By Daphne Greer
Nimbus Publishing
Ages 10–12
Greer has followed up the success of her earlier work Maxed Out with another well crafted young-adult novel. In Jacob’s Landing, 12-year-old Jacob Mosher leaves Ontario after the death of his father to spend the summer with his decidedly odd grandparents in rural Nova Scotia. Setting the story in the village of Newport Landing, where she lives, Greer evokes a rich sense of place. Jacob finds danger and mystery, but ultimately, this is a warm and wry story about a young boy becoming a man, coming to terms with life’s knocks, and finding his own path. The idea of a recently deceased parent is a bit heavy for more sensitive readers, but Greer handles the subject deftly and tactfully.
