Thunder Over Kandahar by Sharon E. McKay
Summary: Yasmine’s parents have moved her to Afghanistan with idealistic hopes of helping to change the country. Their outsider ways and liberal beliefs attract unwanted attention, and put all of their lives in serious danger from the Taliban. Along the way Yasmine’s parents hire Tamanna to be her companion and the two become the best of friends since going to school is not an option. When the situation turns deadly, their friendship is put to the test as they are forced to make a perilous journey, but the kindness of strangers and family persistence will pull them through....
Read MoreWar Brothers: The Graphic Novel by Sharon E. McKay, illustrated by Daniel Lafrance
Summary: Jacob and a couple of his friends are taken captive by the Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA) in Uganda. Some are forced to be soldiers; all are threatened with death if they do not obey Commander Opiro. Holding on to the hope that their parents will find a way to save them, they form a brotherhood to take care of each other until that happens. When rescue isn’t possible, they decide to try and find a way to save themselves, and a girl named Hannah they meet at the camp. Number of Pages: 176 Age Range: 13-14 Review: I liked the visual cues of the black and white pages –...
Read MoreLight the Way Home by Nancy L.M. Russell
Summary: Christine is not thrilled when her dad loses his job and her parents decide to move cross-country from Toronto, Ontario to Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island. Looking forward to starting high school with her best friends, Allie and Brittany, Christine instead finds herself in a intermediate school for her grade nine year. While she is referred to as a CFA (come from away) and others are skeptical of her city attitudes, Christine manages to make new friends and becomes involved in a project to save a local lighthouse that will change her life and the lives of others. Number of...
Read MoreThe Last Wild Boy by Hugh MacDonald
Summary: In a world where women (the Insiders) rule society and men (the Outsiders) are practically an endangered species, hetrosexual love and traditional conception are a thing of the past. Babies are raised to childhood by a care centre to prevent women from bonding too deeply with their daughters, and women have partnerships with other women to provide stable homes to raise their daughters in. When Nora, partner of Alice, comes across a male baby named Adam one day, she is forever changed. Nora makes the choice to tunnel outside the city’s walls to keep Adam from the Insiders....
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