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Wednesday, 06 September 2017 14:15

Corvus & Me Continues With Third Young Adult Novel

Snow Road author Joelle Hubner-McLean was at the Snow Road Community Hall Saturday to sign copies of her novel Corvus & Me: The Indigenous Spirit, the third in her Corvus & Me series.
“In this latest one, the protagonist, Janine, along with Corvus (the Crow) and Right Whisper, struggle to preserve the forest and save it from the evil Phantom Faeron,” she said.
Hubner-McLean, a former teacher with a background in indigenous studies, said the series is “semi-autobiographical” and came from an incident one winter in her youth.
“I was looking at a tree and saw a face in it,” she said.

She said there is a lot of the spirit world, based on Native studies, and it’s “full of metaphors.”
“There are a lot of messages in there that reflect on adult people that teachers have to go through,” she said.
For example, she said many of the metaphors relate to the recent struggles the Dakota peoples have gone through trying to protect the watersheds from the “disastrous consequences” of a pipeline proposal.
Some of the struggles Janine goes through are based on her own childhood, she said.

“I came from France at a young age and growing up here, there were language barriers,” she said. “I was bullied because of them.”
So, she wanted to write for young adults to perhaps help them along. But she also wanted to do it in a certain way.
“There are no pictures in the book,” she said. “Children will have to come up with their own images through their imagination.
“That may be generational because we didn’t have Google (growing up).”

Corvus is Latin for crow or raven and when asked if she has a spirit animal connection to the birds, she said “yes and no”.
“I seem to be close to them in real life. The crows seem to be on my right side in intellectual situations and on my left in emotional situations, such as a death in the family.”

Hubner-McLean’s books can be ordered through her website corvusandme.com and ravenswoodpublishing.com.

Published in NORTH FRONTENAC
Wednesday, 07 December 2016 14:08

The Gift of Books

by Susan Ramsay, Early Literacy Specialist

The holiday season is upon us and helping us to explore the celebrations, excitement, and meaning of this special time of year is a whole cast of children’s book characters. Elves, cats, porcupines and more are preparing for the holidays.

‘Twas the month before Christmas
When on many shelves
Not a creature was stirring
Except a wee elf….

“The Elf on the Shelf®: A Christmas Tradition” co-authored by Carol Aebersold, Christa Pitts and Chanda Bell, is a book that comes with a toy elf. After reading the story together the elf perches (with the help of parents) in surprising places every morning leading up to Christmas. The book explains to children that the elf is watching their behaviour for Santa. Yet the elf is also the perfect listener. It hears children’s hopes and dreams too - never interrupting or commenting judgementally. The book and elf spark children’s listening and speaking skills and the elf becomes magical for children as they seek and find the elf every day in unexpected places.

“That is Not My Elf” is a touch and feel board book by Usborne. A brightly coloured elf is pictured on each page with different textures. These textures entice babies and toddlers to explore the book with their hands, as well as their eyes, and ears as they listen to the simple text.

Eric Litwin’s “Pete the Cat” books have hit a chord with thousands of parents, children and educators.  Pete the Cat stories emphasize beat and rhythm in their telling and each can be sung to a catchy tune. In “Pete the Cat Saves Christmas” Pete’s desire to help comes through as an uplifting message for children in this repeated refrain:
“And although I am small, at Christmas we give; so I’ll give it my all.”

Modernized versions of traditional poems and songs have special appeal to beginning readers. Familiar rhythm, words and storyline help children feel more confident that the words they are reading are correct. Repeated phrases in these stories also reinforce reading skills.

Author Helaine Becker and illustrator Werner Zimmerman have teamed up to create three modernized versions of traditional holiday songs. “Deck the Halls: A Canadian Christmas Carol” is their newest book featuring a Canadian porcupine that is preparing for a holiday party. This same porcupine experiences a completely different adventure in “Dashing Through the Snow: A Canadian Jingle Bells” when he dashes through the snow in a rusty old Ski-Doo. In “A Porcupine in a Pine Tree: A Canadian Twelve Days of Christmas” Porcupine sits among pine needles when, “on the first day of Christmas, my true love gives to me a porcupine in a pine tree.”

Children who are a little older may appreciate “Walk this World at Christmastime” by Debbie Powell. Powell has created an advent calendar within a book. For the first 25 days of December children open a new flap in the book that reveals tidbits of information about festive holidays throughout the world. Pictures and words explore traditions in countries throughout North America, South America, Africa, Europe, Asia, and Australia. This is a great book for sparking children’s interests and conversations and for broadening children’s awareness of other peoples, cultures and geography.

Books and stories, whether traditional, revised or brand new, can be an important part of children’s preparations for Christmas, Hanukah, or any other special day. Reading with your child can cost nothing; yet it is a gift that will last a lifetime.


Susan Ramsay is the Early Literacy Specialist for Hastings, Frontenac, Lennox & Addington. You can contact her at 613-354-6318 (ext 32)  This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Published in Early Literacy

Williams Gift author and veterinarian Dr. Helen Douglas

After years of entertaining her friends with stories of her trade as a long time country veterinarian, Dr. Helen Douglas, who runs a vet clinic in Carleton Place, decided that she’d write a book based on those tales.

“I kept a journal of all of the stories and I just wrote them down but I really had no idea of how it would turn out,” she said in describing the way she approached completing her first book.

Her first book, entitled “Williams Gift - One Veterinarian’s Journey”, tells of Douglas' journey of self-discovery as a young country vet learning the ins and outs of her trade as she traveled various country and city roads from clinic to clinic. The stories have titles such as "Snakes on a Bus”, “An Elephant Comes to Visit” and “Noel's Nine Lives”. They tell of her encounters with various species in a number of different situations, all of which helped to form her both as a vet, and as a person.

The stories offer a glimpse into the realities of entering a line of work where the learning curve tends to be a very steep one, especially for a young and inexperienced vet. They are an honest portrayal of the triumphs and tribulations she encountered on the job and are sure to inspire young students considering a career in caring for creatures both great and small.

As a youngster Douglas always knew she wanted to be a vet and her first story “Starting Out” recounts her experience as a student in the summer at a mixed practice clinic in Nova Scotia where she came into contact with rugged country folk. In one of her first emergency cases, she helped to save a young dog suffering from strychnine poisoning. She also recounts certain unfortunate episodes; one memorable one where a family's pet bird suffered a heart attack in her hands while the young family members looked on.

At a recent appearance at the Nature Lover’s Bookstore in Lanark, Douglas said that when writing the book she purposefully set out to give a realistic account of the trials and tribulations of her personal journey as a vet, which sometimes those closest to her had difficulty understanding.

She was quick to point out that her vet friends commended her on showing both the ups said that most who have read the book greatly appreciate her honesty.

She tells of her adventures setting up her own first practice in Grand Pre, Nova Scotia, and later working in Lanark County.

Douglas also has the advantage of understanding who her audience is.

“My two main audiences so far have been people that love James Harriet’s books and young people who want to be vets,” she said.

Douglas also stressed that these days it is a lot easier to be a female vet than it used to be. “These days almost every vet is a woman compared to when I was young and people felt that a woman could not do the job as well as a man. There’s no longer that hurdle of confidence that women vets have to get over. And the tools of the trade are so much better these days and make the actual work much easier to do.”

Below is a reprinted selection from the “Starting Out” where the author's witnesses of a terrible accident while attending to William, a racehorse in Kentucky. It propels the reader into Helen Douglas’ past experiences as a veterinarian.

”An unexpected grief came over me, and tears started to pour down my cheeks. I stood experiencing deeply and with no inhibition the depth of William’s sacrifice. As a seasoned veterinarian, I had been witness to many tragedies and much loss in the animal world. I had long ago cultivated the ability to stay calm in emergencies, to act and not feel when I needed to most. I had dealt with many such events in a cool professional manner, serving over and over the owners and their pets with no reflection on my own feelings. Now I wept like a baby, and the cumulative pain took my breath away. A tidal wave of repressed emotion knocked me off my feet. How did I get to this place?”

The ensuing stories give a complete picture of how Douglas had indeed gotten to that place.

William’s Gift-One Veterinarian’s Journey is available at the Nature Lover’s Bookstore in Lanark and is a realistic and honest account of the trials and tribulations of a country vet and an inspiration for those considering a career as a veterinarian.

 

Published in General Interest
Thursday, 17 June 2010 08:34

The Book Club with a Difference

Sharbot Lake’s Summer Book Club with a Difference: (l-r) Christine, Crystal, Sara, Diane, Glenys, Helen and Bee (missing is Shirley Peruniak)

A recent visit to the Sharbot Lake Summer Book Club with a Difference on June 4 was a great help in suggesting some possible summer reads.

Before the Sharbot Lake Public Library’s open hours, eight women gathered around a table at the branch and launched into an informal and interesting discussion of the world of books.

The club is open to everyone and participants are invited to speak about what they are currently reading, which allows listeners to take away ample food for thought regarding their next book picks.

First up was Bee Zawisza who spoke about The Fatherland, a first novel by Robert Harris, a fiction on the outcome of World War 2 in which Germany won and Hitler survived. The mystery unfolds as Detective March, assisted by a feisty young female journalist, discovers the body of a Nazi official. Together they unravel a Nazi conspiracy that began in WW2. In Bee’s words, “I’m not usually into war stories but it’s a very good mystery.”

Gloria Jenkyn, a fan of historical fiction, reviewed The Heretic’s Wife by Brenda Rickman Vantrease, a tale about the selling of books on the Lutheran reformation during the reign of Henry VIII when he is pulling away from the Pope in the hopes of marrying Anne Boleyn. “The book really brings the history to life and I simply can’t get my nose out of it.”

Diane Yerxa spoke next about La’s Orchestra Saves the World by Alexander McCall Smith, perhaps best known for his popular series The #1 Ladies Detective Agency. This story is about a recently widowed woman who starts up an amateur orchestra to "soothe her broken heart" and in the process meets a Polish flautist and refugee who joins the group. The story evolves as the orchestra disbands at the war’s end and La is forced to move ahead in her life. Diane found it a very enjoyable read.

Sharbot Lake librarian Sarah Carpenter, who hosted the event, spoke about Endless Feasts, a collection of food writing compiled by Ruth Reichl, the former editor of the now defunct Gourmet Magazine. “It’s as much a history lesson as it is about food because certain stories date back to prohibition and other periods in history.” Sarah especially enjoyed Madhur Jaffrey’s "magical account" of the huge family picnic excursions that she and her 50 plus member family undertook in India back when she was a young child, a common Indian tradition at that time.

Helen Coulombe spoke about Kane River, the story of five generations of black women in the southern United States in Louisiana and the occurrence of “bleaching”, a term used in the book to describe the interracial relationships between black slaves and the white families for whom they worked. Helen came across the book when she was wintering in Florida and that book led her to another on the same subject called The Help by Kathryn Stockett who writes of her childhood being brought up by a black maid while her white parents lived a high society kind of life. Helen said that both books were fascinating and shocking reads.

The Sex Life of Cannibals by J. Maarten Troost was reviewed by Christine Patterson who usually prefers reading non-fiction. She clarified the fact that the book’s title is somewhat misleading. The book is an account of the two years a husband and wife spent on the Gilbert Islands, which humorously shatters many common idyllic myths about life on the Pacific Islands. Christine described the author Troost as “a young Bill Bryson” and said she will definitely be searching out more titles by the former.

Glenys Bender spoke about Anita Rau Badami’s Can You Hear the Night Bird Call? which traces the lives of three families through the political turmoil and historical events of East India from 1928-1986. Glenys spoke of the way the author allows the reader to become attached to these characters, making the real events in India during that time even more so. She pointed out the fact that the title recalls an old Indian myth where "the night bird’s call is a portent of death”, which adds great suspense as the novel unfolds.

Shirley Peruniak discussed Out Stealing Horses by Norwegian writer Per Petterson, a story about the German occupation of Norway and the plight of two families there involved in the smuggling of secret documents into Sweden. It’s a suspenseful story and Shirley commented, “The interesting thing was the writing and the length of the sentences, which I’m not sure is typical of the Norwegian language, or just this author.” Her description was so enjoyed by members of her book club that many want to purchase the book.

The discussion ended rather abruptly as regular library customers began trickling in. Two more book club meetings will take place at the Sharbot Lake branch on July 9 and August 6, both at 1PM; at the Arden Branch on June 22 (anything goes), July 20 (mystery) and August 17 (non-fiction).

Published in CENTRAL FRONTENAC
Thursday, 23 September 2010 06:42

Four noteworthy writers Visit Westport

Photo: Helen Humphreys

Book lovers gathered at the United church in Westport for the Westport Art Council's 3rd annual Writers’ Reading event and were treated to a sneak peak at four celebrated authors’ latest works.

Roy MacSkimming read from Laurier in Love, his just-released work of historical fiction about the life of Sir Wilfred Laurier as told from the vantage point of the two women he loved simultaneously during his lifetime. His wife Zoe, a “ quiet, loyal, demure and retiring personality” and his mistress Emilie Lavergne, a charismatic, sophisticated, fiery and well-read intellectual. Laurier is a fascinating personality and many biographies have been written about him but MacSkimming admitted, “It was the darker side of Laurier that drew me in...the side of him that made him human.”

Helen Humphreys, who now resides in Kingston, read from her latest work, a new novel titled The Reinvention of Love that is slated to come out next fall. It is based on the real life love affair between Victor Hugo's wife Adele Foucher Hugo and Hugo's good friend, writer and literary critic Charles Augustin Sainte-Beuve.

Humphreys read the first two chapters, which were a rollicking and comedic ride through the trials and tribulations facing Charles and proved an inviting teaser into what will surely be an entertaining romp through this particular love triangle during 1830s Paris.

Trevor Cole gave his first public reading from his latest novel called Practical Jean, his third novel to date, which was just recently reviewed in the Books section of Saturday's Globe and Mail. A “serious” comedy set in the fictional town of Kotemee, the tale delves into the topics of friendship and death. The book's main character, Jean Horemarsh, begins to question the meaning of life after watching her mother's demise from cancer.

Cole's reading was highly comedic and the book, when read aloud by him, sounded more like a play, which is not surprising since two of his books Norman Bray and The Fearsome Particles were both adapted for radio and optioned for film.

Last but not least, former leader of the New Democratic Party of Canada, Ed Broadbent, read from three different sources of his own writings, each in his words, “reflections of my concerns as a social democrat”. They all specifically concerned the topics that have been the primary focus of his career in politics: equality, democracy and citizenship.

He began reading from an essay that appeared in the Queen's Quarterly a few years back titled Canadian Citizenship and the New Barbarism, which outlines the reasons behind the recent downturn in social democratic thinking in this country, but also in the US and Britain.

He also read from a Bronfman lecture that he will be giving at a later date at the University of Ottawa.

His readings were dense, and filled with facts and statistics that provide much food for thought on the direction in which the nation has been heading. He highlighted the latest findings from various studies, which have determined that social equality is of the utmost importance in maintaining healthy robust democracies, citing that “more equal nations and states prove to be better off in almost every way.”

Each author took questions from the audience, and listeners had an opportunity to purchase books and speak intimately with some of this country’s most popular authors and personalities.

Published in General Interest
Thursday, 25 August 2011 08:02

Renowned Canadian poet at Wintergreen

Photo:  Rena Upitis of Wintergreen Studios with poet Lorna Crozier

Canadian poet Lorna Crozier was recently elected as an Officer of the Order of Canada, and last weekend, August 19-21, she led a three-day writing workshop titled “A Passion for Words” at Wintergreen Studios on Canoe Lake Road.

After dinner on Saturday evening, Lorna read excerpts from her latest book of poetry titled “Small Mechanics”, which she will be launching at the Kingston Writers’ Festival this fall. The small book includes poems that showcase her prowess as a wordsmith and include ruminations on both serious and not so serious subjects.

Crozier, who grew up in Swift Current, Saskatchewan but who now resides in Victoria, BC, is at home considering the small details in the world and lives around her. She began by reading “The New Day”, a poem that balances the hugeness of the setting sun with the relative smallness of a mother fly who has taught her children to “wash and wash their faces until they shine”. She included heart-rending poems about regret like “The Unborn”, which harkens back to unknown and unlived lives - “hauntings” she writes about that usually take place in the garden where, “a wind that is not a wind fingers the bamboo, a blurred face, perhaps a child’s appears below the surface of the water, a fish rising where a mouth would be.”

Recalling some of the ground covered in the Wintergreen workshop, which is her second to date, Crozier spoke of the importance a writer must place on facts, metaphor and precision. “If a reader is going to accept the strange, unbelievable metaphors that you offer them in a poem, you also have to be secure with the facts.”

Her poem “Facts” begins with true facts: “Did you know an ant has four olfactory organs on its antenna: the female mouse a clitoris.... that grass has legs and feet? That's why it's never still but runs on the spot like a child in an old gymnasium.”

Another poem titled “Lichen” brought her back to her grandparents’ farm in Saskatchewan as she remembered a huge buffalo stone rubbed smooth by countless buffalo, which use it regularly to scratch their itchy backs. In “Lichen” she also writes of the more common lichen-covered stones there, those “covered in those beautiful orange and yellow spatters... the kind of scab, round and desiccated a child would pick bit by bit feeding himself on a rock’s small wound...Patch of eczema, an itch the rock can't scratch though the wind’s scouring pad of grit and sleet brings some relief. Something that comes close to holy, you must fall on your knees to see it clearly....”

Crozier also tackles the onslaught of aging with humour and wit as demonstrated in “My Last Erotic Poem”, which was inspired by the erotic poetry she and other author friends have written and read at regular fundraisers over the years. In it she describes the act of lovemaking in a most humorous way.

“Who wants to hear about two old farts getting it on in the back seat of a Buick....our once not unattractive flesh now loose as unbaked pizza dough hanging between two hands before it’s tossed. Who wants to hear about two old lovers slapping together like water hitting mud … my bunion foots sliding up your bony calf?”

Equally amusing was her poem based on errors she has seen written in resumés, titled “Grief Resumé”, which ends on a hilarious final note that I will not give away here.

Crozier refers to the form that part of her new book takes as “a series of stretch/guzzles” – that is, a series of couplets that have to stand on their own, lacking the structural logic that most lyric poems have. “You have to think of the couplets as pearls on a necklace, each its own thing and having its own luminescence that can be moved around.” She read sections of one poem written in this particular form titled “Our Good and Common Bones”.

Crozier feels very much at home at Wintergreen and spoke of the inspiration the place gives her. “I so believe in the idea of this place to build and encourage community and to connect artists from across the country. It's a very special place here and a great place where adults can discover the flame and spark inside of them.”

Crozier summed up her new book this way. “I think probably there are more poems in this book about getting older, and about loss, so there is a shadow of grief in this book that might not be in my others. I've always had a sense of humour in my work and now I am laughing at the older body. Perhaps in my earlier poems I had more of a feminist and ecological message, which I still have, but it’s just mellower, softer and more integrated.”

Crozier loves giving workshops. “It’s really wonderful to watch the lights go on as I throw out various ropes for the participants to grab on to and to take off with on their own. The people I'm teaching here have gone through a lot in their lives and have stories to tell and really strive to put their whole heart and soul into being here and learning.”

Crozier currently is a Distinguished Professor at the University of Victoria and has been teaching there since 1991. Regarding her recent appointment to the Order of Canada she said, “It was a wonderful surprise - it came out of the blue and was something I was not expecting. The first thing I said was ‘Wow’. My only regret is that I wish my mom were here to see it.”

 

Published in SOUTH FRONTENAC

Local author, Glenys O'Connell, has received the top award for the Gaelic version of her short play, Ciara's Coming Home. The play won first prize for drama (Canadian Authors) at the Oireachtas Gaeilge Cheanada festival, held in Tamworth over the Canada Day weekend.

The festival, which celebrates Irish language and culture, is the largest of its kind in North America.

The English language version of the play was staged in several venues in Ireland six years ago as part of the All Ireland One Act Drama Festival, and won two awards at the time. The Tamworth award increases the likelihood that the play will now be staged on this side of the Atlantic, said O'Connell. In addition to receiving a medal and certificate, her name will be engraved on the perpetual trophy for the event.

“I am delighted. It is one of two plays that I have written that have actually been performed. It is set in modern day Ireland, and is basically about family dynamics. The title character, Ciara, has moved to the United States, and the play is about the reaction of her family in Ireland when she goes home with her husband for a visit,” said O'Connell.

Glenys and her husband, Adrian, moved to Arden from Ireland five years ago, and they moved to their current home on Brock Road in Mountain Grove recently. She says, "This area has an enviable tradition of being very supportive of the many artists, writers and musicians who live here.”

In addition to writing plays, Glenys O'Connell has written a number of suspense novels, fiction and non-fiction children’s books, and children's text books. She is a psychology graduate of Queen's University, Kingston, and trained and worked as a counsellor in Ireland and the U.K.

She has been commissioned to write two books by the U.K. publisher of the Need2Know series. “Depression – the Essential Guide” (2009) is widely available in bookstores and libraries throughout the British Isles as well as on Amazon, and the second, “Post Traumatic Stress Disorder – An Essential Guide” is to be published in September.

Up till now her books have all been published by mainstream publishing companies in the U.S. and U.K., and have been sold throughout the English speaking world, with one title even translated into German. But with the increased popularity of e-books, O'Connell plans to experiment soon by publishing two e-books independently.

“It's an exciting time in the book industry,” she said. “A lot of writers are now working on independently published projects, which is something I'm also looking at.”

Currently, Glenys is working on a guide to novel writing, a subject she has taught in the classroom and online. Also in the pipeline is a murder mystery novel set in a small Ontario village.

“People around here joke that if I publish the latter, I might have to move,” she said.

With the kudos of the new award under her belt and the publicity generated by the Tamworth event, O'Connell said she is looking forward to the possibility of the English language version of Ciara's Coming Home being produced by small theatre groups throughout Canada and the U.S..

All O'Connell's books are available on Amazon.com and she enjoys hearing from readers at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

 

Published in CENTRAL FRONTENAC
Thursday, 27 January 2011 06:18

“Wild” storytelling at LOLPS

Photo: Kait Rainey-Strathy with the students at LOLPS

Students in grades one through three at Land O' Lakes Public School in Mountain Grove had a chance to tell their own version of the classic children's story “Where the Wild Thing Are” when five professional artists who are studying at Queens University in the Artist in Community Education program visited their school on January 25.

The five artists included Canadian children's author and former Mountain Grove resident Kait Rainey-Strathy, vocalist Patty Smith, actor/dancer Kristina Murphy, musician Graeme Thompson, and musician/writer Trevor Strong. The five artists treated the students to an interactive creative arts workshop exploring literature through movement and music. The workshop gave students an opportunity to translate Maurice Sendak's classic tale into a performance of their very own making.

The workshop began in the gym with Kait Rainey-Strathy reading the story to the students. Kait is a former LOLPS volunteer and substitute teacher and she was thrilled to revisit her old stomping grounds and work with the students. “The workshop we developed allows the children to take the literature and reinterpret it their own creative way, and allows for the integration of the arts throughout the school curriculum.”

Following the story telling each artist then led the group in a series of dance/movement, music, vocal and drama warm up exercises prior to splitting them up into five separate groups.

Each group was then assigned a specific section of the story, which they were free to interpret in an original way, through drama, music, movement and dance. After a run through, the five groups then put their individual performances together and presented them to their fellow students.

The students had a ball throughout the workshop and made their feelings known when, following their practice run, they all spontaneously erupted into a celebratory cacophony. The visiting artists were also invigorated and happy for the chance for a practical teaching and learning experience with a group of very enthusiastic students.

Teachers Joanne McCullough and Norm Guntensperger, whose classes took part in the workshop, were also grateful. “This is a chance for the students to be exposed to five new artists and to a new kind of approach to literature and story telling,” McCullough said.

Norm Guntensperger agreed and added, “It's always interesting for the kids to get a fresh look at different approaches that sometimes can offer a deeper appreciation of literature. As well, we feel very lucky that these artists chose our school to come to.”

The five artists are looking forward to graduating from the Artist in Community Education program this May.

 

Published in CENTRAL FRONTENAC

A poster taped to the front door of Harrowsmith Public School greeted author Kenneth Oppel with the words, “We love you Ken Oppel and your books!” As part of the Kingston Writers Festival, the famed Canadian children's author spoke to students at HPS about his books, what inspires them and how he goes about creating them. He spoke extensively about the first book in his trilogy titled Silverwing, which was written in 1997 and is still the best seller of the 28 books he has penned to date.

The book’s plot centers around a Canadian silver-haired insectivore bat named Shade, and the adventures he experiences with Marina, an eastern red bat who was booted out of her colony after being banded. The two experience many adventures as they try to reunite Shade with his mother and colony. The popularity of the trilogy eventually led to an animated TV series but Oppel explained that he had tried to make his bat characters as real as possible; he did not want them to seem like just cartoon creations. He pointed out some amazing bat facts, like the fact that there are1000 different species; how bats use echo location to find food; how some consume 1000 bugs in a single night and how they catch insects with their tails, then flip them into their wings, and from wing to mouth. He spoke of how he used real life locations as the backdrops in the trilogy, thus investing the books with real place facts and real life landmarks.

He spoke of his second trilogy of adventure stories called Airborn, set in an imaginary past about 100 years ago, which resembles earth prior to the First World War except that in the stories airplanes had not been invented. Instead people travel and live on huge air ships, which Oppel said were inspired by both the airships of the 1930s like the Hindenburg and huge cruise liners like the Titanic.

The ship is called Aurora and the hero is a 15-year-old cabin boy (Matt Cruse) who essentially lives in the sky. The stories are about his adventures with his friend, a ship passenger Kate de Vries. Together they explore desert islands, mysterious ghost airships carrying treasures and discover new species of animals.

One of Oppel’s more recent works is a book titled “Half Brother”, which was inspired by two experiments done on chimpanzees in the 1970s. Half Brother is about Ben Tomlin, a 13-year-old boy whose scientist parents adopt a nine-day-old chimpanzee named Zan. They bring Zan home as an experiment and undertake to teach him sign language while trying to raise him as a human child. Oppel explained that Ben is expected to be big brother to this baby chimp. The story is about their relationship, how Zan changes Ben's entire family and what happens when this very strange experiment starts to go "terribly, terribly wrong.”

Oppel said that he wrote two of his most recent works, “This Dark Endeavor” and “Such Wicked Intent” as prequels to one of his own most beloved novels, Mary Shelly’s “Frankenstein”. The books tell of a teenage Victor Frankenstein, his weird, dangerous and appalling escapades and his sick twin brother Conrad. There are towers, dungeons and secret passages and of course the adventures as Victor tries to find the elixir of life.

HPS Principal Valerie Arsenault was thrilled to have Oppel visit. “It's great for the students here to have a chance to meet, listen to and ask questions of the author behind the books that they adore and have been reading for years.” Oppel's visit generated a lot of excitement and numerous questions from his young audience, who were captivated by his presentation. Oppel himself said that a personal visit from an author gives young readers “a chance to meet the person who thinks about these subjects and creates these stories. I believe it will further their interest in writing and reading and it also helps to generate interest in my work.”

Following his presentation students lined up with books, which Oppel graciously signed.

Published in SOUTH FRONTENAC

miller jan-2Jan Miller started her working career as an interpreter with Deaf people, and she says that interpreting what people are really saying when they talk about their lives and relationships remains at the core of her practice as a counsellor.

Her patients have ranged from couples, people with addictions, suffering from depression, fears, anxiety, and pain - a whole host of human issues.

She has also had to work through her own chronic pain as a migraine sufferer for many years, and with her own daughter's cancer treatments.

Over the years she has used a number of counselling techniques, some of them based on a treatment system called Neuro-Linguistic Programing (NLP) but branching off from there. She says that the core of her work is communication. “One thing that I don't do is judge my patients. They've had enough judgement already.”

In 2000, she started a counselling service, Jan Miller & Associates, and opened an office in Kingston. Last fall, she curtailed her practice somewhat and moved it back to her home in Verona.

“This is what my husband calls my retirement,” she said, although her practice remains busy.

She has also put her experiences into book form in the hope that readers will benefit from some of her experiences. She knows all about judgement and suffering because the source of much of her insight into treatment is based on her own experiences as a patient.

“Dear George”, the book that Miller is releasing this month, is based on a series of letters that she wrote to her own therapist over a period of time. It is also a primer for patients, written from the point of view of someone who has seen the patient’s and therapist’s side of the coin, about how to choose and work with a health care professional.

As she writes in the introduction to Dear George: “In a case where a consultation has been arranged, it's still possible to meet the person for the first appointment and decide if this relationship will be helpful to you or not. You can offer choice as well. After all, some experts may be just as surprised to see you as you are to see them. In some systems, people get the next available person instead of the best fit.”

This concept of developing a dynamic relationship between a patient and any kind of health care professional is at the core of the work that Miller has done through her counselling practice and that is why she set up Dear George as a set of letters and responses.

“I want to write a book that is easy to read, and provide people with a way to move forward. Some people who have read it have told me it got them thinking about things they never even knew they were concerned about. That, to me, is a good reaction,” said Jan Miller.

“Dear George” will have its official launch at Physiotherapy Kingston at 1459 Princess Street on Saturday, June 8, between 1 and 4 pm. There will be short readings at 2 and 3 pm. Book signings are also scheduled for the Harrowmith Tiffany Gift Shop on Wednesday, June 12 from 7-9 pm and the Chapters store in Kingston on June 15, from 12-3 pm. The book is available in soft cover at Nicole’s Gifts in Verona, the Tiffany Gift Store, and Chapters and Novel Idea in Kingston; through Amazon.ca and an e-book version is available as well. 

Published in SOUTH FRONTENAC
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With the participation of the Government of Canada