Sue Ann Alderson. The Eco-Diary of Kiran Singer
Tradewind Books  $18.95  ISBN 978-1-896580-4-70  66 pg.
Reviewed by Meghan, Age 16

Once this bog was under an evil spell. The city
grew up around it. The bog fell asleep,
trampled, covered by debris.

Then one day the spell was broken.
People cleared away the trash, weeded
the moss, seeded, built walkways around it.

The story of a bog and the people who take care of it is told through the eyes of a 12-year-old girl. Through her poetry-diary Kiran shows us all of the different forms of wildlife that live in a bog, the special things about this bog and what it takes to keep it alive. Spread out over the course of a week, each day’s diary entry shows more insight into the world of the bog and what a wonderful place it is, as well as Kiran’s development into a Crazy Bogger.

Though the words are simple this is a very touching story. The childlike innocence of the poetry matches the illustrations by Millie Ballance perfectly. It’s actually easy to believe that a twelve year old could have written this book. Sue Ann Alderson manages to stick to the character while writing some wonderful poetry and that’s what really makes the story work. Sue Ann Alderson was born in the States, but moved to Vancouver where she worked as a professor in UBC’s Creative Writing Program. She has written 17 books for children and writes poetry for adults.

Adding further to the story are the illustrations, which are simply beautiful. Simple and yet very detailed at the same time, they show the world the way a child might see it. Millie Balance is an artist born in Britain who now lives and paints in Vancouver.

I’d give The Eco-Diary of Kiran Singer five stars, and recommend it for children and poetry lovers ages 12 and up.