Being Pete

Book excerpt: Obsessed with meeting her cowboy hero, 12-year-old Natalie opens a real Pandora’s Box with her letter to the judges at The Tex Canyon Foundation. In a misguided effort to impress them, she lies about her parents and her brothers and most critically her best friend’s uncle. And all this before passing herself off as a boy. When confronted with these falsehoods, Natalie’s only escape is to design an even more complicated set of untruths which compel her to face the young soldier whose identity she used in her letter! Only then does she learn what a real hero is made of. But is she too late to set the record straight? The alarming unspooling of her plans and the shaky reconstruction of a more admirable outcome drive the plot forward. It is a tale of pathos and humor, family drama and friendship that includes a cast of characters from all walks of life. Set in Montreal in the early 1950’s, this story lives and breathes the atmosphere of that postwar city. “In this wonderful book, Noelle Jack weaves a story that is excitement-filled and deeply heartwarming. Each character brims with personality, and the compelling friendship between Natalie and Rhoda makes their efforts to comprehend and help to heal the wounds of war, unexpectedly credible.” —Robert Bell, author