• Age: 10 to 14
• Grade: 5 to 9

Fourteen-year-old Ben Random has always been drawn to the ships that skim the blue waters of Lake Ontario off the shores of York, the capital of Upper Canada. But his dream of serving on a Royal Navy vessel is dashed by a gut-wrenching fear: Ben is too terrified of heights to see himself scaling any war ship’s mast. But Ben’s anxiety is the last thing on his mind when on April 26, 1813, a flotilla of American ships invades York and his father is asked to lead a rescue mission to save a key fort on Lake Michigan. Now Ben is thrilled to take part in an impossibly daring plan to outwit the Americans and deliver supplies to Fort Mackinac—before its inhabitants are captured or die from starvation. Blinding blizzards, crushing ice floes and daring cat-and-mouse manoeuvres around the enemy challenge Ben’s strength and determination. But when he’s suddenly called upon in the ultimate test to save a critical supply ship, the Nancy, his fear looms as large as the hopes of those who are desperately counting on him.

Based on a little-known episode during the War of 1812, The Schooner’s Revenge is an action-packed adventure, crackling with plot twists, explosions, treachery and courage—destined to be a hit with middle readers everywhere.

Born in Priceville, Ontario, in 1925, Robert Sutherland lived briefly in Cape Breton and then Scotland before returning to Canada where he attended Flesherton High School. During World War II, he joined the Royal Canadian Navy and served from 1943 to 1946 as an anti-aircraft gunner on a Loch Class frigate (HMCS Loch Morlich). When his ship was in dry dock in London for repairs, he experienced doodlebug bombing. While in the navy he met Charlotte Cameron of Glasgow, and they married in Toronto in 1948. They have three children, seven grandchildren and one great grandson. Robert’s first success with fiction was a full length novel in the Toronto Star Weekly in 1960. He used the proceeds to set up a hobby of selling Scottish regalia and gifts from his home, a hobby he still pursues. On two of his many rejection slips for other novels, the editor had written “Suggest you try writing for teens.” When he returned to writing in the 1980s he decided to follow this advice. He rewrote the story that had been published in the Star, cutting down on the descriptions and making his protagonist a teen who accidentally stumbled into espionage. Mystery at Black Rock Island, published by Scholastic, was an immediate success, and the first of five successful books about teenagers David and Sandy. He has now had fourteen novels published, which have received numerous nominations and prizes. His novels have been translated into French, Norwegian, Swedish, German and Korean. Robert now lives in Westport, Ontario.

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