Frieda Wishinsky of Toronto has set three of her time-travelling children's books in British Columbia. With their antique Canadian Flyer magic sled, her protagonists Emily and Matt join a Nootka boy on his first whale hunt, witness the completion of the Canadian Pacific Railway in Craigellachie, and help Mountie Sam Steele solve a tough case in East Kootenay.

In A Whale Tale: "It's 1778, and the sled takes Matt and Emily to the west coast, where they meet a Nootka boy about their age. When he takes them out in a canoe they get close (too close!) to a grey whale. Their actions raise the ire of the Nootka chief, who has enough to deal with, as a visit from Captain James Cook coincides with the kids' visit."

In All Aboard!: "Emily and Matt are excited to land on an old train. What's more, this one's heading for Craigellachie, BC, where the last spike will be driven into the rails celebrating the completion of the Canadian Pacific Railroad. Will Emily and Matt make it in time for that historic occasion? Will they help reunite their new friend with his ailing father, a railroad worker?"

In On the Case: "A gold rush boomtown, Galbraith's Ferry is simmering with tensions between Aboriginal Peoples and the settlers who encroached on their land trying to strike it rich. Matt and Emily are relieved to find that the imposing figure of Sam Benfield Steele, the burly superintendent of this isolated Wild West outpost, has come riding in to settle tensions and restore order."

Wishinky's other books include What's the Matter with Albert?; A Quest in Time; Jennifer Jones Won't Leave Me Alone; and Please, Louise! Her collaboration with illustrator Sean L. Moore, What's Up Bear?: A Book of Opposites (Owlkids Books) was shortlisted for the 2013 Christie Harris Illustrated Children's Literature Prize.

[BCBW 2013] "Kidlit"