Wherever there is hockey there will always be a rink burger. Hockey isn't just about games in big stadiums. It can be played on ponds, streets and in small-town rinks. It creates bonds between fathers and sons. It forges friendships that last a lifetime. When the family home in Big River, Saskatchewan, is sold, Todd Devonshiredecides to visit his roots one last time and retrieve all the hockey mementos he'd promised to pick up someday. Packing up pictures, old hockey jerseys and his vast collection of O-Pee-Chee hockey cards, Todd reminisces about his youth as a player and avid fan in a comical and poignant coming of age.

Daryl Sexsmith's passion for wilderness and the canoe as a vehicle to explore that wilderness comes through loud and clear in this memoir of living and travelling on Canadian rivers, and the strong bonds forged between canoeing friends.

They hailed from all regions of Canada. They were focused on a momentous task. They were going to uphold the laws of this country. In June 1966, thirty-two young men from across Canada arrived at RCMP “Depot” Division in Regina, Saskatchewan, where they underwent rigorous training. The physical and emotional challenges were many, but in spite of these, the recruits developed a sense of camaraderie and determination that enabled them to graduate as C-1966/67 Troop. Faces of the Force follows the careers of these young police officers as they dispersed across Canada to encounter both triumph and tragedy; some would remain in the RCMP, others would pursue other paths. Through it all, they would never forget the lessons they learned, and what it means “to serve and protect.”

Keith Olsen’s family lived through a harsh Canadian winter in an extremely remote location in northern Saskatchewan. The family’s determination turned the rugged wilderness into a modest home. From such a setting come the memories of a profound childhood, one in which simplicity and nature 

are the most nurturing aspects of the imagination. "It was almost noon when we entered the portage. The fresh autumn air was still quite cool even though the sun was well up by this time. It was pleasant to see how the sunlight penetrated the thick forest of tall evergreens, giving light to an otherwise dark and damp part of the overland trail. The ground in this area was covered over in a thick layer of green moss, and a similar type called old man's beard hung down off the branches like sheets of light green tinsel. This part of the portage was spooky, but on parts of the trail where the deciduous trees were it was bright and vibrant, especially where the leaves hadn't fallen. It was there the sunlight caused an explosion of colour, shading each leaf in a different hue of autumn glory, and it made you feel warm and alive with excitement."

The arrival of spring 2020 held nothing but promise for the Jasken family. With plans for camping trips and yard upgrades, life was moving along as usual. But fate had other plans. In the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic, their youngest daughter suddenly collapsed, plunging the family into a tumultuous world of fear and uncertainty—they were devastated to learn that the source of Sierra’s ailment was a failing heart. In the months to come, Sierra was surrounded by doctors and nurses, undergoing countless medical procedures in an unfamiliar city to give her another chance at life. Compelling and poignant, filled with wry humour and raw emotion, My Daughter’s Heart is the true story of a family’s journey through a life-threating crisis.

MURIEL A. JARVIS has seen many changes in Saskatchewan since her birth on the Prairies in 1920: the Saskatoon City Hospital is now a gleaming structure of steel and glass with ten floors and a central transparent elevator, a transformation from the brick structure where she trained and worked as a young nurse in the 1940s. Health care too has changed a great deal since then; nursing has been transformed, and the status of women revolutionized.

The inspiring story of a girl from Kenaston, Saskatchewan, who had a dream...And her dream changed a province.

Awards:
Finalist. 2013 Saskatchewan Book Awards.

Non- Fiction

“Putting others before yourself is a tall order. But anyone who even attempts it brings about a change in themselves and in the people around them. It was this underlying philosophy that prompted us to begin a food bank in Rosthern. We had no real blueprint to follow. But we ventured out and took a risk. We would do our best to put others first. This is the story of how it unfolded, the story of Good Neighbours Food Centre in Rosthern, Saskatchewan.”

 

Saskatchewan Dirt is a well researched genealogical and geographical pursuit of the early connections between settlers and Indigenous people in southeast Saskatchewan. In her research, Bev Lundahl uncovers several surprising connections in both the past and the present, sparking a road trip undertaken in the spring of 2020 with Georgina Cyr—the Métis chairperson of Intercultural Grandmothers Uniting (IGU). Sharing these discoveries with the other members of IGU leads to compelling memories from several Residential School survivors. The search unfolds in real-time during the pandemic, marked by climate and human health emergencies along the way, including the announcement of the identification of unmarked graves at Residential School sites across the prairies. Saskatchewan Dirt is a true story of connection—and the building of reconciliation.

Non-Fiction

This inventive collection of literary and visual oddments embodies the creative spirit of Marie Elyse St. George at its wicked, witty, and sometimes wise best. Eight decades have passed since she held up an armful of kittens to the camera, and she continues to entertain with An Assortment of stories, poems, illustrations, and undefinables—meticulously drawn, at times tragic, and often darkly humorous.