Where to from Here? A Path to Canadian Prosperity

 Morneau, Bill. Where to from Here? A Path to Canadian Prosperity 2023. 328p. ISBN  9781770417144. 

Coming from the world of pensions, Bill Morneau was elected to the Canadian Parliament in 2015. He had been approached by the Liberals to join Justin Trudeau's team due to his strong economics background. The Liberals defeated the Conservatives and formed a majority, and Bill Morneau was appointed Ministers of Finances, where he served for five years. A combination of disappointment with government policy, political scandals that rocked the Liberal party, and the lack of political structures that promoted changes contributed to his exit of the federal political scene.

In Where to from Here? Morneau outlines a positive view of Canada, but he also points out the challenges that face the country, from low growth in prosperity due to high taxes and low dynamism, to relations between the federal, provincial, and territorial governments, to a glooming crisis in health care and pensions. Part biography, part political treatise on the steps needed to make Canada more competitive and improve the lives of its people, Where to from Here draws a vivid map that political leaders could use to guide their actions and ensure that Canada remains prosperous.

Bloom

Oppel, Kenneth. Bloom. Book 1 of the Overthrow series. 2020. 313p. ISBN 9781524773007. Available as an audiobook from Overdrive.

What if an alien invasion of Earth was done by plants? Petra is allergic to water. She breaks out in hives and is in danger of dying anytime water hits her skin. Imagine being a teenager and not being able to swim, or even to take a shower. Anaya has wicked asthma, and can barely breathe. She's always been sick, or on the verge of being sick. Seth has gone through more foster families than he can remember. In his dreams, he has wings and can fly. It's a persistent dream that never goes away.

All of them live on an island on Canada's west coast when a black rain comes from the sky. That rain strikes everywhere around the globe at the same time. Petra is hit by some of the water as she rushes into the car, but notices that she is not hurt. In fact, the water feels pleasant. Petra bottles some of it, and uses it to take her first bath in forever. Anaya's asthma clears up, and she can now breathe. Life for both girls, who used to be friends, is now looking up.

Except that the next day, strange seeds start to sprout everywhere, rising up as black vine plants that twine around trees and houses. These are difficult to cut, grow insanely quickly, and smell of petroleum when burned, causing toxic fumes. Reports come from around the world that more and more plants are spreading around. The plants bloom, releasing a pollen that is deadly to some people. They also form pods that resemble Venus flytraps, except that they like to consume humans through dissolving them in acid. 

But Anaya, Petra, and Seth appear to be immune to the toxic plants. They can still get grabbed, they can still get hurt, but the pollen does not affect them, nor the plant's digestive acid. Why would three Canadian kids be immune to a plant no one has ever seen before? With time ticking as the plants spread and cause destruction, these three high schoolers must discover a solution to save Earth before it is too late ...

Fans of suspense and of end-of-the-world stories will appreciate this fast-moving tale of destruction and despair as Petra, Seth, and Anaya navigate treacherous high school waters as well as attempting to save the world!

Flannery

Moore, Lisa. Flannery. 2016. 256p. ISBN 9781554980765.

Flannery has always been in love with Tyrone O'Rourke. They grew up together, their mothers meeting in the same breast-feeding class following their births, and for five years they lived next door to each other. Even when Tyrone moved, they still went to the same school and were inseparable. But then middle school came, and they attended different buildings. Now a senior in high school, 16-year-old Flannery still pins for Tyrone, who makes her heart flutter every time she sees him.

Flannery was born following a one-night encounter between her mother and her father, who may nor may not have been named Xavier, and who showed up in St. John's, Newfoundland, on a ship made up of recycling materials. For her first nine years, she and Miranda, her mother, were always together, despite the occasional boyfriends that came through their lives. Then Hank lived with them for three years, but moved on when Miranda, who is a struggling artist with limited capacity to earn money, would not move with him to a different province. Miranda soon found out she was pregnant with Flannery's step-brother. The family is poor, barely a step ahead of the power being turned off.

In school, Flannery's best friend Amber is barely awake. As a champion swimmer, Amber spends most of her time in a pool, and uses school as an opportunity to catch up on her sleep. They are in the same entrepreneurship class, and to pass the class they need to come up with a product to sell. Amber is paired with Gary, the guy she has had a crush on for a while, while Flannery, to her delight and horror, is paired with Tyrone, who barely comes to school. Tyrone is the most (in)famous street graffiti artist in St. John's, but his home life is rough, and he hates his step-father.

Tyrone proposes that they sell love potions. Is this a sign that he likes Flannery, or was it one of his throwaways ideas? As Amber falls under the thumb of a control freak, and as Tyrone never shows up, leaving Flannery to do all the work, Flannery is forced to reckon with her own feelings and decide what matters most for her.

Flannery is a well rounded character who is plagued with doubt, and her inner monologue is an effective mixture of hilarious and sad. All of her friends, and all of their parents are deeply flawed, making this story relatable. Fans of coming-of-age tales will appreciate Flannery's tribulations through life and will enjoy seeing her grow as she navigates the treacherous waters of senior year.

The Barren Grounds

 Robertson, David A. The Barren Grounds. Book 1 of the Misewa Saga series. 2000. 256p.  ISBN 978-0-7352-6610-0. Available at FIC ROB on the library shelves.

At 13, Morgan has been in more foster homes than she can recount. She has only vague memories of her mother, a Native Canadian Cree who lived in the north of Manitoba. Now living with Katie in James in Winnipeg, Morgan has been here for almost two months. A week ago, another Cree foster child named Eli joined the family. Unlike Morgan, who has no links to her ancestral culture, Eli can speak Cree and was removed from his family recently. This is his first foster home. Eli loves to draw, and is always illustrating scenes that he keeps secret. 

At their middle school, Morgan keeps an eye on Eli, who sits alone against a cafeteria wall, drawing away. Morgan herself is always alone, and her prickly personality pushes people away. Emily, however, is not deterred, and she keeps on talking with Morgan even though Morgan makes it clear she wants to be left alone. Deep down, Morgan is afraid of rejection and knows it's only a matter of time before her new family rejects her and sends her packing, like all other families before her.

Following a fight with James and Katie, Morgan takes refuge in the attic, where workers have been remodelling. She opens a door covered with paint, and hides here. Eli finds her, and brings her a drawing he did. It looks lifelike. In it, what appears to be a fisher cat walking upright is running towards them. Morgan can feel the cold and smell the winter forest surrounding the animal. They put the drawing away, scared of what it may mean. Later that night, Morgan wakes up to find the house very cold. In the attic, she discovers that Eli has placed the drawing on the wall again, and entered it like a window. Snow has already accumulated on the floor. 

Worried for her foster brother, Morgan enters the strange land. She is soon lost, but is rescued by the fisher cat who brings her to his village. There, Morgan is reunited with Eli and learns that Misewa, the village, has been cursed since the last human to visit stole the Green Time. In a state of perpetual winter, the land is dying and the animals are starving. With Ochek, the fisher, and Arik, a squirrel, Morgan and Eli set out to recover the Green Time from the man who stole it, before it's too late for Misewa and its inhabitants.

Inspired from Native Canadian myths and sprinkled with Cree words, Morgan and Eli's story of finding a secret door to a world unknown will resonate with the reader. Fans of The Chronicles of Narnia will appreciate this take on the theme of saving a new land.

That Inevitable Victorian Thing

Johnson, E.K. That Inevitable Victorian Thing. 2017. ISBN 978-0-525-49352-5. Available as an audiobook from Overdrive.

At 18, Victoria-Margaret is poised to make her entrance in the world of adults. As the Crown Princess of the British Empire, and a descendant of Queen Victoria I, Victoria-Margaret has a heavy heritage to uphold, The Empire has long since adopted arranged marriages based on genetics for its royal family, so Victoria-Margaret will soon be matched with someone who will bring political advantages to the Empire.

Before her debut, she is allowed to go spend time with Elizabeth Highcastle, the daugther of a Canadian Admiral who is friends with her father, the Queen's Consort. Her father and royal mother hope that this last summer in semi anonymity will provide her with great friendships and good experiences. Arriving in Toronto with only Elizabeth and her family knowing her true identity, Victoria-Margaret transforms into Margaret Savage and joins Toronto's circuit of social events. Margaret has received her genetic profile from the Archbishop of Canterbury, and this profile is all of her information, except for her name so she can explore the Empire's genetic computer network for fun if she wants. Margaret sets up a profile for a girl called Lizzy.  At Elizabeth's debut, Margaret meets Helena Marcus, a shy and quiet girl.

Helena has always known that she would marry August Callaghan, heir to a lumber and shipping empire on the Great Lakes. From a tender age, they have spent all of their summers together, and now that Helena is preparing her own debut, she looks forward to August proposing. But then she discovers that her genetic heritage marks her as male. She is intersex, which means she has male characteristics including testes, and she will never bear children. Crushed, she doesn't know how to reveal this information to August, but she uses her male profile, which she named Henri, on the Empire's genetic computer network and soon attracts the attention of Lizzy, who is a perfect genetic match to Helena's Henry. Lizzy is funny and soon her and Helena's fake persona start to feel more than just a passing interest.

Meanwhile, August has been busy illegally bribing American pirates from attacking the Callaghan ships in the Great Lake, and now finds himself caught in a wheel of deceit that he wants to escape. Unwilling to drag Helena with him, he postpones his desire to propose, and instead casts about for solutions to his problem.

Soon the three of them find themselves spending the summer at Helena's cottage. Together, they have a chance to change the Empire for the better, if only they can get past their secrets.

Fans of Victorian England will enjoy this story of love and romance set in a near future where the British Empire survived and thrived. The characters are authentic, and their struggles to find their own identity is real.

Canadians in America

Hamilton, Janice. Canadians in America. Part of the In America series. 2006. 72p. ISBN 0-8225-2681-6. Available at 973 HAM on the library shelves.

Sharing the longest undefended border. Canada and the United States have very close economies and political ties, and have been strong allies. People from both countries live on the other side of the border, and culturally both countries are very similar. What impact did Canadian immigrants have on the United States?

The two countries began as colonies of France and Great Britain. The French spread throughout the continent but controlled sparsely populated areas. The English remained on the Eastern seaboard, but quickly grew in population. Native American populations were squeezed in between the two of them. The French presence was eliminated following the French-Indian War of 1754-63, and many Acadians were forcibly removed from their homes and exiled to the American colonies

Restlessness against perceived abuses of power and limitation place on the expansion of American colonists led to a revolution, and the British were finally defeated in 1783, but remained in control of Canada. British loyalists left the new United States and settled in Canada.

The two fought again in 1812. Starting in the 1830s, Canadians left poor economic and social opportunities and migrated to the United States to work in nascent textile industries in the Northeast, and continuing logging operations in Michigan.

Over time, Canadians have contributed to the United States economy and culture. Many famous comedians are originally Canadians. Immigrants from Canada tend to be better educated than the average American, and help increase the country's prosperity.

Innocent Heroes: Stories of Animals in the First World War

Brouwer, Sigmund. Innocent Heroes: Stories of Animals in the First World War. 2017. 198p. ISBN 978-1-101-91846-3. Available at FIC BRO on the library shelves.

Jake York finds himself in the trenches of World War I, wondering how he got here. Wanting to leave his farm and see the world, he joined the Canadian army and left Winnipeg, but could not have imagined how his life would be forever changed by the war. He met Thomas, a First Nations Cree from Northern Saskatchewan, and Charlie, a rich kid from Toronto. Their friendship was forged in the fires and bombardments of the war. All three of them survived and returned home, but they owed their lives to the animals who helped them bring an end to what had been at the time the bloodiest conflict in human history.

From dogs who rescue wounded men in the no-man’s-land between both sides and warned against chemical attacks to cats that kill the large rats that festered in the trenches, to the horses which carried ammunitions and allowed reconnaissance work to the birds that delivered messages, animals played a vital role in keeping the conflict going.

This book adroitly combines Jake and his friends’ story with those of the animals that help them win World War I. It also incorporates nonfiction sections that describe the inspiration for each animal, as well as specific information relating to the Canadian army’s participation on the Allies side. Fans of War Horse will enjoy reading about other animals and their experience during the Great War.

Run for Your Life

Kew, Trevor. Run for Your Life. 2017. 118p. ISBN 978-1-4594-1190-6. Available at FIC KEW on the library shelves.

Chris is one of the fastest persons he knows. He runs all the time, and the cross-country team at school was therefore the logical choice for him. Running is not so much about exercise and speed as it is about winning. When running, Chris imagines that he is being pursued by monsters, and this thought always gives him a burst of energy. Training for the city-wide cross-country championship, Chris knows he is likely to win.

Forest fires in the northern section of Vancouver Island devastate a large area, including several villages. His community of Victoria, British Columbia, agrees to temporarily take First Nations children whose school has been destroyed by the flames. Suddenly tensions in school increase with the influx of new students. Chris meets Jason, and they become friends. Jason is quick, and he joins the cross-country team. Able to keep up with Chris, Jason is a born athlete. .

As they run together and in competition, the monsters chasing Chris in his imaginary world begin to morph into frightful First Nation people, armed with Tomahawks. Jason’s life as a refugee in his own country is similar to what Chris’ father experienced as a refugee from Iran in the early 1980s, and he immediately connects with Jason’s father. As the two of them strike an unlikely friendship, Chris begins to wonder what his father went through when he first arrived in Canada.

With the big race nearing, Chris becomes worried. Jason is fast, faster than he lets on. Will he be able to pace the First Nations kid and win the championship he covets the most? If he does, what will be the cost to his new friendship with Jason?

Clutch

Camlot, Heather. Clutch. 2017. 2017. 240p. ISBN 978-0-88995-548-6. Available at FIC CAM on the library shelves.

It is 1946, and Joseph Grosser’s father has just died, leaving his family behind to run his small grocery store, their only asset and source of income. Unfortunately, this tragedy is compounded by his father’s largesses. As a real mensch, he provided credit to many and therefore the store is owed lots of money. At 12, Joseph now needs to be the man of the house, so that his mother and his six-year-old little brother David don’t go without. He needs to operate the store and start collecting money. He’s also facing his upcoming bar mitzvah, and his religious studies are not going so well. And, above all else, Joseph cannot wait to move west of Park Avenue in Montreal, to find a better house for his family, something his father was never able to do.

At the same time Jackie Robinson, the first professional black baseball player, is playing for the Montreal Royals, the Brooklyn Dodgers’ AAA farm team. Jackie is also facing challenges, but he’s ready to meet them. David loves Jackie Robinson and religiously follows all of his exploits. Ben, Joseph’s best friend, spends a lot of time at the store, but both he and David wishes Joseph had more time to play and be a kid. Joseph, however, just wants to make money. When Ben’s father, Mr. Wolfe, approaches Joseph and offers an intriguing business opportunity, Joseph is faced with a stark choice: Do the responsible thing, or try to cut corners to accumulate wealth? As Joseph’s summer passes by, he makes connections in the unlikeliest places and he learns getting rich for being rich’s sake is not worth anything unless you are able to enjoy it with a loving family and friends. Can Joseph and Jackie Robinson triumph over their naysayers and accomplish their goals?

Trolled

Sandor, Steven. Trolled. 2016. 144p. ISBN 9781459411425. Available at FIC SAN on the library shelves.

Andy is the best swimmer in town, and he dedicates all of his efforts in achieving a time of 56 seconds for the 100 meters race. As a result, his grades, especially in math, suffer. No matter, Andy has his eyes on the Provincial championship in Toronto, thence to the Nationals in Edmonton. All he needs to do is win against his closest competitor. As team leader, also nicknamed Tiger Shark for his speed, Andy is expected to lead by example, and he thinks nothing of initiating the new guy on the team.

One of the team’s favorite activity after early morning practice is to swing from the rope attached to the pool’s ceiling and land on a kickboard, surfing as far as they can. On this particular day, Andy pulls the best jump ever, and he surfs clear across the pool. This exploit, which was recorded on a phone, goes viral overnight and is viewed by millions of people, making Andy somewhat of a celebrity.

During the Provincial championship, Andy is dared by two older boys to hug Myriam Said, the best female swimmer when she completes her race. Despite Andy’s girlfriend being in the audience, he goes over, congratulates her, hugs her and kisses her. The problem? Myriam is Muslim and follows a strict code of conduct. When Andy’s bad decision also goes viral, it gets him barred from further Provincial championships, and his ticket to the Nationals is revoked. He is also suspended by his swim team, he loses his job at the mall, and his girlfriend dumps him. To top it all, he barely passes his math class.

Hounded by journalists and by trolls on social media, Andy’s bad decision has cost him everything. Can he find a way to redeem himself? A lesson in one’s behavior, this book also explores the dangers of social media and how too much celebrity can be a double-edge sword. Fans of sports will appreciate the conciseness of this book.

Snow Soccer

Trifunov, David. Snow Soccer. 2017. 125p. ISBN 978-1-45941224-8. Available at FIC TRI on the library shelves.

The civil war in Syria has upended many lives. Samirah and her parents lived in Aleppo before it became a battleground for the various factions. Fortunately, her father recognized the danger and they were one of the first families to flee to a refugee camp in Turkey. Passionate about soccer, Samirah plays as much as she can, and she’s very good. When she discovers that the family has been accepted as refugees by Canada, Samirah is anxious, but looks forward to a new life.

Arriving in Saskatchewan, Samirah quickly discovers the rude winters that blast Arctic-cold winds on the Canadian prairies. The locals are not all welcoming of the Syrian refugees, but Samirah still quickly integrates in her school and local community. The kids play soccer at recess all of the time, and her new best friend plays on an elite girls’ team as well. Samirah joins in, much to the dismay of Tamsen, another girl and the captain of the girls’ team. When snow finally arrives, Samirah is shocked to learn that the kids continue to play outside, in full snow gear. Wearing a thick winter coat and heavy boots is tough on her game, but she quickly realizes that it’s not much different than playing in the sands of Syria or Turkey.

Observed by the coach on the girls’ team, Samirah is given a position. Tamsen remains opposed to her presence, however. It will take more than skills for Samirah to win over Tamsen’s respect and to prove that her participation in the biggest city tournament of the year is not because of Canadian charity towards Syrian, but because her skills and talents for the game she loves are good enough to play at the elite level.

Jay Versus the Saxophone of Doom

Kootstra, Kara. Jay Versus the Saxophone of Doom. 2017. 182p. ISBN 978-0-670-06940-8. Available at FIC KOO on the library shelves.

One of the best hockey player in Parry Sound, Ontario, Jay Roberts lives and breathes the sport. His idol is Bobby Orr, who also grew up in Parry Sound. Jay proudly wears the #4 for his team, the Parry Sound Shamrocks. This year, he encounters a challenge he dimly expected but now must face full on. In music class, he gets an instrument, and he will be expected to perform in front of his entire class. If Jay doesn’t want to repeat 6th grade, he must quickly learn how to play an instrument.

Unfortunately for him, instruments are assigned in alphabetical order. By the time his music teacher gets to him, he gets stuck with the saxophone, this strange instrument that must be assembled every time. To say that Jay has no ear or rhythm for music is an understatement. Instead of cradling a saxophone, Jay would rather hold a hockey stick and push a puck forward.

Though one of the best players on his team, Jay’s often bullied by Mick Bartlet, a classmate who’s bigger and meaner. Avoiding Mick can be done at school, but it’s harder on the ice. With the saxophone now present in his life, Jay is not sure which one is worse: Mick or the sax? As the school year progresses, Jay will have to draw inspiration from his hero Bobby Orr and find a way to transform the saxophone in his clumsy hands into an instrument he can use to play passable music. What if learning how to play the saxophone was just like learning how to play hockey? On the ice or in the band room, Jay’s year is about to get challenging!