When You Get the Chance

Written by Tom Ryan and Robin Stevenson
Running Press Teens
978-0-7624-9500-9
272 pp.
Ages 12+
May 2021

 

(n.b. This review was originally posted in May 2020 but because the release was delayed until this month, I have reposted it here to ensure everyone knows about it.)

 

Teens Talia and Mark may think that their destiny is to attend Toronto Pride when they and their families visit Ontario for a funeral but, though they get there, their stories in When You Get the Chance are all about the journey.

When Talia and her dad Gary come from Victoria and meet up with his sister Janet and two kids, Mark and 10-year-old Paige, who live in Halifax, the atmosphere is cool. Though Gary and Janet are attending their father's funeral and trying to help their mother through the loss, their long-term estrangement causes great friction, especially about the family cottage in Muskoka which Gary thinks should be sold and Janet hopes to visit with her kids. Grandma insists they all go up there and spend a week together before a decision is made.

But, when Grandma has a fall and the adults rush back to Toronto, leaving the kids to fend for themselves–grant you, Talia and Mark are in their late teens–the summer becomes a whole lot more interesting. Paige is determined to discover what lead to her mom's estrangement from her brother so, while she and Talia clean and sort, she speculates and puts clues together. Mark, on the other hand, is smitten with local boy Darren who has come around to help fix a 1970 Ford Mustang discovered in a shed. Mark, unfortunately, is all about Mark and, after he learns what Darren is really like, he decides to head to Toronto for Pride. Talia, whose partner Erin had recently moved to Toronto, is desperate to see them (Erin is non-binary and uses they/them/their pronouns), insists Mark take his cousin and, of course, Paige must come along too.

However, when the old Mustang breaks down, their trip looks like it's ended early. But, after meeting diner owner Shirley Jr. and her mechanic partner Babs who offer to take the kids to Toronto themselves, it's a new journey for Mark and Talia in resolving past relationships, meeting new people, experiencing their first Toronto Pride, and discovering who they are and what they need.

For anyone who doesn't know where they fit in, When You Get the Chance provides the promise that somewhere there is such a place for all. While Mark is confident in being out as gay, Talia has come from a small community where she and partner Erin depended on each other for support. But when Erin leaves for the big city and finds a new community, Talia has to balance what she needed then with what she wants now. Fortunately, with much soul-searching and some heartbreak, Talia finds her way.

These are my people, this is my community. I may not know how I identify or whatever, but I'm pretty sure that whatever I am, there's a place for me under this great big queer rainbow. (pg. 177)

Writers Tom Ryan and Robin Stevenson have given us a road trip story with a twist in When You Get the Chance. By writing in the alternate voices of Mark and Talia who are from different coasts and have different experiences with their sexuality, Tom Ryan and Robin Stevenson present distinct and valid perspectives on being gay or queer or however a young person may identify. By including a myriad of communities from young and old, to gay, straight, non-binary and even polyamorous, they have demonstrated that everyone belongs and sometimes all it takes is one chance and a trip in a vintage yellow Mustang to find one's self, one's voice and community.

The Sun Will Come Out

Written by Joanne Levy

Orca Book Publishers

978-1-4598-2587-1

281 pp.

Ages 9-12

April 2021

If the title of Joanne Levy's newest middle grade novel has you singing the song "Tomorrow" from the musical Annie, then you know what 11-year-old Bea Gellman is wishing for when she has to attend her first summer sleepover camp without her best friend Frankie. All Bea's plans for a fabulous summer at Camp Shalom go out the window when Frankie is accepted to attend an expensive horse camp. Bea knows it won't be the same, even if her crush, Frankie's 14-year-old brother Jeremy, will be there as a counselor-in-training. But all Bea's dad can tell her is to look for the silver lining. 

Very quickly Bea makes a friend of Regan, a girl from Ireland, whose grandparents live locally and wish her to meet some Jewish friends. But also in Cabin 17 are mean girls Carly and Samantha who make Bea the butt of their jokes after she breaks out in hives. And with every new embarrassment, whether it's mistaking the mess tent for the arts and crafts area, seeing Jeremy, or being pushed into him for a kiss, Bea is reduced to hives that send her to the infirmary. There she meets Harry, the thirteen-year-old son of the camp directors, who helps out rather than participating in camp activities because of the meanness of some campers about his appearance. Because Harry has progeria, a rare genetic disorder that is characterized by a number of unusual physical traits including small stature, a large head and no hair, he is happiest helping out in the infirmary and staying behind the scenes.

 

Since Harry is delighted to have some company his own age and Bea appreciates being able to avoid her cabin, especially after learning that Regan and Jeremy were seen kissing after a rehearsal for the camp musical of Annie, the two young people become fast friends, bonding over video games and movies including that of the very musical set to be performed. But while they share a need to cocoon in the comfort of their new friendship, they realize that they're both running away from things that scare them. Harry recognizes that courage may require doing something that is frightening, but...

...even if something doesn't turn out the way you hope, that's not failing. Not trying at all because you're scared is failing. (pg. 235)

At Camp Shalom, there are days of rain and sun, friendships and bullies, and times of angst and glory, and Joanne Levy takes us there for every moment. Of course it has everything that kids experience through the school year, when they are faced with new challenges and people, learning to get by and get along and rise above. There's still much laughter and tears, camaraderie and struggles, but with Camp Shalom as the setting for Bea's newest chapter, Joanne Levy introduces a distinct world of Shabbat services, hamotsi, and ometz lev. But whether they can speak Hebrew or are looking forward to their bat mitzvahs or just figuring out friendships, Joanne Levy has created characters as real as those who may be currently struggling with virtual schools and missing their friends and looking for more.

 

The sun will come out tomorrow, or perhaps the day after, but Joanne Levy helps us see that, with a little humour, a dab of courage and the recognition of a silver lining to most things, almost anything can be endured and even transformative. Most of all, there will be notable moments in our lives when new people come into them, perhaps for only a short time, to offer the kind of friendships that teach us more about ourselves.

We Dream Medicine Dreams

Written and illustrated by Lisa Boivin

HighWater Press

978-1-553799870

48 pp.

Ages 5-10

April, 2021

The cover tells you this is going to be a powerful book. From its vibrant colours and emotional depiction of adult and child resting and dreaming to the natural landscape of bear, vegetation and stars, the book cover of We Dream Medicine Dreams invites us into a different world.

From We Dream Medicine Dreams by Lisa Boivin

Lisa Boivin, a member of the Deninu K’ue First Nation, recalls her memories of napping with her grandfather and his teaching her of the importance of medicine dreams.

There is medicine in our dreams. This medicine teaches us to be skillful in the world and teaches us how to face the challenges in our lives. These skills are learned from animals.

With each animal dream comes a lesson. Bear teaches about listening and finding safety, finding food and being alone.

He is cradled by his love of the land when he sleeps, and he is encouraged by the land as he learns how to live a good life.

Bear teaches us that, though there will be times in our lives when we are alone, we have learned well from family and carry their love which will help us thrive.

 

There's also Hawk who teaches us to open ourselves to new good things, and Caribou who teaches us about generosity and respectfulness. Her favourite lesson from her grandfather is about Wolf who learns from his elders how to hunt and accepts failures as a part of learning.

From We Dream Medicine Dreams by Lisa Boivin

But her grandfather is now ill and in a coma, and his death is imminent. At the hospital, she crawls onto the bed to have one last nap with him to "dream a medicine dream for us."

From We Dream Medicine Dreams by Lisa Boivin

When her grandfather has passed, she takes his teachings to heart. Like Bear, she knows she has been taught well that the world loves her as he did and that he would want her to be happy. Hawk reminds her that she has received many gifts from her Grampa, and that she must be open to new ones. Like Caribou, she will be respectful of the gifts given to her and the lessons learned.  Finally from Wolf, she learns humility and to keep trying.

From We Dream Medicine Dreams by Lisa Boivin

Her grandfather, whose own mother had called him Little Wolf, now visits his grandchild in her dreams as a dark wolf to teach her to be happy with the world around her. 

 

Wow.

 

We Dream Medicine Dreams is the whole package. Its story about the teachings that come from animal dreams blended with Lisa Boivin's impactful and vibrant digital art tells and shows and invites the reader to experience and learn. These lessons about being one's best self, of living as part of the world and with others are profound. Conveyed through a tender and meaningful inter-generational relationship, the message that animal dreams can heal with their teachings is not lost on the reader, as they were not on the granddaughter in We Dream Medicine Dreams. Her grandfather's words are touching in their sincerity and intent, demonstrating the compassion and wisdom needed to live life well.

Lisa Boivin's words are stirringly meaningful, and her illustrations are vivid and textured, so skillfully rendered digitally that I was initially convinced it was cut-paper art. It isn't. It's just so multilayered in colour and shape that it gives the impression of depth, energy and even daring.

From Lisa Boivin's dedication that begins with

"This book is a sacred ceremony..."

I know that this book honours the teaching of her fathers, grandfather and other, who shared with her Indigenous lessons of animal dreams. In creating this picture book, not only has she honoured them and their bonds, Lisa Boivin has shared restorative lessons for living with challenges including loss, lessons we've always needed, but especially now.

Treaty Words: For As Long As the Rivers Flow

Written by Aimée Craft

Illustrated by Luke Swinson

Annick Press

978-1-77321-496-2

60 pp.

Ages 10+

March 2021

At a size of 17 cm x 12 cm (6.75" x 4.75"), Treaty Words: For As Long As the Rivers Flow is a small book. But its small size belies the depth of lesson and sharing about relationships with the land and water that Indigenous Peoples have and what a treaty really means.

From Treaty Words: For As Long As the Rivers Flow by Aimée Craft, illus. by Luke Swinson

A girl and her Mishomis (grandfather) sit by the kitchi sipi (great river), where he'd lived all his life, on the land, in the bush and on the river. Though she'd grown up in the city, she has always considered the land home. This is where he'd taught her to listen to the land and remind her of her responsibilities to it and the water and to their stories.

From Treaty Words: For As Long As the Rivers Flow by Aimée Craft, illus. by Luke Swinson

He tells her of the original treaty, with their grandfather sun and grandmother moon working with mother, the earth, to create life. The agreement to work together, known as aagooiidiwim for the Anishinaabe, is the basis for collaborations with all nations, whether deer, human or other, to ensure respect and find solutions to always honour the treaty.

From Treaty Words: For As Long As the Rivers Flow by Aimée Craft, illus. by Luke Swinson

We were given the ability to learn from our relatives on this earth about their treaty relationships and through what we call natural law, or earth's law. (pg. 50)

As I read Aimée Craft's words, I wanted to make sure that I fully respected their profound meaning, evocative of culture and history, and ever enduring. An Anishinaabe-Métis lawyer and professor from Treaty 1 in Manitoba, Aimée Craft crafts her words from a place of understanding, both of people and place and time, taking the lessons from her elders and seeing their place in making treaties then and now. The magnitude of treaty words is never in question.

This is why the Treaty is for as long as the sun shines, the grass grows, and the river flows. (pg. 23)

The reverence of Treaty Words: For As Long As Rivers Flow comes through in Aimée Craft's words, resonant and weighty, steadfast and dynamic. Luke Swinson, an Anishinaabe illustrator who is a member of the Mississaugas of Scugog Island First Nation, could have attempted to match that weightiness with complex and detailed artwork but he chose better. His lines create the necessary movement, from and to place and time, to carry the same messages. Digitally created to reflect and honour the natural environment of water, land and sky, Luke Swinson takes us to the place in which treaties were and are made and demand awe and deference. 

Don't let the small size of Treaty Words: For As Long As the Rivers Flow mislead you into believing this book is anything but very, very big and important. Its lessons that relationships are the basis for making treaties are everything and should help us all understand how to ensure those relationships are sound, fair and lasting.

Spark

Written and illustrated by Ani Castillo

Megan Tinsley Books (Little, Brown and Company)

978-0-316-42465-3

40 pp.

Ages 4-8

March 2021

Ani Castillo charmed me and other readers with Ping (2019), her picture book about an amorphous being who had a message about communication and connecting with others. In Spark, a different entity akin to a child in a snowsuit delights in the spark that is life.

The story begins with a question.

What is this magical thing...

to be alive?

It's a big question. What does it mean? From the coming together of individuals who fall in love is created their little bundle of blue who revels in all that they can do: touch, smell, tell, cry, sleep, dance, love, give, share, make...There is so much for which to be thankful. 

From Spark by Ani Castillo

But more than the now is the anticipation of what can still be, in places to be explored, in lives to be touched and in letting the spark shine. And even with cold, rain and darkness, the gift of that spark of life endures. 

From Spark by Ani Castillo

Though I could see Spark being a great book for very young children to understand the concept of life–getting life, living life, and appreciating life–I think that it's really about the gratitude we should have for the lives we have. Not always perfect, sometimes totally disheartening, and often messy, but still there is a spark that persists as long as we're alive. And the spark isn't there because you have the most expensive toys or are the most famous or the wealthiest. It's there by virtue of the life spark within. Ani Castillo shows us that simplicity of idea in her text and her art. There are no superfluous words to cloud the message. There is just life lived in its most basic forms. Similarly Ani Castillo's art of pencil and watercolours extends this message of modesty and openness. We are all these beings, both shapeless and distinct, human and not, but all with life that is recognizable. 

As long as there is the spark of life, there is something worthwhile to hold onto and for which to be grateful.

From Spark by Ani Castillo

The Case of the Burgled Bundle (A Mighty Muskrats Mystery, Book 3)

Written by Michael Hutchinson

Second Story Press

978-1-77260-166-4

208 pp.

Ages 9-12

April 2021

The four cousins from the Windy Lake First Nations, who were first introduced in The Case of Windy Lake which was Michael Hutchinson's award-winning entry in Second Story Press's 2018 Indigenous Writing Contest, are back to solve a mystery at the National Assembly of Cree Peoples.

The week-long event begins with the handover ceremony during which the kids' grandfather, the head of the Windy Lake Elders Committee, receives the pipe from the Elder from last year's host, Butterfly Narrows. But this auspicious event does not go to plan when the ceremony is held under cover of Butterfly Narrows's teepee, excluding the majority of event participants, and Grandpa makes a joke that annoys their Elder Eugene Lone Man. 

The lands of Butterfly Narrows have taught them to hold tightly to what they have, to protect what they haven't yet lost. (pg. 19)

Grandpa is ever respectful and circumspect about this slight and invites Elder Leon Shining Deer and Mrs. Shining Deer a.k.a Aunt Dee as Bundle Holders to share the bundle for Treaty 12 and the stories that are linked with it in hopes of easing tensions. Following the protocols associated with the bundle, Elder Leon conducts a welcoming ceremony to which all are welcome. But, though the bundle is guarded all night long in the Butterfly Narrows teepee, it disappears. Worried that his own misstep of toppling the Elders' pipes accidentally during the meal may have damaged the ceremony, Otter and his three cousins, Chickadee and brothers Atim and Samuel, help their Uncle Levi of the RCMP to investigate.

Though The Case of the Burgled Bundle is a great middle-grade mystery with a host of suspects and red herrings to confuse the young investigators, it's the lessons about treaties, treaty bundles, ceremony and customs that gives the story its unique perspective and opportunities for learning. Michael Hutchinson, a member of the Misipawistik Cree Nation, has not just told a story about a stolen item. He has taken us to an assembly of Cree Nations, each different in their histories, their needs and their expectations.

"Grandpa says, you are the land you live on. And the Cree people are spread across some pretty different landscapes." (pg. 8)

There is an appreciation for the differences between First Nations and the treaties they made (Treaty 12 is a fictional treaty), including how they were made and the responsibilities involved with them. Though the components of the bundle are never revealed in detail, its presentation provides the memories of its creation and the importance of guarding it and the stories for all time. With that and a culprit not easily deduced by the reader–the Mighty Muskrats are far more savvy than this reader–The Case of the Burgled Bundle has given us a whodunit rich in relevant Indigenous lessons of history, culture and people.

• • • • • • •

 

The Mighty Muskrats Mystery Series

The Case of Windy Lake (2019)

The Case of the Missing Auntie (2020)

The Case of the Burgled Bundle (2021)

The Sorry Life of Timothy Shmoe

Written by Stephanie Simpson McLellan

Illustrated by Zoe Si

Owlkids Books

978-1-77147-393-4

32 pp.

Ages 4-8

April 2021 

 

Poor Timothy Shmoe.  He's a kid who never intends to do wrong or misbehave. In fact, according to the myriad of apologies he has to write, he always has a reason behind whatever incident has landed him in hot water again. Unfortunately, things just keep happening. (Funny, huh?)

From The Sorry Life of Timothy Shmoe by Stephanie Simpson McLellan, illus. by Zoe Si

Timothy Shmoe was not a bad kid...

But sometimes he did bad things.

From calling his father a bad name to expressing his dislike for a gift, playing hockey inside or touching other people's things, Timothy is a kid who just does things and doesn't think about the consequences. In other words, he's like many kids.

From The Sorry Life of Timothy Shmoe by Stephanie Simpson McLellan, illus. by Zoe Si

For each sorry event, Timothy is required to write a letter of apology. He often starts them with "I'm sorry that..." before going on to explain why what happened has happened. He was just trying to be honest or wanting to cool his mother down on a hot day or he woke up on the wrong side of the bed or Fluffy scratched him or...or...or. There's always something with Timothy that explains away his behaviour, or so he thinks.

From The Sorry Life of Timothy Shmoe by Stephanie Simpson McLellan, illus. by Zoe Si

But all those little episodes become a colossal comedy of errors when Timothy attends his sister's dance recital and he and his marbles end up creating an act of their own.

From The Sorry Life of Timothy Shmoe by Stephanie Simpson McLellan, illus. by Zoe Si

Parents and teachers know that impulse control in children may develop earlier (ages 3-4) but may take years to become entrenched, and Timothy is just learning to see that his actions have consequences. Like many parents, his are frazzled, trying to find the means to teach Timothy the behaviours that are less destructive or hurtful and the letter-writing may be a good start. Though he's obviously a reluctant apology writer, Timothy starts to accept that his actions are impacting others. In fact, his final letter suggests that his parents may wish he was never born because he wrecks everything. There is one more letter, this one from his dad, that expresses something very different.

I would only be sorry if you were not my son.

Stephanie Simpson McLellan, who has written a number of my favourites including The Christmas Wind (20017), takes both a light-hearted and serious tone in The Sorry Life of Timothy Shmoe. Yes, he does some silly things that older kids and adults usually recognize as potentially disastrous, but the frustrations that he and others feel are very real and even distressing. For a child to feel unwanted is sad. Thankfully Stephanie Simpson McLellan has given Timothy parents who are understanding and loving and, with their help, he's sure to grow into his self-control.

Vancouver cartoonist and illustrator Zoe Si uses ink and watercolour to play on that tenuous relationship of humour and consequence. She easily turns Timothy's initial delight in his play into frustration, embarrassment and even shame with his body language and facial expressions. We know how Timothy feels, as well as everyone in his orbit of activity. Except for the crazy dance recital where everything goes awry, Timothy is always the focus of Zoe Si's artwork, with significant white space being used to emphasize his limelight. 

 

There are laughs in The Sorry Life of Timothy Shmoe but also lessons about intention, consequences and forgiveness. Timothy Shmoe is anybody who makes mistakes and then has to face the consequences for those mistakes. That's all of us. Here's hoping none of our mistakes are ever too consequential for forgiveness.