Available September 2004 1-55380-019-2 BISAC: JUV000000, JUV016000, JUV030030 5-1/4 x 7-5/8 180 pp $9.95 CDN $7.95 US YA Novel, Halifax Explosion Ages 9 and up A separate Teacher’s Guide is available from Ronsdale Press for $5.95.

Chaos in Halifax
By Cathy Beveridge

“I wish I wasn’t a twin.” Twelve-year-old Jolene is determined to find independence from her brother, Michael, during a family trip to research the Halifax explosion of 1917 for her father’s Museum of Disasters. When her grandfather finds a time crease into the past, Jolene discovers a new friend and the importance of family and loyalty in a world torn apart by World War I. When Michael joins them, however, the past suddenly becomes much more complicated. He inadvertently threatens Jolene’s friendship with a grieving family, and his careless comments spark speculation that they are spies. Together, the twins try to reconcile the honour and horrors of the Great War as they struggle with the knowledge that their new friends are living in the area soon to be devastated by the explosion. Jolene knows they can’t change history, but Michael is determined to try and leads them into the midst of destruction. In the harbour, the Mont Blanc, laden with explosives, collides with the Imo and bursts into flames. Minutes later, two thousand are dead, and nine thousand more are injured or trapped in shattered burning buildings. The day that changed Halifax forever also changes Jolene and her twin brother.

“Beveridge uses the fascinating concept of time creases to allow her modern-day characters to grapple with the vibrant immediacy of the 1917 Halifax Explosion. A gripping exploration of this major Canadian disaster.”
— Sandy Frances Duncan

Cathy Beveridge was born and raised in Calgary and attended the University of Alberta. During a recent trip to Halifax, the birthplace of her father, Cathy became intrigued by the scope and events of the Halifax disaster and wrote Chaos in Halifax, a sequel to Shadows of Disaster (Ronsdale, 2003), shortlisted for both the Golden Eagle and Rocky Mountain Book Awards. Her other publications include a contemporary young adult novel, Offside (Thistledown, 2001), winner of the 2003 Saskatchewan Young Reader’s Choice Snow Willow Award.