Laurel Croza, illustrated by Matt James,
I Know Here
Groundwood Books, 2010.

Rating: G*

I Know Here is narrated by a grade three girl from North East Saskatchewan. She goes to a school with only nine students, and lives on a road where the groceries have to be delivered door to door. When her brother announces they will be moving to Toronto in the summer, she starts to think about the familiar sights and sounds surrounding her. "I know the forest behind my home where I play hide-and-seek in and out of the pine trees/I know the howling sound  a wolf makes when it calls out at night in that very same forest/I have seen an old moose standing still in the water, looking straight at me/." In contrast, all she knows about Toronto is its location under the big red star on the classroom map. However, when her father is finished working on the dam, and it's time for her family to leave, she will be ready. She is taking with her a hand drawn picture that captures all her favourite memories of home.

The pride the characters feel about their home is evident in this first book by Ontario resident Laurel Croza. I Know Here is based on her own memories of moving to Toronto from Saskatchewan when she was young. Rendered in acrylics and India ink, Matt James's illustrations show an isolated but caring community where planes fly overhead and all the children are friends. A section of a Canadian map found on the endpapers will give children an idea how far this family is moving. Librarians and teachers exploring the theme of moving, Canada, or home with Kindergarten to grade 2 children might find this book helpful.

Thematic Links: Moving; Canada; Home; Northern Communities; Saskatchewan; Toronto

Tanya Boudreau
Vol. 16, number 1
October 2010

*Rating System:
E - Excellent, enduring, everyone should see it!
G - Good, even great at times, generally useful!
A - Average, all right, has its applications.
P - Problematic, puzzling, poorly presented.