Description
Winner of the IODE National Chapter Award, and a Horn Book Fanfare Top Ten List selection
In this brillant and poetic novel, Brian Doyle returns to the Gatineau River near Ottawa, the world of his novels Up to Low and Uncle Ronald.
Mary Ann Alice McCrank was named for the pretty church bell in the steeple of St. Martin's Church in the Martindale. She has the soul of a poet and Mickey McGuire Jr. is in love with her. Mary Ann Alice is passionately interested in many things, especially the geology of her part of the world. Her teacher, the wonderful Patchy Drizzle, shares her passion for rocks and fossils, many of which can be found along the river and in caves under the famous Paugan Falls.
But a new project to dam the river at Low places rocks, fossils, falls as well as many farms in danger. The dam must go ahead. And, as with much technological change, it brings both benefits and tragedies to the community.
Author Bio
Prizes
- Leishman PrizeWinner 2002
- Horn Book Fanfare Top Ten ListCommended 2003
- IODE National Chapter AwardWinner 2002
- Geoffrey Bilson Award for Historical Fiction for Young PeopleLong-listed 2002
- Focus Magazine's The "Best 7 Books for April"Commended 2004
- Ruth Schwartz AwardLong-listed 2002
- Mr. Christie's Silver Seal AwardLong-listed 2002
- Sask. Book Awards - Children's LiteratureShort-listed 2002
- Governor General's Literary Awards: TextShort-listed 2001
- Riverbank Review Children's Books w/ DistinctionWinner 2003
Review Quotes
