“The Cowboy in Me”
by Robin Langford
Published by LM Publication Services
Ltd.
Review by Shelley A. Leedahl
$28.00
ISBN 9-780995-819009
"These stories are one hundred
percent factual, no yarns or embellishments." This is an enticing entry into
septuagenarian cowboy Robin Langford's memoir, The Cowboy in Me. The Maple Creek-born author candidly shares his
life's journey between 1947 and 2016, and readers are advised to hang on for a
ride that delivers more ups and downs than a bucking bronco.
"Cowboy up" is a term that
defines what Langford and his hard-working second wife, Penny, often had to do
while they tended both cattle and kids on ranches between Williams Lake, BC and
the Prince Albert region of SK. The work was physically arduous and eminently
dangerous, and the culmination of poor weather, aggressive bears, pack rats,
raging bulls, moody cows, temperamental horses, frequent job changes,
province-hopping, bad deals, disharmonious neighbours, disagreeable bank
managers, and health issues would be enough to make anyone raise the white
flag, but the Langfords stuck it out, even when it was often difficult to
"put groceries on the table".
In one entertaining anecdote Langford
explains that when he and Penny "finally" got married in 1984-Penny'd
stepped in to help him raise his two boys, and she and Langford later had two
more children together-the cowboy/trapper/ranch owner/author borrowed a suit
and Penny borrowed a dress, and they married "in front of a Justice of the
Peace on the front lawn of John Mador's house in Prince George" with their
children in attendance.
The stories begin with Langford's birth
to a violent, alcoholic father and his hard-suffering but "feisty"
mother. "They had a strange relationship that was somehow a cross between
love and resentment," he writes. After a physical fight with his father at
age thirteen, and with just a grade six education, Langford moved out and
stayed with other family members. By fourteen he was hitchhiking to Medicine
Hat, where a cousin soon hooked him up with a Taber beet farmer who needed help
with chores that ranged from breaking ponies for merry-go-rounds to collecting
eggs. Langford's first real cowboy job was in the Cypress Hills, and "It
was here that [Langford] found a love for the cowboy way of life that's stayed
with [him] to this day".
In this easy-to-read memoir the
language is in the cowboy vernacular, and the author's lively character is apparent,
ie: at eighteen he suggested a dalliance with the mid-forties cook, Mrs. Campbell,
on the bear-plagued Circle S Ranch. "Within two days the whole goddamned
valley had heard about the incident". The book's filled with respect for
"real top cowboys," many of whom were inducted into the BC Cowboy
Hall of Fame. The numerous photographs of people, camps, animals, and
activities contribute much, and the full-colour photo of the Langford Ranch in
Shellbrook, SK-with a rainbow behind it-seems a fitting metaphor for a life that,
in its later years, has included the joy of grandparenting.
Langford asserts, "with hard work
and true grit, you can overcome most everything"–bears, hernias, bar
fights, and all. Terrific read for a wide audience.
THIS BOOK IS AVAILABLE AT YOUR LOCAL
BOOKSTORE OR FROM WWW.SKBOOKS.COM
__________
"Little Bear"
Written by Elaine Scharfe, Illustrated by
Karen Sim
Published by YNWP
Review by Shelley A. Leedahl
$9.95
ISBN 9-781988-783086
Do you remember being a child and
wishing you were a teenager? I sure do. I was particularly envious of a teenager
named Cindy, who carried Wrigley's Spearmint Gum in her handbag, and whose
long, blonde hair swished when she walked. I wanted to grow up and have a
handbag, a purse, and hair that reached to my waist, too!
Saskatoon writer Elaine Scharfe's growing
collection of illustrated children's books now includes a story about a cute
bear cub who can't wait to grow up and really ROAR! Scharfe's figured out the formula
for creating stories that the youngest children will want to read–or have read
to them–time and again, and Karen Sim's illustrations–full bleeds on every
other page–are a perfect complement to the text of Little Bear.
Using the Rule of Threes re:
repetition, we journey along with Little Bear, the book's impatient star, as he
wakes up each day and asks his mother "Am I Big Bear yet?" Little
Bear encounters three friends–each a different species–and, as it's taking too
long to become Big Bear, he asks "Can I be like you instead?" When he
learns what it takes to be an owl, a rabbit, and a fish–and realizes he can't
manage it–he feels defeated. "Just then Little Bear heard his mother
calling."
"Little Bear, Little Bear. It's time
for our winter sleep."
Older readers will understand what's
happening as the bears crawl into their cozy cave and cuddle up. Upon waking,
Little Bear learns he's changed over the passing months, and he returns to
visit each of his friends, delightedly asking each of them, "Did you hear
that?"
This is a story a child could easily
memorize. It could also become a first (and treasured) reader. In the book's
endnotes we learn that Scharfe's children's books are actually "refined
versions of stories she told her children and grandchildren when they were
young". The glossy softcover should hold up well in little hands, and the
large black type centered on a white background is easy on older eyes.
Sim's artistic talent shines on every
page. The Vancouver Island-based artist and designer works in various media,
including digital media, oil pastel, and graphite and ink. She manages to evoke
curiosity, fear, excitement and love through the endearing expressions of these
animal characters. To view her fine and varied work, see www.karensim.net.
Scharfe previously impressed me with
her book My Good Friend, Grandpa. She
has also written There's a Dinosaur in My
Room. The lesson in her latest book is that age-old one: All good things
come to those who wait. Who can't relate? As the mother of two now-adults, I
can remember when they too looked forward to the next birthday, and the next …
each birthday cake a milestone affording them greater liberties and more
independence.
As for this once impatient child, I did get the handbag, the hair, and the
gum, though Juicy Fruit was my flavour of choice.
THIS BOOK IS AVAILABLE AT YOUR LOCAL
BOOKSTORE OR FROM WWW.SKBOOKS.COM
__________
"Angel Blessings"
Written and Illustrated by Marilyn
Lachambre
Published by YNWP
Review by Shelley A. Leedahl
$19.95
ISBN 9-781988-783093
Quite coincidentally, I read the
illustrated children's book, Angel
Blessings, the first title by Kamsack, SK writer and illustrator Marilyn
Lachambre, on the one-year anniversary of my younger brother's passing; at the
end of this review, you'll read why this is significant.
In this attractive hardcover released
in November 2017 by Regina's Your Nickel's Worth Publishing, Lachambre rhymes
her way through All Things Angel: who and what they are, and the many ways they
bring us comfort, protection, and inspiration. The rhyming text will be
appealing to young ears, as will the soothing sentiments, ie: "Angels are
with you day and night …. keeping you in their loving sight," and
"They're always with you, through joy and sorrow—protecting and guiding,
today and tomorrow".
I could see this uplifting book being
used as a nighttime prayer for young children. Its Christian emphasis and
calming words would be a wonderful way for children to fall asleep, ie:
"Even at bedtime when it's time to sleep, they will stay with you while
you slumber deep. As you lie quietly in bed tonight, know that Angel wings are
holding you tight". In fact, any one, of any age, might well be comforted
by these assertions.
Lachambre has refrained from using
facial details on the angels and people in her almost full-page illustrations,
and this may help children imagine their own features and/or the features of
those they love on these characters. I enjoyed the splashes of colour on every
page, and the diverse representations of the angels, ie: some have scalloped,
yellow wings, while others have gold, feathery wings, rainbow-coloured wings,
or insect-like wings. The angels are featured in the air, on clouds, and in
trees, and many pages also show them interacting with characters in their daily
lives on the ground, ie: overlooking a baby in a cradle, or playing a game with
a child in a field.
There's a long dedication to this
beautifully-produced book, and I'm guessing that the author's two children and
four grandchildren are incredibly proud of their mother/grandmother for
publishing such a fine first book. Lachambre even thanks "the Angels, for
nudging me along and guiding me".
I haven't given a lot of thought to
angels of late, thus it was sweet to be reminded how some believe that our own
angels (which I interpreted as dearly departed family members and friends)
sometimes make themselves present to us with special signs, like "a
cloud-shaped Angel," or coins, or feathers, or butterflies.
After reading this book I went to the
gym, as I do most mornings, and started my treadmill run. The treadmills at the
Frank Jameson Community Centre in Ladysmith face a bank of windows and overlook
a small skateboard park, backed by a row of towering evergreens. I was thinking
about my brother, one year gone, when suddenly a single white flower delicately
danced down from the sky right before me. Coincidence? Ah, perhaps. But I
choose to believe that it was no coincidence at all.
THIS BOOK IS AVAILABLE AT YOUR LOCAL
BOOKSTORE OR FROM WWW.SKBOOKS.COM
