New Releases by Julie Lawson

Captain McKee''s canoe has a mind of its own, and takes its passengers on a rollicking pirate adventure! The narrator of this whimsical rhyming story sets off in an enchanted canoe with his brother and O''Malley -- a stuffed kangaroo -- and meets up with a band of fearsome pirates. But the swashbucklers turn out to be friendly after all, and they all share a feast of hot dogs and "sizzled mallows," before the canoe speeds the adventurers safely home. The Pirates of Captain McKee was previously published under the title Whatever You Do, Don''t Go Near That Canoe!, a 1996 Governor General Award winner for its illustrations.

A young girl living at three Hudson''s Bay Company posts yearns for more adventure and freedom than the rules of mid-1800s HBC society allow. Motherless for years, and now orphaned when a hunting accident takes her father''s life, Jenna Sinclair is in the care of her prim Aunt Grace, who always finds fault with Jenna''s high spirits and tendency to break rules. Jenna finds kindred spirits in her Grandmother, one of the Home Guard Cree who lives near Fort Edmonton, and with her friend Suzanne. But even then, Jenna is still eager to have more freedom, and daydreams of finding Adventure with a capital A. Opportunity knocks after Jenna moves southwest with her newly-married aunt to Fort Colvile, and begs her aunt to let her attend a ""real"" school at Fort Victoria on Vancouver''s Island. With a small brigade, she begins a sometimes harrowing journey down rivers and over mountains to her new life. But the teachers at the new school are even more strict than her aunt, and she can''t find a friend as likeable as Suzanne. Ever restless, Jenna wants the kind of excitement worthy of being included in a Novel. By sneaking outside the fort walls, spying on the Company officers, even visiting the forbidden Songhees village, she sometimes finds more than she bargained for. As Jenna faithfully records her observations of the world around her - bringing the reader ""inside the walls"" of three very different HBC posts - she makes surprising discoveries about herself, and about Heroes, Villains and the places where Adventure can truly be found."

In her lyrical, cumulative rhyme based on the poetic structure of This is the House That Jack Built, award-winning author Julie Lawson tells the story of a young girl who spends a magical day on the beach, building a sandcastle. While she works, the little girl''s imagination creates a fairy tale adventure, complete with stately castle walls and whales and mermaids who come to visit. Accompanied by artist Frances Tyrrell''s exquisite illustrations, this is a beautiful time capsule of childhood.

While heading for the Klondike to look for gold, Noah takes his cat, against his father''s wishes.

Eleven-year-old Sam''s first visit to the remote west coast of Vancouver Island is nothing like she''d expected. Her older cousins tease "the city kid" mercilessly when they''re not ignoring her altogether. She often finds herself left to her own devices. Still, the woods and beaches around Brackenwood Point offer plenty of room to explore. Then, one day, Sam comes face-to-face with a wild cougar and her two cubs, and her summer vacation suddenly gets much more exciting.

In "Emily: Building Bridges," Hing''s family finally arrives and Emily at last meets Mei Yuk, Hing''s daughter. After a rocky start, the two girls become fast friends. But as Emily begins to include Mei Yuk in her social life, she finds things changing between her and Alice, her best friend. Inspired by her art teacher, a young Emily Carr, Emily learns the importance of staying true to oneself. She also learns the meaning of tolerance and friendship.

Kate''s father is a builder for the Canadian Pacific Railway as it snakes across the mountains and through the Fraser Canyon. Everyone is excited about the "Iron Horse", but building the railroad is a treacherous undertaking. Kate is always thinking about her father''s safety, and the Accident Hospital next door is a constant reminder of the hazards the railroad brings. Despite the danger, there is tremendous excitement surrounding the creation of the transcontinental railroad as Kate, her town, and all of Canada eagerly await its completion. Vetted by historical experts, each book in this series contains maps, numerous period illustrations, and an extensive historical note.

A beautiful and unusual story about a bear''s odd choice for a hibernation spot and the boy who witnesses it.

The year is 1896 and Emily pines for a bicycle, the latest craze. On the other side of Victoria''s James Bay Bridge is Chinatown and thousands of Chinese immigrants who are looking for a better life in Canada.

Sixteen-year old Ned Turner sets off for the goldfields of the Klondike in 1897 and encounters adventures.

I got the goldstone at a time when I needed something special. I wore it for years, never thinking it was more than a beautiful pendant and a link to the past. Later I learned the goldstone is also a link to the future. Wear it at night, and you''ll see what lies ahead. With these words, Aunt Jo gives Ashley the beautiful goldstone necklace that has been in their family for nearly a century. Ashley is immediately enchanted by the magic of the stone, and can hardly wait to dream on it to see what her future holds. But fate has brought Ashley much more than the goldstone. When she wears her gift, a presence deep within the glacial mountains is awakened. A boy named Jonathan, who has transcended the bounds of time, begins to stalk her nights and days. He, too, dreams of the future and has foreseen the moment when he can reclaim the stone. But he knows that he can only do so once Ashley has joined him in the space between life and death.

On her first night in the mountains with her family, a little girl is unable to sleep. She sits by the window and listens to the sounds of the winter night. As she imagines the nighttime world outside, she also anticipates the pleasures of the days to come. And day or night, even if she falls asleep, the little girl knows the mountains will beckon her to a magical place of endless snow. Full-color illustrations.

What would you do if a crazy canoe - with you in it - took off on its own? Illustrated by Werner Zimmermann.

Emma is swept into the river when she tries to get silk and there is a dramatic rescue that follows.

When a cougar is sighted in downtown Victoria, the conservation officer must find and capture it to return it to the wild.

Jo''s friend Mack has "used her friendship terribly. If it wasn''t for Michael, the new boy on her street, Jo wouldn''t have a friend in the world. ... Part Two of the Goldstone trilogy."--Cover.

Mama''s "old country" ways were a source of frustration and embarrassment to twelve-year-old Karin, who wanted to be a "modern" Canadian girl. How could she know the harsh words between them would be the last words they ever spoke? With shocking swiftness Mama is gone, and Karin longs to be with her again. And when Mama''s precious goldstone pendant is found, can Karin interpret the dreams that come to her every time she sleeps with it around her neck? Does the stone really forecast the future? When it warns Karin of the deadly avalanche that threatens her father and his railway crew, will she be able to prevent another disaster? This poignant and suspenseful tale is based on real events in Rogers Pass, British Columbia, at the turn of the century.

Long ago when dragons were still young ten suns lived at the far edge of the world. One day they decided to shine together! 5 yrs+

"Who knows what the gods have in store for us?" Xiao Sheng sang out to his mother every morning. "Today may not be the same as yesterday." In spite of his hardships, Xiao Sheng is a cheerful boy who loves to sing. He works from sunrise to sunset to earn enough money to feed his family. When Xiao finds a magic pearl, everything is changed forever.

When the wind picks up on Mistaken Road remarkable things can happen. It''s going to take a resourceful trio of night-time adventurers to undo what the wind has done in one day. Under an agate moon, Jess, Claire and Rigby set off on their mission to the Castle of Kite. To say that they get carried away is an understatement! In this high-flying adventure, they encounter a giant that sneezes, the spindrift of the Milky Way, and a windfall of lost and blown away objects. Their only problem now is how to get home. In this, her lovliest, most fantastical picture book to date, prolific West Coast children''s author Julie Lawson lets her own potent of imagination get carried away - out on the finest of strings. There is no better match for lawson''s story than pictures by Kathryn Naylor. Her luminous watercolour palette of snap-flapping colours and her own georgeous sense of play make Blown Away a marriage of talents made in heaven or somewhere very near by.

In a tumble-down house carved out of the dunes lives an old man with second sight. He is the sifter of sands, the man who separates the sparkling mica, black lava, golden-reds, and misty grays. And as he sifts he mesmerizes Jessica and Andrew with his tales of the trickster-creator Raven and how a lonely young man lived to be 300 years old.