Author: Marsha

I write historical fiction, mostly from the perspective of young people who are thrust in the midst of war.

Superconference 2017

Brian Deines and me, at our signing.

 

Ted Staunton, me, Brian, Gail Winskill and John Spray

With Dave Atkinson

 

Awesome Mississauga visit

Loved my day with San Lorenzo Ruiz students last week. Such a pleasure to be able to present to every student in the school! I surprised one student who could read Portuguese with her own Portuguese edition of Stolen Child. With FDK and grade 1, I did 30 minute storytelling sessions for each, with When Mama Goes to Work. In the book, moms and kids have special bags when they’re going to work or school or day care. I told the kids that I’m a mom too, and I showed them my special bag — really a giant rolling box filled with my books. They had lots of fun pushing it around.

Adrift At Sea was for grades 2&3, then the WWII trilogy for the grade 4-6, then in more depth for grades 7-8.

Storytelling with When Mama Goes to Work

Adrift at Sea gets fab review from Resource Links!

Thank you Victoria Pennell for your high praise! Here are some of my favourite quotes:
 
“What a powerful book!”
 
“This book is very timely as we have so many refugees from war torn countries in the Middle East now attempting to make their way to a better life under the same kind of conditions that the Vietnamese people experienced back in 1981. With so many refugee children attending schools in Canada now, books like this one can help young children appreciate what some of these children have experienced and develop an empathy for them as they integrate into Canadian society.
 
I would highly recommend this book for all school and public libraries”

One Step At A Time: A Vietnamese Child Finds Her Way

One Step At A Time
One Step At A Time

Tuyet has found a loving family at last. Life in a strange new country presents many challenges for the young refugee, but she is determined to overcome them all, including the surgeries that will one day allow her to walk on her own in shoes that match.

Tuyet cannot believe her good fortune. Brought up in a Vietnamese orphanage and rescued from the invading North Vietnamese army, she has been adopted by a kind and loving family in Canada. Tuyet feels safe at last as she adjusts to a new language and unfamiliar customs. But polio has left her with a weak leg, and her foot is turned inward, making walking painful and difficult. There is only one answer; she must have a series of operations. Her dread of doctors and hospitals brings back troubling memories of helicopters, a field hospital, and another operation in Vietnam. It won’t stop Tuyet, despite her fears and her overwhelming shyness. She has always dreamed of having two straight legs, of walking and running, of playing with other children, of owning a pair of shoes that actually match. Now that she has been given a chance, Tuyet is determined to do what it takes to finally stand on her own two feet.In this sequel to Last Airlift: A Vietnamese Orphan’s Rescue from War, Marsha Forchuk Skrypuch continues Tuyet’s heart-wrenching true story of courage, family, and hope.
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Last Airlift: A Vietnamese Child’s Rescue From War

airliftcovernew1Last Airlift is the true story of the last Canadian airlift operation that left Saigon and arrived in Toronto on April 13, 1975. Son Thi Anh Tuyet was one of 57 babies and children on that flight. Based on personal interviews and enhanced with archive photos,Tuyet’s story of the Saigon orphanage and her flight to Canada is an emotional and suspenseful journey brought to life by the award-winning children’s author, Marsha Skrypuch.

Like the other children in the Saigon orphanage, Tuyet dreams of a family of her own. But she is one of the oldest, and polio has weakened her and left her with a limp. Nobody will adopt a girl like her. Instead, Tuyet cares for the babies and toddlers, hoping that if she continues to make herself useful, the nuns will let her stay.

One day in April, the babies and toddlers are packed into small boxes and frantically loaded into a van.The driver places Tuyet in the back of the van as well. As she and the younger children are taxied to the airport through streets filled with smoke, artillery fire and frenzied refugees trying to escape, Tuyet believes that her job is to look after the babies until they are airlifted to safety. But when the huge Hercules C-130 takes off from the burning city, Tuyet is not left behind after all. What will happen to her when she arrives in Canada? Will she be sent to an orphanage to look after new children, or will the people return her to Saigon to take her chances with the North’s invading forces?
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