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Never Speak of This Again
Publisher: Pottersfield Press$21.95It is 1917 and Nellie, seventeen years old and pregnant, has just returned to Cape Breton from Boston to find her lover. Instead of a safe haven, she encounters rejection and humiliation and is told to clear out and never speak of this again. Nellie’s story reflects the lives of many Nova Scotia women who found their way to Boston. Her world becomes a matter of daily survival, while so many in the world, including the stranger from Truro, try to survive the catastrophic chaos of WWI and the Spanish Flu. Never Speak of This Again takes the reader from eastern Canada to western Canada, to Europe, and back again.
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The Silence of the Vessel A Novel
Publisher: Pottersfield Press$21.95“I want to be a nun.”
Elspeth, recently retired from Cape Breton University’s Celtic Culture Department, is not sure how to deal with her teenage daughter Cecelia’s outdated and strangely troubling post-secondary plans. Maybe the spiritual inclination Cecelia has would have been welcomed in the past, but with all the scandals the Catholic Church has been going through during recent decades, all Elspeth can do is wonder if it is too early in the day for a glass of wine before responding.
Cecelia has always been a quiet, sometimes even cold child, and Elspeth worries once again if she and Andrew had been too old to raise a menopausal baby. Now as Cecelia approaches high school graduation, and all the decisions that come with that transition, the gap between them seems to be more than merely an age thing.
As she tries to understand her strange desire to become a nun, Cecelia befriends an aging Sister at the Notre Dame congregation at the convent in Mabou. Madonna, a fitting name for a woman who lived a life devoted to God, is in a time of transition as well, struggling with ailments of an aging mind and body. Because of Cecelia’s interest, she tries to piece together the reasons she became a bride of Christ.
Faith, family, and fate bring these three women together. Cecelia is looking for hope in an increasingly fragile world but Madonna’s past, if she can face it, may challenge all of them.
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Through Sunlight and Shadows
Publisher: Pottersfield Press$19.95Through Sunlight and Shadows is an autobiographical novel about a young boy set in the small New Brunswick town of Bannonbridge in the 1940s and 1950s. The story is told from the perspective of an older man, Walt Macbride, a character well known to readers of other Raymond Fraser novels.
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Where Duty Lies A New Brunswick Soldier in the Trenches of World War I
Publisher: Pottersfield Press$21.95Frank Grimmer did not set out to earn honours on the field of battle nor did he readily choose to go to war. World powers were shifting. The future of nations was deemed dependant on their armies. It was left to the young men to face the gunfire of other young men who could have been friends under the right circumstances and in times of peace. Where Duty Lies tells the story of how a 23-year-old St. Andrews, New Brunswick, man ended up in the quicksand-like mud of Passchendaele labouring under heavy artillery fire helping construct supply lines that supported the Canadian advance during the Third Battle of Ypres, often referred to as the most horrific in a war of horrific battles.
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The Illuminated Life of Maud Lewis
Photographer: Bob BrooksPublisher: Nimbus Publishing$35.95Maud Lewis (1903-1970) was recognized and revered in her own lifetime. She offered her endearing images to the passing world through her roadside sign, “Paintings for Sale,” and was rewarded by the enthusiastic response she received from both the community and tourists as well as from art collectors.
The Illuminated Life of Maud Lewis is an invitation to share once again with the world the perceptions of this celebrated Nova Scotia folk artist in prose, photographs, and reproductions of her works.
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From Ben Loman to the Sea (HC)
Publisher: Nimbus Publishing$17.95This is one of two unique books that delight both children and adults, combining the work of folk artist Maud Lewis with the poetry of Lance Woolaver. Each volume contains a narrative that complements the paintings; one follows the mail sleigh as it delivers Christmas packages; in the second, the reader sees through the eyes of a young man as he leaves his home, countryside, and town to go to sea.
Both titles are treasures, the first books to celebrate the life and work of Maud Lewis, Nova Scotia’s most prominent folk artist. Now brought to readers in a new format that enhances the beauty of the art of Maud Lewis.
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Maud’s Country Landscapes that Inspired the Art of Maud Lewis
Photographer: Bob BrooksPublisher: Nimbus Publishing$24.95Maud Lewis stayed close to home: the rugged coastlines and gentle valleys of Nova Scotia’s southwest knew—but they provided ample material for her joyful creative spirit. Now revered as Canada’s foremost folk artist, Maud Lewis (1903-1970) transformed her world of poverty and deformity into a magical kingdom of happy children, contented animals, and a peaceful and charming rural environment.
Maud’s Country offers unique insight into the landscapes that inspired Lewis’s works and her own special way of representing them. The materials she had at hand were primitive—particleboard, crude brushes, marine or house paints. But these were all she needed to convey her message that happiness and harmony exist all around us, for those who have eyes to see.
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A Giant Man from a Tiny Town A Story of Angus MacAskill
Artist: Christopher HoytPublisher: Nimbus Publishing$22.95When Angus MacAskill was still just a boy, he began to grow…and grow…and…grow! Known far and wide as the Cape Breton Giant, Angus was loved by his neighbours as much for his beautiful singing voice as for his renowned strength. But as much as Angus loved his little town of St. Ann’s, Cape Breton, he decided to leave and seek fortune and adventure.
With heartfelt text from critically acclaimed author Tom Ryan and meticulously researched and joyful illustrations from Christopher Hoyt (A is for Adventure), A Giant Man from a Tiny Town tells the story of a remarkable man who travelled the world performing for crowds, but never stopped longing to return to the place he loved the best: his Cape Breton home.
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A Giant Man from a Tiny Town A Story of Angus MacAskill
Artist: Christopher HoytPublisher: Nimbus Publishing$13.95Angus MacAskill, known far and wide as the Cape Breton Giant, travelled the world performing for crowds, but never stopped longing to return to the place he loved the best: his Cape Breton home.
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Always With You
Artist: Carloe (Shan) LiuPublisher: Nimbus Publishing$24.95Emily woke. On her night table, a letter was propped against her grandfather’s picture. Her name was printed in pencil crayon the way only her grandfather did it, with each letter a different colour.
He was always so kind and funny and silly…and now he was gone.
Carefully, she picked up the envelope and opened it….A heartfelt new picture book from bestselling children’s author Eric Walters (From the Heart of Africa) and Halifax-based artist Carloe Liu. In this poignant story, we follow young Emily who has recently lost her grandfather. As she grows, she discovers a series of letters he left behind for her, offering grandfatherly advice at life’s most pivotal moments: first day of high school, graduation day, wedding, and ending with the birth of her own child.
With gentle watercolours and fold-out letters for sharing with loved ones, Always With You is a timeless story about grief, growing up, and finding that those we love never truly leave us.
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The Boy Who Moved Christmas
Artist: Carloe (Shan) LiuPublisher: Nimbus Publishing$12.95Based on a true story, Evan is sick and may not make it to December. His town decorates for Christmas in October so they can celebrate with him but will everything be ready? Will Santa know to come?
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My Mommy, My Mama, My Brother, and Me These Are the Things We Found By the Sea
Artist: Mathilde Cinq-MarsPublisher: Nimbus Publishing$22.95And these are the things we find by the sea
My mommy, my mama, my brother, and me.With this gentle refrain, the debut picture book from celebrated author and playwright Natalie Meisner (Double Pregnant) reflects on her own two-mom, two-son family’s early days growing up in Lockeport, Nova Scotia.
Living by the sea offers myriad charms for the two young brothers in this poetic ode to beachcombing. When the fog disappears, the path to the beach beckons, with all the treasures it leaves behind: lobster traps, buoys, fused glass, urchins, a note in a bottle. But best of all is all the neighbours they meet along the way. An unforgettable instant classic for families of all shapes and sizes. Featuring glorious watercolours by Mathilde Cinq-Mars, which capture the warmth and magic of time spent with family by the sea.
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Transplanted My Cystic Fibrosis Double-Lung Transplant Story
Publisher: Nimbus Publishing$17.95When Allison Watson awoke that day, she knew she was in a hospital bed. That’s all. She had no idea how much time had passed since she had seen her family. When she tried to focus, her vision was blurry, and when she tried to wave someone down, she became so exhausted she thought she was dying. Hours later, when Watson was able to communicate, she asked a nurse if the news was good or bad. “It’s good news,” the nurse replied. “You had your lung transplant four days ago.”
About 4,100 people in Canada have cystic fibrosis, and many are living longer today, thanks, in part, to transplants. CF mainly affects the digestive system and lungs, and there is no cure. In this candid memoir, Watson describes living with the disease and her life-altering surgery in 2014. Watson and her sister, Amy, both grew up with CF, and Allison had always believed that Amy would be the one to get a transplant first. The decision to undergo surgery was not easy. Nor was the road to full recovery. In this book, Watson, who cycled across Canada with her brother in 2008 to raise awareness of CF, describes her journey.
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Making it Home
Publisher: Nimbus Publishing$24.95Tinker Gordon doesn’t want anything to change. He thinks that if he holds on tightly enough, his family, his tiny Cape Breton Island community, his very world will stay exactly the way it has always been. But explosions large and small—a world away, in the Middle East, in the land of opportunity in western Canada, and in his own home in Falkirk Cove—threaten to turn everything Tinker has ever known upside down.
Set variously in the heart of rural Cape Breton, on the war-torn streets of Aleppo and in a Turkish refugee camp, in the new wild west frontier of the Alberta oil patch, and in a tiny apartment in downtown Toronto, Tinker’s family, friends, and neighbours new and old must find a way to make it home.
In her adult fiction debut, Alison DeLory ponders a question as relevant in Atlantic Canada as anywhere in the world: where and how do we belong, and what does it take to make it home?
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Refugees & Forced Migration: The Canadian Perspective An A-Z Guide
Publisher: Nimbus Publishing$15.95Although refugees have been pushed into the spotlight over the past few years, particularly as a result of the Syrian crisis, they are never far from public consciousness or policy debates. Based on years of close community and academic involvement in local, national, and international refugee affairs, Drs. Catherine Baillie Abidi and Shiva Nourpanah have created an accessible A-to-Z reference book focused on raising awareness on refugee and forced migration issues in Canada, with a specific focus on Atlantic Canada. Defining key concepts, from “asylum seeker” to “Generation Z,” this accessible guide is situated within a critical framework, acknowledging Canada’s complex immigration history.
This one-of-a-kind guide will be an extremely useful tool for refugee aid and settlement practitioners and advocacy groups, as well as for all Canadians eager to better understand the realities of refugees and forced migrants. Includes over 40 photographs by local refugee and settlement artists.
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Seaside Treasures A Guidebook for Little Beachcombers
Publisher: Nimbus Publishing$17.95A day of beachcombing is a day filled with salty sea air, enchanting seashells, and exciting discoveries. The ocean holds so much beauty and adventure, and it leaves so many treasures on its shores. Let’s explore these seaside treasures.
An essential sea glass–hunting handbook for kids. With helpful advice, like “make sure no one’s home!” before taking a snail shell, and fascinating facts, like how sea glass is formed and where glass fishing floats come from, the gentle and flowing text invites young readers to explore and wonder about everything that washes up on the sand.
Author and illustrator Sarah Grindler’s images are vivid and realistic, showing readers what to look for by the ocean—from purple sea urchin shells (that otters love to much on) to mussel shells, sand dollars, and every colour of sea glass—and encouraging all of us to imagine where those treasures may have come from. A beautiful keepsake as well as a practical guidebook for the young beachcomber.
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Forest Magic
Publisher: Nimbus Publishing Limited$16.95What do you notice when you walk in the forest? Different types of trees, plants, and mushrooms? Maybe you hear a squirrel chattering or birds singing. Can you feel all the different kinds of moss? And look there! Hidden animal homes and interesting bugs.
With this compact non-fiction guide, young readers will be equipped to seek out, identify, and appreciate the woodland magic that exists all around them. Featuring rich vocabulary words like “nurse log,” “lichen,” and “sapling,” this beautifully illustrated book is the ideal companion for little forest explorers. Incorporating all five senses and encouraging imaginative play, it even includes pixies and fairies (pixie cup lichen and fairy slipper wildflowers)! Forest Magic will be the book you reach for on the way out the door to explore your own backyard.
There’s so much to see in a forest. What will you discover?
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Ocean Secrets A Guidebook for Little Underwater Adventurers
Publisher: Nimbus Publishing$20.95An illustrated ocean guidebook that takes young readers on a journey through the world’s oceans, from the sunlight zone to the abyssal zone. Learn about sharks, whales, octopuses, kelp, coral, and so much more!
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Where to Cycle in Nova Scotia A Guidebook for Exploring the Back Roads and Rail Trails of Nova Scotia
Publisher: Nimbus Publishing$24.95Finally, the guidebook cycling enthusiasts have been waiting for. Where to Cycle in Nova Scotia brings together the collective knowledge of Nova Scotia’s cycling community, compiled and curated by experienced cycling guide Adam Barnett, to bring you the best cycling routes in the province, from the majestic Cape Breton Highlands to the dynamic coastlines of the Eastern, North, South, and French Shores, to the vibrant Annapolis Valley, the scenic Truro area, and lively urban Halifax. Each route features easy-to-navigate turn-by-turn directions, as well as distance and duration of ride, and fun activities—like museums, hikes, beaches, and wineries—to explore along the way.
This compact, highly readable guidebook will find a happy home in the bike bags and backpacks of anyone who has ever dreamed of cycling in this beautiful province.
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Use Your Imagination!
Publisher: Nimbus Publishing$19.95A woman becomes obsessed with a story about her family from 1890—when a naked, mute girl stumbled onto their property—and whether or not it really happened. A self-help guru and his chief strategist take their most affluent and unstable clients on a harrowing nature hike that destroys their company. A young convict in a prison creative writing class chronicles the rise and fall of his cellblock’s resident peacemaker. A rural neighbourhood becomes obsessed by the coming of a strange and powerful new homeowner who is in the middle of reinventing herself.
The stories of Use Your Imagination! are about stories, about the way we define and give shape to ourselves through all kinds of narratives, true or not. In seven long stories, Kris Bertin examines the complex labyrinth of lies, delusions, compromise, and fabrication that makes up our personal history and mythology. Sometimes funny, strange, or frightening, these stories represent Bertin’s follow-up to his critically acclaimed, award-winning debut, Bad Things Happen.
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Prince Edward Island National Park Past and Present
Publisher: Acorn Press$16.95Since Prince Edward Island National Park was first created in 1937 it has welcomed visitors from around the world, captivating the hearts of all who experience its serene and tranquil beauty. Stretching for about 40 km along the north shore of Prince Edward Island between New London and Tracadie Bays and the tip of the Greenwich Peninsula in St. Peters Bay, this dynamic coastal landscape is constantly changing, shaped by the wind and waves. The sand dunes and beaches, wetlands and forests provide a home for many plants and animals. Wildflowers add colour everywhere and marram grass glistens in the sunlight, rippled by the coastal breezes. Great blue herons grace the ponds and marshes and shorebirds feed along the water’s edge. Several species at risk are protected in the park, including the endangered piping plover. People have been part of this coastal landscape for thousands of years. At Greenwich, archaeological evidence reveals 10,000 years of cultural history, from early Aboriginal peoples to the Mi’kmaq, early French and Acadian settlers and immigrants from the British Isles. Once an elegant summer home built in 1896, Dalvay-by-the-Sea National Historic Site is now a heritage inn. Green Gables Heritage Place, also part of L. M. Montgomery`s Cavendish National Historic site, inspired L.M. Montgomery’s setting for Anne of Green Gables. This book, with stunning new photography by the Island’s best photgraphers complimented with archival photos, captures the essence of this special place, preserved and protected for you to return to again and again.
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Historic PEI : Vintage Postcards of Prince Edward Island
Publisher: Acorn Press$22.95Throughout Canada’s early days, Prince Edward Island was a thriving province with a strong tourist industry. Historic Prince Edward Island portrays the quaint lifestyle and the busy industry that Canada’s smallest province had to offer. With unique messages to friends and family, these early postcards paint a picture of history not available in history books.
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Welcome to Camp Fill-in-the-Blank
Publisher: Acorn Press$12.95Page’s perfectly organized life turns upside down when her parents send her to Prince Edward Island to babysit her cousins Crusoe and Danger (those are their real names) for the summer. The only problem is that her cousins feel that they are too old to have a babysitter—they would rather be at summer camp. Page realizes the solution to the problem is to give her cousins exactly what they want: summer camp in their own backyard. Despite Page’s meticulous efforts to plan a different theme for each week of Camp Fill-in-the-Blank, she quickly learns that life with her cousins rarely goes according to plan.
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Butter Tart Island
Publisher: Acorn Press$17.95Twelve-year-old Jane Smith isn’t surprised when her parents announce they’re relocating, but her life is about to change, big-time. Maybe she isn?t the only one with secrets.
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Pirate Year Round
Publisher: Acorn Press$14.95Despite her peg-leg, Pirate has adventures through the seasons
Join Pirate as she goes on her pirate adventures through the seasons. Whether it is Halloween or Valentine’s Day, Pirate is always up for an adventure, peg leg or not. Even the winter snow doesn’t slow her down!
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S’ouvrir A tool box for inclusion in the classroom and in the school
Artist: Danielle LorangerPublisher: Bouton d'or Acadie$24.95Through real life situations, here is a resource for anyone struggling or interested in the inclusive classroom and school. Without shying from the true and demanding challenges of an all-encompassing inclusive learning space, this is a must-read, must share proposal, coming straight from the classrooms and schools trying to meet these challenges.
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Coquelicot sur un rocher
Publisher: Bouton d'or Acadie$14.95Carla, journalist covering the war in Afghanistan, is on a quest. She’s searching for something significant to bring back for her son Théo.
For his part, Tom, a nineteen-year-old American, try to make sense of this war for which he embarked without knowing why. His mother deeply worried at the thought of her son.
Laïla and Amir, living in a dusty Kabul, are separated by the conflicts.
These mothers and their child are bound by the same fight, the one for love.
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Comptines et cuisine
Artist: Frédéric GayerPublisher: Bouton d'or Acadie$13.95A cheerful parade of creatures and animals creating amusing, original and easy-to-remember nursery rhymes in their trail. Plus, dishes dreamed up by the author and based on these bizarre creatures with easy, mostly no-cook recipes. Children can prepare and taste their dishes without turning the kitchen upside down. Simple ingredients and festive, mainly healthy results. Children and parents may even want to create their own delicious bestiary!
