One Year in Coal Harbour
Readers rejoice—Primrose Squarp is back! The wise and curious heroine of the Newbery Honor Book Everything on a Waffle is facing another adventure-filled year in Coal Harbor.
Even though her parents, once lost at sea, are now home, there’s a whole slew of problems and mysteries to keep Primrose busy. There’s Uncle Jack and Kate Bowzer, who may (or may not) be in love. There’s Ked, a foster child who becomes Primrose’s friend. And there’s the new development on the outskirts of town that threatens the Coal Harbor Primrose knows and treasures.
Through a year of turmoil, Primrose is undaunted as she tries to save what matters most to her. Profound and insightful, hilarious and smart, National Book Award and Newbery Honor winner Polly Horvath’s new novel features an unforgettable heroine, a cast of unpredictable, irresistible characters . . . and recipes!
Boston Globe Best Children's Book (2012); Bankstreet College of Education Best Children's Book of the Year (2012); School Library Journal Best Children's Book of the Year (2012); Toronto-Dominion Children's Literature Award (2013); Bolen Books Children’s Book Prize (2013)
About the Coal Harbour Series
Books in series order
- 1.Everything on a Waffle(2001)
- 2.One Year in Coal Harbour(2012)
Reading age: 10+ years
This series should be read in order.
Primrose Squarp simply knows her parents did not perish at sea during a terrible storm, but try convincing the other residents of Coal Harbour on that score. For all practical purposes, at least for the time being, Primrose is an orphan, and there’s no great clamoring of prospective adopters.
After realising the impracticality of continuing to pay Miss Perfidy (a mothball-scented elderly lady) an hourly wage to baby-sit her, the town council is able to locate a relative, Uncle Jack, who reluctantly takes Primrose into his care. Primrose does warm up to living with him and in his home, despite the eerie noises resembling a hockey game that haunt her in the night.
But true sanctuary can always be found at a restaurant called The Girl in the Swing, where everything—including lasagna—is served on a waffle, and where the proprietor, Miss Bowzer, offers a willing ear, as well as sage advice. Through a mixture of eccentric humor and probing philosophy, author Polly Horvath makes Primrose’s search for peace and understanding a most memorable one.