• Age: 14 to 16
• Grade: 9 to 11
• Reading age: 15 to 18

Tina is short, but she packs a wallop.

And she knows every move a boxer needs to get to the top.

It’s 1979, and the glory days of the sport are over. With the family gym about to fold, and her father unwilling to listen to a word she says, Tina explodes and takes off, leaving Sydney’s Whitney Pier behind her for good.

But it isn’t her temper that turns things around, it’s a road trip with her sister, and a Mi’kmaw light-heavyweight they meet along the way. Tina’s convinced he’ll go the distance – with her as Manager.

Caroline Stellings is an author and illustrator of children’s books from Waterdown, Ontario. She is a professional artist who loves to paint the many birds and animals that inhabit the wetland area near her studio. Her previous books include The Malagawatch Mice and the Church that Sailed (CBU Press), Skippers Save the Stone, a children’s book in English and Gaelic, also from CBU Press, and Skippers At Cape Spear (Breakwater Books).

Caroline Stellings' profile page

"The Manager is, by turns, heartbreakingly tender and slapstick funny. Tina and Jesse are both powerful characters, entertaining and compelling to watch as they passionately fight the cards life has dealt them. Ellie's compassionate but opinionated voice is the perfect way for readers to enjoy the humour in the situations the characters get themselves into while still allowing readers to care deeply about both of them." CMmagazine "4 of 4 stars. Highly recommended" CMmagazine

"A beautiful story with vivid and relatable characters." "A page turning novel that everyone will enjoy." Resource Links