Children’s Author Rae Chalmers will be at the Whitefield Library on Friday August 25th. Rae has written a series of environmental mystery books. Bear and the Oxbow Island Gang, Lobster Graveyard, Winter Crows, and Leap Frog are a series that follows Bear through his sixth grade school year as he spends time on Oxbow Island with his grandmother and a terrific cast of interesting and unexpected friends.
In Rae’s first book, we are introduced to 11 year-old Bear, a bit awkward and apathetic. He is taking the ferry to stay with his grandmother, on a small Island off the coast of Portland Maine. This trip is not under normal circumstances and he is reluctant to imagine this trip will be any fun. After meeting a local girl his age, Olivia, he is struck by the many differences that her life on this island holds than his own. Soon enough they are connecting over their mutual distain for whoever has disturbed the local lady slipper grove in the forest. Upon further investigation, the local flora isn’t the only thing being disrupted on this precious Maine Island. Bear and Olivia call in the help of an assortment of characters to uncover this mystery.
As a native Mainer and someone who appreciates the delicate balance that every ecosystem holds I was instantly captivated by this story. Not only does Rae Chalmers examine the charms of being young and free but she dives into the charms of being old and wise. There are many endearing and mischievous characters in each of her books that illustrate what it is like to live in a small rural town. In the subsequent books we visit the same gang in the fall, then winter and finally spring with new challenges, new heroes and new villains. This series was has been such a joy to follow. As a Mother of two young kids I appreciate the strong values of community and importance for protecting our environment that is represented.
Rae speaks about her community on her website: “In small towns and on islands there is an interdependence that breaks down generational barriers. Every member of the community is important. Children have more responsibilities but they also get to have many of the freedoms of their grandparents’ childhoods: exploring independently without the safety concerns that haunt so many childhoods these days.”
You can check out all of her books at the Whitefield Library and you can order a copy from, maineauthorspublishing.com
Rae will be at the Library this coming Friday at 10 am, she will be joining storytime to read a favorite picture book and she will help award or Summer Reading Challenge participants. Come and say “hi!”