Saara's Passage

Two days before her twelfth birthday, Saara Mäki became one of only four children to survive the May 1914 sinking of the RMS Empress of Ireland in Karen Autio's acclaimed debut novel "Second Watch." (2005) Now, the beautifully written "Saara's Passage" picks up the story during the months after her ordeal in the dark, cold waters of the St. Lawrence River.Saara, who is suffering through graphic nightmares about the tragic end of the family's dream trip to see her grandparents in Finland, faces the disruption of her schoolgirl world as a new ordeal appears: her Aunt Marja has been stricken with tuberculosis, and Marja's baby Sanni needs a caretaker during Marja's lengthy stay in the TB sanatorium.Times are difficult as Canada begins sending troops off to fight in World War I. Can Saara's uncle, father and mother--who are desperately trying to earn a living--take on childcare duties? Or, can Saara step in and become an adult over night and look after the child and also do the associated housework?When the Empress of Ireland sank, 68% of the passengers died. Saara wondered why she was spared. During the early 1900s, 45% of those with TB died. Aunt Marja may never come home, and if she does, she will probably be too contagious and weak to care for her baby. Saara is asking herself if she survived for Marja and Sanni.Saara faces a new passage, one of heartbreak and loss and purpose. This rich, wonderfully detailed historical novel opens a wide window into the world of Canada's Finnish immigrants almost 100 years ago. Facing challenges of their own, today's young readers will discover in "Saara's Passage," a timeless story that remains inspiring and relevant for all generations.

I liked this book even better than Second Watch, the first of the trilogy. Ms. Autio weaves a wonderfully intense story that twists and turns, and just when you think it's all going to crash...it doesn't. Saara, a 13-year-old girl who survived the sinking of the Empress of Ireland, volunteers to look after her baby cousin when the baby's mother is sent to Toronto to convalesce from TB. Sounds kind of ordinary, right? But Ms. Autio creates the most interesting passages out of the most mundane events, so moving, you can't put the book down. I carried my iPad with me everywhere, reading between this and that, even in the middle of the night, until the story was done. I can see why this novel was nominated for the Chocolate Lily Award. Now onto the next one.