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

Camrose, a perfectly normal 12-year-old, has inherited responsibility for an ancient bone flute, an object of quest for two time-wandering rivals, one of them lord of the Otherworld. With the help of her friend Mark and the not-quite-human Miranda, Camrose braves fire and much worse to claim the flute and restore it to its rightful -- and unexpected -- owner.

Patricia Bow is the author of The Bone Flute (Orca, 2004), a fantasy novel for young people that was nominated for the Silver Birch and Red Cedar awards. Her other published books include The Spiral Maze (Thistledown Press, 1997), also a fantasy novel for kids, and Chimpanzee Rescue (Firefly Books, 2004), a non-fiction book that was chosen as an Honor Book by the American Society for Prevention of Cruelty to Animals. The Ruby Kingdom (Dundurn), the first book in a series, is due out in February 2007.
Patricia has been reading ever since the local library opened its magic doors for her and writing since she was old enough to hold a crayon. She uses a computer now instead of a crayon, but the thrill of the story hasn't changed. She writes what she loves to read: fiction with a strong flavour of the strange and mysterious, anchored by down-to-earth heroes.
Over the years she has worked as a librarian, a press reader for a clipping service, and a reporter at a small-town newspaper. Now she works in communications at the University of Waterloo. By day she writes serious prose; by night she maps new worlds of the imagination.
Patricia Bow lives in Kitchener, Ontario with her husband Eric and a small but fierce grey tabby named Pooka. She is a member of CANSCAIP (the Canadian Society of Children's Authors, Illustrators and Performers).
Email: pabow@gto.net
Website: http://home.golden.net/~thebows/patricia.htm

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