions but managed into the objectionable and worse. Fortunately, Underland inspires faith that a few good people can make the difference and that redemption is possible through transformation. Sometimes it's all we need to go forward.

Underland: Book launch and Twitter takeover (Online)

 

We 💖 Pulse Point

(See my review and Q & A with the authors)

 

which was Colleen Nelson and Nancy Chappell-Pollack's first collaborative YA novel of a dystopian world in which Citizens under a dome are monitored via an implanted microchip in a forefinger and kept separate from the Primitives beyond the protective shell.

 

Written by Colleen Nelson with Nancy Chappell-Pollack
Yellow Dog (Great Plains Publications)
978-1-927855-97-3
192 pp.
Ages 12-15

2018 

Reviewed here

 Now their sequel is launching!

Underland

Written by Colleen Nelson and Nancy Chappell-Pollack

Yellow Dog (An imprint of Great Plains)

978-1-77337-052-1

192 pp.

Ages 12-15

October 2020

To celebrate the book's release, co-authors

 Colleen Nelson and Nancy Chappell-Pollack 

will be taking over their publisher's Twitter account

 (@Great PlainsPub) 

to answer questions and 

share details about the writing of their latest book

on

Wednesday, October 28, 2020

             6-8 PM (Central Time Zone)

 

 

PLUS

You have time (until this online launch) to enter 

to win a signed copy of Underland

(Entrant must be 13 years of age or older)

Enter to win at https://www.greatplains.mb.ca/product/underland/

 

 

See you at the launch!

36 Must Read Canadian YA Books

Social media is liberally peppered with book lists and best-of lists but too often the ones that make the biggest splashes are those that come from the United States–they do have a far greater population.  CanLit for LittleCanadians is all about books by Canadian creators so let me throw my blog into that ring and share with you my list of 36 Must Read Canadian YA Books.

There's a little bit of everything: historical fiction, high fantasy, romance, non-fiction, high school, lots of relationships, graphic novel, paranormal, thriller, LGBTQ+, tragedy, humour, diverse characters, family, coming of age, mental health, dystopia, novels in verse, and so much more. (I initially intended to add tags for each book but I didn't want to skew what any reader might get out of the books so I chose not to include them here.)

I know that I've missed many, many fine books for teens here and I am sorry. I could make a top 100 list easily but it would be prohibitively long if I wanted to add images of the book covers–which I always do–but hopefully this short list will get readers of YA started thinking about the wealth of books written by Canadians and then seek out other great Canadian YA books. 

40 things I Want to Tell You
Written by Alice Kuipers
HarperTrophy Canada
978-1-44340-587-4
283 pp.
Ages 13+
2012
Reviewed here

The Agony of Bun O'Keefe
Written by Heather T. Smith
Penguin Teen Canada
978-0-143198659
224 pp.
Ages 13-17
2017

Blink & Caution
Written by Tim Wynne-Jones
Candlewick Press
978-0-7636-3983-9
342 pp.
Ages 14+
2011
Reviewed here

Chanda's Secrets
Written by Allan Stratton
Annick Press
978-1550378351
200 pp.
Ages 14+
2004

Cheeseburger Subversive
Written by Richard Scarsbrook
Thistledown Press
978-1894345545
204 pp.
Ages 13+
2006

Dance of the Banished
Written by Marsha Forchuk Skrypuch
Pajama Press
978-1- 927485-65-1
288 pp.
Ages 12+
2014
Reviewed here

The Droughtlanders
Written by Carrie Mac
Puffin Canada
978-0143056669
347 pp.
Ages 12-16
2006

Everything Beautiful is Not Ruined
Written by Danielle Younge-Ullman
Razorbill
978-0-425-28759-0
368 pp.
Ages 13-17
2017
Reviewed here

Exit, Pursued by a Bear
Written by E. K. Johnston
Dutton Books for Young Readers
978-1-101994580
256 pp.
Ages 12-18
2016
Reviewed here

Falling Kingdoms
Written by Morgan Rhodes
Razorbill
978-1-59514-584-0
412 pp.
Ages 12+
2012
Reviewed here

The Fashion Committee
Written by Susan Juby
Penguin Teen
978-0670067602
320 pp.
Ages 12+
2017

The First Stone
Written by Don Aker
HarperTrophy Canada
978-0-00639-286-6
289 pp.
Ages 14+
2003
Reviewed here

The Gathering
Written by Kelley Armstrong
Doubleday Canada
978-0-385-66851-4
359 pp.
Ages 12+
2011
Reviewed here

A Girl Like That
Written by Tanaz Bhathena
Farrar Straus Giroux
978-0-374-30544-4
369 pp.
Ages 13-18
2018
Reviewed here

The Gospel Truth
Written by Caroline Pignat
Red Deer Press
978-0-88995-493-9
328 pp.
Ages 12+
2014
Reviewed here

Half Brother
Written by Kenneth Oppel
HarperCollins Canada
978-1-55468-812-8
304 pp.
Ages 12+
2010

In the Key of Nira Ghani
Written by Natasha Deen
Running Press Kids
978-0-762465477
304 pp.
Ages 12+
2019

Jeremy Stone
Written by Lesley Choyce
Red Deer Press
978-0-88995-504-2
184 pp.
Ages 14-18
2013
Reviewed here

The Love and Lies of Rukhsana Ali
Written by Sabina Khan
Scholastic
978-1-338-22701-7
336 pp.
Ages 14+
2019
Reviewed here

Looks Like Daylight: Voices of Indigenous Kids
Written by Deborah Ellis
Groundwood Books
 978-1-55498-120-5
256 pp.
Ages 12+
2013
Reviewed here

The Marrow Thieves
Written by Cherie Dimaline
DCB (Cormorant)
978-1-77086-486-3
231 pp.
Ages 14+
2017
Reviewed here

Moon at Nine
Written by Deborah Ellis
Pajama Press
978-1927485576
224 pp.
Ages 14+
2014
Reviewed here

My Book of Life by Angel
Written by Martine Leavitt
Groundwood Books
978-1-55498-117-5
246 pp.
Ages 14+
2012
Reviewed here

Optimists Die First

Written by Susin Nielsen

Tundra Books

978-1-77049-782-5

240 pp.

Ages 12+

2017

Reviewed here

The Rule of Three
Written by Eric Walters
Razorbill
978-0-670-06705-3
405 pp.
Ages 12-18
2014
Reviewed here

Sadia
Written by Colleen Nelson
Dundurn
978-1-45974-029-7
240 pp.
Ages 12+
2018
Reviewed here

Sadie
Written by Courtney Summers
Wednesday Books
978-1-250-10571-4
308 pp.
Ages 14+
2018
Reviewed here

The Scorpion Rules (Prisoners of Peace)
Written by Erin Bow
Margaret K. McElderry Books (Simon & Schuster)
978-1-48144-271-8
384 pp.
Ages 14+
2015

Skim
Written by Mariko Tamaki
Illustrated by Jillian Tamaki
Groundwood Books
978-0888997531
144 pp.
Ages 14+
2002

Swimming in the Monsoon Sea
Written by Shyam Selvadurai
Tundra Books
978-0-88776-735-4
274 pp.
Ages 16+
2005

This Place: 150 Years Retold
Written by Katherena Vermette, Sonny Assu, Jen Storm, David A. Robertson, Rachel and Sean Qitsualik-Tinsley, Kateri Akiwenzie-Damm, Richard Van Camp, Brandon Mitchell, Niigaanwewidam James Sinclair, Chelsea Vowel
Illustrated by Scott B. Henderson, Kyle Charles, Natasha Donovan, GMB Chomichuk, Ryan Howe, Jen Storm, Tara Audibert, Andrew Lodwick
Colour by Donovan Yaciuk, Scott A. Ford, Natasha Donovan, GMB Chomichuk, Andrew Lodwick
HighWater Press
978-1-555379-758-6
274 pp.
Ages 13+
2019
Reviewed here

The Unlikely Hero of Room 13B
Written by Teresa Toten
Doubleday Canada
978-0-385678346
255 pp.
Ages 14+
2013
Reviewed here

We Contain Multitudes
Written by Sarah Henstra
Penguin Teen
978-0-735264212
384 pp.
Ages 14+
2019
Reviewed here

What We Hide
Written by Marthe Jocelyn
Tundra Books
978-1-77049-642-2
275 pp.
Ages 14+
2014
Reviewed here

When Everything Feels Like the Movies
Written by Raziel Reid
Arsenal Pulp Press
978-1-55152-574-7
160 pp.
Ages 14+
2014

Wondrous Strange
Written by Lesley Livingston
HarperCollins
978-1-55468-273-7
327 pp.
Ages 12+
2008
Reviewed here