Young Adult

Snocross, by Linda Aksomitis

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Snocross, by Linda Aksomitis

High school student, Shawn Riggs, wants just two things in life–to be part of the popular crowd in high school and to become the next snocross national junior race champion with his snowmobile. When he heads off to the season opener race event in Duluth, he finds himself stuck in a situation that could wipe the chances for both right off the map.

He’s just moved in with Dad’s new family to switch from the Canadian Snowcross circuits to the World Power Sports Association (WPSA) events in the US. So, he’s starting over making friends in a new school and it’s far from easy. Peer pressure or not, when local football jock, Cole Ackerman, handed around bottles of beer and challenged everyone to chug them down, he couldn’t say no.

Then, Ackerman gets himself and his dad invited along to Duluth. Plus, Dad agrees to stop in Winnipeg to pick up Jacqui Deville, the girl who beat him out of last year’s season high point awards, and her snowmobile. In this coming of age book, Shawn is faced with some tough decisions both on and off the race track.

The action is non-stop in Duluth with lots of snowmobiling in this extreme winter sports young adult book. A 90-minute short reads book, this fast paced novel takes readers of all ages behind the scenes at a WPSA snocross race, including photos from the actual Duluth season opener for the 2005-2006 season.

Snocross is a perfect young adult book for boys looking for a page turner book that’s high interest low vocabulary.

Find Snocross on

Kraamlok, by Sharon Plumb

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Kraamlok, by Sharon Plumb.
Cover art by Jolyn Michaelis

The Eye shall be Blood, the sun shall be Bone, and dragons shall pass from the world. For it comes, it comes, the kraamlok comes…

Dragon seer Tondoor was hatched for only one purpose: to ask the starry dragon god, Morwaka, for a way of escape from his tribe’s prophecy of doom from the sky. But Morwaka isn’t speaking to him. Doesn’t he want to save the dragons?

As rebellion brews around him and his arch-rival tries to steal his dragon love’s heart, Tondoor learns that the answer he seeks might lie with a lunatic dragon lost somewhere in the other five corners of the world. Can Tondoor succeed in his quest to save the dragons he loves — and survive the ones he doesn’t — before the kraamlok destroys their world?

Dragons and more dragons in variety of cultures, a pristine planet with surprising links to our own, plenty of lore and legends, politics and culture, a bumbling starry extra-terrestrial, and a sweeping epic fantasy quest. Perfect for readers of any age who want an exciting dragon saga with lots of twists and surprises. Includes Book Club discussion questions.

Available in print and for Kindle at http://mybook.to/Kraamlok .

See reviews and learn about the dragons and their world at Sharon Plumb’s website.

Timefall, by Alison Lohans

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Timefall, by Alison Lohans

Being a single mom at 15 is tough! Biking along the creek, all Katie wants is a few moments of peace away from her teething baby, her bratty brother, her nagging mom, and her callous classmates. Finding a quiet spot to reflect on the unfairness of it all, she sits on a rock–and falls out of the world.

Being the very last apprentice in a centuries-long unbroken line of Seers is unthinkable! Mourning the death of his elderly mentor, Iannik and everyone else can tell he lacks the True Sight to take her place. Without a Seer to summon the T’laaure, the prophesies will go unfulfilled, and the last remnants of his people will face a bleak, directionless future.

Two worlds on the verge of ecological collapse: one already doomed by its lack of vision, the other by a vision unfulfilled. Can a group of teens find each other–and more importantly, themselves–in time to save at least one world?

Timefall is a new version of the book previously published by Five Rivers Press, which was an extensively revised and updated version of Alison’s two previous novels Collapse of the Veil and Crossings.

You can order it in papberback and Kindle formats from:

See some exciting reviews and more at Alison’s website.

This Hole Called January, by Paula Jane Remlinger

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This Hole Called January, by Paula Jane Remlinger
This Hole Called January, by Paula Jane Remlinger

Publisher: Thistledown Press

From Superman to James Bond, from childhood’s imaginings to life’s darkest moments, Paula Jane Remlinger explores identity and depression with humour and empathy. The collection moves from innocent beginnings to the starkness of the Canadian winter and its profound effects on the psyche. The final section expands into a playful juxtaposition of popular culture and an adult awareness of the inevitable cycles of life.

Winter on the prairies brings a sense of barren isolation, as well as an uncanny beauty. These poems explore the duality of winter — confinement in an infinite landscape, the hopeful longing for an out-of-reach spring. Paula Jane writes of the beginning and end of things, the balance between life and death, and the spaces we live between. With humour and elegance, these poems will speak to everyone who has felt the dark days of winter closing in, physically and metaphorically.

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Convictions wins 2016 Gold Moonbeams Award

Convictions, by Judith Silverthorne
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Convictions, by Judith Silverthorne
Convictions, by Judith Silverthorne

Congratulations to Judith Silverthorne, whose book Convictions has just won a 2016 Gold Moonbeams award in the Historical Fiction/Cultural category!

The Moonbeam Children’s Book Awards are intended to bring increased recognition to exemplary children’s books and their creators, and to celebrate children’s books and life-long reading.

Gold, Silver and Bronze medals are awarded in each category.

Convictions, by Judith Silverthorne

Convictions, by Judith Silverthorne
| sharon

Convictions, by Judith Silverthorne
Convictions, by Judith Silverthorne

Author: Judith Silverthorne

Publisher: Coteau Books

Set in 1842 aboard  a convict ship for convicted female prisoners, Convictions follows the story of Jennie, a teenage girl convicted for stealing a loaf of moldy bread from a garbage bin. Now she finds herself heading to Australia with no hope of ever seeing her family again.

Meticulously researched and true to the time, this is Judith’s 8th book with Coteau.

Winner of the 2016 Gold Moonbeam Award in YA Fiction-Historical/Cultural Category, and the 2018 Gold Human Relations Indie Book Award in the Pre-teen/Teen category.

 

Read more at Judith’s website.

Buy a copy.

Crossings

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Crossings, by Alison Lohans
Crossings, by Alison Lohans

Author: Alison Lohans

Crossings is the sequel to Alison’s novel Collapse of the Veil. Together, they make the Passage Through Time Series.

In the first book, Katie, her infant son Tyler, and her friend Lorne traveled a thousand years into the future to a desolate world still recovering from a catastrophe caused by a hole in the ozone layer. They meet Iannick, a young seer with uncertain powers, and learn that baby Tyler is the long-awaited baby described in a prophecy. Somehow Iannick expects them to save his world and its struggling inhabitants.

In the sequel, Kate, Tyler and Lorne must convince people at home that they are not crazy, while navigating their own confusing world of romantic attachments and the future world’s challenges of living without technology. If they can succeed, they just might be able to save the people they’ve come to love and cherish in the future and in the present.

You can purchase Crossings from Alison.