The Boundless by Kenneth Oppel

Kenneth Oppel is an extremely talented Canadian author.  I was fortunate to hear him speak this past year at Word on the Street Toronto.  His first book was published when he was 13 years old.  Kenneth Oppel is a gifted storyteller.

The Boundless begins with the building of the Canadian railway.  I loved the way Oppel included many real life people and facts about how the railway was built.  The main character is Will.  His father is working to build the railway.  Will feels that everything always happens to everyone else and he never has his own adventures.  When he's invited to hitch a ride and see the last stake nailed in he decides to take a chance.  This is the beginning of Will's adventure.  The Boundless is filled with Sasquatches, circus acts, villains and more.

I began this book as a read aloud to a grade 7 class.  Sadly we ran out of time and never finished the book but I was so impressed with how engaged the class was with the story.  They loved it!  I hope that some of them pick up the book this summer to find out the ending as I did today.

Another popular title at my school is Half-Brother by Kenneth Oppel so I hope to check that one out soon and I see that he has a new book coming out soon titled The Nest.  I have no doubt it will be excellent.