IN THE NEWFOUNDLAND AND LABRADOR COLLECTION Spring 2020
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Brigus: Past Glory, Present Splendor by John Northway Leamon
This is a comprehensive history of Brigus, a small fishing community located in Conception Bay, which dates back to around 1612, when John Guy sold half of the harbour to the Sprack- lin family. Located in a sheltered bay, Brigus has been home to many fishermen and was a strategic location in early times. Seafaring, fishing, shipbuilding, sealing, and Arctic exploration were among the primary occupations of the residents of Brigus during the seventeenth, eight- eenth, and nineteenth centuries. Brigus was home to the world-famous Captain Robert “Bob” Abram Bartlett and is the location of his residence, Hawthorne Cottage, now a National Histor- ic Site of Canada. There were many other “Arctic Heroes” who came from this historic town, including Captain William Munden, who built the schooner Four Brothers, the first 100-ton schooner in Newfoundland, in 1819. This book is the result of a deep personal commitment on the part of the author and the kind- ness of many who allowed insight into certain, often pertinent facts relating to their own family history.
Publisher: Flanker Press Pub Date: 2019 Also available as an ebook.
Death in Number Two Shaft: The Underwater Exploration of Newfoundland’s Bell Island Mine by Steve Lewis In 2007, one of a team of expert cave divers died in strange circumstances while explor- ing Bell Island's flooded Iron-ore Mine. Joe Steffen's death was a terrible shock for his team- mates and an unexpected and unwelcome tragedy for his friends and family. Although the expedition continued until its scheduled conclusion, and successfully placed two kilometres of permanent guideline in the mine's network of passageways and galleries, Steffen's death closed the mine to further exploration and the possibility of guided dives for almost a decade. In his new book, best-selling author Steve Lewis tells the story of Steffen's death and its aftermath, from his perspective as expedition leader and Steffen's roommate during their time together in Newfoundland. He writes honestly about the profound effect his friend's death had on him, how it wove itself into his life - both underwater and above - until finally, somewhere on the road to Spain's Santiago de Compostela, how he rid himself of the heartache and guilt associated with it. He says: "I needed to write this book because it turns out the story of Bell Island is more important than four shipwrecks, several square kilometres of flooded mine, and a dead friend. What started out as one local man's quest to put Bell Island on every diver's bucket list, became much more complex than anyone - certainly any of the people involved in that quest - would have guessed.
Publisher: Techdiver Publishing Pub Date: 2018 Also available as an ebook.
The Earth is Flat!: An Exposé of the Globularist Hoax by Leo Charles Ferrari
David Eso and Kay Burns’s edition of philosopher Leo Ferrari’s previously unpublished 1973 manuscript brings to light a long forgotten satirical work, which, in an age of fake news, pos- sesses renewed relevance. The editors contextualize The Earth is Flat! for the reader with a scholarly introduction and a humorous “Forewarning.” Author Leo Ferrari draws on his exten- sive knowledge of classical thought and its key figures to present a history of ideas that is sometimes accurate, sometimes speculative. Speculative or alternative aspects of this history support his Flat Earth theme, as do a number of scientific experiments outlined, which the reader is encouraged to try. He traces the conflict between “Globularist” and “Planoterrestrial” beliefs from antiquity to his contemporary moment of the early 1970s, marked by space explo- ration. Later chapters chart the activities and philosophies of the Flat Earth Society of Canada, including Ferrari’s experience on the lecture circuit and in media platforms. The author’s meth- od is to blur the line between seriousness and humour and to show that intellectual work can also be good fun. He uses the idea of a spinning, spherical planet to symbolically represent the alienating effects of technological modernity. Publisher: ISER Books Pub Date: 2019 [2]
For the Grace of Joe by Vicki Morgan
For the Grace of Joe follows the journey of one family through the discovery, diagnosis and loss of a baby who had Trisomy 13 and the ensuing mental health challenges that grief can throw at a parent. It is a story of fighting against a medical industry that pushes for termination and non-invasive prenatal testing like the MaterniT21 that looks to diagnose before you even hear the heartbeat. This book was written for families who are where we were. You are not alone.
Publisher: MPower Pub Date: 2018
A Future for the Fishery: Crisis and Renewal in Canada’s Neglected Fishing Industry by Rick Williams Contrary to popular belief, Canadian fisheries industries are not dead. Key stocks are stable or rebuilding, most commercial fisheries are now managed at sustainable catch levels, and glob- al demand for seafood is booming. But a significant challenge exists: to attract and retain enough young people to crew vessels and take over fishing enterprises from retiring baby boomers. In A Future for the Fishery, author Rick Williams, research director for the Ca- nadian Council of Professional Fish Harvesters and former professor of social policy, exam- ines the reality of the fishery as a dynamic economic sector in rural-coastal regions across Canada--regions that desperately need renewal. This timely read alerts industry and govern- ment decision-makers to a looming demographic crisis in the fisheries workforce and explores strategies to attract and retain new labour supply. It also shares the perspectives and experi- ences of fish harvesters themselves--the people with the most at stake in this rapidly chang- ing industry. Features illustrative charts and data tables and a foreword from award-winning author Donald Savoie. Publisher: Nimbus Publishing Pub Date: 2019
Island Vegan by Marian Frances White
In Island Vegan, Newfoundland’s original trailblazing vegan chef, Marian Frances White, returns with over 100 beautiful and utterly mouthwatering plant-based recipes. Using readily available ingredients with a blend of local and international flavours, Marian provides every- thing you need, whether you’re a committed vegan or just starting out. Here you’ll find soups, salads, sauces, smoothies, pastries, pancakes, main dishes, delectable desserts, and much more. And there are full-colour photographs to help you create the perfect setting. The culmination of over forty years of exquisite, tried-and-tested vegan cooking, every recipe in Island Vegan is health conscious, environmentally sound, and absolutely delicious!
Publisher: Breakwater Books Pub Date: 2019 Also available as an ebook.
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Isobel Millen: Adventures of a Grenfell Teacher by Jan Redford
In 1915, Isobel Millen, a 21-year-old socialite from Westmount, Quebec, set off to teach school for the Grenfell Mission in the tiny community of L' Anse au Loup, Labrador. Isobel not only taught twenty-two students of all ages with no teacher training whatsoever, she was also tasked with pulling and temporarily filling teeth and administering first aid. In her beautiful cur- sive, she documented her adventures in a very detailed journal: meeting the famous Dr. Wilfred Grenfell for the first time; diving off the SS Strathcona into the Atlantic; climbing the fifty-foot flag pole on a dare at the Point Amour Lighthouse; reveling in boating through stormy seas, the bigger the waves the better. In her photos, which she developed her- self, Isobel captured the beauty and isolation of Labrador and left us with never-before-seen images of the people of Labrador, whose descendants still live in L' Anse au Loup today. Over a hundred years later, Jan Redford, an author herself, discovered her grandmother's journal, transcribed it and compiled the photos to posthumously actualize Isobel's big dream of be- coming a writer. Though the Grenfell Mission is credited with bringing health care, education and self-reliance to the isolated, poverty-stricken communities of Labrador and Newfoundland, it is also criticized for a moral superiority underlying the need to "save" the people and force a different culture on them. This attitude is prevalent in Isobel's writing, and the reader may cringe at times with her politically incorrect judgements. She is easily forgiven, however, be- cause her curiosity, passion and deep love of the land and people surpass her snobbishness. Her voice is lively, funny and introspective, and at the same time, naive, uncertain and full of yearning. She was a most unconventional woman with wild, "unladylike" dreams who threw herself wholeheartedly into her adventures at a time when it was expected she would marry and settle down. Isobel Millen’s journal and photos provide invaluable glimpses into the daily life of the inhabitants of a tiny community in historical Labrador, into the Internation- al Grenfell Association and Dr. Wilfred Grenfell himself, and also into the life of one very unu- sual woman, who defied the conventions of her time to strike out on an adventure of a lifetime.
Publisher: Self-published Pub Date: 2019
Tales from the Past and Other Drivel by Wilbur Dean
Wilbur Dean's tales of growing up in outport Newfoundland will bring fond remembrances to your mind, joy to your heart, and a smile to your face. This collection of poetry and prose is filled with truths as he remembers them, tributes to the people and places that meant so much to him, and triction - mostly truth with a little fiction thrown in - that will leave you wondering which parts are true and which parts are a figment of his imagination.
Publisher: Pub Date: 2018
Things That Forever Linger in Your Mind By Vernon Petten
Things That Forever Linger in your Mind is a book of memoirs by long time fisherman and master boat builder Vernon Petten of Port de Grave.
Publisher: Self-published Pub Date: 20-?
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Where Once They Sailed: Stories of Our Boys Who Served in the Newfoundland Royal Naval Reserve by Lester Green Stories of the boys of Southwest Arm who served with the Newfoundland Royal Naval Reserve in the First World War. Stories of mystery, intrigue and supreme sacrifices that remind us of a dark, troublesome time in our history.
Publisher: DRC Publishing Pub Date: 2019
I Am a Body of Land by Shannon Webb-Campbell
If poetry is a place to question, I Am a Body of Land is an attempt to explore a relationship to poetic responsibility and accountability, and frame poetry as a form of re-visioning. Here Webb -Campbell revisits the text of her earlier work Who Took My Sister? to examine her self, her place and her own poetic strategies. These poems are efforts to decolonize, unlearn, and un- do harm. Reconsidering individual poems and letters, Webb-Campbell's confessional writing circles back, and challenges what it means ask questions of her own settler-Indigenous identi- ty, belonging, and attempts to cry out for community, and call in with love. Edited for the press, and with an introduction by Lee Maracle; includes an afterword by the author. Publisher: Book*hug Press Pub Date: 2019
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After Dark Vapours by Brad Dunne
Growing up without his father, Tyler had no way of knowing the horrible secret that has plagued his family for generations. To free himself and find the cure, he will have to look be- yond himself and into his dark history. As a twenty-something ne'er do well, Tyler is stuck in a rut. He works a dead-end job, gets high, and plays video games. The only bright spot in his life, his girlfriend Julie, is about to leave Newfoundland (and, by extension, Tyler) for law school. She knows that he's a smart, talented guy, but he's held back by familial trauma he refuses to confront. Then the family curse, and the full moon, transforms Tyler into a werewolf, a fearsome beast with no memory of its humanity, driven by the call of the hunt. It's only by diving into his past and exploring his family's history that Tyler has a hope of finding a cure. It is a journey that will take him north to Labrador and face to face with the terrible legacy of resi- dential schools. To make amends for a crime and appease an offended god, Tyler must choose between making a great sacrifice or living the rest of his life as a monster.
Publisher: Engen Books Pub Date: 2018
Chillers from the Rock edited by Erin Vance and Ellen Curtis
Twenty-five short stories written by a diverse mix of some of the best suspense and horror authors in Atlantic Canada, including award-winners, veterans of their craft, and brand new talent. Edited by Erin Vance and accomplished genre author Ellen Curtis, this collection fea- tures the thrilling, creatively charged, astonishing fiction that showcases the talent, imagina- tion, and prestige that Atlantic Canada has to offer. Featuring the work of Paul Carberry, Kel- ley Power, Matthew LeDrew, Ali House and introduction by Dale Gilbert and much more.
Publisher: Engen Books Pub Date: 2018
Dystopia from the Rock edited by Erin Vance and Ellen Curtis
What happens when our world -- and everything in it -- goes wrong? Explore that question in thirty-two short stories written by a diverse mix of the best authors in Canada, including award-winning veterans of their craft, and brand new talent. Featuring the work of Jed MacKay, Ali House, Jon Dobbin and more.
Publisher: Engen Books Pub Date: 2019
The Fugitive and the Vanishing Man by Rod Duncan
Fugitive conjuror, Elizabeth Barnabus, escapes to the wilds seeking her lost family. There she discovers an army preparing for war. In a land where politics and prophecy are intertwined, the fate of an empire may come to rest on the perfect execution of a conjuring trick.
Book 3 in the Map of Unknown Things series.
Publisher: Angry Robot Pub Date: 2020
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Murder at Blackhead by MK Staple
Set in WWII, Murder at Blackhead is the story of local girl Isabel, who is duped into mar- rying a German spy. His intent is to disrupt the supply line between North America and Europe during the War. The book details the Nazi involvement in the Knights of Columbus fire in St. John’s, Newfoundland in December 1942, Many American, Canadian, and British servicemen lost their lives in the fire. It’s a novel of espionage, murder,
Publisher: DRC Publishing Pub Date: 2019
Zombies on the Rock Book Two: Viking Trail By Paul Carberry
Zombie hordes created by the evil Pharmakon company have taken over the world, including the one place that always thought it was safe from the calamities of the outside: the quiet, sce- nic shores of Newfoundland's west coast. In this horrifying second volume, the island survi- vors of the zombie massacres believe they are safe, settled away in a cabin far off the grid: but nothing can stop the spread of the undead as the zombies make their way to the histor- ic Viking Trail, where even more terror awaits...
Publisher: Engen Books Pub Date: 2017
Zombies on the Rock Book Three: The Republic of Newfoundland By Paul Carberry
The Zombie hordes created by the evil Pharmakon company have taken over the entire world, leaving only small pockets of human civilization remaining. One such pocket is the quiet island of Newfoundland: previously thought to be an unlikely place from which to build a republic, but ideal in its solitude and remoteness for fending off the increasingly agile Pharmakon Zombies. In this gore-filled third volume, Eric and Dana must find a way to protect their small picket of human resistance from the unstoppable waves of the undead to make their small island the new Republic of Newfoundland.
Publisher: Engen Books Pub Date: 2019
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Feral Fred Finds a Family by Jan Erik Williams
Fred lived in a landfill, it was a real dump. His human family left him and he didn't know why. Life became hard for Fred; he was now feral. This meant many things for Fred. A true story about Fred, one of the thousands of cats and kittens that are abandoned and needing homes each year.
Publisher: Pub Date: 2019
The Mystery of the Portuguese Waltzes by Richard Simas
Tamara is struggling to find the confidence to play her accordion in front of an audience. She learns the tunes well enough, and can play them when she's alone--but as soon as she tries to perform for others, everything falls apart. One day her father encourages her to try playing for an elderly man in the seniors' home where her grandmother lives. This man is Art Stoyles, a legendary accordion player in her hometown of St. John's, who is best known for a beautiful set of tunes called "The Portuguese Waltzes." Inspired by Stoyles, and by the stories of his musical friendship years before with a sea captain who fished the Grand Banks with the Portuguese White Fleet, Tamara gains the confidence she needs to perform. With illustrations by Caroline Clarke. Publisher: Running the Goat Pub Date: 2019 Books and Broadsides
Nutaui’s Cap=Nataui utakunishkueun By Bob Bartel
When low-level flying by NATO jets upsets their way of life, Nanass, a young Innu girl, is eager to join her father and the other members of her Sheshatshiu community in protest. Then her father and other protesters are arrested. Nanass has little to comfort her, except her father's well-worn ball cap and the promise of the land itself that the Innu people will one day triumph. Bob Bartel participated in the efforts to stop those NATO flights; he learned Nanass's story from her aunt, and has Nanass's permission to tell it. Bartel por- trays with both power and subtlety the struggle as seen from a child's perspective.
Nutaui's Cap has been translated into two dialects of Innu-aimun, which appear along- side the English; it includes a glossary, map, and backgrounder to tell more of the In- nu's story.
Publisher: Running the Goat Pub Date: 2019 Books and Broadsides
Secret of the Fairy Ring by Patrick J. Collins
The year is 1918 and Grace Pike is 11. A precocious outcast at prestigious Victoria Street School in Harbour Grace, she is severely challenged as a young adult reader. A difficult year of studies is made worse when her mother, a recent war widow, is faced with a proposition which could change the future of both the family and the town they call home. But when Grace encounters two visiting children at the Fairy Ring, a magical cluster of trees on an abandoned farm, everything changes. Now a star student, Grace must contend with the jealously and feverish smears of a community on the edge of irrevocable change, inflamed by the building of an aerodrome for the pioneer flight of the Handley Page Atlantic in 1919. What if her family’s newfound circumstances are too good to be true, if she and her mother have somehow made a deal with the devil? Does life rest on such mysterious fortunes? And for families and communities does fortune favour the brave? These are the tensions author Patrick J. Collins negotiates in The Secret of the Fairy Ring, a welcome departure melding fantasy with realism. Here is historical Newfoundland as you’ve never seen it before.
Publisher: DRC Publishing Pub Date: 2019
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