The Coming Storm

Recently, I had the opportunity to review a book for the Eden Mills Writers’ Festival. The Eden Mills Writers’ Festival “celebrates the power of words- whether written, spoken, or signed- to ignite our imaginations and reveal worlds and ideas beyond our experiences. ” While the festival’s programming has been moved online this year due to …

The Only Plane In The Sky

Recently, on the 19th anniversary of the 9/11 terrorist attacks, my dad wrote a review of a book called The Only Plane In The Sky, written by Garret M. Graff. This book tells an oral history of the events leading up to, during, and after September 11th, 2001, and draws from hundreds of transcripts of …

24 Days At Home: How My Family Is Trying To Survive The Coronavirus Outbreak

No doubt by now you’ve heard something about the global coronavirus(COVID-19) pandemic. At first you, like me, may have dismissed it as silly, something that people were overreacting about. But now, in the midst of the major sports leagues like the NHL postponing their seasons indefinitely, all of Italy being in lockdown, and COVID-19 deaths …

The Christmas Truce

A Canadian soldier in the trenches of World War One takes part in a historic Christmas event.

A Never Failing Spring In The Desert

Libraries are pretty great. You can borrow the latest books, magazines, and movies, attend lots of interesting programs and presentations, and have access to technology, among many other things. Most offer similar services, but vary quite differently in size, design, age, and location. This is a list of three cool lending libraries I’ve visited that …

The Forest of Reading: Red Maple

One of the best programs run by the Ontario Library Association is the Forest of Reading. Every year, the OLA selects 10 books written by Canadian authors for each school division(e.g Primary, Junior, Intermediate) to read. Then, once students have read all or most of the ten, they can vote for their favourite. When all …

The Halifax Explosion

December 6th is a somber day for my family. As well as it being the National Day of Remembrance and Action on Violence Against Women, it also marks the anniversary of a disaster that aligned the stars so we could be born- the Halifax Explosion. During the First World War, Halifax, Nova Scotia, became a …

Save Anne With An E!

I am sorry to have to interrupt my scheduled Red Maple post from my three-part Forest Of Reading Series, but this post that I am putting up today contains time-sensitive content. Recently, I have discovered that one of my favourite shows, Anne With An E, was cancelled. The show, which features Amybeth McNulty, Lucas Jade …

The Forest Of Reading: Silver Birch Fiction

One of the best programs run by the Ontario Library Association is the Forest of Reading. Every year, the OLA selects 10 books by Canadian authors for each school division(e.g Primary, Junior, Intermediate) to read. Then, once students have read all or most of the ten, they can vote for their favourites. When all of …

The RMS Titanic

It’s one of the most famous tales of all time. A ship is on its maiden voyage, carrying everyone from millionaires to immigrants. But a collision with an iceberg dooms the ship, and about 2/3 of the passengers and crew perish due to a lack of lifeboats. By now, some of you may have guessed …