Making Connections

Follow the adventures of Chuck as he gets lost on his first trip to the big city. Chuck encounters stray dogs and alley cats, kids on skateboards and rollerblades, and tall office towers. After realizing he is lost, Chuck relies on what he has learned to find his way back to his kookum's (grandmother's) condo.

Chuck in the City is Jordan Wheeler's second book for children. The award-winning Cree author and scriptwriter previously introduced young readers to Chuck in Just a Walk. Wheeler writes in a rhyming style that will capture and hold a child's attention.

Series Information
This is the second book in the Chuck series.

Additional Information
32 pages | 8.00" x 8.00"

Feathers and Fools is an allegory about how wars can begin with a simple fear of others based on misconceptions. For some time the swans and peacocks have lived peacefully by a pond. One day the peacocks begin to contemplate the differences between themselves and their neighbours. This then leads to the fear that the swans may one day change the peacock's way of life. With this fear fully ingrained in their minds, they begin to build arms against their neighbours. "We shall hurl these arrows at their throats and slaughter everyone should they ever try to change our way of life."

Upon hearing this, the swans began to build arms against the peacocks in fear that they would be attacked. The fear grew as each group acquired more and more arms against each other. The peacocks soon mistook the action of a swan as an act of aggression and thus, a war began. "Soon cries filled the sir and blood darkened the earth." When all the feathers had settled, there were no birds to be found, both swans and peacocks had been destroyed.

Fox's antiwar story touches on a common issue many nations face and how humans handle the concept of war. As history has revealed, humans have begun wars oftentimes with very little knowledge of their opponents on the battlefield. The author artfully displays how mankind, although similar in many ways can decimate each other because of our lack of knowledge of the similarities amongst all groups. At the end of the story, Fox gives us a hopeful ending with the hatching of a lone peacock and a lone swan. These young birds meet and notice how similar they are and soon become friends. "So off they went together, in peace and unafraid, to face the day and share the world." Fox recognizes that present and future generations hold the keys to ending war.

The main characters, swans and peacocks are interchangeable with any nation, country, or people who have endured wars and their aftermaths. The book also emphasizes the importance of learning from history and not repeating it. Illustrator Nicholas Wiltons paintings bring out the beauty of the worlds of the peacock and swan. With acrylic jewel tone paints, he captures the beauty of the peacocks bright feathers and the swans graceful profile. As the story progresses, you can see the changes of the birds body language and actions helping bring emphasis on how the building toward war changes reactions and opinions of the two sides. The paintings were created to evoke the feeling of a folktale or fable with its aged looks and block style borders. Feathers and Fools is a wonderful book that could open the possibility for the discussion of topics such as war, the arms race, and similarities amongst people and their ways of lives. This book could be used at all levels for discussion.

Educator Information
This resource is also available in French: Plumes et prises de bec

Additional Information
36 pages | 11.00" x 8.50"

From the highly acclaimed team of Byrd Baylor and Peter Parnall comes the story of a girl who shares her love for desert life as she tells of treasured experiences like dancing in the wind on Dust Devil Day or sleeping outside on a hot summer night during The Time of the Falling Stars. Baylor's radiant prose-poem and Parnall's exquisite illustrations combine to create a joyous celebration of the human spirit.

Reviews
"With a text by Byrd Baylor and pictures by Peter Parnall, this delightful book will inspire you to create your own holidays. "Last year I gave myself one hundred and eight celebrations — besides the ones that they close school for," announces a young girl. She lives in the desert and just laughs when people suggest that she might get lonely. How could she get lonely when there are so many things around her that catch her attention and fill her with wonder?" - Frederic and Mary Ann Brussat, Spirituality Practice

Additional Information
32 pages | 8.00" x 10.00"