Summer Fiction from MG Authors

School's out, and there's so much to do. Will part of that exploring be with books?

Through young eyes, middle-grade books explore the future, the past, and now, how people survive difficulties and mistakes, and what makes the world, people, bugs, animals, and machines tick.

I've been looking for authors writing fiction similar to mine. Most of what I've read is by Canadian authors whose middle-grade works were available at the Halifax Public Library. Some are available as eBooks, and a few as audiobooks. Here is the first group; watch for more mid-summer.

My newsletter includes links to indie giveaways for similar but new books.

Secrets of Sable Island

by Marcia Pierce Harding (Boy & Girl Adventure, Historical Fiction; Setting Sable Island, NS, Canada; 2018, Nimbus Publishing, 202 pages, including a half-dozen illustrations; also available on Amazon)

I'm not quite through this book yet, but I've enjoyed discovering what might have happened on this remote sandbar island, circa 1900.

Sable Island is a large sand crescent off Canada's east coast, referred to by many as the Graveyard of the Atlantic. For centuries, ships have crashed there, with the rise from the ocean invisible during storms.

Surrounded and containing hundreds of wrecks, a small community lived there, their role being to man the lighthouses and rescue the crews. Their sinking houses sit amid the famous wild horses and sea creatures.

I found the opening chapters confusing. This was not caused by the writing per se. The blurb and cover mention ghosts, suggesting two time frames. When the chapters alternated between the marooned fourteen-year-old Caleb's and the wild child Marin's stories, I was unsure whether they were set in the same period. As that may be intentional, I won't tell you!

I'm looking forward to the last forty pages to hear the resolution of Caleb and Marin's struggle to stay on the island, preserve the wild horses, and Marin's discovery of the real story behind the misery in her home.

How is this story like mine?

This story is built around real tales of a real place in the early twentieth century. The children develop strong friendships and are concerned about nature and the people around them.

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Next, let's hop to modern day and to the Pacific coast.

Adventure on Whalebone Island

by M.A. Wilson

(Boy & Girl Cousin Adventure, Contemporary, Fiction; Setting, Rainy Bay, BC, Canada; 2016, Rainy Bay Press, 180 pages, several illustrations; first of a four-book series; also available on Amazon)

This series of four books is similar in style to Arthur Ransome's Swallows and Amazons, but with more villains in addition to the pirate-like frienemies.

In this first of the series, the four cousins get together on Canada's west coast for two weeks in the summer. After minor setbacks trip up their visit together, an overnight camping trip to Whalebone Island turns dangerous when an old mineshaft collapses.

I found the story engaging. The structure is targeted at younger readers, recommended for children aged 7 to 11.

How is this story like mine? In this story, the children are in a remote home, with a short trip to a tourist town with a great history. Much of the drama centres on getting along and learning new things. As in the book above, the environment and nature are topics the children discuss and explore.

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Over the pond we go ...

The Mystery of Black Hollow Lane

by Julia Nobel

(Girl with a small "Scooby Gang", Dark Academia, Mystery; Setting is a private school in Wellsworth, England; 2020, Sourcebooks, 320 pages; first of a two-book series; also available on Amazon)

Yes, this is a Canadian author, but set overseas. (That's how Canadian authors sell books--set their stories in the large markets of the US or UK.)

Though I was less smitten with the second in the series--though it had a great twist at the end-- this book was great fun. Of particular relevance right now, Emmy and Lola are soccer/football players.

After failing to succeed at a series of American schools, Emmy is sent to her late father's old school.

Coming from the United States, Emmy is far behind in her studies, so her mother doesn't allow her to play. But what will her mother know when she is jetting across the globe?

And weird things happen. There are symbols on the school walls that also appear on a hidden cache of coins left over by her father in their old home. The Latin Society doesn't teach Latin. Does the school have something to do with her father's disappearance?

Emmy and her friends are great fun. Having changed schools at her age, I empathized with her academic challenges... not with her ball skills, though!

How is this story like mine?

So far, I've managed to avoid the time spent going to school. We share an active, clever, warm-hearted hero whose world is changing around her and challenging her ego and tolerance.

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Back to the original peoples of Canada.

The Barren Grounds by David. A Robertson

(Indigenous siblings and fantastical creatures, Contemporary Fantasy, Indigenous Fiction; Setting is an alternate wilderness, connected to Canada's west; 2020, Tundra Books, 256 pages; part one of the six-part Misewa Saga; also available on Amazon)

In the same pattern as the Narnia Series, two Indigenous children in foster care find a portal to another reality. There, a white man has taken all, causing ongoing winter and starvation.

Despite resistance from the inhabitants who don't trust the human children, Morgan and Eli are sent to help their hunter and a sassy squirrel on a dangerous mission to chase away winter, which will freeze everything, including them.

How is this story like mine?

Indigenous spirits and a concern for the environment are strong, but because it is written by an Indigenous author, the results of colonization are explored more deeply and felt keenly.

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In a full circle, we're back to Nova Scotia ...

The Hermit

by Jan L. Coates

(Two Boy Adventure, Contemporary Fiction based on a true story; Setting is Nova Scotia, Canada; 2020, Nimbus Publishing, 160 pages; also available on Amazon)

Eleven-year-old Danny's summer is interrupted by a developer who decides to build on the new and best soccer pitch that he and his friends had worked hard to fund.

While escaping that annoyance, he and his friend discover a grumpy man living in a log cabin deep in the woods. Though told by his parents to stay away, Danny's curiousity brings him back over and over to investigate the old man who doesn't want him around.

How is this story like mine?

An interrupted summer, environmentalism, and concerns about how others are treating the community are common themes. It's also loosely based on real events, like my first two summer books. It's also written first person, like mine.

I hope you and the children in your life find a cozy corner this summer to explore the world in the safety and joy of books.

Please include mine in your planning, or help others find them by leaving short reviews about what you liked!