Special Collections

When the Curtain Rises

Chloe McBride has some reservations about accepting her elderly great-aunts' invitation to spend part of the summer with them in Little Venice, but her initial reluctance is outweighed by her curiosity about the mysterious key that came with her aunts' note. She's also anxious to put the humiliating memory of a disastrous piano recital as far behind her as possible.

Chloe's great-aunts tell her the legend of her great-grandfather, Dante Magnus, an ambitious magician who vanished without a trace almost a century earlier, and Chloe begins to search for clues to his disappearance. When her investigations eventually lead her to a mysterious rosewood box, which has been hidden for almost a hundred years, Chloe's belief in the power of magic forces her to confront her own fears and ambitions.

Date Added: 05/25/2017

Exposure

Julie is tired of being tormented at school, tired of not fitting in and being the butt of jokes. When her brother brings home a camera with images of her chief tormentor in a compromising situation, she sees a way to level the playing field. When her attempt at turning the tables goes wrong, she is left even more on the outside and struggling to do the right thing. Also available in Spanish.

Date Added: 05/25/2017

Against the Boards

Peter has done it! He's made it onto an AAA Bantam team and is now playing hockey in Edmonton. But this shy boy from the Northwest Territories is having a hard time adjusting to city life, his new school, and host family.

Date Added: 05/25/2017

Delaying the Game

For the first time, Kaleigh is playing on an all-girls hockey team. Never a "girlygirl," she misses her former teammates, has trouble following the different rules of girls' hockey, and gets frustrated when her fellow players get distracted from their game. That is, until Shane comes along. Soon the attention of this older boy is taking up too much of her time, and Kaleigh finds herself unsure whether she can balance hockey, her friendships, and this new dating-life.

Date Added: 05/25/2017

Fighting for Gold

Canada is recognized as a leader in men's and women's hockey - but in 2006 Canada had yet to conquer the world of sledge hockey, the Paralympic version of ice hockey played by athletes with a physical disability in the lower part of the body.

Date Added: 05/25/2017

Interference

Josh has finally made it to an elite hockey team and is determined to play as well as his older brother, Matt. But Josh is so tired and sluggish at practice -- and so thirsty and hungry all the time -- he worries he'll be cut from the team. Little does everyone know, Josh's undiagnosed Type 1 diabetes is working against him -- and getting more serious by the day. Interference is a compelling novel about a determined young athlete struggling with many new challenges.

Date Added: 05/25/2017

Northern Star

It seems Peter Kuiksak's star just keeps rising. This young hockey hero from the Northwest Territories is the top player in his league, being pursued by agents, and becoming something of a celebrity. But being the centre of attention isn't all it is cracked up to be.

Date Added: 05/25/2017

Roughing

Fast-paced sports action novels that get kids reading. In this sequel to Interference, Josh is off to an elite hockey camp for the summer, where he shares a room with a talented player from the Northwest Territories named Peter Kuiksak. Peter is skilled enough to give Kevin, the star junior player, some serious competition, which creates trouble on and off the ice. In Roughing, differences and special challenges lead to some tough team dynamics that will take strength, understanding, and courage to overcome.

Date Added: 05/25/2017

Too Many Men

Sam is made first goalie on the Kanata Kings, but he feels insecure about his place on the team.

Date Added: 05/25/2017

Middle Row

Things have changed since Raedawn and Vince started going out and the racial boundaries in town have slipped a bit. But when Dune, who never took sides, disappears, Raedawn is determined to find out where he has gone—or what happened to him. Fighting against ignorance and hate, they track Dune down and find he is in more trouble than they thought and that nothing is black and white.

Date Added: 05/25/2017

Yellow Line

Vince lives in a small town, a town that is divided right down the middle. Indians on one side, Whites on the other. The unspoken rule has been there as long as Vince remembers and no one challenges it. But when Vince's friend Sherry starts seeing an Indian boy, Vince is outraged and determined to fight back -- until he notices Raedawn, a girl from the reserve. Trying to balance his community's prejudices with his shifting alliances, Vince is forced to take a stand, and see where his heart will lead him.

Date Added: 05/25/2017

Can Your Outfit Change the World?

What you choose to wear becomes part of your identity, but it doesn't affect just you. Your clothing sends a message to the world, whether you want it to or not! And often we don't know what that message really is. Can Your Outfit Change the World? looks at how and where clothes are made, how the people who make the clothes are treated and how the companies who sell the clothes affect the health of our planet. Armed with information, you can follow the book's guide to spending your fashion dollars in a responsible and eco-friendly way. Your outfits have more power than you might realize!

Date Added: 03/15/2018

Can Your Smartphone Change the World?

Can Your Smartphone Change the World? is a twenty-first-century guide for anyone who has access to a smartphone. This how-to manual looks at specific ways you can create social change through the tap of a screen. Filled with examples of successful hashtag campaigns, viral videos and new socially conscious apps, the book provides practical advice for using your smartphone as a tool for social justice. This is the first book in the PopActivism series. Can Your Outfit Change the World? comes out in spring 2018 and Can Your Conversations Change the World? in fall 2018.

Date Added: 03/15/2018

Sink or Swim

Dario Cavalito has his summer plans all mapped out: he's going to split his time between the basketball court and his Uncle Vinny's cafe, the "Via Granita," off Commercial Drive in a funky Vancouver neighborhood. His plans are derailed, however, when his mother tells him he' s going to summer camp--to a water sports camp, no less. Dario can barely do the dog paddle, so he's not exactly thrilled. When he finally gets tired of playing sick and hiding in the camp's infirmary, he finds he actually kind of likes the water. As the camp's sailing regatta approaches, he fights to overcome the last of his reluctance and to win big. Packed with action and humour, "Sink or Swim" is a story about a boy overcoming his fears and striving for his best performance.

Date Added: 05/25/2017

Manga Touch

Dana is excited about her school trip to Japan despite the fact that she is surrounded by the Melly Mob, "in-crowd" kids who make fun of her. Dana is certain she will be less of an outsider in Japan, home of manga and anime. But she soon discovers that it's just as difficult to fit in with a foreign culture as it is to fit in at school. And the only other manga fan that she meets refuses to talk to her. As Dana learns to meet people halfway and gains some friends in Japan, Melissa, leader of the Melly Mob, makes every effort to remind her that she's still an outsider.

Date Added: 05/25/2017

The Ballad of Knuckles McGraw

After eight-year-old Kevin Mason's mother abandons him, he takes refuge in his fantasy of becoming Knuckles McGraw, a tough cowboy roaming the plains on his legendary horse, Burlington Northern. But instead of riding the range, Kevin is stuck in a foster home with a pierced and tattooed teenager named Ice and a mute girl named Breezy. While he waits to be claimed by the father he barely remembers or the mother who left him a good-bye note in his lunchbox, Kevin (aka Knuckles McGraw) tries to communicate with Breezy, learns to get along with his bunkhouse-mate Ice, and discovers that memories can be as deceptive as family secrets.

Date Added: 05/25/2017

Meeting Miss 405

Life is hard enough for Tansy with her depressed mom away indefinitely and her dad making a mess of things at home. But then Dad sends her down the hall to a wrinkly old babysitter named Miss Stella, who Tansy hates on sight. Miss Stella has a unique perspective on life, to say the least, but with the help of her best friend Parveen, Tansy gradually learns to manage all the changes in her life and make unexpected new friends in the process.

Date Added: 05/25/2017

121 Express

The students of the 121 Express are infamous for bad behavior and Lucas knows his role on the bus will determine his social standing at his new school. Lucas is tired of being one of the nerds. When he attracts the negative attention of the cool troublemakers, he saves himself by teasing another kid. His ploy works and soon Lucas is right in the center of the mayhem on the bus. He loves his new found popularity, but when the fun and games push the bus driver to a nervous collapse and hospitalizes an elderly lady, Lucas begins to question his choices. This short novel is a high-interest, low-reading level book for middle-grade readers who are building reading skills, want a quick read or say they don’t like to read!

Date Added: 05/25/2017

All In

Todd Lerner's never been much of a student, but he's got plenty of street smarts and he's a mean poker player. Todd's always had a thing for Claire, the most beautiful girl in grade eleven -- but Claire likes nice things. If Todd wants to date her, he'll need cash and plenty of it. Soon, a weekly poker game turns into a costly and dangerous obsession, and Todd's luck begins to change. Inspired by true events, All In journeys into the high-stakes worlds of gambling, addiction, and fraud.

Date Added: 05/25/2017

Finding Elmo

Fifteen-year-old Tim loves his job at his dad's pet store, partly because he gets to spend time with his best friend, a black cockatoo named Elmo. But things at work have been tense since the store moved to a larger, more expensive location. To make extra money his father rents out the store's exotic birds for parties and Tim is furious at this exploitation of his friend. When Elmo is stolen from one of the parties, the police are unconcerned about the theft. Tim and his new human friend, Sapna, set out to find Elmo and discover that Elmo is more valuable than they'd ever imagined. This short novel is a high-interest, low-reading level book for middle-grade readers who are building reading skills, want a quick read or say they don’t like to read!

Date Added: 05/25/2017

Flip Turn

Victoria is a hard-working member of a Montreal swim team. Other swimmers are spurred on by their parents - but not hers. Her mother doesn't seem to be interested in much of anything these days.

Date Added: 05/25/2017

Home Invasion

Josh is less than thrilled that he has a new stepfather, and finds his personal habits and his personality irritating. When his mother leaves town, Josh is left to spend a week alone with Clay. Resenting his new living arrangements and his unorthodox home life, Josh finds himself drawn to the idea of a "regular" family and, on a whim, sneaks into a neighbor's house to see how others live. When another opportunity arises to be a fly on the wall, Josh takes it and finds himself becoming bolder. Considering it a harmless pastime, Josh continues entering people's houses, until he is witness to a violent home invasion. Josh must use all his courage to save himself and bring the home invader to justice.

Date Added: 05/25/2017

Junkyard Dog

Justin is fascinated with the aged guard dog at the corner store. He names it Smokey and sneaks the dog treats. Smokey belongs to a company that supplies working dogs to local businesses. Justin is thrilled to get a job working for Smokey's company, until he learns about the mistreatment of the animals. When Justin can't shake his suspicion that someone in the company is involved in a rash of thefts, he tries to quit. But Justin knows too much, and his boss won't let him go.

Date Added: 05/25/2017

The Middle of Everywhere

Noah Thorpe is spending the school term in Kangiqsualujjuaq, in Quebec's Far North, where his dad is an English teacher in the Inuit community. Noah's not too keen about living in the middle of nowhere, but getting away from Montréal has one big advantage: he gets a break from the bully at his old school. But Noah learns that problems have a way of following you—no matter how far you travel. To the Inuit kids, Noah is a qallunaaq—a southerner, someone ignorant of the customs of the North. Noah thinks the Inuit have a strange way of looking at the world, plus they eat raw meat and seal blubber. Most have never left the George River area—and it doesn't even have its own doctor, let alone a McDonald's. But Noah's views change when he goes winter camping and realizes he will have to learn a few lessons from his Inuit buddies if he wants to make it home.

Date Added: 05/25/2017

No More Pranks

Pete's pranks have gotten him in plenty of trouble, but they might be the only way to bring justice to a seaside town. Pete likes to play pranks. It doesn't matter what it is as long as it gets a laugh. When he impersonates his vice-principal on a radio call-in show, he goes too far and is suspended from school. Pete's parents send him to spend the summer working with his uncle, a whale-watching guide in a tourist town far from the city. When a whale is injured by a reckless tour guide, Pete struggles to save the animal. Then Pete has to pull the most important prank of his life to bring the guide to justice. The epub edition of this title is fully accessible.

Date Added: 05/25/2017