Review
?A dreamy evocation of a mysterious time.?
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School Library Journal?More than a ?picture? book, yet less than a novel, it magically mixes myth and reality in a dense, riveting tale that will haunt readers of all ages long after the last page.?
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The Toronto Star?Strange historical story results in a luminous book.?
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The Globe and Mail?
Dippers is that rare book that appeals to both adults and children on several levels at once. Set in 1912 near the Don River in Toronto, the book melds the ordinary and the fantastic in a haunting fiction.?
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Quill & Quire?Although Barry Moser?s splendid illustrations evoke instant nostalgia for sweeter, simpler times, Nichol?s prose rudely jerks the reader back to ?reality??Yet there is a toughness about the characters that is both painful and wonderful to contemplate. Highly recommended.?
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Canadian Book Review Annual --
ReviewFragments of a hand-written letter have been discovered. Their author's name is Margaret, and in the letter she describes her memories of a summer of her girlhood long ago when the dippers came up from the Don River. It was 1912, and a summer full of odd happenings. The letter tells of Margaret's first encounter with her father, of her mother's worry that she might lose her job as a maid, and of her little sister's being overtaken by paralysis and disease. And, of course, there were the dippers moving up from the river to inhabit the neighborhood -- furry, ungainly, dog-like creatures with leathery wings. Barbara Nichol's Dippers is a remarkable story first broadcast as short fiction on CBC Radio's "Writers and Company". Now in the form of a children's book for young readers ages 8 and up. Dippers is wonderfully illustrated with Barry Moser's gifted, full-page, hauntingly beautiful artwork. --
Midwest Book Review“A dreamy evocation of a mysterious time.”
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School Library Journal“More than a ‘picture’ book, yet less than a novel, it magically mixes myth and reality in a dense, riveting tale that will haunt readers of all ages long after the last page.”
–
The Toronto Star“Strange historical story results in a luminous book.”
–
The Globe and Mail“
Dippers is that rare book that appeals to both adults and children on several levels at once. Set in 1912 near the Don River in Toronto, the book melds the ordinary and the fantastic in a haunting fiction.”
–
Quill & Quire“Although Barry Moser’s splendid illustrations evoke instant nostalgia for sweeter, simpler times, Nichol’s prose rudely jerks the reader back to ‘reality’…Yet there is a toughness about the characters that is both painful and wonderful to contemplate. Highly recommended.”
–
Canadian Book Review Annual
From the Inside Flap
Fragments of a handwritten letter have been discovered. Their author?s name is Margaret, and in the letter she describes her memories of a summer of her girlhood long ago when the dippers came up from the Don River.
It was 1912, and a summer full of odd happenings. The letter tells of Margaret?s first encounter with her father, of her mother?s worry that she might lose her job as a maid, and of her little sister?s being overtaken by paralysis and disease.
And, of course, there were the dippers moving up from the river to inhabit the neighbourhood ? furry, ungainly, dog-like creatures with leathery wings ? creatures unnerving but not dangerous, yet another fact of life to become adjusted to.
