Canada

Materials from Canada

Migrant

Migrant farmers and their families represent an ever-growing body of laborers around the world. They are used as cheap labor but most of them are not allowed to settle down, integrate into their host countries and become citizens with full rights. This is, of course, devastating to their children.

Among these groups are the Mennonites from Mexico, who originally went to Mexico from Canada in the 1920s. They speak “Low German” and though many are poor, they are an important part of the Mexican farm community. Because of free trade and the fact that Mexican farmers cannot compete with highly subsidized US farmers, they have been forced to come back to Canada — as migrant workers — in order to survive. Anna is the child of Mennonites from Mexico, who have come north to harvest fruit and vegetables. Sometimes she feels like a bird, flying north in the spring and south in the fall, sometimes like a jackrabbit in an abandoned burrow, since her family occupies an empty farmhouse near the fields, sometimes like a kitten, as she shares a bed with her sisters. But above all Anna wonders what it would be like to be a tree rooted deeply in the earth, watching the seasons come and go, instead of being like a “feather in the wind.”

City Numbers

Joanne Schwartz and Matt Beam have discovered numbers in many different forms all over the city. They are on houses and apartment buildings, on store windows and doors, on trucks and garbage bins, on sidewalks and parking spots. They are printed, spray-painted, molded in plastic, chiseled in stone, stamped on vinyl, even torched into metal. We see these numbers, often unconsciously, every day, but the wonderful photographs in this book prompt us to look at them more closely, becoming aware and alive to the art, serendipity and variety that surround us.

When Apples Grew Noses and White Horses Flew

In these three imaginative stories, Jan Andrews introduces us to Quebec’s traditional folktale hero, Ti-Jean. He’s an endearing character who is both wise and foolish, and though he does find himself in hard situations (often of his own making), in the end, he somehow manages to do what needs to be done. In “Ti-Jean and the Princess of Tomboso” he eventually outwits a greedy princess; in “Ti-Jean the Marble Player” he gets the best of a pint-sized scoundrel; and in “How Ti-Jean Became a Fiddler” he turns the tables on a too-clever-for-her-own-good seigneur’s daughter, and finds true love in the process.

The Gingerbread Man Loose in the School

When a class leaves for recess, their just-baked Gingerbread Man is left behind. But he’s a smart cookie and heads out to find them. He’ll run, slide, skip, and (after a mishap with a soccer ball) limp as fast as he can because: “I can catch them! I’m their Gingerbread Man!” With help from the gym teacher, the nurse, the art teacher and even the principal, the Gingerbread Man does find his class, and he’s assured they’ll never leave him behind again.

Chickerella

When Chickerella’s new step mother and step sisters, Ovumelda and Cholestera, move in, life in the chicken coop takes a turn for the worst. Forced to cook and clean for her new family, Chickerella won’t even be able to attend the Fowl Ball, that is, until her Fairy Goosemother appears. The unusually stylish Chickerella dazzles the prince in her eggsquisite gown but at the stroke of midnight, she must race home before the spell is over. Will the prince ever be able to find his love? Only a glass egg remains a clue to her identity.

Something From Nothing

In this retelling of a traditional Jewish folktale, Joseph’s baby blanket is transformed into ever smaller items as he grows until there is nothing left–but then Joseph has an idea.

In The Days Of Sand And Stars

Take out your time telescope, wipe the dust and cobwebs from its lens, tilt it upwards, and find a twinkling speck of light. Now look behind it … way back, to the days of sand and stars. Here are the Midrash stories of famous women whose names you may know, but whose daily lives and human thoughts have been ignored for far too long. From Eve to Emzera, from Sarah to Rebecca, they are presented here with humor and affection as they face a new and changing world where miracles and customs shape their destiny. Midrash tales are what-if stories built around the grains of information the Bible offers, and author Marlee Pinsker excels as she imbues these legendary women with warmth and spirit.

Capturing Joy

Maud Lewis was born into a loving Nova Scotia family who accepted her physical limitations. When her parents died and she was forced to find her own way in the world, she married and set up a modest household in a small cabin. Despite the hardships she faced, she was able to find joy in her life, a joy that she expressed through her art. She painted canvases of animals, children, and her surroundings. Her art spilled over into everything from dust pans to the walls of her house. Maud Lewis died in 1970, but her wonderful, life-affirming art lives on and is treasured by people who understand and appreciate folk art all over the world.

Merci Mister Dash!

Mr. Dash may not have a pedigree (he can count five different breeds of dogs as family), but from his furry head to his wagging tail, he is a gentleman. His fine manners make him a perfect companion to Madame Croissant. Their life together is graceful and civilized, what with walks in the park, stamp-collecting, and a passion for flowers. But the well-ordered household is turned on its head whenever Madame Croissant’s granddaughter, Daphne, comes to visit. She’s as wild as Mr. Dash is courtly, and she makes the poor dog’s life miserable. But when she finds herself in real trouble, Mr. Dash proves that he is not only well-mannered but as brave as any knight.