At FriesenPress we celebrate each and every book our authors publish. Below are a few that staff have nominated as their picks. Selections change frequently, so be sure to check back for new recommended books. And, of course, all the titles you see below are available here at the FriesenPress Bookstore. Happy reading!
'Buckshot & Johnnycakes' is a heart-warming true-life story of two 11 year old boys who met in the Scouting Movement in the Cowichan Valley on beautiful Vancouver Island, British Columbia and spent the next 56 years of their lives sharing one continuous adventure after the other in scouting activities, survival camping, relic hunting for middens, deep sea fishing, buying and selling boats and antique cars, working in sawmills and logging camps, military service, law enforcement, private investigations, hunting for wild game on a private island and numerous other daring exploits from childhood to becoming great grandfathers. These characters are indeed the Canadian Tom Sawyer and Huck Finn complete with sense of humour. This beautiful and touching story of two totally different personalities will bring laughter and tears to your eyes and heart. A must read for the adult child in each and every one of us.
Today’s world is stuck in black-and-white thinking that limits creative possibilities. We all need fresh ways to move forward beyond constraints that insist on only two possibilities—one right, the other wrong. But the world is not a black-and-white place. It is packed full of color. Just as color is infinitely abundant, so too is the potential for reshaping our lives. By breaking down rigid mindsets, new insights and vantage points can emerge. In COLOR Up, you will discover why black-and-white thinking is so prevalent when framing life dilemmas. Placing possible choices in opposition to each other masks the abundant alternatives that lie in between and beyond— everything from the mundane to the miraculous. Color is your starting point and your prompt for change. Take full advantage of the five interactive steps of COLOR, an easy-to-remember acronym, to transport you from limitation to possibility: Connect to break out of black-and-white thinking Optimize to put your imagination to work creating colorful choices Lighten to choose and appreciate the playful side of life Oops to grasp there are no mistakes, only opportunities Ripple to inspire others to see life from an abundant, vibrant place The message is profound: You are never stuck, no matter the circumstances. With the help of COLOR Up and a trusty color wheel, you have all the tools you need to create a more vibrant life—a life lived on your own terms.
Day Cat Night Cat is the engaging "tail" of a young boy called Hayden who lives with a single mother on the edge of the city. He has two fantastical companions. When the sun is up, the day cat visits him and they play wild games together. Then, when he grows tired, the day cat vanishes and the night cat mysteriously appears. First, before Hayden falls asleep, then while he dreams, the night cat provides him with comfort, adventures and protection. Until the sun rises, and the cats magically change shifts again.
Marlene Ritchie is off to teach in China at age 68. She’s just divorced and retired from the auction business she and her husband founded, and is now examining her past and finding the self-confidence to start anew. She’ll be embedded in the commune of a Chinese university, attending to her basic needs with little Chinese speaking ability, while making lesson plans and teaching English, uncertain whether the students will be able to understand. The man in charge of her accommodations reluctantly addresses faults in her apartment, challenging her patience and finesse. As she ventures about to understand what life is like for her students, colleagues, business and farming acquaintances, she often gets into predicaments which are amusing. Her understanding is enriched by trips to historic sites. China is in flux. It’s a crash course covering language, history, and sociology with exotic dinners thrown in. Marlene wasn’t going to miss out, and neither are you as you live her experiences through the pages of this heart-warming narrative.
If you’re a mom (or mom-to-be) who wants to raise decent human beings, maintain your pre-baby identity, and not lose your sh*t along the way, congrats: you’ve just found the parenting book of your dreams. The Rebel Mama’s Handbook for (Cool) Moms is a girlfriend’s guide to early motherhood. It’s the Coles Notes for all those boring baby books you never read. It’s the instruction manual you wish your kid(s) came with - complete with cocktail list. Welcome to motherhood. Let’s do this.
The Palm Tree is just a palm tree. There’s nothing special about her. Nobody sits under her for shade, or climbs up her branches. She doesn’t even have any branches! But when a storm rolls in and wild winds and pounding rain batter the shore, the Palm Tree discovers that there’s something very special about her indeed.
With the terrifying and seemingly inevitable war between Britain, France and Germany looming like storm clouds on the horizon, Scottish architect Lawrence McKellan uproots his Edinburgh household and moves his wife, two children, and brother to the safety of Ireland’s controversial neutrality. He purchases properties in the rural setting of County Mayo, and sets his wife, Helen, up as a hotelier and his brother, Harry, as a gentleman farmer. While somewhat jarred by Lawrence’s compulsory resettlement, the family adjust quickly to the beauty of their surroundings and the charm and culture of the Irish people. Unfortunately, even Ireland’s verdant countryside is marred by shades of grey. And, when Lawrence joins British Intelligence, a shroud of secrecy soon entangles him leaving Helen to battle inner turmoil and Harry to pursue his own agenda with severe consequences. Cooper O’Neil is Irish through and through. When he was only a child, his Catholic father—an ardent IRA supporter—was brutally killed for his beliefs and his sister, Sophie, was marred for life in an ambush by a group of Protestant schoolgirls. The British had been a thorn in the side of Ireland for generations, causing Cooper more anguish by the time he reaches his teens than most people face in a lifetime. Now a hardened man with a steely determination to scrape British shite from Ireland’s weathered boots, Cooper has more power than a man of his nature should probably yield. Shaped by his past, Cooper takes his pain and anger and sharpens them into a thorn of his own. When temptation and ambition pair with distance and deceit, the innocent and guilty are both driven to acts they never thought possible and consequences they never imagined.
An irresistible wine country crime caper. Beckett Jensen has lived honorably for the last fifteen years, but the mistakes of his youth are about to overturn his idyllic life as the owner of a successful winery in Paso Robles. Unruly former acquaintances arrive under the guise of a social visit. Drunken hijinks and a hilarious wine tour ensue, but things turn nasty as the unwelcome visitors’ true intentions are revealed. They are plotting a daring crime and using guilt, blackmail, and physical threats to force Beckett to assist them. If Beckett participates he will almost certainly end up in prison. But if he refuses, his life, his winery, and everyone he loves will be destroyed. The cat and mouse games escalate and Beckett plans a sting of his own. Caught in a terrible dilemma, Beckett is forced to reckon with the burdens of his past and tap into the darkness within, hoping it is powerful enough to overcome seemingly insurmountable odds. Only one thing is certain, before the story ends, both wine and blood will spill. “Wine Runs Deep is a heist novel with the wine, the vineyard, and the terroir as the stars.” – Forward Clarion Reviews. “If you enjoy the world of wine, a good thriller and a little romance, you will love Wine Runs Deep.” – Sam Hauck, Wine Educator – MyVanCity.ca
