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Red River girl: the life and death of Tina Fontaine /
By Joanna Jolly. 2019
On August 17, 2014, the body of fifteen-year old runaway Tina Fontaine was found in Winnipeg's Red River, wrapped in…
a duvet and weighted down with rocks. Her story caused a national outcry. This book traces the events leading to her death and describes the search for her killer, led by a dogged police detective. 2019.The billionaire murders: the mysterious deaths of Barry and Honey Sherman /
By Kevin Donovan. 2019
Barry and Honey Sherman seemed to lead a charmed life, but the world was shocked in late 2017 when their…
bodies were found together in their elegant Toronto home. First described as murder-suicide, it was a grisly scene: the two were positioned side-by-side on the deck of their basement swimming pool, suspended from belts tied to a railing. The violent deaths of the founder of one of the world's largest pharmaceutical companies and his wife--their net worth has been estimated at {dollar}4.6 billion--rocked the intersecting worlds of business, politics, and philanthropy. The Shermans were charity royalty, donating millions to hospitals and universities, and fixtures on the gala circuit where Honey, in particular, was beloved. But there was another side to the story. A strategic genius who built a large generic drug company -- Apotex Inc. -- Barry Sherman was a self-described workaholic, renowned risk-taker, and disruptor during his fifty-year career. Regarded as a generous friend by many, Sherman was also feared by others. He was criticized for stifling academic freedom and using the courts to win at all costs. Upset with building issues at his mansion, he sued and recouped millions from tradespeople. At the time of his death, Sherman had just won a decades-old legal case involving four cousins who wanted 20 percent of his fortune. Toronto Star investigative journalist Kevin Donovan chronicles the unsettling story from the beginning, interviewing family members, friends, and colleagues, and sheds new light on the Shermans' lives and the disturbing double murder. 2019.The Forest City Killer: a serial murderer, a cold-case sleuth, and a search for justice /
By Vanessa Brown. 2019
Fifty years ago, a serial killer prowled the quiet city of London, Ontario, marking it as his hunting grounds. As…
young women and boys were abducted, raped, and murdered, residents of the area held their loved ones closer and closer, terrified of the monster -- or monsters -- stalking the streets. Homicide detective Dennis Alsop began hunting the killer in the 1960s, and he didn't stop searching until his death 40 years later. For decades, detectives, actual and armchair, and the victims' families and friends continued to ask questions: Who was the Forest City Killer? Was there more than one person, or did a depraved individual commit all of these crimes on his own? Combing through the files Detective Alsop left behind, researcher Vanessa Brown reopens the cases, revealing previously unpublished witness statements, details of evidence, and astonishing revelations. And through her investigation, Vanessa posits the unthinkable: is it possible that the Forest City Killer is still alive and, like the notorious Golden State Killer, a simple DNA test could bring him to justice? 2019.Furious hours: murder, fraud, and the last trial of Harper Lee /
By Casey N. Cep. 2019
Reverend Willie Maxwell was a rural preacher accused of murdering five of his family members for insurance money in the…
1970s. With the help of a savvy lawyer, he escaped justice for years until a relative shot him dead at the funeral of his last victim. Despite hundreds of witnesses, Maxwell's murderer was acquitted--thanks to the same attorney who had previously defended the Reverend. Sitting in the audience during the vigilante's trial was Harper Lee, who had traveled from New York City to her native Alabama with the idea of writing her own In Cold Blood, the true-crime classic she had helped her friend Truman Capote research seventeen years earlier. Lee spent a year in town reporting, and many more working on her own version of the case. Now Casey Cep brings this nearly inconceivable story to life, from the shocking murders to the courtroom drama to the racial politics of the Deep South. At the same time, she offers a deeply moving portrait of one of the country's most beloved writers and her struggle with fame, success, and the mystery of artistic creativity. Bestseller. 2019.The Reality Bubble provides a vivid picture of what stalks our blind spots and reveals how the way we look…
at the world has the power to shake civilization. With all of the curiosity and flair that drives her broadcasting, Tong takes us on a journey from the smallest nanoparticle to the very ideas of time and space, pausing along the way to consider the implications of research as diverse as the nature of animal languages, and the consequences of artificial fertilizers on your DNA. She'll explain fascinating science applications, such as the way police linked American nuclear testing to a murder mystery in Vienna. Throughout, what she discovers is that much of what we don't see is deliberately hidden from us. Although we live in a culture of increasingly intrusive surveillance, significant parts of the global system that sustains us are closely guarded secrets: where our food comes from, where our energy comes from, and where our waste goes. 2019.Moon Mission: The Epic 400-Year Journey to Apollo 11
By Sigmund Brouwer. 2019
This riveting narrative told from the astronauts' points of view offers a unique approach to the story behind Apollo 11's…
successful --- though nearly disastrous --- 1969 moon landing. Readers are brought along on the ride of a lifetime, as they relive every step of the mission, including the nail-biting (and relatively unknown) crucial moments when it came close to failure. From ignition to moon walk to splashdown, the story is structured in eleven exciting episodes. And, setting this book apart, each episode is linked to the innovations and discoveries from the past four centuries that made it possible --- from Copernicus to Einstein, the sextant to Velcro. It's a new perspective on an epic journey, and the science, technology, engineering and math that set it in motion! Bestselling and award-winning author Sigmund Brouwer offers children an original look at the historic feat that captivated the world in July of 1969. The information is thoroughly researched and includes NASA-sourced photographs throughout. Highly readable and with a compelling modern graphic design, this engaging book is sure to generate interest among a broad range of readers. At the same time, it's teeming with math, engineering, science and technology lessons that give young readers the opportunity to make the connections between what they learn in school and awesome things that happened in the real world. There are strong curriculum links here, including earth and space systems, physical sciences, chemistry, math, engineering, technology and applied science, as well as history.Extreme Abilities: Amazing Human Feats and the Simple Science Behind Them
By Galadriel Watson. 2019
These people did what?! Join author Galadriel Watson as she takes us on a journey of discovery—a tour of the…
human body’s amazing abilities, featuring masters of muscle, speed demons, brain bosses, and more! Extreme Abilities is a fun and fascinating survey of what humans are capable of, with examples from around the world and throughout history. Short sketches of famous individuals, such as Louis Cyr and Usain Bolt, mixed with stories about the amazing physical feats of others not-so-famous, draw readers in and bring these astounding abilities to life in vivid color. Each chapter also features a section on how young readers can work at improving their own skills (and a section on how not to get hurt in the process), plus bite-sized related fast facts and sidebars. Easy-to-follow explanations of anatomy, physics, and other sciences are enhanced by Cornelia Li’s energetic and engaging artwork, and photos throughout further help to illustrate the awesome displays of the human body at work.Talk Money to Me: Save Well, Spend Some, and Feel Good About Your Money
By Kelley Keehn. 2019
Learn how to save and spend wisely, feel good about money, and start living a more balanced life. No matter…
your age, salary, social or relationship status, money is an important part of your life. Yet, somehow, talking about your money situation is hard. Why is it that you know more about what goes on in your friend’s bedroom than with their bank account? Do you know if your parents have a will or or if they’ll leave a legacy? How many of your colleagues are still paying off student debt but are jet-setting around the globe on multiple credit cards? Since no one is talking about it, you can’t be expected to learn how to manage your money on your own. With years of experience as a personal finance advisor and educator, Kelley Keehn will answer your most burning questions about money and will talk you through how to avoid mistakes along the way. You can gain control of your debt, learn to save for your future, have a life, and feel good about money all at the same time. And—spoiler alert—you don’t need a budget to do any of this! You’ll learn: -How to build good credit (and get rid of bad credit—especially credit card debt) -What all these dreaded acronyms mean and how they can work for you—TFSA, RRSP, RESP, CFP, CPP -How and when to invest for your future -How to talk about money with your partner—and everyone else in your life -How to save for a mortgage and then work towards being mortgage-free -How to have fun, splurge once in a while, and still save money With her unique blend of empathy and no-nonsense candor, Kelley takes you through the basics of personal finance with relatable anecdotes that expose the most common money pitfalls—and how to avoid them—so you can make financial decisions that are right for you.Hello I Want to Die Please Fix Me: Depression in the First Person
By Anna Mehler Paperny. 2019
NATIONAL BESTSELLERAward-winning journalist Anna Mehler Paperny's stunning memoir chronicles with courageous honesty and uncommon eloquence her experience of depression and…
her quest to explore what we know and don't know about this disease that afflicts almost a fifth of the population--providing an invaluable guide to a system struggling to find solutions. As fascinating as it is heartrending, as outrageously funny as it is serious, it is a must-read for anyone impacted by depression--and that's pretty much everybody. Depression is a havoc-wreaking illness that masquerades as personal failing and hijacks your life. After a major suicide attempt in her early twenties, Anna Mehler Paperny resolved to put her reporter's skills to use to get to know her enemy, setting off on a journey to understand her condition, the dizzying array of medical treatments on offer and a medical profession in search of answers. Charting the way depression wrecks so many, she maps competing schools of therapy, pharmacology, cutting-edge medicine, the pill-popping pitfalls of long-term treatment, the glaring unknowns and the institutional shortcomings that both patients and practitioners are up against. She interviews leading medical experts across Canada and the US, from psychiatrists to neurologists, brain-mapping pioneers to family practitioners, and others dabbling in strange hypotheses--and shares compassionate conversations with fellow sufferers.Hello I Want to Die Please Fix Me tracks Anna's quest for knowledge and her desire to get well. Impeccably reported, it is a profoundly compelling story about the human spirit and the myriad ways we treat (and fail to treat) the disease that accounts for more years swallowed up by disability than any other in the world.The Mosquito: A Human History of Our Deadliest Predator
By Timothy C. Winegard. 2019
“Hugely impressive, a major work.”--NPRA pioneering and groundbreaking work of narrative nonfiction that offers a dramatic new perspective on the…
history of humankind, showing how through millennia, the mosquito has been the single most powerful force in determining humanity’s fate Why was gin and tonic the cocktail of choice for British colonists in India and Africa? What does Starbucks have to thank for its global domination? What has protected the lives of popes for millennia? Why did Scotland surrender its sovereignty to England? What was George Washington's secret weapon during the American Revolution? The answer to all these questions, and many more, is the mosquito. Across our planet since the dawn of humankind, this nefarious pest, roughly the size and weight of a grape seed, has been at the frontlines of history as the grim reaper, the harvester of human populations, and the ultimate agent of historical change. As the mosquito transformed the landscapes of civilization, humans were unwittingly required to respond to its piercing impact and universal projection of power. The mosquito has determined the fates of empires and nations, razed and crippled economies, and decided the outcome of pivotal wars, killing nearly half of humanity along the way. She (only females bite) has dispatched an estimated 52 billion people from a total of 108 billion throughout our relatively brief existence. As the greatest purveyor of extermination we have ever known, she has played a greater role in shaping our human story than any other living thing with which we share our global village. Imagine for a moment a world without deadly mosquitoes, or any mosquitoes, for that matter? Our history and the world we know, or think we know, would be completely unrecognizable. Driven by surprising insights and fast-paced storytelling, The Mosquito is the extraordinary untold story of the mosquito’s reign through human history and her indelible impact on our modern world order.The Uninhabitable Earth: Life After Warming
By David Wallace-Wells. 2019
#1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • “The Uninhabitable Earth hits you like a comet, with an overflow of insanely lyrical…
prose about our pending Armageddon.”—Andrew Solomon, author of The Noonday DemonNAMED ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR BY The New Yorker • The New York Times Book Review • Time • NPR • The Economist • The Paris Review • Toronto Star • GQ • The Times Literary Supplement • The New York Public Library • Kirkus ReviewsIt is worse, much worse, than you think. If your anxiety about global warming is dominated by fears of sea-level rise, you are barely scratching the surface of what terrors are possible—food shortages, refugee emergencies, climate wars and economic devastation. An “epoch-defining book” (The Guardian) and “this generation’s Silent Spring” (The Washington Post), The Uninhabitable Earth is both a travelogue of the near future and a meditation on how that future will look to those living through it—the ways that warming promises to transform global politics, the meaning of technology and nature in the modern world, the sustainability of capitalism and the trajectory of human progress. The Uninhabitable Earth is also an impassioned call to action. For just as the world was brought to the brink of catastrophe within the span of a lifetime, the responsibility to avoid it now belongs to a single generation—today’s.LONGLISTED FOR THE PEN/E.O. WILSON LITERARY SCIENCE WRITING AWARD“The Uninhabitable Earth is the most terrifying book I have ever read. Its subject is climate change, and its method is scientific, but its mode is Old Testament. The book is a meticulously documented, white-knuckled tour through the cascading catastrophes that will soon engulf our warming planet.”—Farhad Manjoo, The New York Times“Riveting. . . . Some readers will find Mr. Wallace-Wells’s outline of possible futures alarmist. He is indeed alarmed. You should be, too.”—The Economist“Potent and evocative. . . . Wallace-Wells has resolved to offer something other than the standard narrative of climate change. . . . He avoids the ‘eerily banal language of climatology’ in favor of lush, rolling prose.”—Jennifer Szalai, The New York Times“The book has potential to be this generation’s Silent Spring.”—The Washington Post“The Uninhabitable Earth, which has become a best seller, taps into the underlying emotion of the day: fear. . . . I encourage people to read this book.”—Alan Weisman, The New York Review of BooksA searing and revelatory account of the missing and murdered Indigenous women and girls of Highway 16, and an indictment…
of the society that failed them. For decades, Indigenous women and girls have gone missing or been found murdered along an isolated stretch of highway in northwestern British Columbia. The highway is known as the Highway of Tears, and it has come to symbolize a national crisis. Journalist Jessica McDiarmid investigates the devastating effect these tragedies have had on the families of the victims and their communities, and how systemic racism and indifference have created a climate where Indigenous women and girls are over-policed, yet under-protected. Through interviews with those closest to the victims—mothers and fathers, siblings and friends—McDiarmid offers an intimate, first-hand account of their loss and relentless fight for justice. Examining the historically fraught social and cultural tensions between settlers and Indigenous peoples in the region, McDiarmid links these cases to others across Canada—now estimated to number up to 4,000—contextualizing them within a broader examination of the undervaluing of Indigenous lives in this country. Highway of Tears is a powerful story about our ongoing failure to provide justice for missing and murdered Indigenous women and girls, and a testament to their families and communities' unwavering determination to find it.The Answer Is . . .: Reflections on My Life
By Alex Trebek. 2020
A RECOMMENDED SUMMER READ BY THE NEW YORK TIMES, USA TODAY, TIME, AND NEWSWEEK Longtime Jeopardy! host and television icon…
Alex Trebek reflects on his life and career.Since debuting as the host of Jeopardy! in 1984, Alex Trebek has been something like a family member to millions of television viewers, bringing entertainment and education into their homes five nights a week. Last year, he made the stunning announcement that he had been diagnosed with stage four pancreatic cancer. What followed was an incredible outpouring of love and kindness. Social media was flooded with messages of support, and the Jeopardy! studio received boxes of cards and letters offering guidance, encouragement, and prayers. For over three decades, Trebek had resisted countless appeals to write a book about his life. Yet he was moved so much by all the goodwill, he felt compelled to finally share his story. “I want people to know a little more about the person they have been cheering on for the past year,” he writes in The Answer Is…: Reflections on My Life. The book combines illuminating personal anecdotes with Trebek’s thoughts on a range of topics, including marriage, parenthood, education, success, spirituality, and philanthropy. Trebek also addresses the questions he gets asked most often by Jeopardy! fans, such as what prompted him to shave his signature mustache, his insights on legendary players like Ken Jennings and James Holzhauer, and his opinion of Will Ferrell’s Saturday Night Live impersonation. The book uses a novel structure inspired by Jeopardy!, with each chapter title in the form of a question, and features dozens of never-before-seen photos that candidly capture Trebek over the years. This wise, charming, and inspiring book is further evidence why Trebek has long been considered one of the most beloved and respected figures in entertainment. Bestseller.Why Don't Cars Run on Apple Juice?: Real Science Questions from Real Kids
By Kira Vermond. 2019
Curious kids ask the best questions! What keeps the stars from falling from the sky? Why do metal boats float?…
And more importantly, why don’t cars run on apple juice?! All these questions and more are found in the pages of this science Q & A book with questions from the most inquisitive of science center visitors—kids. With help from a slew of scientists, author Kira Vermond serves up the answers to more than 50 quizzical queries in a fun and engaging style. Vibrant illustrations by Suharu Ogawa add to the appeal, making this a STEM-tastic gift for young graduates, science buffs, and everyone who loves to ask “Why?”.Acting Wild: How We Behave Like Birds, Bugs, and Beasts
By Maria Birmingham. 2019
How are humans different from other animals? This is a question scientists have long tried to answer. As it turns…
out, some of the very things researchers once though distinguished humans—our creativity, our problem-solving ability, our capacity for planning or abstract thought—actually make us very similar to other animals! This nonfiction book introduces several different behaviors that humans and other animals share, including farming, teaching, laughing, building, mourning, communicating, grooming, playing, traveling, using tools, and working together. Narrated by a funny and friendly ant, this book is packed with humor and playful phrasing to bring lightness to the exploration of animal behavior. Brought to life by bright and wacky cartoon-style illustrations, Acting Wild will leave kids with the understanding that acting like an animal is simply in their nature.Chemical World: Science in Our Daily Lives (Orca Footprints #17)
By Rowena Rae. 2020
Chemical World: Science in Our Daily Lives explores some of the materials—all of which are made of basic chemical elements—that…
humans use or come into contact with in their day-to-day lives. Some of these chemicals are naturally occurring—clay, mercury, lead. Others have been synthesized by chemists during the past 150 years and used in a bewildering array of products ranging from roof shingles to toothpaste. Many chemical inventions, as well as naturally produced chemicals, have had profound effects on food supply, developing medicines and creating hosts of useful items for modern life. Despite people using both natural and synthetic chemicals with (mainly) good intentions, some chemicals have had unintended negative consequences. Chemical residues have contaminated ecosystems the world over and are compromising the health of many ecosystems, animals and humans. The goal of Chemical World: Science in our Daily Lives is to introduce readers to basic chemistry and chemical history, and to show how chemicals are used for particular reasons but sometimes turn out to be harmful to environmental and human health. It invites readers to take a look at the world around them and ask questions about what’s in their environment and how the things they use and eat every day can affect their own health and the planet’s health.Soap and Water & Common Sense: The Definitive Guide to Viruses, Bacteria, Parasites, and Disease
By Dr Bonnie Henry. 2020
The definitive guide to fighting coronaviruses, colds, flus, pandemics, and deadly diseases, from one of North America’s leading public health…
authorities, now updated with a new introduction on protecting yourself and others from COVID-19.Dr. Bonnie Henry, a leading epidemiologist (microbe hunter) and public health doctor at the forefront of the fight against the worldwide COVID-19 coronavirus outbreak, has spent the better part of the last three decades chasing bugs all over the world — from Ebola in Uganda to polio in Pakistan, SARS in Toronto, and the H1N1 influenza outbreak across North America. Now she offers three simple rules to live by: wash your hands, cover your mouth when you cough, and stay at home when you have a fever.From viruses to bacteria to parasites and fungi, Dr. Henry takes us on a tour through the halls of Microbes Inc., providing up-to-date and accurate information on everything from the bugs we breathe, to the bugs we eat and drink, the bugs in our backyard, and beyond. Urgent and informative, Soap and Water & Common Sense is the definitive guide to staying healthy in a germ-filled world.How to Become an Accidental Genius (Accidental Ser. #2)
By Frieda Wishinsky, Elizabeth MacLeod. 2019
Don't be afraid to try! Make connections! Be persistent! Ask questions and never take no for an answer! Learn the…
secrets and amazing stories of successful inventors! How to Become an Accidental Genius is full of inspiring tales of famous and lesser-known inventors who have changed the world, from George Washington Carver, Mary Anderson (inventor of the windshield wiper) and inventor and actress Hedy Lamarr to Frank Epperson (of Popsicle fame) and Mary Sherman Morgan (The Woman Who Saved the U.S. Space Race). Readers will be amazed at the inventiveness of these geniuses. The book focuses on inventors from North America but includes stories from around the world. Organized into eleven chapters that highlight the qualities inventors have in common, the book also features profiles of inventive kids and teenagers.Beloved science commentator Bob McDonald takes us on a tour of our galaxy, unraveling the mysteries of the universe and…
helping us navigate our place among the stars.How big is our galaxy? Is there life on those distant planets? Are we really made of star dust? And where do stars even come from? In An Earthling’s Guide to Outer Space, we finally have the answers to all those questions and more. With clarity, wisdom, and a great deal of enthusiasm, McDonald explores the curiosities of the big blue planet we call home as well as our galactic neighbours—from Martian caves to storm clouds on Jupiter to the nebulae at the far end of the universe. So if you’re pondering how to become an astronaut, or what dark matter really is, or how an asteroid wiped out the dinosaurs, look no further. Through a captivating mix of stories, experiments, and illustrations, McDonald walks us through space exploration past and present, and reveals what we can look forward to in the future. An Earthling’s Guide to Outer Space is sure to satisfy science readers of all ages, and to remind us earthbound terrestrials just how special our place in the universe truly is.50 Animals That Have Been to Space (Beginner's Guide To Space Ser.)
By John Read, Jennifer Read. 2020
Since the earliest days of flight and space travel, scientists have worked with animals to pave the way for human…
exploration. In 1783, a rooster, a duck, and a sheep were placed in a hot-air balloon, becoming the first living creatures to fly in an artificial vehicle. Since 1949, when a monkey became the first animal to reach space, many creatures followed, and most returned safely to Earth. Many experiments were designed by high-school students. From cats and dogs to chimpanzees, spiders, frogs, and even a colony of honeybees, this book tells the fascinating stories of 50 space missions featuring pioneering animals at the forefront of science.