When you’ve been writing and publishing as long as I have, you’ve seen it all—or most of it! I wrote my first story when I was six and had my first article published in a local newspaper when I was twelve—which was a long time ago! But it was in the 1970s and 1980s that
Val’s Book Reviews A West Coast Soccer Story Head to Head by Jennifer Manuel Toronto: James Lorimer, 2020 $12.95 / 9781459414280In this young adult book for 10 to 13 year-olds, Jennifer Manuel has written a story which will inspire all young girls who love sports. But the book also carries a strong message of how
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June is traditionally a month for brides and weddings. But this was not always the case so let’s take a look back at wedding customs and wedding dresses throughout history. An amusing reason (but not necessarily a true one) is that most people in olden times married in June because they took their yearly bath
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Elizabeth II – 70 Years of Dedication On June 2nd 1953, a young woman was crowned Queen Elizabeth II in London England’s Westminster Abbey. One year earlier, she had succeeded to the throne upon the death of her father, King George VI. As a young girl growing up, she had not expected to ever become
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Val’s Book Reviews The Driving Force The Famous Five: Canada’s Crusaders for Women’s Rights by Barbara Smith Victoria: Heritage House, 2019 $9.95 / 9781772032338 In this very important book, Barbara Smith tells the in-depth stories of five women — Emily Murphy, Nellie McClung, Louise McKinney, Irene Parlby and Henrietta Muir Edwards — who collectively changed
In August of 1910 in a town called Skpje in the Republic of Macedonia, Nikola and Dranafile Bojaxhiu, both of Albanian descent, were blessed with a daughter. The following day the baby was baptized and given the name Agnes Gonxha Bojaxhui. We know her today as Mother Teresa. When Agnes was eight her father, a
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According to Donald Dossey, a folklore historian, the origin of the Number “13” being unlucky originated with a Norse myth about 12 gods having a dinner party in Valhalla. A trickster god named Loki, who was not invited, arrived as the 13th guest and arranged for the god Hoor to shoot another god, Balder, with
Motherhood! The dictionary defines it as “the state of being a mother or having the spirit or qualities of a mother.” And so what is a mother? Again, according to the dictionary, a mother is a creature who “creates, nurtures and protects.” Today we will once again celebrate Mother’s Day. We will honour mothers who
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Val’s Book Reviews Terminal City Spooks Vancouver’s Most Haunted: Supernatural Encounters in BC’s Terminal City by Ian Gibbs Victoria: TouchWood Editions, 2021 $20.00 / 9781771513180 Ian Gibbs, who has spent years collecting and sharing ghost stories as a Ghostly Walk tour guide in Victoria, British Columbia, has done another impressive job in his second book
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Although William Shakespeare apparently died in 1616 on this date (April 23rd), his words have remained timeless—partly because he was able to capture human emotions that are still relevant today. We still use many of the expressions he coined in his plays such as “love is blind” from The Merchant of Venice, “break the ice”
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