The Year Mrs. Montague Cried book launch Saturday, May 28

Last week I was honored to be asked to act as a bookseller for Sue White's recent book launch on the Kingston Peninsula in rural NB. Sue's book, The Year Mrs. Montague Cried, is a touching tale that tells the story of an elementary teacher who is grieving the loss of her 20 year old son who was killed tragically in a car accident. The story is from the perspective of 9 year old Taylor who makes journal entries during writing class each day. As Taylor watches her teacher attempt to re-enter the world of elementary school, she is dealing with her younger brother, Corey's horrific cancer diagnosis.

The journal entries are often silly as they would be coming from a 9 year old girl. Taylor loves Top 10 lists (who doesn't?). But just as many are silly, many more are serious and really make the reader (or in our case the listeners) stop and think about how Mrs. Montague or Taylor may be feeling.

Sue and her husband experienced loss 12 years ago when their 20 year old son Zach was taken in a car accident. This book is dedicated to Zach. Although it is not autobiographical, there are many parts of the book that reflect the White's experience. As a teacher on the Peninsula for over 24 years, Sue and her family welcomed many friends and former students to the launch. It was truly a community event of which I was proud to be a part!

Although the topics in this book may be considered heavy, they are undoubtedly real! Daniel (10), Mac (9) and I look forward to reading this beautiful story each night. It is one I will definitely share with our girls as they get a little older. I highly recommend this as a read-aloud for family reading together.

We will be celebrating the launch of Sue's book at Benjamin's Books on Saturday, May 28 at 1pm. Everyone is welcome to join us.