Forever Birchwood

By Danielle Daniel

Junior Fiction 

Reviewed by Manitou Elementary School Book Club

Over the past six weeks, some Grade 5 and 6 students in the book club at Manitou Elementary School (MES) have been reading Forever Birchwood, written by Danielle Daniel.

The book is one of many that has been nominated for the 2024 Manitoba Young Readers Choice Award (MYRCA) in the Sundogs Category (for readers in Grades 4 to 6).

The book is about adventurous, trail-blazing Wolf, who lives in a northern mining town and spends her days exploring the mountains and wilderness with her three best friends Penny, Ann and Brandi. The girls' secret refuge is their tree-house hideaway, Birchwood, Wolf's favourite place on earth. When her beloved grandmother tells her that she is the great-granddaughter of a tree talker, Wolf knows that she is destined to protect the birch trees and wildlife that surround her.

But Wolf's mother doesn't understand this connection at all. Not only is she reluctant to engage with their family's Indigenous roots, she seems suspiciously on the wrong side of the environmental protection efforts in their hometown. To make matters worse, she's just started dating an annoying new boyfriend named Roger, whose motives--and construction company--seem equally suspect.

As summer arrives, so do bigger problems. Wolf and her friends discover orange plastic bands wrapped around the trees near their cherished hangout spot, and their once stable friendship seems on the verge of unravelling. Birchwood has given them so much--can they even stay together long enough to save this special place?

Below is a summary of what the students thought about the book:

“In Forever Birchwood, my favourite character was probably Hari, because he is really resilient. I loved this book because it was really exciting. Thank you, Danielle Daniel, for sharing this book and the experience.”

“I loved this book because I could relate to the characters in this book. I love the drama in the book and the middle school life. My favourite character is Brandi because I’m almost exactly like her.”

“The storyline of this book has a little bit of everything – happy, sad, confusing, and mad. I enjoyed this book’s characters because I felt like I could relate to them.”

“I really like that this book has so many mysteries happening, so there is lots to talk about. There are also many twists in the story, so I had to really think about it. I also love the characters!”

“I give this book a 10 out of 10 because it is full of action and cool characters. I really enjoyed the book!”

MES has a very active and engaged book club and the students will be reading more of the MYRCA titles over the next few months. As well, Manitou Branch has all of the titles nominated for the MYRCA in both categories – Sundog (Grades 4 to 6) and Northern Lights (Grades 7 to 9) - available for our young readers to borrow and cast their vote for their favourite. Online voting will take place between April 12-19, 2024. You can see the full list of titles at https://www.myrca.ca/ or contact the Manitou Branch at manitoucirc@gmail.com for more details.

With thanks to MES teachers, Laurie Serle and Brenda Atkinson.

To place this book on hold, click here.