Thirteen-year-old Minto's family is in crisis. Minto's older sister has had a baby and immediately abandoned the family and her son. Her father and mother are overwhelmed with the new baby and not coping. When Minto hears discussions about the possibility of turning weeks-old Stevie over to adoption services, Minto must take action and responsibility. She steals away in the night with the baby, some basic supplies and a little bit of money to hide in a shacktown. There are so many problems to deal with — Minto isn't sure she can make this work. But she has to keep trying because the alternative is not acceptable.
Eve Richardson
After graduating from the Ontario College of Art, Eve Richardson went in to teaching, with a focus on Special Education, a profession from which she is now retired. She has also back-packed on several continents, but in 2001 decided to use her holiday to volunteer on an archaeological project in England. She has stayed with the project to the present day, wearing various hats — as human remains researcher, illustrator, and editor.
Eve loves to forage and stalk wildlife in the ravines in Toronto, the city where she lives with her cat and her parrot.
"The novel provides a fast-paced and authentic picture of the life of the urban homeless and what they each say and do to survive. Minto struggles to fit in, feed herself and stay warm, and keep Stevie safe. The reader feels her grow up into her responsibility."
— Resource Links
"Eve Richardson pens a story of desperation and action that reveals that the grass isn"t always greener on the other side of the ravine. In fact, it"s pretty darn scary, even if there are a few friends around to mitigate the apparent hopelessness. Eve Richardson is especially good at giving Minto voice, a voice that is both young and mature, vulnerable and strong, with her heart and head working together to save Stevie. As a debut, Saving Stevie is an accomplished story, hopefully a portent of more YA from Eve Richardson whose own voice takes us into places we need to see but rarely do."
— CanLit for LittleCanadians
"Eve Richardson's debut novel, Saving Stevie, is set in Toronto, and it's a fast-paced, gritty, realistic read that doesn't shy away from difficult subjects. "
— CM Magazine
I'd faked my way through the school day, planning this moment, and fighting the sick, fluttery feeling in my stomach. I'd a bit more'n a hour fore Dad got back from the hospital, a little more fore he freaked. He'd call Mum, she'd tell him where to find my friends' phone numbers, and when my friends couldn't tell him where me and Stevie were, he'd call the police.
I knew the routine. Interview parents. List everything that was missing from the home. Check messages on the computer. By the time the cops began looking for me, I had to be in hiding. I had maybe a couple hours.
On The School Library Journal's Recommended Book List for the 2018 In the Margins Book Award in the Fiction category
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