Joe Blades, River Suite: Poems by Joe Blades (Insomniac Press) $11.99

River Suite is many things: a portrait of moody small city life on the shores of the St. John River in New Brunswick; a diary of hope, sadness, love and sex; a longing for change, a longing for recognition, a longing for difference and originality which is as elusive as happiness; a song of life, remission and redemption in the night.

Joe Blades is a writer, artist and publisher. Since 1980, his poetry and prose have appeared in periodicals, anthologies and full-length books. He organizes writers' groups and readings, edits newsletters and magazines, is co-host of a weekly radio program about writing, and runs Broken Jaw Press/Maritimes Arts Projects Productions and New Muse of Contempt magazine.

Douglas Arthur Brown, The Magic Compass (Solus Publishing) $17.95

Set in the magical Island Kingdom, The Magic Compass is a delightful fantasy for children. Humans, trolls and nisses (elves) have many adventures as they anticipate and prepare for Christmas. Designed to be read aloud on each of the days of December leading up to Christmas, the story's rich narrative, unforgettable characters and intriguing plot make this book a great read that is sure to become a family tradition.

An award-winning novelist and playwright, Douglas Arthur Brown lived in Toronto and Copenhagen for many years and currently resides on the Mira River in his native Cape Breton. Douglas is co-director of the annual Cape Breton Write of Way Festival and Vice-Chair of the Nova Scotia Arts Council. His short stories, articles and translations have appeared in magazines, anthologies and newspapers in Canada and Europe.

Lesley Choyce, World Enough (Goose Lane Editions) $18.95

Alex McNab accepts a job at the New Dawn rehabilitation workshop. By the end of the summer, he's been slugged by the minister of finance on national television, taught a blind teenager to drive and found the love of his life.

Lesley Choyce runs Pottersfield Press, teaches part-time at Dalhousie University and has written over 45 adult and young adult books. He surfs year round in the North Atlantic and is considered the father of transcendental wood-splitting. World Enough is definitely fiction, but Lesley Choyce did work as a rehab counsellor, and he once taught a completely blind person to drive.

Jim Lotz, The Lichen Factor: The Quest for Community Development in Canada (UCCB Press) $22.95

The word "community" is a mantra in our troubled times, promising togetherness, warmth and security in a world that seems fragmented and chaotic. The Lichen Factor explores the concept of community and how it can be created using the model of lichen, a symbiosis of two different forms of life, algae and fungi. To sustain life, the algae photosynthesize food for themselves and the fungi, while the fungi provide shelter for the algae. As symbol and reality, these elementary co-operators suggest ways to develop mutually beneficial human relationships.

Jim Lotz's research into community development, begun in 1960, has taken him across Canada and to Alaska and Slovakia. He learned about Canada by living in urban centres -- Montreal, Ottawa and Vancouver -- as well as in the hinterlands -- Labrador-Ungava, Yukon and the High Arctic.

Dan Walsh, Games, Dreams and Paper Bags: A Novel in Seven Stories (Second Room Publishing) $14.95

Hip and challenging, Games, Dreams and Paper Bags traces the exploits of Dan Walsh's endearing characters through seven distinct and stylistically varied tales. From murdered street kids and drug dealers, to sign-language revolutionaries and Esperanto-speaking hipsters, Walsh navigates readers through a strange cityscape like a post-modern Melville. Through his love affair with language, he explores the theme of communication while never sacrificing suspense, entertainment or readability.

Halifax resident Dan Walsh is the author of two volumes of poetry, Invisibility's An Eyesore (Ungulate Press, 1995) and Neutral Kids in Politics (self-published, 1996). He writes song lyrics for the Haligonian band Piggy, the Calypso Orchestra of the Maritimes, and juggles. Games, Dreams and Paper Bags is his second full-length novel.

Wenda Young, Angels in the Snow (Coteau Books) $7.95

Fifteen year old Nicole has spent half her life wanting to ask her mother why she left her and her father. Now, she's going to get the chance, travelling from small-town Nova Scotia to Japan to spend time with this woman who is at the same time a stranger and a bitter-sweet memory. Amidst the natural beauty and cultural wonders of Japan, she experiences a nerve-wracking but powerful reconnection with her mother.

Born in Sault St. Marie, Wenda Young grew up in various Ontario communities. After a time teaching in Toronto and other Ontario communities, Wenda moved to Antigonish, where she writes, edits and teaches creative writing. She is married and has a daughter and son.