War of 1812 CanLit Book List

H. Kubiw, 2012 www.canlitforlittlecanadians.ca 1

The War of 1812 in CanLit Book List from CanLit for LittleCanadians Posted by Helen Kubiw on June 5, 2012

at http://www.canlitforlittlecanadians.blogspot.ca/

For the next two years, many organizations on both sides of the border will be commemorating the bicentennial of the War of 1812, which lasted from 1812 to 1814. A variety of events on both sides of the border will keep any student of history intrigued for months to come. A small sampling of activities include:

• re-‐enactments (Battle of Queenston Heights in Niagara; Militia Training at Gananoque);

• museum exhibits (Kingston War Ships 1812-‐1814 in Kingston; Petticoats, Boots and Muskets in Niagara Falls);

• walking tours (Stories in Stones cemetery tour in Hamilton; Ghost Tours at Fort George);

• plays (The War of 1812 at the Stratford Festival) • film festivals (Fort York National Historic Site October in Toronto); • dances (Fanshawe Frolic in London); • festivals (Capture of Detroit Commemoration Festival in Windsor); • lectures and talks (Ghostly Tales in Cayuga; Laura Secord and the Tales of 1812 in

Jordan); • book launches (The Loxleys and the War of 1812); and • concerts (1812 Concert in Greater Fort Erie).

Great sites for events include:

• Discover 1812 • Western Corridor: War of 1812 • Ontario Festivals: War of 1812 • Ontario Historical Society

To provide some context for these activities and background information about events and individuals involved in the War of 1812, this book list should provide enough resources to introduce young readers to the "Forgotten War."


PICTURE BOOKS

Laura: A Childhood Tale of Laura Secord by Maxine Trottier Illustrated by Karen Reczuch North Winds Press 28 pp. Ages 4-‐8 2000

Laura Secord: A Story of Courage by Janet Lunn Illustrated by Maxwell Newhouse Tundra 32 pages Ages 7-‐10 2001 Laura Secord’s Brave Walk by Connie Brummel Crook Illustrated by June Lawson Second Story Press 24 pp. Ages 8-‐10 2000


FICTION Acts of Courage: Laura Secord and the War of 1812 by Connie Brummel Crook Pajama Press 261 pp. Ages 10-‐14 2012 Historical fiction based on the true story of Laura Ingersoll Secord who undertook a dangerous journey to warn the British of an attack by the Americans. Billy Green Saves the Day Ben Guyatt Dundurn 157 pp. Ages10-‐15 2009 When the War of 1812 breaks out, eighteen-‐year-‐old Billy Green takes it upon himself to warn the British of the massive American forces camped at Stoney Creek, the last stronghold of the British in Upper Canada. The Bully Boys Walters, Eric Puffin 978-‐0143168621 227 pp. Ages 9-‐13 2001 Tom Roberts looks after the family farm while his father fights for the British army during the War of 1812. A Call to Battle: War of 1812, Alexander MacKay, Upper Canada, 1812 (I Am Canada series) by Gillian Chan Scholastic Canada 200 pp. Ages 10-‐14 Release date: September 01, 2012 Jealous when his father and older brother go off to fight the Americans attacking Niagara, thirteen-‐year-‐old Sandy sneaks away to Lundy's Lane to join the militia. But, Sandy could not have imagined the brutality of war from which his father had tried to protect him. And now, Sandy must find the

means to survive.


Fire Ship by Marianne Brandis Porcupine's Quill 119 pp. Ages 9-‐12 1992 Describes the 1813 devastation of York by the Americans, from the point of view of Dan, a boy who has recently emigrated from the United States. Jeremy's War 1812 by John Ibbotson Kids Can Press 208 pp. Ages 9-‐13 2000 (Originally published in 1991 as 1812: Jeremy and the General) Fifteen-‐year-‐old Jeremy joins the British army in 1812 and becomes the batsman (personal servant) to General Isaac Brock, fighting for his life and country through the War of 1812.

Legend of the Paymaster's Gold by Jo Shawyer Dundurn 136 pp. Ages 10-‐14 2012 Two hundred years after the War of 1812, twins Sam and Eadie learn that an army paymaster had mislaid a chest of gold during a skirmish near their new home in London, Ontario. With a little help from a neighbour and other locals, the two's sleuthing educates them about the War of 1812. The Other Elizabeth by Karleen Bradford Gage Publishing 160 pp. Ages 10-‐13 1982 After slipping into the past during a school visit to a historical sites, Elizabeth wishes she'd paid better attention in class, particularly to the details regarding the battle at Crysler's Farn during the War of 1812.


A River Apart by Robert Sutherland Fitzhenry & Whiteside 184 pp. Ages 10-‐13 2000 When the War of 1812 separates friends, Jamie Shaw in Canada and siblings Jared and Leah Jackson across the St. Lawrence River indefend their homes and families could lead to even more tragedies. Son of the Hounds by Robert Sutherland Fitzhenry & Whiteside 128 pp. Ages 10-‐15 1988/2004 After Jimmy and his father are taken from their Niagara Peninsula farm by the Americans in 1813, he escapes, determined to fight them whatever way he can, including acting as a spy and a messenger for the famous Band of Bloody Boys.

Under a Shooting Star (Circle of Silver Chronicles) by Maxine Trottier Stoddart Kids/Fitzhenry & Whiteside 212 pp. Ages 12-‐14 2001 En route to delivering Kate and Anne Kimmerling to their home in America via Lake Erie, British-‐Oneidan Edward MacNeil's simple task becomes more complicated when a storm shipwrecks them on an island in the midst of conflict during the War of 1812. Whispers of War: The 1812 Diary of Susanna Merritt (Dear Canada series) by Kit Pearson Scholastic Canada 220 pp. Ages 10-‐12 2002 The story of the Merritt family's experiences on the Niagara Peninsula during the War of 1812.


NON-‐FICTION

Laura Secord (Remarkable Canadians series) by Jennifer House Weigl 24 pp. Ages 9-‐11 2009 Laura Secord, Heroine of the War of 1812 (A Quest Biography Book) by Peggy Dymond Leavey Dundurn 224 pp. Ages May 2012 To Stand and Fight Together: Richard Pierpoint and the Coloured Corps of Upper Canada (A Canadians at War Book) by Steve Pitt Dundurn 144 pp. 2008 Tecumseh: Shooting Star, Crouching Panther by Jim Poling Sr. Dundurn 192 pp. 2009


Canada Under Attack (A Canadians at War Book) by Jennifer Crump Dundurn 216 pp. 2010 Captain Fitz: FitzGibbon, Green Tiger of the War of 1812 (A Canadians at War Book) by Enid Mallory Dundurn 208 pp. 2011

The Battles of the War of 1812: An Omnibus by Pierre Berton Fifth House/Fitzhenry & Whiteside 317 pp. Ages 11-‐15 2006 Originally published by McClelland & Stewart as separate titles in Pierre Berton's History for Young Canadians: The Battles of the War of 1812 including The Capture of Detroit, 1991; The Death of Isaac Brock, 1991; Revenge of the Tribes, 1991; Canada Under Siege, 1991; The

Battle of Lake Erie, 1994; The Death of Tecumseh, 1994; and Attack on Montreal, 1995.

Canada on Fire: The War of 1812 (A Canadians at War Book) by Jennifer Crump Dundurn 208 pp. Ages14+ 2011


Out-‐of-‐Print Books (occasionally available at libraries or at used book stores)

General Brock and Niagara Falls by Samuel Hopkins Adams Random House 1960

The Good Soldier: The Story of Isaac Brock by D. J. Goodspeed Illustrated by Jack Ferguson Macmillan 156 pp. 1967 Laura's Choice: The Story of Laura Secord by Connie Brummel Crook Windflower Communications 1993

Redcoat by Gregory Sass Porcupine's Quill 95 pp. Ages 11-‐13 1985


The Rowboat War, On the Great Lakes 1812-‐1814 by Fred Swayze Illustrated by Paul Liberovsky Macmillan 128 pp. 1965 The Soldier's Son by Terry Leeder Dundurn 64 pp. 1979 The Story of the War of 1812 by Colonel Red Reeder Illustrated by Frederick T. Chapman Duell, Sloan & Pearce 1960 Treason at York by John F. Hayes Illustrated by Fred J. Finley Copp Clark 314 pp. 1949

Read and learn why author and great Canadian Pierre Berton wrote, in Flames Across the Border: 1813-1814 (Anchor Canada, 2001), that. . .

History gave the conflict short shrift; and yet for all its bunglings and idiocies, it helped determine the shape and nature of Canada.

Documents

War of 1812 CanLit Book List