Shaken

A novel from one of the country's most prolific and popular YA authors, this book, set in Port-au-Prince, Haiti during the January 2009 earthquake, follows the struggle of Joshua, a Canadian boy at the centre of the tragedy.

Fifteen-year-old Joshua has travelled from Toronto to Port-au-Prince, Haiti in order to help with a charity mission. In confronting the poverty and and injustice that surrounds him, Joshua struggles to find meaning in the cruelty of the world. And then devastation hits - and Joshua finds himself at the very centre of a catastrophic earthquake. Will he be able to save himself? And, if he does, how will he find the faith and hope he needs to go on? ERIC WALTERS' young adult novels have won numerous awards, including the Silver Birch, Blue Heron, Red Maple, Snow Willow, and Ruth Schwartz Awards, and have received honours from UNESCO's international award for Literature in the Service of Tolerance. He lives in Mississauga, Ontario. CHAPTER ONE

I looked up at the board behind the counter and then at the clock suspended from the ceiling. We'd be boarding in less than ten minutes if the flight was on time-were Air Canada flights ever on time? I took a sip from my Timmy's-the last good cup of tea I was going to have until we got back on Canadian soil in two weeks.

I guess I shouldn't have complained. It was a small price to pay, because it also meant leaving behind the winter weather of January in Canada for the tropical warmth of Haiti. Technically it was their winter, too, but that just meant that the temperature would be down in the low thirties. It was also their dry season, so not only would there be no snow, there'd probably be no rain, either. I'd been checking the weather reports on the Internet every day since Christmas. The coldest day had been thirty-one degrees, with the long-range forecast predicting two weeks of nearly perfect weather. Hot, dry, and not only away from winter weather but away from school. This extended Christmas holiday was more like an extended Christmas present!

If this had been the summer, with no school and good weather at home, I would have kicked up a lot more fuss about being dragged along in the first place. It probably wouldn't have done much good, but I'd have at least tried to make it so uncomfortable for my father that he would have found somebody to take care of me in Toronto while he went. After all, he wouldn't have wanted me to be an embarrassment.

And that, of course, was the biggest downside to all of this-my father was not only coming along, he was the leader of our little mission trip to Haiti. All of the other kids-with the exception of my sister, of course-got to leave their parents behind. But my father would be there, front and centre, all the time. And the worst of the worst was that there was some sort of bizarre expectation that I would be a good role model on this trip, a reflection of his goodness. Barely three months into his appointment at a new church, with a new congregation, I knew that everybody was still watching us closely, and this little trip would be 24/7 observation. I pulled my cap down lower on my head, slipped on my sunglasses, and went to reinsert my earbuds.

"Air Canada Flight 950 to Port-au-Prince will begin boarding shortly for executive class, business class, and those passengers requiring additional assistance or travelling with small children."

I always thought it was strange that those groups were put together-were businessmen like children? Did executives require physical assistance because their wallets were so big?

My father got to his feet. "Could I have everybody gather around, please?" he called out.

The rest of our group got up-some practically leaping to their feet in response to his request. If I'd put on my earbuds sooner I could have maybe faked not hearing, but that wasn't going to work now.

We all trailed aft