• Age: 9 to 12
• Grade: 4 to 7
• Reading age: 9 to 12

In the first novel in the Barkerville Mystery series, protagonist Ted MacIntosh tries to unravel a suspicious murder with possible fatal consequences.

lt’s summer in 1866 in the Cariboo gold fields, and a man has disappeared. Young Ted learns from the local barber, Moses, that his friend Charles, who was travelling to the gold fields, has failed to arrive. And a forbidding stranger named James Barry has arrived in town wearing a gold nugget pin that belonged to the missing man. What could have happened to him? Was James Barry responsible for his disappearance? Moses and Ted are suspicious – but they’re also afraid for their own safety. Slowly, with several adventures and close calls, they unravel the story of a cruel murder. But have they identified the right criminal?

Shortlisted for the Geoffrey Bilson Award for Historical Fiction, based on true events, and set against the exciting backdrop of the Gold Rush era, Moses, Me, and Murder offers a captivating tale of betrayal, thievery, and redemption.

Ann is a long time Williams Lake, British Columbia resident who has taught both in elementary schools and at the college level. She is the author of seven novels for young readers, most of them set in Barkerville during the gold rush. Her first book, Your Time, My Time was published twenty-two years ago and has been in print continuously since then. As well, Ann is the author of a book of poetry and the editor of three collections of short stories for young people. She also writes for adult readers, and her work has appeared in magazines and anthologies around the world. In Canada her work has been published in Canadian Living, Arts Forum (Ontario) and elsewhere, as well as being heard on CBC radio. Ann serves on the executive of several professional writers' organizations, both in British Columbia and Canada-wide.

Her books have been nominated for major Canadian book prizes and all of them have been selected as "Our Choice" titles by the Canadian Children's Book Centre. Ann is a popular workshop presenter at conferences for writers (Grades 5 to Adult) and is in demand as a speaker, both in schools and at literary festivals. She loves traveling, and is willing to gear her presentations to the needs and requests of a particular school or classroom. Her sessions are fast paced and entertaining, as well as informative. As one teacher commented after Ann had visited her school "She made history come alive."

More about Ann can be found at the CWILL BC website, http://www.cwill.bc.ca/public/search/member_detail/62.

Ann Walsh's profile page

Walsh manages through her careful research to weave real events into a suspenseful novel.

Resource Links

"...teachers will find this well-researched resource to be a useful addition in their BC history lessons. As for young people, Moses, Me and Murder is an enjoyable and quick read that will transport the reader back to the early days of British Columbia."

Canadian Materials

I recommend this book to ten to thirteen year olds who like mysteries and who are interested in BC history. (Review by Nora, age 12, grade 7)

Canadian Teacher Magazine