Gabe's Christmas Wish by Katrina Doucet

  

 A heartwarming story, endearing characters and cozy scenes make this children’s book a unique read.

 Gabe lost his loving parents. This is his first Christmas Eve without them. He misses them and makes a wish as he contemplates his snow globe, the last gift from his parents.

 The mysterious snow globe will carry him into an intriguing adventure.

Gabe’s Christmas Wish creates a safe space to acknowledge and accept the emotions and feelings of grief, while empowering children to stay hopeful.

 I marveled at the illustrations by Natasha Pelley-Smith, for they transport our minds to imaginary places of peace and solace.

 With so many lives lost to war, COVID, extreme weather events across the world, shootings and other social ailments, we need resources to support children through their grief.

 Exquisite words, delicate illustrations and a message of hope will help children to allay their stress. The book will remind them they are not alone in their plight.

Gabe’s Christmas Wish is a warm refuge for kids, an invitation to travel with the imagination and dream; it will be comforting to people of all ages who lost loved ones. It may help children to come to terms with the emptiness that cannot be erased or ignored, but can only be filled with love.

 I thank Katrina Doucet for kindly sending me a copy of her precious book, which will be released in August 2022.

You can visit her website here.

Unlikely Heroes by Jennifer Holland

 

“Hope is the thing with feathers

That perches in the soul,

And sings the tune without the words,

And never stops at all.”

Emily Dickinson

 If you hear a person using the word “parrot” in a negative way, be prepared to share the story of Willie, the parrot who helped save a toddler’s life. Meagan, her babysitter, had been in the bathroom for only thirty seconds when she heard Willie’s frantic calls:

 “Mama!  Baby!”

 

 He kept repeating the same words. Meagan dashed out of the bathroom immediately and found Hannah choking on her favorite treat. Her face and lips were blue. Meagan performed the Heimlich maneuver on Hannah and saved her life. 

Willie had never used those two words together, but in this specific situation he did and made an unforgettable difference in many peoples’ lives.

 Unlikely Heroes by Jennifer Holland shares true stories of animals who saved both human and non-human lives with no expectation of rewards. They just do it because saving somebody’s life feels right, and in doing so, they demonstrate that being kind and caring has nothing to do with wearing any sort of badge.

 There are also cases of animals able to sense a cancer diagnosis or some other ominous medical condition that had been overlooked. There are animals rescuing other animals. For example, an elk saved a marmot from drowning; a seal did the same for a dog drowning in a river. No rewards were given for those deeds.

 

 These true stories flooded me with smiles and tears. It is the kind of book I love to read before going to bed at night because it brightens my mood and paves the way to a wonderful night sleep.

The heroes and heroines are various animals, including several dogs, cats, rats, horses, cows, dolphins, goats, a hippo, gorillas, a camel, a llama and many others. Dive into this wonderful read and surprise yourself.

 

Another positive aspect of Unlikely Heroes is that I learned a lot. With every anecdote Jennifer Holland adds curious facts about the animals involved. It awakens our interest in the natural world and has the potential to inspire us to become more mindful of our actions and the impact they have.

 

 There is a chapter about cranes. Did you know that cranes enjoy dancing? It is true that dancing plays a role in mating, but they also dance for fun. Dancing has several benefits; it relieves stress and supports communication and cognition, to mention just a few.

  The Whooping Crane is the tallest North American bird. It is an endangered keystone species due to habitat loss and hunting. 

 Some states in the United States of America still allow the hunting of cranes. If you don’t know the meaning of “keystone” species I invite you to look it up, and hopefully, you will be encouraged to spread the word on the need to protect them.

 The International Crane Foundation is doing an incredible job of protecting and supporting the survival of Whooping Cranes with the help of the Sandhill Cranes. If you visit Wisconsin, don’t miss the chance to visit their site. It teems with prairies and wildflowers, and there are glorious trails to soothe your mind and recharge your spirit.

 This delightful place is ideal to spend time with family and friends.

 

The educational material is engaging and fascinating, and you will create special memories that will last a lifetime.

  Artworks at this exhibition will uplift you and boost your zest for life. This painting is by Melanie Hava, an Australian Aboriginal artist.

 

 Hunters in Wisconsin are not allowed to kill Whooping Cranes, but they sometimes slaughter them by accident. The fact is that hunting causes stress and suffering in all the animals of a community.

 If somebody started shooting your neighborhood, you would be terrified. The same happens to animals when hunters attack. Hunting causes stress and suffering in ALL the animals, not just the ones that are targeted.

  It takes empathy to understand it, and empathy is a kind of intelligence.

 It is strange to me that so much is spent on seeking life in other planets, when we cannot come together to understand,  respect and protect life in our own planet.

The only thing I do not like about Unlikely Heroes is the title.

 Who are we to determine who is an “unlikely” hero?

As you know, words play a role in perpetuating biases, misconceptions and prejudices.

I think the book should have a fair honest title instead:

      “Heroes and Heroines”

        We can do better.

 

 

 

Airy Nothing by Clarissa Pattern

 

“To unpathed waters, undreamed shores.”

-William Shakespeare

 After enduring hate, bullying and abuse, John headed to London, seeking a life of peace. However, London was not the place he had expected. The city was ravaged by violence, disease, and poor sanitary conditions. Set in the 1600s, Airy Nothing  is a magical fictional story that narrates the experiences of John in his quest for peace and a trade that would enable him to make a living.

  John was gentle, naïve and honest.  After losing his mother and sister, he was confused and sad; he had been falsely accused of being responsible for their death in his small village, where rumors spread like wildfire. John had always found relief and reassurance in his only friend, an imaginary being: a hobglobin.

John left his village behind in search of safety, scrambling to extricate himself from the trauma of being abused and bullied for so long.

 “With every step he took, this new world grew, and his old village seemed to shrink away, until soon it would be no more than a tiny speck. Would it vanish altogether? Could it?”

  In London he met Black Jack, a streetwise guy who endeavored to protect him and help him settle; they both found strength in each other’s company.

 John had strived to mold his own identity in a world that had always made him feel like an outcast.

 When he came across Shakespeare’s Globe Theatre, he was mesmerized. Confidence in his possible role as an actor flickered in his soul as he considered the possibility of having a vocation that would lead him to a new path. Black Jack would support him through every ordeal.  They became inseparable.

“Every second they’d lived, all their dreams remembered and forgotten, every thought they’d ever had, entwined into a tapestry that only faerie eyes could see. John’s fears disappeared under the weaving of Jack’s confidence; the darkest of Jack’s thoughts were decorated with sparkles from John’s magic.”

 Clarissa Pattern’s unique style of writing captures the imagination. The scenes are charged with engaging conflicts, vivid imagery and intriguing characters, and I appreciate the insights and gems of wisdom I came across in their conversations. After the story, the author provides references related to the sources of the quotes used in Airy Nothing.

 This magical YA historical fiction novel also reveals various aspects of gender discrimination, an issue that continues to exist today.

  The author takes us on a journey to Shakespearean London with the grit of somebody who wants to follow a dream.

  Would the theatre encourage John to unleash his authentic self?

 Airy Nothing is a story of friendship, love and perseverance through hard times. I highly recommend it. It is the kind of unconventional book that deserves a second read. I thank the author for kindly sending me a copy of Airy Nothing.

 Clarissa Pattern studied English language and literature at the University of Oxford and has lived in the Oxfordshire area ever since. She has been writing ever since she could hold crayons and scribble across the wallpaper. Aside from writing, she spends as much time with her kids as they’ll put up with, ignores almost all the housework, and has an ever increasing list of books she’s frantic to read. Her stories have been published in various anthologies over the years, and in August 2021 she released Airy Nothing. This is her first novel.