Canadian West Series Continuation by Janette Oke

Following up with Wynn and Elizabeth from the previous books, we meet their children (Henry and Christine) that they rescued from bad circumstances and adopted. Henry is a Mountie like his father Wynn. Christine has completed a secretarial course and is looking for her place in the world. The world they face is a different place from when their parents were young. But like their parents, the trials they are faced with prove their faith in the end.

I loved the continuation books. I had always wondered what had happened to them, even if they are fictional. What Henry and Christine face bring us to a more modern world than many of her other books. This is a wonderful ending to the story that started a generation before. I think that girls would start enjoying and understanding this book around middle school. It does discuss what Canada was like during WWII (briefly) but it doesn’t describe the actual war.

Rebecca of Sunnybrook Farm by Kate Douglas Wiggin

Rebecca comes from a large, mother-run family. Her father died early in life, leaving seven children and a farm for his wife, Aurelia Randall, to care for. As the children grew, her two older sisters offer to care for the oldest, Hannah, and see that she would obtain a good education and become an asset to help the family in the future. Hannah could not be spared; so Aurelia sent Rebecca. Hannah and Rebecca are different as two people could be. Hannah is dependable and Rebecca is quite flightly and given to getting lost in thought. Through many lessons and heartaches, Rebecca became the person that her aunts first wanted.

While this book often reminds me of the Anne of Green Gables Series by LM Montgomery, it is quite it’s own story. The similarities are a young girl who does not fit with customs and often does or says the wrong things; a girl whose heart is big and imagination roams; and the struggles of coming of age.

I enjoyed this book and hurt with Rebecca during her misfortunes and missteps. As she grew, she made less blunders and brings hope to young girls who are not quite grown. She strives to do what is right by others and find her place in the world. I would recommend this book to girls in mid-elementary school for them to read; I would also recommend reading it to younger girls who are not able to read it for themselves yet.