FLOOD

Heneghan (The Grave, 2000, etc.) tells an engaging and optimistic tale of loss, recovery, and a little bit of magic. When weeks of rain cause the rivers and creeks of North Vancouver to sweep away bridges, roads, and houses, Andy Flynn escapes the fate of his drowned mother and stepfather thanks to the help of the Sheehogues, a.k.a. the Little People. When stern Aunt Mona arrives to take Andy to live with her in Halifax, she reveals that his father, whom Andy had believed dead, is in fact alive. The bad news is that she portrays him as a bum who drinks and gambles when he is not in jail. Upon arriving in Halifax, Andy runs away from Mona and finds his father, a charmer with a gift for storytelling who is every bit as Aunt Mona had described. Andy clings to the belief that his father will shape up, find a job, and provide the sort of stable life to which Andy is accustomed. Under the watchful eyes of the Sheehogues, who also make the trip to Halifax (they go by plane, finding Air Canada quicker than the traditional faerie method of travel), Andy learns to love his flawed father without expecting too much of him and to appreciate his well-meaning and generous Aunt Mona. The Sheehogues play a minor role in the story, appearing only in brief addenda to each chapter, much in the way that they remain an unseen but invaluable help to Andy. (Fiction. 11-14)