Charlie: A Home Child's Life in Canada Ronsdale Press, 2009
ISBN 978-1-55380-138-2
In the UK, order from Gazelle
Books
Imagine it's one hundred years ago
and you are thirteen years old, living with your family in England.
When your father dies suddenly your mother must send her children
to orphanages. Then imagine how it would feel to be called into
the orphanage office and told you are being sent across the ocean
to Canada.
That's what happened to my father
and that's what I write about in Charlie: a Home Child's
Life in Canada. I grew up knowing very little of my father's
story and it wasn't until I was an adult that I began to research
his life.
I learned that Charlie travelled
to London to live in a Home founded by Dr. Thomas Barnardo as
a safe-haven for children whose parents couldn't look after them.
From there, at the age of thirteen, Charlie was sent across the
Atlantic ocean to Canada to work as a farm labourer on an Ontario
farm. He experienced homesickness, hardship and eventually great
kindness as he grew from a skinny boy to a healthy eighteen year
old.
Charlie at age 13, just
before he sailed for Canada
At age 15, Charlie worked
on a farm in Ontario
As a young man, Charlie was
a constable in the Royal
North-West Mounted Police
When World War One began, Charlie signed on with the Canadian
Expeditionary Force and was wounded in France at the Battle of
the Somme. After the war, Charlie returned to Canada and joined
the RCMP. Rising through the ranks, he was posted across Canada,
and in 1952, the boy who once saw Buckingham Palace from a tram
on his way to Dr. Barnardo's orphanage, became an RCMP escort
to Princess Elizabeth on her first visit to Canada.
Charlie's story is a compelling account of a poor English boy
who rises from poverty to become a valuable member of Canadian
society. His story, like many others, is an inspiring part of
our Canadian heritage.
The book includes personal and archival photographs, maps and
information sidebars. Lesson plans, activity sheets and marking
rubrics in Canadian history and social geography are available
for Grades 5-8.
Reviews:
"Beryl Young's
story of her father fills a very necessary gap in Canadian history.
That she does so in such an interesting and thoughtful way is a
tribute to her skill as a writer. . . It is enjoyable for personal
reading and as an interesting biography, as well as in classrooms
as an excellent source of background material. Highly recommended."
*** Canadian Materials, November, 2009
"Beryl Young's
story of her father's life is gripping. Charlie overcame extraordinary
difficulties to make his mark. I wish I'd known him, but somehow
I feel like I do."
Eric Wilson, children's writer
"In this story
of the life of her father, Beryl Young brings to life an important
aspect of Canadian social history. . . This book will provoke understanding,
empathy, and enjoyment in young readers and in their parents as
well."
Margaret Prang, Professor Emerita,
History, University of B.C.
"A
warm, candid look back at the life of a man who struggled to secure
a place for himself in the new world. Along with the author's gentle
and fluid narrative, the tome is seasoned with a smattering of sepia
photographs of days gone by."
Halifax Chronicle
Herald , November 2009
Awards:
Charlie:
a Home Child's Life in Canadais
Nominated for the BC Red
Cedar Award (2011/12)
Starred book in CCBC Best
Books for 2010
Nominated
for Ontario Library Association Non-fiction Red Maple award (2011)
Nominated for the Hackmatack
Award (Atlantic Canada, 2010-11)
Nominated for the Chocolate
Lily Award (B.C. 2010-11)
Finalist for the National
Chapter of the 2010 I.O.D.E Violet Downey Award
Long-listed for the 2010
Children's Literature Information Book
Selected as Reader's Digest
Book of the Month, Canada, October, 2010
Published with Reader's
Digest International, 2011
Invitation
to present a copy of the book to the Parliamentary Library, Ottawa
The book is
available as an audiobook at Post Hypnotic Press
The book has had three
printings.
Special Events:
The Parliament of Canada
has voted to make September 28th an annual British Home Child day
across the country.
Presenting a copy of Charlie to the Parliamentary
Library
in Ottawa with parliamentary librarian and Ed Broadbent.
