A river of gratitude
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A river of gratitude

Author and friend of Eugene and Jan Peterson, Winn Collier offers readers a spiritually astute, deeply human portrait of the couple, their children, and their ministry. Joys, sorrows, regrets, failures, and victories are presented through the lens of God’s grace and his redemptive work in the lives of his people. Collier writes, “Eugene would insist…

An unusual friendship
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An unusual friendship

In this charming children’s picture book about an unusual friendship, Duck gets off to a bad beginning when, at the end of winter, he takes a running start so he can fly away, but his wings and legs get snarled and he crashes into a mishmash of branches. Nearby, as Bear enjoys the comfort of…

Making Friends
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Making Friends

Young Sicily Bridges brims with creativity and believes she can make anything. She lives at 48 Grasshopper Estates with her loving mom and is surrounded by unique neighbours. Though Sicily’s home address alludes to grasshoppers, “in all her years there, she had never seen one grasshopper, or, come to think of it, any grass. That…

Quirky humour blended with a passion for conservation
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Quirky humour blended with a passion for conservation

Author Bibi Dumon Tak blends quirky wit, scientific knowledge, and conservation facts with poems formatted as modern communication techniques to draw young readers into the world of creatures with hooves. In an email conversation between a wild boar and a pig, a radio announcement about a cape buffalo, a 911 call about a mountain goat,…

Friendship on a tightrope

Friendship on a tightrope

Nine-year-old Brenda lives with her father and grandmother in Niagara Falls, Ontario. Brenda’s mother died when she was young so Gran takes care of her while her father goes out to work. Brenda thrives in that loving environment characterized by nutritious meals, healthy expectations, financial stability and Sunday worship. For a school project about someone…

The gift of literacy

The gift of literacy

Based on the life of Clarence Brazier, born August 28, 1906, in a log farmhouse near Magnetawan, Ontario, this compassionate, informative children’s picture book relates how “for nearly one hundred years, Clarence had a big secret.” The third of seven children, Clarence and his family worked hard to survive. Big for his age, Clarence readily…

Saying goodnight with love and imagination
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Saying goodnight with love and imagination

Before his death in 2019, Lee Bennett Hopkins, renowned children’s poet, anthologist, and author of more than one hundred books, compiled this selection of gentle, imaginative goodnight poems by 13 poets. A child’s bed, pillow, blanket, rocking horse, book, and more are celebrated. Creatures like dogs are appreciated. Dreams are anticipated. Guardian angels are welcomed….

A uniquely illustrated Christmas tale
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A uniquely illustrated Christmas tale

Young Jo, her infant brother, and ill, single mother are cast out into the elements on Christmas Eve. Though Jo plans to leave town on a bus with her family, the fierce, unruly winter wind pushes them in the direction of Franklin Murdoch’s barn and house. Jo is afraid of the man, known in the community as mean and crusty; the death of his wife and baby on a Christmas Eve long ago had apparently turned him into a nasty person.

A Winsome, Wonderful Window into Inuit Culture
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A Winsome, Wonderful Window into Inuit Culture

In this sweet, gentle children’s picture book, Inuit writer and educator Nadia Sammurtok has realized her passion to preserve “the traditional Inuit lifestyle and Inuktitut language so that they may be enjoyed by future generations.”

Fun, Friendship, and Adventure on a Harvesting Journey

Fun, Friendship, and Adventure on a Harvesting Journey

Written in English and Anishinaabemowin, this historically-based children’s picture book portrays what life was like for one child and his community in Duck Bay, Manitoba. Elder Norman Chartrand of the Saulteaux-Metis Anishinaabek nation relates how, when he was a child in the 1940s, he and his family left their home on a two-day journey by wagon to Duck Mountain. There they gathered with many others from surrounding communities to spend a month picking blueberries.

Bravery and Sacrifice in a Complicated World

Bravery and Sacrifice in a Complicated World

Twelve-year-old Petra – nicknamed Pet – lives with her parents and 16-year-old sister Mags in a lighthouse on the South East coast of England. Their lighthouse, called the Castle, is a short distance from Europe, where Hitler’s armies are advancing against France. Pet is a timid girl. When she panics, she feels as if she has turned to stone.

Small Steps of Bravery

Small Steps of Bravery

Twelve-year-old Jude lives in Syria with her parents and her brother Issa. So far, she’s known only the peace and joy of belonging to a loving family immersed in a Muslim community with a rich culture and devout religious practices. But now she’s begun to worry because Issa is always talking about revolution, democracy, and change.