FIREFLY is Recommended by the Canadian Children's Book Centre!

 "In Firefly, Philippa Dowding presents serious topics such as homelessness and mental health in a way that fosters the readers' compassion for the dramatis personae, thus allowing them to develop sympathy for characters that are often vilified. 

The novel would be useful as a natural segue to the mental health literacy component of the curriculum for senior elementary students."

--Canadian Children BookNews, Summer 2021

Thank you for the lovely review of Firefly, Canadian Children's Book Centre!

Keep reading everyone, summer is here. My motto these days: we can't hold each other right now, but until we can, it may help to hold a book.

All posts on this blog, about FIREFLY

Happy New Year, Everton Miles!

"A must-read for Gwendolyn Golden fans, this latest addition to the Night Flyer's Handbook series will not disappoint."
--Amy Mathers for BookNews/Winter 2017

Here it is, a new year, with all our shiny hopes, dreams and new possibilities for 2017 just a few hours old. Happy New Year to you!

I love New Year's day. My family and I spend all day reading, eating, playing guitar, and gather at dinner time in a kind of New Year's day stupor. All the better if it's snowing and cold outside, no excuse to leave the house!

Last week I received exactly one piece of mail, the Canadian Children's Book Centre winter issue of BookNews.

How nice that my latest book, Everton Miles is Stranger than Me, is a Recommended title! Thank you! The reviewer, the inestimable Amy Mathers, had very nice things to say, above. If you'd like to read more of her review, you can pick up a copy through the centre, and see what other great Canadian books they recommend this year (you won't be disappointed!).

My New Year resolution (one of them) this year, is to buy more books and support Canadian writers as much as I can with reviews on Goodreads and Amazon. If we want good books, we have to buy them, read them, and report back for others.  Hope you'll join me, and happy reading for all in the year ahead!

More on Everton Miles
Kirkus Review

A delicious spine-chilling treat for middle grade readers

"Myles and the Monster Outside is the second book in the Weird Stories Gone Wrong series by Philippa Dowding. The eerie, time-bending trip along a strange road in the middle of the night pushes the horror-story buttons...
In classic ghost story tradition, an exquisite tension builds. This book is a delicious, spine-chilling treat for middle grade readers. Every scary page makes it imperative to keep reading..."

Recommended, BookNews, Spring 2016

What a fabulous review for Myles and the Monster Outside, from CCBC BookNews, thank you! I couldn't  be more pleased. The reviewer, the wonderful writer Charis Cotter (The Swallow), really made my day. A few weeks ago, the book was nominated for a Hackmatack Award, and now this! Here are some more reviews, thanks all:

Canadian Teacher Magazine (11-year old reviewer), Jan/Feb 2016
ALA Booklist, Oct 2015
Kirkus Reviews, July 2015
Goodreads

Here's the spooky Book Trailer with illustrations from Shawna Daigle, enjoy!