• Age: 12 to 16
• Grade: 7 to 10
• Reading age: 12 to 18

A thought-provoking title that explores integrity in the era of truth and reconciliation.
— Kirkus Reviews
This mystery/adventure set in a small BC lumber town is a fictional account of an event that is similar to many across the country – a sudden conflict over a school name and the historic figure it recognizes.

Educator and childrens’ novelist DAVID STARR builds a compelling fictional narrative using elements drawn from the history of resource exploitation at the expense of First Nations’ communities.

In this book, the son of the owners of the town’s lumber mill goes to a school named after his grandfather. When his grandfather’s statue is splashed with paint as a protest, his best friend from the nearby reserve supports the protest. To defend his grandfather’s reputation, he digs into town history to learn more about his family. What he learns about the experience of the nearby First Nation community leads to a whole new understanding of his family’s legacy – and the town’s troubling past.

David Starr is a prize-winning author of five previous books. In The Nor’Wester, he told Duncan’s story of fleeing Scotland to Canada, where he joins Simon Fraser on his epic 1808 voyage by canoe down the Fraser. Bombs to Books chronicles the stories of refugee children and their families coming to B.C. Golden Goal and Golden Game are young adult soccer-themed books for reluctant readers. The Insider’s Guide to K–12 Education in B.C. is a resource guide for parents about the B.C. school system. David grew up in Fort St. James in northern British Columbia, and he now lives in Greater Vancouver with his wife, four children and a dog named Buster. He is one of the UBC Faculty of Education’s Top 100 Graduates and a school administrator in Metro Vancouver. For further information and readings availability, visit www.davidstarr.org.

David Starr's profile page

A thought-provoking title that explores integrity in the era of truth and reconciliation.

Kirkus Reviews