Gwen
A Young Adult Novel
by Carolyn Pogue

No matter what the world throws at her, Gwen Peters rises to the challenge. Feisty, curious, with a flare for the dramatic, she dreams of a life on the stage like her idol E. Pauline Johnson, a Mohawk writer, poet and performer who dazzled Gwen during a stunning performance at a London theatre. When Gwen is orphaned at the age of eleven, she seizes the opportunity to become a Home Child and is trained to work as a maid for placement with a family in Canada. So begins her long journey away from her friends in the turn-of-the-century streets of London, England to begin service in a wealthy Canadian household.

But when trouble comes her way in Toronto, Gwen takes matters into her own hands and escapes into the night. Angry and alone, she undertakes a long dangerous trek following the train tracks back to the only safe haven she knows: Cedarbrae, the Home in Peterborough. Her many adventures include an encounter with a bear and flight from a raging forest fire. Finally, Gwen's courage brings her to a welcoming family in Brantford and new friends from the Six Nations Reserve near Pauline Johnson's childhood home.

Author Carolyn Pogue draws imaginatively on the story of her own grandmother's experiences as a Barnardo Home Child to bring a little-known piece of Canadian history to light in this exuberant story of bravery and resourcefulness. With the young, vibrant Gwen, Pogue gives readers of all ages a character to cheer on through every step of a journey that comes alive in a manner both wonderfully strange and familiar.