Synopsis
When the young ones cannot sleep, we tell a story. When I first heard it I was only a kit, all warm and sleepy in the den, my belly filled with mother's milk. But I remembered, and so I pass it on.
The tale of Fortress Louisbourg began in 1713 on Cape Breton Island. What was a prized French fishing settlement became one of the mightiest fortresses in the New World. Over time Native Canadians, the French, and the English have each called the place home. France and Britain have battled for it, and both have possessed it. The ravages of time and history took their toll, but Fortress Louisbourg stands today, restored to its former majesty and open to thousands of visitors each year.
In such a setting, stories naturally take root and grow. But one in particular has been repeated by those who claim to have seen a fox dancing with a cat inside the fortress walls. It could well be true for, through time and change, there has always been foxes in this place.
Children's Literature
Simultaneously published in Canada and the United States in picture storybook format, this Canadian author and illustrator neatly truncate the history of Fortress Louisbourg on Cape Breton Island. The history is told in uneven poetic prose from the perspective of foxes, the inhabitants who have been there for generations. Originally a cod fishing settlement for the French from 1713 to 1745, the fortress became a battleground for power between the French and British. By 1758, the British had destroyed it. In 1926, the area was declared a National Historic Site and is now the largest reconstructed historic site in North America. The oil-on-canvas-looking paintings are realistic and appealing, but in reading the text aloud the beauty of language the writer aims for does not quite resonate. An author's endnote gives a concise and compelling history of the fortress, and a weak rationale for why the storyteller is a fox. Determining the audience for this picture book may be challenging. 2001, Stoddart Kids, Bradley