Hélène Boudreau
Personal Information
Description
Hélène Boudreau grew up on an island surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean but now writes fiction and non-fiction for kids from her land-locked home in Ontario, Canada. She has never time-travelled or saved an endangered bird, nor has she ever spotted a mermaid in the wild, but she believes mermaids are just as plausible as sea horses, flying fish, or electric eels. Her picture book, I Dare You Not to Yawn, is a 2013 Parents’ Choice Award winner and a 2014 SCBWI Crystal Kite Award winner. Her tween novel, Real Mermaids Don’t Wear Toe Rings is a 2011 Crystal Kite Member Choice Award Finalist. --bio from heleneboudreau.com
Books
Real Mermaids Don't Need High Heels (Real Mermaids #3)
The only thing that terrifies Jade more than the ocean is dancing at the Fall Formal. Because Jade has two left feet—er, flippers. Who knew being a high school freshman is even more awkward than being a plus-size aqua-phobic mer-girl? At least her only drama is of the human variety... Or not. The Mermish Council has just declared that all land-dwelling mers but return to the ocean. Pronto. But there's no way Jade is going to let her mom, or Luke, her...boyfriend? mer-guy-friend?, disappear into the deep, dark ocean. Again. After all, a girl's got to have a date to her first dance. If Jade can stop mer-mageddon, finding a plus-size dress that doesn't look like a shower curtain should be a piece of cake.
Real Mermaids Don't Sell Seashells (Real Mermaids #4)
Sun, surf and tropical breezes are no ‘day at the beach’ because being a teenage mermaid never takes a vacation. With all the mers in Jade’s life now safe, happy and legit (with passports to prove it) and the underwater mer-world off the coast of Port Toulouse on the road to democracy, it’s time to relax and plan for the future. Jade can’t think of a better way to celebrate than with a tropical wedding in the Bahamas with Mom and Dad to finally make their family ‘official’. Soon, Jade is enjoying the tropical sunshine, all-you-can-eat buffet, and island day trips. But when Jade gets lost in the island’s famous waterfront Straw Market, something doesn’t feel quite right. A body splashes into the water as a cruise ship enters the harbor and a teen boy selling conches from his boat behind the market knows more than he’s willing to admit. With no body, no leads, and no other witnesses, though, the local police don’t seem too concerned. Maybe Jade’s imagination has been acting up on her, just like Cori said, considering everything she’s been through in the past few months. But with Mom and Dad off on a honeymoon excursion it wouldn’t hurt to check things out, would it? Little do Jade and Cori realize, they are about to uncover more secrets about the splashing body, dangerous cruise ship cargo, and more questions than answers lurking in the nearby Caribbean waters.
Swimming
Real Mermaids Don't Hold Their Breath (Real Mermaids #2)
Jade begins her summer confused. Yes, there's that whole "will this be a leg-day or a tail-day" kind of confusion, but Jade's got even bigger problems: it's been three weeks since Mom returned to the ocean with no news of her whereabouts. Plus, it's been twenty-one days since Jade first kissed her mer-boy Luke and now-nothing. Will Mom find the enchanted tidal pool that will allow her to become human? And why is Luke acting so weird? The SEAquel to Helene Boudreau's critically acclaimed Real Mermaids Don't Wear Toe Rings is as energetic and fresh as a salty sea breeze.
Life in a fishing community
This title looks at offshore fishing. Around the coast of much of North America, fishing stocks have greatly declined as a result of overfishing, pollution, and global warming. Nova Scotia, in the northeast of Canada, once had a huge fishing industry. In 1753, people from Germany, Switzerland, and France came from Europe to set up colony at Lunenburg on the coast. They soon set up a fishing and shipbuilding industry. The community grew until about 1980, when the fishing industry largely stopped. Since then, the community has had to reinvent itself. It is still largely based on the old industries, but tourism is as important.
Real Mermaids Don't Wear Toe Rings (Real Mermaids #1)
First zit. First crush. First…mermaid’s tail? If she hadn’t been so clueless, she might have seen it coming. But really, who expects to get into a relaxing bathtub after a stressful day of shopping for tankinis and come out with scales and a tail? Most. Embarassing. Moment. Ever. Jade soon discovers she inherited her mermaid tendencies from her mom. But this revelation raises a serious question: if Mom was a mermaid, how did she drown? Jade is determined to find out. But how does a plus-sized, aqua-phobic, mer-girl go about doing that, exactly? And how will Jade ever be able to explain her secret to her best friend Cori, and her crush, Luke? This summer is about to get a lot more interesting.
Evangeline for young readers
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow's epic poem, Evangeline, tells the story of two young people deported from beautiful Acadie just before they are to be married-and their search for each other that lasts the rest of their lives. First published in 1847, the poem has been important to Acadian identity ever since. In Evangeline for Young Readers, the tragic story of Evangeline and Gabriel's Deportation is recounted to a new generation. In simple prose true to Longfellow's poem, Helene Boudreau describes the utopian village of Grand-Pre where Evangeline grows up, the traumatizing Deportation, and Evangeline's relentless search across America for her true love. Patsy MacKinnon's stunning illustrations bring the story to life in full colour. Evangeline for Young Readers is a vital interpretation for children of Longfellow's classic.
Water hazard
Twins André and Lucas love living by Cavendish Beach on Prince Edward island - especially helping Mr. Arsenault collect seaweed with his horse, Thunder. When Thunder is badly hurt by a mysterious object in the ocean, the boys turn to another passion of theirs: solving mysteries.