National Network for Equitable Library Service

Inspired by True Events From the famine-ravaged fields of Ireland to the peaceful fishing village of Fortune Harbour, Newfoundland, Harbour of my Tomorrows takes the reader on an unforgettable journey of adventure, suspense, and love. John Gavin’s tale begins in County Cork, Ireland, in 1852. Orphaned at a young age, John and his brother, Luke, find solace in each other and the friends they meet in their travels, but shadows of tragedy, betrayal, and murder dog their every step.

It’s the year of our Lord 1971, and Maureen O’Neill is one of the smartest girls at Fatima Academy. One of the funniest, too. Her teachers don’t like it, but her friends think she’s a riot. But one day her world begins to crumble apart, and Maureen is forced to keep a terrible secret. Meanwhile, the girls are whispering about her, the boys are starting to notice her, and the teachers are driving her crazy. The Secret Life of a Funny Girl is award-winning writer Susan Chalker Browne’s tenth book for children and her first young adult novel.

The Badger Redemption is the third and final instalment in J. A. Ricketts’s masterpiece series that focuses on the far-reaching consequences of a small town’s actions. As with some endings, this book also serves as the beginning of something new: a legend. Bill Hatcher’s confession has set off a chain of events that has forced the residents of Badger, Newfoundland, to re-evaluate their own lives, and to question their place in this world . . . and the next.

“Your life story didn’t begin with you. It reaches back to the beginning of time. You rose from the bodies of your ancestors. You’re the witness to their existence.” There is nothing more alive than the sea, nothing more deadly . . . Two childhood friends, Maggie and Elizabeth, are irrevocably joined by their love for one man lost on the Southern Cross, a brother to one and a groom-to-be of the other. Lives of families come into focus against the background of the island of Newfoundland, taking readers on a journey beginning more than a century ago and continuing to the 1970s.

The loggers' strike of 1959 is over. Premier Joey Smallwood has decertified the Interational Woodworkers of America, branding them as outlaws and traitors for good measure. Many of Badger's residents have scattered to the winds under the weight of a feeling of guilt, shame, and loss.

1640. After a long retirement in the south of France, former pirate Peter Easton has come home to London. Weary and bedridden, he finds himself plagued by heightened sensitivities. He is acutely aware of the suffering of all living things and longs to make amends for a lifetime of destruction. As he is nursed back to health by his devoted young servant, Gabrielle, and a mysterious apothecary, Fleet, Easton finds a focus for his returning energy. He becomes determined to search for the son and heir he left behind in Newfoundland.

Inspired by True Events “Men who weren’t hard workers didn’t last long at the lumber woods.” Most people in Newfoundland and Labrador have someone in their family who has worked “in the woods.” Some of these workers were employed seasonally—they fished in the summer and headed to the lumber camps in the winter—while others were full-time loggers who worked year-round. Stan White runs Camp 13 on the southwestern side of Gander Lake, which is a commercial operation cutting pulpwood for Bowater Pulp and Paper.

Lisa Ivany and Robert Hunt have produced another memorable collection of short stories. The stories contained herein focus on the Christmas season as it is known to the residents of Newfoundland and Labrador. Covering many genres and themes, this book offers something for all readers’ tastes. It deals with a wide variety of subjects, from a teenage girl injured by a high school bully, to a nursing home resident afflicted with Alzheimer’s disease, to a mysterious church singer with the voice of an angel.

Inspired by True Events Long after Demasduit’s skull has been stolen from her grave, and years after Shanawdithit has died, one Beothuk and his family survive. Bursting out of the pages of Newfoundland history appears Kop, the last true Beothuk. When all the other members of his tribe are exterminated by the Europeans, Kop seeks revenge against the Unwanted Ones. Hidden among the Bear Clan of the Mi’kmaq, the Beothuk strikes back. Follow Kop on his trail of defiance against the European marauders upon his Island. See what becomes of a man who has nothing to lose or live for.

A collection of Newfoundland folk tales from beloved author Paul O'Neill.