Taylor Jane Simon is 18 years old and spending the summer with her mother in Prince Albert National Park. The holiday has been planned so Taylor's mother can spend time with her latest boyfriend, Danny, and work in the pizza restaurant near the park that Danny runs. Taylor would just as soon stay at home in Saskatoon, but because she suffers from an autistic condition called Asperger's Syndrome, she can't stay on her own. Taylor's mother encourages her daughter to explore the park's possibilities on her own. For Taylor, whose life experience has been seriously limited, this means facing the test of meeting new people who work in the park's nature center - and facing it alone. Summer also holds out the possibility of finding her own boyfriend, though Taylor isn't quite sure what that may involve. What she discovers will change her life forever. Written as an epistolary novel, Wild Orchid is frank but optimistic, literal yet innocent. 
 A courageous wit attends Taylor's gradual emergence as her own person, and the reader will find the exploration of Taylor's mind a revealing and heartwarming encounter.

Wild Orchid

Teen & Young Adult

Brenna, Beverley

Literature & Fiction

Red Deer Press

Saskatchewan Book Awards Shortlist - Children's Books, 2007 Staring across the street the day after his alcoholic father disappears, eleven-year-old Billy Ray is startled to see one of his schoolmates, an adopted Romanian girl, gazing at the sky and then writing in a notebook. She is keeping a Moon Journal, cataloguing the phases of the moon to keep alive a secret memory that, eventually, Billy is the first to discover. 
Although he has Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder and struggles with many things that typical kids take for granted, Billy's curiosity and warmth intrigue Natasha, and the two children develop a friendship that gives them the strength and courage to reveal their deepest secrets and to reach for their dreams. 
One of Billy's dreams is to enter a talent contest at the local park. He has been practicing yo-yo tricks over and over again, hoping to impress his father. Things don't turn out as planned, but under unfair circumstances that would make other children give up, Billy proves himself to be a steadfast example of the way hope elicits the power to carry on.

The Moon Children

Children's Books

Red Deer Pr

Taylor Jane Simon is an eighteen-year-old girl with Asperger's Syndrome who has a refreshingly different view of the people she encounters and the life she wants to have. Young adult readers will identify with Taylor's struggle for independence and self-control, and empathize as she outlines the ways -- both positive and negative -- that her Asperger's Syndrome affects her daily life. Connecting with a play by Samuel Beckett, Taylor explores a fear of solitary existence while reaching out to a world at times perplexing. Most important, Taylor wants to be seen as an individual, not as a stereotypical "person with special needs, " or a rare wild flower -- images that haunt her from the past. A cameo performance by Taylor's new gerbil -- Harold Pinter-- adds further emphasis to themes of existentialism and humour. 
 The International Dolly Gray Children's Literature Award Winner 
 Saskatoon Book Award Nominee 
 CLA Young Adult Book Award Nominee 
 CYBILS Award Nominee 
 Woozles' Battle of the Books Teen List Title, 2012 
 Waiting for No One is the stand-alone sequel to Wild Orchid, which was shortlisted for the Canadian Library Association's prestigious Young Adult Book Award, a number of provincial readers' choice awards, and is a starred selection from the Canadian Children's Book Centre. Wild Orchid also appears on the New York Public Library's list of Recommended Books for the teens.

Waiting For No One

In this historical novel, Kate Allen, a fifteen-year-old girl, travels back in time to the Tudor court of Henry VII. While there, she is mistaken for an absent Katherine of Aragon, and subsequently takes the place of the young woman positioned to become the first wife of the future king Henry VIII. In her present time, Kate has been dealing with the sudden death of her father, and a move to London, to live with her elder sister. Kate quietly rebels against all these unwonted changes that have come in her young life, so at first her journey into the past is a welcome relief. She blossoms with the attention of a young and gallant Prince Henry. But as she pieces together her knowledge of history - especially her awareness of the man and monarch whom Prince Henry will become - Kate knows this relationship will be unhealthy for her. At the same time, friendship blossoms with William Fitzroy, one of Henry's companions.  Through the course of the story, Kate recognizes her own ability to adapt, and develops skills she will later need in order to fit into her new living circumstances once back in London. She also realizes that she has a responsibility to her family over and above her expectations of them. Most of all, Kate learns to stop running from the things she fears, and embrace life, a decision that will make a difference to her in times to come.

Falling for Henry

The White Bicycle is the third title in the Wild Orchid trilogy following the adventures of Taylor Jane, a young woman with Asperger's Syndrome. In The White Bicycle, Taylor travels to the south of France with her mother and her friends. She is going to be working for the summer babysitting for the Phoenix family. While on this journey Taylor will embark on another quest for independence both personal and universal as she casts her mind back to her earliest memories. 
 Governor General's Literary Award 2013 finalist 
 Young Adult Library Services Association's (YALSA) Best Fiction for Young Adults (BFYA) 2014 nominee 
 Michael L. Printz Award, Honor Book 2013 
 2013 Saskatoon Book Awards: Young Adult Literature Award nominee

The White Bicycle

Fox Magic is a compelling and honest look at life from the perspective of 12-year-old Chance Devlin. Two of her friends have recently committed suicide and as she struggles with her loss, she wonders if following them may be the best remedy for her pain. A magical connection to a mysterious red fox named Janet Johnson helps her to come to terms with her past, finding her courage in the power of dreams. 
 A timely, engaging read that will help open discussion with family and friends, at home or in the classroom. Complete with an information package by Tim Claypool, Ph.D., R.D., Psych., with current references and author interview.

Fox Magic

A new middle grade novel from the author of the Michael L Printz Honor Book, The White Bicycle Harris Olson is a boy dealing with a load of guilt. Three years ago he was in a tragic car accident with his parents. He can't shake off the feeling of being responsible, though of course he was not. The memory returns from time to time ---- until a crow comes tapping at his window one morning. A crow whom he lets into the house without intending to, a crow who somehow manages to cheer up not only Harris, but a lot of other people he cares about. In this moving story, Beverley Brenna expertly demonstrates that sadness isn't something that needs to stay with you, that positive experiences can repair the tough things that occur in life. When Harris opens his window for the crow, he also opens himself up to a gradual healing and in the process learns how others also can overcome the dark feelings that often drag them down.

Because of That Crow

Growing Up & Facts of Life

Every day is an adventure when you're Daddy Longlegs. Children follow Daddy Longlegs as he treks across the backyard that he calls home. Reviewed by the Smithsonian Institution for accuracy, Daddy Longlegs at Birch Lane is a fun and informative story with beautifully detailed illustrations. Watch your children have a blast reading and learning about the animals that live in an American backyard! Book Features: - An informative storyline and colorful illustrations - Appropriate for ages 3-9 - Hardcover dimensions: 12 x 8 3/4 inches

Daddy Longlegs at Birch Lane

Animals

Soundprints

Observes the spring hatching of a daddy longlegs or harvestman and follows her until the autumn when she herself is ready to lay her eggs

A poignant and humorous middle-grade novel for fans of Flora and Ulysses It's not every day you encounter a hamster experiencing an existential crisis, but Sapphire has spent her short pet-store life convinced that she's waiting for...something. At first she thinks it's to be FREE, but it may be possible that life has a greater purpose in store--a purpose Sapphire will discover thanks to a nine-year-old girl whose family is changing in ways she doesn't quite understand. Jeannie's dad has moved out, her mom is always tired and snappish, and her older brother just wants to play video games in his room all day. Jeannie doesn't understand what’s going on, but she knows one thing: she really, REALLY wants a hamster. Her mom promised she could buy one with her Christmas money, but it's been WEEKS since the holidays and Jeannie's beginning to worry she'll never get her pet. But maybe if she does, her dad will come to visit. Maybe a hamster will make everything better. With a cast that includes a transgender neighbor, a father coming out as gay, and a realistic protagonist who will appeal to fans of Ramona Quimby, Brenna's latest offering is an age-appropriate introduction to some difficult subjects that also abounds with humor and poignancy. Narrated by Jeannie and Sapphire in alternating chapters, Sapphire the Great and the Meaning of Life is a touching middle-grade novel by award-winning author Beverley Brenna that explores themes of family, friendship, togetherness, and self-identity.

Sapphire the Great and the Meaning of Life

Pajama Press

See the best price to sell, buy, or rent books by Brenna, Beverley. BookScouter helps to compare book prices from 25+ online bookstores and 30+ buyback vendors with a single search.

Books by Brenna, Beverley

See the best price to sell, buy, or rent books by Brenna, Beverley. BookScouter helps to compare book prices from 25+ online bookstores and 30+ buyback vendors with a single search.

Wild Orchid

The Moon Children

Waiting For No One

Falling for Henry

The White Bicycle

Fox Magic

Because of That Crow

Daddy Longlegs at Birch Lane

Daddy Longlegs at Birch Lane

Sapphire the Great and the Meaning of Life