Mister Got To Go, Where Are You?

Written by Lois Simmie

Illustrated by Cynthia Nugent

Red Deer Press

978-0-88995-490-8

32 pp.

Ages 4+

June 2014

Mister Got To Go, resident feline of the Sylvia Hotel in Vancouver and star of Mister Got To Go: The Cat That Wouldn't Leave (2003) and Mister Got To Go and Arnie (2012), is back in his newest story, Mister Got To Go, Where Are You? from Lois Simmie and Cynthia Nugent.  This time, Got To Go is missing.

After nine years enjoying life at the Sylvia Hotel, Got To Go truly appreciates all the little perks, so it's hard to believe that Got To Go would just leave.  While Mister Foster, the hotel manager, has never thought the cat appropriate for the hotel, hence his name, Mister Got To Go's absence is of great concern to everyone at the hotel, including Mister Foster.

Got to Go hadn't planned to leave when he jumps into the leaves in the back of a gardening truck.  But when he jumps off, he doesn't know how to get home.  He makes a quick friend in Jim, a homeless man who shares his fish and chips and cardboard box in the park with Got To Go.  However, after three days, homesickness sets in. But how is he going to get home when he can't even smell the sea?  Poor Got To Go endures hardship upon hardship as he looks for any signs of home.  He gets wet in the rain, cuts his paw on something sharp, is chased by a dog, fights with another cat,  and goes hungry. But when he finally smells the sea again, Got To Go knows the direction he has got to go.

It's delightful to see Mister Got To Go again and in a story in which he is able to find a happy ending, i.e., his home at the Sylvia Hotel.  Lois Simmie's text doesn't anthropomorphize this special cat but rather gives words to the thoughts he must have when lost.  His demeanour is one of calm and quiet determination, coupled with resolve that he will get home, and it's this that will have little ones cheering for him.  Cynthia Nugent gets him right every time, whether he is curious, wet, scared or content. He may not do the big goofy grins of a Cheshire Cat but he is everyone's cat, the cats we love, worry over, spoil, and treat like family.  Maybe that's why we love Mister Got To Go: his story is the happy ending we wish for all the homeless, feline and otherwise.  As much as some may scoff at their contributions to our lives, they are all worthy of our care.  Lois Simmie and Cynthia Nugent get that right in Mister Got To Go, Where Are You?

Just as an aside, the endpapers of the book show Got To Go's extensive travels both from the hotel (front endpaper, below) and back to the hotel (back endpaper) and are a delightful means to track his journey.  Although the maps are reader-friendly, I suspect those who have been to Vancouver and specifically to the Sylvia Hotel will be particularly enamoured.

Red River Stallion: Guest Review 2

by Troon Harrison

Bloomsbury

978-1599908458

304 pp.

Ages 10-14

2013

Dear Troon Harrison,

    First of all, I just wanted to say that your book was awesome! I really enjoyed it and couldn’t put it down. It held my attention throughout the whole book, and that’s saying something, because I like novels that are exciting, and your’s fit the bill! I am an extremely soft-hearted person, and I felt so bad for Amelia and her beloved family, especially when the letter from Amelia’s father was hidden, and the family had thought that he had abandoned them.
    Throughout the book, I was able to connect to many of Amelia and Charlotte’s experiences. I can remember as a younger girl being so captivated of a gorgeous horse, and not being able to look away, just like Amelia when she saw Foxfire. I also can remember being so desperate to have a guide that I would look in the rarest spots, just as Amelia looked for her pawaken. By the end of the book, I can infer that Amelia realized that she didn’t need a pawaken, and that she was strong enough to face her own problems.
    Out of ten, I would rate your book a 9 because it was very exciting and I wanted the book to go on and on forever. One slight area that was not as enjoyable for me was how I had to reread some sections over and over before they made sense. Overall though, I loved your book and I beg you to write another one about Amelia and Charlotte’s adventures by the Red River with their beloved father and Foxfire.

Sincerely,

Grace D
Age 12

Red River Stallion: Guest Review 1

by Troon Harrison

Bloomsbury

978-1599908458

304 pp.

Ages 10-14

2013

Red River Stallion is a moving, deep story that perfectly portrays the struggle to find one's identity and destiny.  The author was able to capture how difficult it is to find one's purpose and future in the world, using the life of Amelia Otterchild, and kept me engaged throughout the entire read.

Red River Stallion is centered around a young Cree girl named Amelia, who is alone to look after her younger sister since the death of her mother and the disappearance of her father.  She is able to get a glimpse of happiness when she befriends a beautiful stallion the she presumes to be her soul guardian, but the only way for Amelia to remain with him is to travel with her sister to the Red River Valley, the last known location of her father.  As she journeys, frightened and hopeful, Amelia is faced with challenges of all kinds, from raging storms to sickening grief.  But by making new friends and accepting truths of the past, Amelia perseveres to continue her search for her father, comforted by the love of her family and close companions.

What was most enjoyable about Red River Stallion was the character depth.  Amelia's outside appearance showed courage, curiosity and a deep passion for horses.  But the inner conflict she felt was also very powerful, a battle between grief from the past and hope for the future.  I thoroughly enjoyed reading about all of these feelings inside of her, and seeing the way she changed as the good began to overpower the bad.

I also enjoyed the culture that was woven into the Red River Stallion story.  Through reading about Amelia and her adventures, I discovered many interesting truths of First Nations history that I had not been aware of before reading.  Their beliefs, their habits, and their very lives were expertly scattered throughout the story, and kept me fascinated cover to cover.

All in all, Red River Stallion was an expertly written, wonderfully detailed story that kept my interest through every chapter.  It was bursting with culture, inner conflict and themes of hope, renewal and friendship.  I can confidently rate it with nine stars out of ten, and would certainly recommend it to any reader.

Niki, Age 12

Work: An Occupational ABC

by Kellen Hatanaka

Groundwood Books

978-1-55498-409-1 (hc)

40 pp.

Ages 3-7

For release August, 2014

(My apologies to Kellen Hatanaka and Groundwood for the inability of my scanner to accurately reproduce the colours in the illustrations of the book.  Discrepancies are solely my own. So, readers, you'll need to get your hands on the actual book to fully enjoy the breadth and contrast of colours within.)

I'm sure a lot of readers will initially react to an ABC book with, "Not another ABC book!" and maybe some publishers react that way as well.  But I'm glad Groundwood Books didn't and I know that youngCanLit readers won't once they open the bold and inviting Work: An Occupational ABC from artist, now author-illustrator, Kellen Hatanaka.

As in all picture books, the text must work well with the illustrations as a cohesive entity, not just a bunch of words with a bunch of pictures in a 32-page format. (Sadly, there are books like that published daily.) Kellen Hatanaka has effortlessly partnered the names of a variety of occupations, both traditional and exotic, with his illustrations, providing graphic details of each occupation embracing the first letter of that occupation.  For example, the P for Postal Worker page (see above right) includes the postal worker carrying her stamped and string-tied letter P as a heavy parcel, with a rural mailbox and shrubbery and flowers scattered around. The emphasis is on: 1) the letter and 2) its association with the worker and 3) the name of the job. Here children will see 1) the letter P, 2) marked as a mailing and carried by 3) the postal worker.  For the very youngest, that's all that is needed. For children in Kindergarten and older, the details become a cache of hidden information.  And kids will always see these sooner than most adult readers, so let them discover and discuss and persuade you of their meaning.

The collection of occupations is broad and fascinating, undoubtedly leading to much discussion.  From the aviator, to the horticulturalist and the detective and oceanographer, and finally to the xenologist, yogi and zookeeper, readers will be intrigued by the possible careers out there. And look for Kellen Hatanaka's enigmatic details of each occupation in single sentence "Want Ads" at the conclusion of the book.  

But, as Kellen Hatanaka is first and foremost an artist and designer, I'd like to attempt (poorly, I'm sure) to describe the perfection of his graphics in Work: An Occupational ABC.  By using silk screen printing for the illustrations, Kellen Hatanaka has created unassuming images that ensure clarity, allowing young readers to identify elements easily.  From stylized flowers and trees, and faces lacking details, to a German shepherd  and a walrus, everything is identifiable and still encouraging of inquiry.  Moreover, the palette of rose, salmon, sea green, olive, with the occasional black and blues, feels like a colour embrace, completely non-threatening and absolutely calming.

Work: An Occupational ABC is both an informative and evocative ABC book, sure to lead children to consider new careers, but it is also a book of art that should be appreciated regularly. Hopefully the future will bring Kellen Hatanaka's artwork to more youngCanLit so that I may add him to our already impressive collection of youngCanLit's Who's Who of Illustrators. He will surely deserve a place there.

Glory (The Dust Chronicles, Book Three)

by Maureen McGowan

Skyscape

978-1477817261

312 pp.

Ages 13+

June 2014

Please read this review only if you've already read Deviants and Compliance, Books One and Two respectively, in Maureen McGowan's The Dust Chronicles.  I'd hate for you to miss out on the twists and turns of the plot that have led the way to Glory.

Glory Solis has experienced quite a trajectory from her dismal life in Haven hiding her brother Drake's deviance as well as her own, and believing that their father Hector had murdered their mother before he was expunged to outside Haven, ostensibly to attempt to survive attacks by Shredders.

Glory, her best friend Jayma and Glory's former dating partner Cal have now joined Drake and Hector in Concord, having escaped the clutches of the evil Mrs. Kalin, who uses mind control to manipulate the masses.  But, although Burn, the young Freedom Army (FA) fighter with whom Glory is romantically entangled, has helped them escape, his apprehension about hurting her when his deviance arises is pulling them apart.

A well-orchestrated Shredder attack on Concord, when Rolph and the FA are away, has Glory suspecting Mrs. Kalin, even more so when she taps into the mind of a female Shredder.  This Shredder, who Glory hides away in a concealed cellar to limit her access to Dust, had been a Haven employee before entering Hospital, Mrs. Kalin's domain, and then sent out to

"Find the girl.  Bring the girl.  The President needs the girl." (pg. 77)

While the FA works at forming treaties with another Outside community before launching its ultimate attack on Haven, Glory's focus is on finding her missing father; resolving her attractions to both Burn and Cal; helping the female Shredder, Caroline, get off the Dust; and easing Burn's conviction that he is a monster, having been abandoned by his family for this reason. Add the hostility of the revenge-seeking Zina, a long-lost Shredder relative, Jayma's newly-found Deviance (or gift), and the death of a significant character, and Maureen McGowan has brilliantly composed a spectacular conclusion to The Dust Chronicles. The writing is tight, the subplots intricate, and the resolution gratifying.

But, beyond the story, I think the success of Glory and the entire series is the flawed nature of the characters.  Regardless of any deviances, they are imperfect, making both poor and better choices; conflicted by what they see or hear and what they feel; readily jumping to conclusions, often incorrectly; and continuing to try to resolve situations well. And they don't know in whom to place their trust. Trust is a very fragile commodity.

In a dystopian world in which time is measured relative to the coming of the Dust–BTD represents "before the Dust"–perspective and perceptions are flawed, based on limited communications and movement, as well as wholesale propaganda about the Dust and the ensuing social hierarchy.  It's scary to see how easily a dystopian world arises after a cataclysmic event.  (This is especially frightening when I consider the current climatic evidence of global warming.)  And, even though there are supernatural elements that wouldn't correspond to anything in our world, it is reassuring to know that there are those  who care about the welfare of others, first and foremost, and work towards ameliorating prejudices, addictions, and hierarchies that hide greed and aggression.  The people of Haven, Concord, Houston, and Fort Huron are too realistic to be discounted but Maureen McGowan presents both possibilities (e.g., mind control) and impossibilities (e.g., displaying protective scales) to disquiet and reassure the reader.  Couple that with an ingenious plot and a little romance, and that's a hefty accomplishment.  

New covers for the entire Dust Chronicles

Maureen McGowan will be reading at this year's Eden Mills Writers' Festival. Come out on September 14, 2014 to meet Maureen McGowan and other youngCanLit authors.  It's always a great time!

Jackpot: A Swindle Mystery

by Gordon Korman

Scholastic Press

978-0-545-56146-4

200 pp.

Ages 8-13

January 2014

Jackpot is Book 6 in Gordon Korman's Swindle series which began with Swindle (2009), Zoobreak (2010), Framed (2011), Showoff (2012) and Hideout (2013), all sporting covers with the quintessential Luthor.  And if you don't know who Luthor is, I recommend you read Books 1 through 5 first.

Darren Vader is a career bully (for a kid in middle grade), showing up in each of the previous Swindle books and causing untold grief to Griffin Bing and his friends Ben, Pitch, Logan, Melissa and Savannah. But things take a turn when Darren's mother, a lawyer, begins helping Griffin's father apply for a patent for his invention, the SweetPick.  When Darren gets up to more mischief, Griffin takes the blame for it, all to prevent Mrs. Vader from getting off track and Griffin's dad from becoming more anxious.

Feeling the need for getting even, Griffin enlists the help of his friends to prank the money-hungry bully with a news story about a missing lottery ticket (true) being lost in the garbage of their town (not true).  In an unforeseen twist, garbage hunters flock to Cedarville in search of that lottery ticket and wreak havoc, and Griffin and friends are given community service for their mischief and Darren warps himself into the role of the victim.

Griffin's moniker goes from "The Man With The Plan" to bully, even raising the ire of new student Victor Phoenix who has an answer for everything and becomes the new Man With The Plan.  No matter how Griffin tries to resurrect his friendships and reputation, he ends up looking more and more like a bully, just as Doberman Luthor does when around Victor's cat Penelope who is temporarily housed at Luthor's house.  Not surprising that Griffin and Luthor find themselves teaming up to try and make things right, even if it does include Darren Vader and that lottery ticket again.

Gordon Korman has long been successful at getting children reading, from his adventure (Dive, Everest, and Island), thriller (On the Run and Kidnapped) and humour (Macdonald Hall) series. In the Swindle series, the emphasis is on the farcical nature of friendships and perspective and Jackpot is no exception.  From the kids' views on themselves and others,

"No offense, Griffin, but stuff a sock in it," muttered Logan.  "I ought to have my head examined for following you and your cockamamie plans.  It's only a short step from community service to community theatre.  My talent belongs to the world, not some podunk playhouse." (pg. 32)

to  the fantastic imagery

The interior made the chaos of the porch seem neat.  Griffin had never been to the rain forest, but he'd always imagined it looking like this.  Long macramé planters and hangings dangled so low from the ceiling, and random stuff was piled so high on tabletops, that barely any light penetrated from the windows. (pg. 108)

the text oozes with atmosphere of levity and colour.  Coupled with the brisk dialogue and plotting, Jackpot is a fun and accessible read for young people, another example of Gordon Korman's knack for enticing new readers.

 • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 

I see Unleashed, Book 7, is set for release in January, 2015 so, if you haven't already, it's best to get caught up on your Swindle reading now!

The Blackwell Pages: Loki's Wolves (Book 1), Odin's Ravens (Book 2)

Twinning ancient mythology with a contemporary novel has become more popular in the last few years, but doing it well is a craft, and I can only say that there are few authors whose knowledge and writing can flawlessly weave time periods together.  However, we do have several authors whose take on the myths are always far greater than any I have ever read before.  One is Lesley Livingston, whose two young adult series, Wondrous Strange and Starling, are richer in characters and mythological detail than anything I have ever read. And now Canadian author Kelley Armstrong and American YA author Melissa Marr have collaborated to bring a similar distinction to a middle-grade series called The Blackwell Pages.

Loki's Wolves

by K. L. Armstrong and M. A. Marr

Little Brown and Company

978-0-316-20496-5

364 pp.

Ages 10-14

2013

Odin's Ravens

by K. L. Armstrong and  M. A. Marr

Little Brown and Company

978-0-316-20498-9

352 pp.

Ages 10-14 

May, 2014







In Blackwell, South Dakota, Matt Thorsen isn't just the son of the sheriff and the grandson of the mayor. He, and all the Thorsens, are the descendants of the Norse god, Thor. And the amulet of Thor's Hammer that he wears on a silver pendant around his neck is a key link to that heritage.  But if the heat of his amulet and the power Matt unleashes from Thor's Hammer against trouble-maker Fen Brekke, a Loki descendant, when the kid and his cousin Laurie attempt to steal the shield off the Viking longship in town aren't enough of an indication that something is up, then hearing his grandfather proclaim Matt as the closest embodiment of Thor solidifies that concern for the thirteen-year-old.  How could he be the champion who would fight the Midgard Serpent and save the world from Ragnarök? Sadly, eavesdropping on his grandfather and the other Elders, Matt learns that his grandfather expects him, instead, to be defeated and to fail to stop Ragnarök.

In Loki's Wolves, with advice from some unlikely sources and using knowledge of the Norse myths, Matt tries to assemble the band of the living embodiments of other Norse Gods, starting with Fen and Laurie, Loki's descendants, and retrieve key tools such as Mjölnir, Thor's Hammer, and the shield, to ultimately fight the Serpent. Battling the Raiders, the shape-shifting wulfenkind, outwitting and escaping from a variety of trolls, eluding the police who've tagged Matt as a runaway, convincing descendants of their roles, and just trying to survive have all become the kids' mandates.  Oh, and learning whom to trust.

In Odin's Ravens, Matt, Fen and Laurie continue to fight monsters, but inside as well as outside of the underworld of Hel, sure that if they can rescue Baldwin, then everything will change and Ragnarök cannot happen. Unfortunately, nothing is ever as simple as it would seem.  With the involvement of Helen, ruler of Hel and aunt to Laurie and Fen, as well as the Valkyries, some goats, lots of zombie-like Vikings and all types of animals, both mythological and real, more and more layers of action and humour get added to the story.  But as the title indicates, it is Odin, or rather his champion Owen, and his acrobatic Beserkers who almost steal the story.  Not only is Owen and his group the saviours in key struggles, the all-seeing Owen knows much more than he can say, complicating already difficult relationships.

Whew! I feel like I've told you too much but perhaps not enough.  It's so hard with books such as Loki's Wolves and Odin's Ravens which have subplots hidden in other subplots, and they are all important to the main plot of Matt trying to stop the end of the world. I can tell you that the characters are so magnificent, well-developed and complicated that you'll go back and forth trying to decide for whom you'll cheer or you hope gets thwacked by a troll.  And the humour!  If you've read CanLit for LittleCanadians over the years, you'll know that humour, and great writing, trump all else for me.  In Loki's Wolves and Odin's Ravens, I suspect the kids often use humour to hide their fears and tension.

"I'll do what you tell me, because while saving the world and all would be great, I'm not keen on the dying part, either.  I'd like to live long enough to get out of middle school." (Loki's Wolves, pg. 91)

And this, Matt realized, was what their world had come to. A week ago, his biggest worry was failing his science fair project. Now he was taking comfort in the thought that he faced only one fifty-foot-tall, fire-breathing giant. (Odin's Ravens, pg. 1-2) 

The Blackwell Pages is not your typical myth-based novel series. Thank goodness.  It's better.