• Age: 9 to 11
• Grade: 4 to 6

When Jamie moves to Nipigon, Ontario, she's not optimistic about making new friends. Jamie is passionate about science and engineering, and in her experience other girls don't want to hang out with science nerds.

But she doesn't want a friendless future, so she sets out to be more like other kids. When she meets Beth who likes writing, Jamie claims to like it too and she trades her not-so-bad sandwich for a disgusting egg salad sandwich with Raina, hoping the sacri?ce will land her a friend. Instead she gets more gross lunches and has to do the writing in a group project. And her social prospects still look bleak.

But Jamie likes Nipigon and is fascinated by the story of Paddle-to-the-Sea, a “ctional canoe trip that began north of the town. Jamie decides to build a trackable boat to recreate the journey of Paddle. She starts researching the tech she'll need and searching for the best design for the boat.

When she tells her class about the project, kids seem interested. Raina even offers to help. Jamie is over-the-moon excited to have another girl to geek out with. But the project is fraught with complications—so is the friendship. And Jamie's not sure she can salvage any of it.

Née à Thunder Bay, en Ontario, KAREN AUTIO a grandi dans la ville voisine de Nipigon, où elle a pu laisser libre cours à sa créativité et à son amour pour les chevaux. Vers l’âge de neuf ans, c’est sa passion pour le dessin qui l’a poussée à composer des histoires. Pour Karen, la magie de l’écriture opère lorsque les personnages prennent vie au point de tisser eux-mêmes l’intrigue! Lorsqu’elle n’est pas en train d’écrire, de réviser des textes ou d’expliquer à des étudiants le travail de recherche et l’inspiration sur lesquels reposent ses livres, Karen aime faire du canoë, photographier la nature, lire et voyager. Elle vit à Kelowna, en Colombie-Britannique.

KAREN AUTIO was born in Thunder Bay, Ontario, and grew up creative and horse-loving in nearby Nipigon. Around the age of nine she began writing stories just so that she could illustrate them. When she’s not writing, freelance editing, or speaking with students about the research and inspiration behind her books, Karen enjoys canoeing, photographing nature, reading, and travelling. Karen lives in Kelowna, British Columbia.

Karen Autio's profile page