Duty. Danger. Fear. Canada's past comes alive through the eyes of young men caught up in the danger, drama and excitement of defining historical events. Written by some of Canada's finest authors, I Am Canada is a new series that offers riveting action-packed stories sure to engage and inspire young readers. From the creators of the bestselling Dear Canada series, the I Am Canada books will include an images and documents section, map, glossary, historical notes and About the Author pages. The facts are vetted by some of Canada's best historians Prisoner of Dieppe By Hugh Brewster A young soldier's gritty account of "the bloodiest nine hours in Canadian military history"- the tragic Dieppe raid of WWII. Alistair "Allie" Morrison lets his friend Mackie talk him into enlisting for WWII, even though he's only 18. After months of endless training Allie is eager for battle. But his first action is not just any battle . . . it's the disastrous raid on the German-held port of Dieppe. Almost a thousand Canadian soldiers died that day. In the resulting chaotic evacuation, Allie and Mackie are captured as POWs and sent to Stalag VIIIB in Germany. Still shell-shocked from their fighting, the soldiers struggle to maintain their courage; and some, like Mackie, are determined to plot an escape and outwit their captors, at any cost.

    Duty. Danger. Fear. Canada's past comes alive through the eyes of young men caught up in the danger, drama and excitement of defining historical events. Written by some of Canada's finest authors, I Am Canada is a new series that offers riveting action-packed stories sure to engage and inspire young readers. From the creators of the bestselling Dear Canada series, the I Am Canada books will include an images and documents section, map, glossary, historical notes and About the Author pages. The facts are vetted by some of Canada's best historians Blood and Iron By Paul Yee The incredible sacrifices made by Chinese workers building the transcontinental railway are revealed in this powerful new novel. Heen's father and grandfather have brought their family in China to the brink of ruin by gambling away their earnings. To solve their money troubles, Heen and his father come to Canada to build the railroad - a decision plagued by challenges and desperation. The living conditions provided for workers are wretched and work on the railroad is excruciating. Transporting tons of gravel and working in tunnels about to be dynamited proves to be deadly for many of Heen's co-workers. The friction between the Chinese workers and the whites, who barely acknowledge these deaths, soon reaches a fevered pitch. Heen's chilling observations of the injustice and peril heaped upon the workers serve as an important testament to this dramatic era in Canadian history.

    The Fairfaxes are steeped in the military tradition, and don't approve of Jack's volunteering for the Royal Flying Corps. New-fangled flying machines are nothing to do with 'proper' warfare. Nevertheless, Jack takes to the skies in his Bleriot plane, and faces the skills of the German ace pilots over the Somme. When his best friend is shot down by one of them, he vows to avenge him.

    All they have is what they can carry with them — and their determination and courage — when they head north toward Canada. Along with other Loyalists they hope to start a new life in Québec, where there is land for those who have been loyal to the King. But the journey is treacherous, the winter bitterly cold, and the MacDonalds find it hard to survive. Even with the supplies from Britain, clearing the land to build their home is a struggle. . . But will they even survive to forge a new life in a new land?

    Caught up in his enthusiasm, she couldn't understand her parents' less-than-enthusiastic reaction. Now that her other brother, Jack, has also enlisted, she yearns for the safe return of both brothers. If only she had a friend that she could talk to about her feelings. . .

    The explosion levelled most of the city and sent shards of glass and burning debris flying for miles. It left thousands dead, blinded or homeless.Suddenly orphaned, Charlotte turns to her diary to help her cope with the events that killed her entire family — leaving her older brother, still fighting in the trenches of WWI, as her only surviving relative. This is an affecting story of loss and recovery, powerfully told by award-winning author Julie Lawson.

    Geneviève Aubuchon is born into an Abenaki tribe but is orphaned when another tribe destroys her village. She and her brother are taken to a convent in Québec.While Geneviève gradually adapts to her new life with the sisters, her older brother runs away to rejoin the Abenaki. Geneviève fears for his life when he joins the First Nations allies who are helping defend Québec against the British siege of the city and the attack on the Plains of Abraham. Author Maxine Trottier frequently participates in historical re-enactments. Her hobby has provided her with an opportunity to research and experience this key time in Canada's history.

    But Isobel's mother dies before they even cross the ocean, and other misfortunes seem to follow their every step. Isobel's family and the other Selkirk Settlers find themselves caught in the fur-trading rivalry between the Hudson's Bay Company and the North West Company. They cannot even start to build once they finally reach their destination. The harsh climate and escalating threats against the settlers make it impossible to start a new life. Only through perseverance and help from the local Cree band are Isobel and her family able to put down roots in the Red River Valley.

    But soon after they arrive in the land they hoped would welcome them, World War I is declared, and Ukrainians are considered “enemy aliens” — many of them sent away to internment camps. Anya must find a way to deal with the challenges in the land she now calls home.

    Mei-ling works after school, and her father holds down several jobs, in a frantic effort to come up with the head tax that will allow her mother and brother to come to Canada. They must have that money before the Exclusion Act bars any more Chinese from immigrating. Mei-ling cannot stop thinking about what will happen if they are unable to come up with the money to reunite their family?

    She misses her Grandma; she has run-ins with Cree girls; at her “white” school, everyone just stares; and everything she brought has been taken from her, including her name—she is now just a number. But worst of all, she has a fear. A fear of forgetting the things she treasures most: her Anishnabe language; the names of those she knew before; and her traditional customs. A fear of forgetting who she was.Her notebook is the one place she can record all of her worries, and heartbreaks, and memories. And maybe, just maybe there will be hope at the end of the tunnel.Drawing from her own experiences at Residential School, Ruby Slipperjack creates a brave, yet heartbreaking heroine in Violet, and lets young readers glimpse into an all-too important chapter in our nation’s history.

    He’s handsome, popular, wealthy, and surprisingly, single. Living the bachelor lifestyle with his widowed father, he’s never given much thought to romance. When an old school friend asks Eric to substitute teach for him on Prince Edward Island while he recuperates from an illness, Eric thinks, why not? He’s got some time to kill before diving into the family business with his father, and the rustic island may be a good diversion for him.Eric falls into the easy routine of island life, and his status as eligible bachelor endears him to the locals. Eric is still not thinking of romance, but he’s about to find it in a most unexpected place…Kilmeny Gordon is sweet and smart and beautiful, perfect in every way but one: she can’t speak. She’s been sheltered all her life due to her disability and the scandal surrounding her birth. She wiles away her hours helping her aunt and uncle on the farm and playing her violin in her favorite secluded spot. When Eric stumbles into her hidden orchard, he brings a whole new world with him, and a friendship that both frightens her and thrills her. As the summer days grow longer and their friendship blossoms, sweet, silent Kilmeny, with her sunny enthusiasm and haunting music, manages to do what neither the co-eds of Queenslea College nor the village lasses of Lindsay have been able to do—capture Eric’s heart.But Kilmeny knows he’ll soon have to go back to his life on the mainland, a world of business meetings and parties and prejudicial people—a world in which she’ll hold him back and never fit in. None of that matters to Eric, but how can he get her to accept that she’s the only woman he’ll ever love, when she is convinced that the only way to love him is to let him go?

    Her beloved brother Will goes off to war, and Simone seeks a way to help. The passionate daughter of a feisty French mother and a rebellious upper-class father, Simone is not cut out for the society life she is meant to lead. So, when General Pershing calls for French-speaking American girls to operate the switchboards on the Western Front, Simone becomes one of the first brave "Hello Girls" whose courage helps lead the Allies to victory. In the end, Christmas brings the Spencers back together again.

    Will she ever see her home again?

    When war breaks out between the United States and Great Britain in 1812, eleven-year-old Susanna chronicles her experiences when her father and brother go off to fight leaving the women to fend for themselves on the family farm on the Niagara Peninsula of Upper Canada.