Reviews

Review by Toby A. Welch
https://reviews.skbooks.com/earth-angels/

I thought I was knowledgeable about angels. But Earth Angels opened my eyes that they are so much more than I thought. Angels aren’t just those things that sit atop Christmas trees. They are spiritual beings and attendants that, among other things, are messengers of God that guard us humans. 

Earth Angels is a chapbook, which I always appreciate for its tuckability factor. (A chapbook is a small publication, usually a paperback, that is not more than forty pages.) Chapbooks are ideal for tucking into your purse or bag and pulling out when you have a spare minute to read a page or two. In our fast-paced, distracted age, chapbooks check many boxes. 

Earth Angels is an enlightening book about angels that packs a punch with its twenty-six pages. The bulk of the book is information about angels. We read about the different types of angels: archangels, seraphim, cherubim, living creatures, and common angels. We then get more details about the purpose of angels. We learn the eight symbolic characteristics of the appearance of angels: bright lights, wings, a balance of masculine and feminine, agelessness, soft flowing clothing, symbolism, high vibrations, and other specifics that you need to pay attention to. Mutala also delves into a few of the more well-known angels and provides a list of suggested scripture readings.

Mutala is convinced she has a guardian angel that has protected her on numerous occasions. She shared a story of one of those times that occurred when she was nineteen-years-old. While driving, she hit a patch of oil and ended up in a ditch under a barbed wire fence. A man helped her get back on the road and Mutala is certain he was an angel. Hearing such stories, it does get your mind wondering about your own potential experiences with angels. 

I believe what Mutala was trying to do with Earth Angels is to encourage us mortals to become angels on Earth. My hunch could be off base but by striving to make the world a better place and living with goals of love and justice, we will help create a more peaceful existence for all. In these chaotic times we live in, I appreciate the reminder. 

Marion Mutala books are becoming a staple on my heaving bookshelf. Earth Angels is my sixth book of hers and they have all been interesting reads that left me thinking long after I finished them. In total, Saskatoon-based Mutala has nineteen published books and I look forward to many more. 

If you have any interest in angels and the power they potentially have, Earth Angels should be on your bookshelf, too. Or perhaps in your bag…

Review by ​Shelley A. Leedahl
https://reviews.skbooks.com/time-for-peace-is-now-the/

Prolific and award-winning Saskatoon writer Marion Mutala now has twenty titles to her credit—including the acclaimed children’s series Baba’s Babushka, poetry and a cookbook—and, during these globally turbulent times, she’s aptly re-released her 2015 chapbook The Time for Peace is Now. The book’s minimally illustrated (a blue dove with a leafed olive branch appears on the cover and throughout the book) by Kate Hodgson, with lovely calligraphy by A. E. Matheson.

Mutala has a history of promoting peace, love and equality in her books, and in the dedication for this small book she considers “World Peace,” and writes: “In the 21st century, society needs to teach children to find ways to solve problems peacefully. I ask myself ‘What am I doing today to promote peace?’” I would say the former longtime educator is doing much more than most with the publication of this title, inspired, she says “by the motto of Hazrat Mirza Nasir Ahmad Khalifatul Masih III: ‘Love of all, hatred for none.’”

Each page is a prayer in itself, beginning and ending with the phrase: “The time for peace is now; now is the time for peace.” Between these phrases we read about the various people who desire peace, ie: “Nurses heal for it. Doctors cure for it. Hospitals nurture it”. Mutala’s passionate about the arts, and this comes across in the text: “Singers vocalize it. Musicians perform it. Dancers dance it. Writers craft it. Painters illustrate it. Actors entertain it. Conductors direct it.” She writes that even flowers, birds, animals, the sun, mountains, the moon and stars crave peace—as so do people from various cultures around the world.

I particularly enjoyed the naming of Creators that appears on “Paix 12” of the 17-page chapbook. From those we’re familiar with, ie: “Buddha, Allah, and Jehovah” to “Gitche Manitou,” “Tenri-O-no-Mikoto” and “Divine Mother and Master of All Things in the Universe”. In her brief Author’s Note, Mutala explains “There are 104 different names of Gods listed on [a] world religions website,” and the final four pages of the book includes each of these in a colourful calligraphic font.

The Time for Peace is Now was initially released by Happy Leopard Chapbooks as a limited edition, handmade chapbook, with all proceeds going to the charity NASHI, “a Saskatoon-based organization dedicated to addressing human trafficking, particularly in Ukraine.” In a 2015 Saskatoon StarPhoenix interview, Mutala said: “When I first wrote the Peace book, I didn’t know if it was going to be a story or a poem … Now I reckon it’s my prayer for peace.”

Whether one’s Creator is “Great Interconnectedness,” “Infinite Mystery,” “The Evolutionary Absolute,” “God,” or any other deity, Mutala believes that love is at the basis of all faith. This tiny, inclusive book tenderly raises awareness about the imminent universal need and desire for peace, and good on Mutala for flying the peace flag in this unique way.

Review by Michelle Shaw
https://reviews.skbooks.com/rainbow-makes-a-promise-a/

Marion Mutala really is a creative dynamo. A Rainbow Makes a Promise is her twentieth book and once again she beautifully combines poetry and music into a kaleidoscope of creativity.

Saskatchewan author Mutala is perhaps best known for her national best-selling and award-winning children’s book series, Baba’s Babushka: Magical Ukrainian Adventures, which was recently collected in a beautiful 175-page illustrated limited edition hardcover. But she’s also written poetry (her second book of poetry, Race to Finish, was published in 2021), a cookbook (Baba Sophie’s Ukrainian Cookbook) and even a crime novel set in Saskatoon (The Mechanic’s Wife). In an interview a few years ago, she said, “it seems the more I write the more ideas flow.” And that really seems to be true.

A Rainbow Makes a Promise celebrates the rainbow as a symbol of peace, love, and hope. Each page explodes with colour. The pictures are big and bold, and each page is bordered by a beautiful, colourful geometric Ukrainian embroidery motif. Mutala uses a variety of artwork styles throughout the book, including photos, watercolours, hand drawn illustrations and AI generated images.

The words of the book are simple but many of them resonated with me long after I closed the book, such as “I have never seen a war that helps the world to live” and “It is time to stand up to evil and never give up the fight” — those pages are appropriately illustrated with superheroes!

At the back of the book there is a QR code which the reader can scan and listen to Mutala herself singing the words of the song. Sheet music is also provided so the book really can be an immersive experience as you play and sing along yourself.
If you’re only just discovering Marion Mutala’s work or you’re a long-time fan, I think you’re going to enjoy A Rainbow Makes a Promise.

Review by Michelle Shaw
reviews.skbooks.com/babas-over-the-moon/

​Award-winning author Marion Mutala’s new book is, quite literally, a love song to her new grandbaby Oliver.

I’ve had the pleasure of reviewing a couple of Mutala’s other books and each one has been a unique delight. In Baba’s Over the Moon, Mutala showcases her skills not only as a writer but also as a singer and songwriter. The book reads like a poem but at the back of the book is a QR code that you can scan that takes you to a page to hear Mutala singing along to an accompanying guitar. If you’re musically inclined, you can follow along as sheet music is also provided.

The words of the book are simple and heartfelt. Mutala beautifully blends repetition, rhythm and rhyme to create a wondrous sense of expectation as Baba contemplates the arrival of her new grandbaby. What will he look like? What will his name be? When will he arrive?

At the very back of the book there is a colourful word cloud created by Kate Hodgson — all synonyms for the word grandmother, such uGogo, Oma, Baba, Grootmoeder, Kohkom, Abuela, and Grandmère. I think it’s a wonderful way to introduce children to other cultures through a familiar word.

Illustrator Katerina Davidenko has done a great job on the inside artwork. The pictures are bright, friendly and happy — they really draw you into the book. Interestingly, the cover illustration by Wendy Siemens has a very different feel to the rest of the illustrations. The cover illustration is beautiful, but it seems epic and grand whereas the inside illustrations are more childlike. Both illustrators make wonderful use of colour, and their work beautifully supports the love expressed in the words of the book.

This is Mutala’s 19th book. She has a master’s degree in educational administration and taught for 30 years. She is also the author of the national bestselling award-winning children’s book series, Baba’s Babushka.

Review by Joanne Peters
CM: Canadian Review of Materials
Volume XXVII, No. 24
https://www.cmreviews.ca/node/2127

​Excerpt:
Baba’s Babushka: Magical Ukrainian Adventures is a compilation of four books, three of which, Baba’s Babushka: A Magical Ukrainian Christmas; Baba’s Babushka: A Magical Ukrainian Easter and Baba’s Babushka: A Magical Ukrainian Wedding, have been previously reviewed in CM. The fourth title, Baba’s Babushka: A Magical Ukrainian Journey, is new and will be the principal focus of this review.

[...]

In Baba’s Babushka: Magical Ukrainian Adventures, Marion Mutala traces Baba’s life story from girlhood to adulthood, connecting it with Natalia’s learning of and understanding the source of the Ukrainian traditions which are an important part of her life. The series is stronger for having all four stories in one collection. Rather unusual for a series, three different artists have illustrated the stories, and, in A Magical Ukrainian Journey, Olha Tkachenko’s illustrations are soft but colourful. In all four stories, the full-colour illustrations face each page of text which is bordered by a geometric Ukrainian embroidery motif, and, unlike the previous three books, this collected volume is paginated and sturdily bound. As with the previous three releases, there’s a “Glossary” and pronunciation guide for those readers with minimal knowledge of Ukrainian. A special recipe or two follows the ending of each of the four stories, and this book is no exception. Baba and Dido’s homecoming would have been a very special event for their Ukrainian relatives, and perhaps Baba Sophia would have enjoyed a torte for which her recipe is included.

While boys also feel great warmth and love for their babas (and didos), Baba’s Babushka: Magical Ukrainian Adventures is likely to be read and enjoyed by girls. The book is definitely a worthwhile acquisition for elementary school libraries and resource collections in schools which offer Ukrainian language programing and for public libraries serving communities with significant Ukrainian-Canadian populations.

Highly Recommended

Reviewer: Joanne Peters is a retired teacher-librarian living in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Treaty 1 Territory and Homeland of the Métis People

Review by Shelley A. Leedahl
https://reviews.skbooks.com/babas-babushka-magical-ukrainian-adventures/

Before one reads a single word of Baba’s Babushka, it’s evident that this illustrated children’s book is far beyond the ordinary. The 175-page hardcover emanates quality, from the phenomenal production – including colourful, full-page illustrations opposite the text pages, each bordered in a Ukrainian embroidery design – to the heft of the paper used, the contributions of three skilled illustrators, the inclusion of Ukrainian recipes, and a glossary for the numerous Ukrainian words used in the text. The package is highly impressive … and then there are the four heartwarming, connected tales Mutala spins within the book.

Saskatchewan’s Mutala is already known for her award-winning, Ukrainian-themed children’s books, including More Baba’s, Please! and My Dearest Dido: A Holodomor Story, but this latest publication – essentially four books in one – is her tour de force. In each magical story, young Natalia – who lives on a farm near Hafford, SK – is whisked into her ancestral past when her recently-departed and much-loved grandmother’s (Baba’s) colourful babushka (head scarf) materializes – via flowers, swirling leaves, or “a few white feathers” – on the girl’s own head. Nature-loving Natalia is lifted into the sky and further – “she burst through clouds and rushed past stars, nearly touching the moon as she sped through the heavens” – before she finds herself transported into her Baba’s life in the “old country,” Ukraine.

Readers first travel with the blonde-haired girl to “A Magical Ukrainian Christmas,” where she joins a loving and devout family traditionally attired in blue (females) or black (males) vests over white blouses or shirts decorated with red embroidery at their twelve-dish Christmas Eve meal. The interloping girl – she’s invisible to her ancestors – is familiar with the numerous traditions, ie: “three loaves of round, braided kolach bread had been stacked on top of each other and placed specially in the centre of the table, each shaped in the circle of God’s unending love” and feels at home. On the wall she spies her grandparents’ wedding photo – I assume this is an actual photo of the author’s grandparents – and makes the connection that the girl at the table beside her is, in fact, her Baba. In the remaining stories – “A Magical Ukrainian Easter,” “A Magical Ukrainian Wedding,” and “A Magical Ukrainian Journey” – Mutala includes descriptions of and explanations for the various traditions, and we witness Baba’s life unfold.

​Each story follows a similar pattern and demonstrates the Ukrainian family’s warmth, faith, customs, and fun-loving nature. I learned about the relevance of symbols (candles, honey); about cultural superstitions, ie: a spider and web are “placed on the Christmas tree for luck,” and a “high, beautifully golden loaf of paska [means] a year of blessings;” and about the Easter pysanky (colourfully decorated eggs) legend, where “a chained-up dragon keeps track of how many eggs are made, and if one year there aren’t enough, the dragon will be released and destroy everything.”

​This thoughtful, imaginative and beautifully-crafted collection of culturally- significant stories is a blessing in itself. May Baba’s Babushka be enjoyed far and wide. 

Review by Catherine Bellamy
resource_links_-_october_2017.pdf

More Babas, Please! is a fun, heartwarming poem about “babas”, the Ukrainian word for “grandmother”. However, the book is not just about Ukrainian grandmothers, but all grandmothers of different cultures, nationalities, shapes, sizes, and appearances. The poem celebrates grandmothers and the relationship they have with their grandchildren. The rhythm of the poem is fun and upbeat and the rhyming scheme is sure to make it a favourite to read aloud. It is a sentimental and sweet book for the narrator declares they don’t need candy or sweets or new clothes, all they need is their baba. Each page ends with, “More babas, please!” This short, predictable text makes it an excellent story to read out loud and get children to participate. The soft illustrations evoke feelings of warmth and happiness, adding a touch of sentimentality to the text. Each picture features a grandchild being cared for and loved by their baba.

​This is a great book to read when talking about family, especially grandmothers, or even the history of Ukrainians in Canada. In fact, in the author’s note, author Marion Mutala discusses briefly the history of Ukrainians who immigrated to Saskatchewan and dedicates her book to those Ukrainian pioneers, as well as to all women in every culture. She also notes that a percentage of the proceeds from the sale of the book will go to the Stephen Lewis Foundation for Grandmothers for Grandmothers, which helps grandmothers in Africa care for their grandchildren who are orphaned due to the AIDS epidemic.

Review by Alison Slowski
https://reviews.skbooks.com/babas-babushka-a-magical-ukrainian-wedding/

Baba's Babushka: A Magical Ukrainian Wedding is an engrossing picture book, rendered in beautiful detail by author Marion Mutala and artist Amber Rees, that tells the heartwarming tale of a young woman named Natalia. Natalia, aided by the memory of her grandmother, goes on a magical journey to learn more about her family's – and people's – rich history.

During Natalia’s walk down memory lane, she visits all the important moments which involved her grandparents’ time together as young people. The story details her grandparents’ courtship, including the meeting of their two families before and during their seven-day Ukrainian wedding. Mutala uniquely and accurately depicts the Ukrainian customs that are special to a couple’s wedding, such as the gift- or pumpkin-giving before a couple agrees to marry, and the giving of sheshkeh, pinecones made of dough, to welcome their guests in their village to their wedding. Most special of all, this book incorporates the tradition of the korovai, the traditional braided wedding bread, into its mention of the festivities. The inclusion of a korovai recipe in the back is a lovely touch.

Mutala’s accurate portrayal of these customs will speak volumes to readers both familiar and unfamiliar with them. Her playful dialogue between the large cast of characters runs through everything, sprinkled with Ukrainian words and their meaning. Through this, she demonstrates a love of and desire to preserve the Ukrainian way of life. As Ukraine has experienced hard times of strife and war, this is the premise for the wedding couple’s need to emigrate to Canada directly after the wedding. However, their traditions and customs will not be lost, and will live on in the new country of Canada where they will grow the roots of their new family.

​The Saskatchewan Publishers Group Weekly Book Pick is a program that allows people in the Saskatchewan community to review books by Saskatchewan publishers, most of which are also written by Saskatchewan authors. The program is intended to increase the profile and awareness of all the great publishing that goes on within Saskatchewan.

Review by Joanne Peters. Published by the Manitoba Library Association.

Each of the books in Marion Mutala Baba’s Babushka series can be read by itself, but, because the books trace Baba’s life story from girlhood to adulthood, the series works best if read in sequence. The continuation of cultural tradition within a family, the special love that grandchildren can have for their grandparents, and the importance of holding on to one’s heritage inform all three of the books. By focusing on the two major liturgical celebrations of Christmas and Easter, as well as depicting Baba and Dido’s wedding, Mutala has incorporated the details of centuries-old tradition in a way that works naturally within the narrative. I think that books would find an audience amongst Canadian girls of Ukrainian heritage – few boys will be interested in time travel enabled by a flowered head scarf, and the story’s focus is definitely on the relationship between grandmother and granddaughter. Readers will certainly see the connections between current cultural practices (especially those involving food) which have been retained or learn about customs which would have been familiar to past generations.

​The three Baba’s Babushka books are a worthwhile acquisition for elementary school libraries and resource collection in schools which offer Ukrainian language programing, and for public libraries serving communities with significant Ukrainian-Canadian populations.

top_100_books_for_2012.pdf

#58 – Baba’s Babushka: A Magical Ukrainian Christmas
#74 ​– Baba’s Babushka: A Magical Ukrainian Easter

Review by Karen Lawson
https://reviews.skbooks.com/babas-babushka/

Baba’s Babushka is a delightful Christmas tale written by Saskatchewan author Marion Mutala. She has created a charming story that celebrates her proud Ukrainian heritage and lives up to the subtitle of her book, “A Magical Ukrainian Christmas.”

​Natalia, the star of this lively story, is a little Ukrainian girl living in rural Saskatchewan who is taken, with the reader, on an enchanted journey back in time. Although Natalia is excited, like all children, about Christmas, her joy is marred by a deep sadness. This will be the first Christmas that her beloved grandmother, Baba, will not be present to share in the fun, festivities, and traditions of Christmas with her family.

One day a brightly-coloured red and blue babushka, or headscarf, appears out of nowhere that reminds Natalia of the one her Baba used to wear. Mysteriously transported to another time and place, Natalia finds herself sharing a meal with a strangely familiar family who perform all the same Christmas Eve traditions her own family does. Waking up Christmas morning, Natalia finds a picture of her Baba on the table beside her bed with the red and blue babushka tucked underneath it. Who was the little girl she spent Christmas Eve with? Could it have been her own dear Baba?

Marion Mutala has written what will surely become a Christmas classic and find a beloved spot in every child’s library. Keep an eye out in the future for more books by Mutala celebrating the Ukrainian heritage of Saskatchewan. If the first book is any indication, we’re in for a treat.

The Saskatchewan Publishers Group Weekly Book Pick is a program that allows people in the Saskatchewan community to review books by Saskatchewan publishers, most of which are also written by Saskatchewan authors. The program is intended to increase the profile and awareness of all the great publishing that goes on within Saskatchewan.

Review by Toby A. Welch
https://reviews.skbooks.com/mechanics-wife-the/

The cover of The Mechanic’s Wife is what initially drew me in. Illustrated by Olha Tkachenko, it is a vibrant illustration of two women with an older model blue GTO between them. Things get even better once you crack the book open. We immediately delve into the life of DD, a Ukrainian detective based in Saskatoon. Her backstory is fully fleshed out in a way that makes it impossible to do anything but continue reading.

The meat of this book is the story of Dwayne and Marianne. Married almost two decades, one of them isn’t thrilled with the life they have built together. Let’s just say some things happen, bringing DD, the leading criminal investigator in Canada at the time of the story, and Raunchy, her associate, into their lives. The two tackle the case of what really took place between Dwayne and Marianne. 

On a side note, it’s hard not to like DD’s quirky sidekick, Raunchy. He is endlessly entertaining and provides another level to the story. Fun characters like Raunchy make any book a better read. 

Author Marion Mutala is a resident of Saskatoon. She has penned seven children’s books, one young adult work, one book of poetry, and two works of adult fiction including The Mechanic’s Wife. Several of her children’s books have won awards. Her late grandparents emigrated from Ukraine to Canada in 1912 and her Ukrainian heritage plays a big role in most of her books. That is certainly the case in The Mechanic’s Wife with its numerous Ukrainian references.

As a Saskatchewanian, I thoroughly enjoyed how familiar all the locations in this book felt. The book is set in Saskatoon and while the author is clear that this is a work of fiction, it is clear how many of the locales are true places in Saskatchewan. That is so cool, like watching a movie with scenes that were shot in places you have visited. There is even a mention of Gerry Zerbecky, a Saskatoon artist.

​While The Mechanic’s Wife could’ve used a heavier hand by the editor, at its core it has all the essential elements of a great book – characters you grow to care about and a story that draws you in and keeps you there. It’s a quick, fun read you can finish in one sitting. Two thumbs up!

Review by Shelley A. Leedahl
https://reviews.skbooks.com/baba-sophies-ukrainian-cookbook/

I’m no great wonder in the kitchen – if I am cooking, I usually turn to the internet for recipes. Recently, however, I’ve started buying cookbooks. Two reasons for this: firstly, each time I click on a recipe online, I have to wade through paragraphs of unnecessary text (i.e. “My uncle Bob just loves these blackberry muffins”) before the author even gets to the ingredients; and secondly, I just love actual books, and seeing the recipe on a printed page – often beside a photograph of whatever I’m attempting to make – feels like the right tact.

Thus, I was duly pleased when Marion Mutala’s latest book arrived in my mailbox because this time, the prolific and award-winning Saskatchewan writer has penned Baba Sophie’s Ukrainian Cookbook. I’ve previously reviewed Mutala’s excellent children’s books and poetry, and I know that from the words to the design, production to the print, this would be a quality book and downright practical too (and I need all the help I can get).

The Sophie of the title is Mutala’s mother, Sophie Marie (née Dubyk) Mutala (1918-2007), who was born near Mayfair, SK. The book’s dedicated to Sophie and her daughter penned a one-page, glowing tribute. Sophie was “born with a bag of flour in one hand and a Kaiser deck in the other,” Mutala writes. She explains that even as a child, Sophie helped her mother bake and “make perogies, wash clothes on a washboard, cut wood with her brother using a double-handed saw, fill mattresses with clean hay to sleep on, and make feather quilts.”

Yes, it was a different time, but the recipes that follow include “Ukrainian Specialties, Breads, Main Courses, Desserts, and Beverages” that have stood the test of generations and are considered mainstays for many, even Norwegian-German-Irish Canadians like me. There’s also a section called “Canning and Preservatives,” and a Miscellaneous section, which includes two recipes I’ll not need – for “Cooked Playdough” and “Sugar Starch for Doilies”, and two I will: “Non-Toxic Drain Clog Remover” and “Stain Remover.”

Reading through this cookbook reminded me of visiting Ukrainian friends as a girl in rural Saskatchewan. There are recipes for Perogies, Pyrohy, Varenyky; Holubsti (Cabbage Rolls); and Borsch. It was also like going to a community supper, where Carrot Loaf, Potato Casserole, and Saskatoon Berry Pie are up for grabs. There are also many original recipes included here, like Sophie’s Homemade Noodles and Mama’s Cookies. The dessert section is the largest in the book, and I think I gained weight just reading these scrumptious recipes!

There’s also a nod to the familiar Rosettes, which my Norwegian grandmother made every Christmas, and in the Bread section, Mutala’s included “Bannock (In the Spirit of Truth and Reconciliation).”

Each page has a colourful Ukrainian-stitch graphic on its borders, and recipe sections contain colour food photographs. I’m pleased to own this book, and I’ll be putting it to use – the Low-Calorie Soup recipe looks tasty and would be a good budget meal – this week.

Review by Shelley A. Leedahl
reviews.skbooks.com/race-to-finish/

Marion Mutala is a literary machine, with sixteen published books and more on the way. I’ve previously reviewed two of her children’s books--Grateful and the 175-page, multi-story achievement, Baba’s Babushka. The Saskatchewan writer’s latest title, Race to Finish, is a poetry collection, dedicated to the Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls (MMIWG); the First Nations children buried in unmarked, residential school graves across Canada; and the Black Lives Matter movement. It begins with a foreword by artist Kevin L. Peeace, who relays the experience of presenting in an elementary school and being asked by a young student: “What was it like being at the residential school?” Peeace also provided the compelling black and white cover drawing of a bisected face: one half representing the bricks and tears of the residential school experience, the other representative of his peoples’ connection to the land and familial love—at least that’s my interpretation.

Mutala’s poems champion racial equality, gratitude, positivity, and God, as well as personal experience, ie: “the old wooden cookstove on the/farm when I was a child” (from “Reminds Me”). Not every poem is rosy, however. In “God’s Tricks” she acknowledges that “life happens”: “A little of this and a lot of that and too soon/We are in high school dragging our butts around,/Tired, wanting to sleep the days away and party/the nights”. And as life continues, we eventually “look old and tired” and “Our spirit is fried like a parched desert”.

The writer chooses various styles and structures: some pieces rhyme, some are a single stanza, and some, like the prosaic “Envision,” read like miniature pep talks: “Why not envision the best city in Saskatchewan, in Canada, in the entire world?” “Plain Lucky”—dedicated to the late writer Wes Funk—contains the everyday dialogue of two friends enjoying coffee together. The piece “Don’t You Think?” repeats the opening line and adds another with each new stanza. It begins: “I think if you stand in front of a church with a/Bible held high in your hand, you should open/it,” and in progressive stanzas the writer advises said Bible-holder/s to read and “use” the words of 1 Corinthians 13:4-8.

Mutala writes from the perspective of one who is “white privileged,” and she should be commended for addressing systemic racism in these poems, many of which blatantly articulate that “Black Lives and Indigenous Lives Matter”. She encourages “other white privileged” folks to speak up about racial injustice and persecution based on sexual orientation. “Do not be silent!” she heralds. “Smarten up!”

This small book includes an “Open Dialogue” featuring eight questions, ie: “What are things people can do to promote reconciliation?” and “What are things people can do to stop homophobia?” and invites readers to share their stories “so we can listen, understand, and change to make life better”. It concludes with a “Resources” section.

​A portion of this book’s proceeds go to Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls.

Review by Candice James
https://www.facebook.com/548677701931198/photos/a.647937188671915.1073741828.548677701931198/941652609300370/?type=3&theater

Marion Mutala opens the book with 3 poems that open the door to the Ukrainian Daughter’s Dance: “Memories”, “Washboard”, and “Old Farmhouse” focus a soft lens on her youth and open our hearts and minds to the nostalgia of our own youthful days .

In the poem “Depression” Mutala compares this intangible disease to a beast stalking her sister:
“Stalking beast attacks / Wears mask / Camouflage the blues”

And then ends the poem with what seems like a cure “of sorts” which really isn’t a cure at all.
“Once a wild caged animal / Medicated / then born again /
She acts like a simple child”

“Seductress” brings into focus the perils of falling prey to the liquid flames of alcohol of which fallout can create holocausts, tsunamis, and total destruction of soul of a long period of substance abuse. From opening line:
“She looks at me with magnetic dark eyes”

To the ending stanza
“She falls asleep in my arms /
My bottle of lust, my sparkling bottle of rum /
Slowly, one ounce at a time”

My favourite poem in the book is “Effect”, a nature poem, short, sweet and filled with vivid imagery:
“Nature encompasses / a sundog / beautifying / the cold sky”

And what a fitting ending to end the book with the title poem “Ukrainian Daughter’s Dance”. Mutala proudly displays her heritage in these excerpted lines:
“I am what I am I say”

“I’ll always be a prairie girl /
and daughter of a Ukrainian matya”

“And a Ukrainian Prairie daughter will always /
dance barefoot in the black dirt"

Dancing through the pages to the magical rhythm Mutala’s poetry exudes is enjoyable indeed.

About the Poet: Marion Mutala has a master’s degree in education administration and has taught for 30 years. With a mad passion for the arts she loves to write, sing, folkdance, play guitar, travel and read. She is the author of the bestselling and award-winning children’s book trilogy Baba’s Babushka: A Magical Ukrainian Christmas, Baba’s Babushka: A Magical Ukrainian Easter and Baba’s Babushka: A Magical Ukrainian Wedding. Her fourth book Grateful was published in 2014. Ukrainian Daughter’s Dance is her debut poetry book.

About the reviewer: Candice James is Poet Laureate Emerita; Board Advisor Royal City Literary Arts Society; Director Pacific Festival of the Book. She is author of eleven poetry books: the first "A Split In The Water” (Fiddlehead Poetry Books 1979) and the most recent is ”Merging Dimensions” (Ekstasis Editions). Her awards include Bernie Legge Artist Cultural award; Pandora’s Collective Citizenship award; Pentasi B Woman of Prestige award. Further info at www.candicejames.com