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Coal Harbour #2
One Year in Coal Harbor
Readers rejoice—Primrose Squarp is back! The wise and curious heroine of the Newbery Honor Book Everything on a Waffle is facing another adventure-filled year in Coal Harbor.
Even though her parents, once lost at sea, are home, there’s a whole slew of problems and mysteries to keep Primrose—and eager fans—busy. There’s Uncle Jack and Kate Bowzer, who may (or may not) be in love. There’s Ked, a foster child who becomes Primrose’s friend. And there’s the new development on the outskirts of town that threatens the Coal Harbor Primrose knows and treasures.
From National Book Award–winning author Polly Horvath comes a masterful sequel to a beloved novel, sure to please old fans and gain new ones.
Even though her parents, once lost at sea, are home, there’s a whole slew of problems and mysteries to keep Primrose—and eager fans—busy. There’s Uncle Jack and Kate Bowzer, who may (or may not) be in love. There’s Ked, a foster child who becomes Primrose’s friend. And there’s the new development on the outskirts of town that threatens the Coal Harbor Primrose knows and treasures.
From National Book Award–winning author Polly Horvath comes a masterful sequel to a beloved novel, sure to please old fans and gain new ones.
224 pages, Hardcover
First published August 8, 2012
22 people are currently reading
993 people want to read
About the author
Polly Horvath
45 books300 followersPolly Horvath is the author of many books for young people, including Everything on a Waffle, The Pepins and Their Problems, The Canning Season and The Trolls. Her numerous awards include the Newbery Honor, the National Book Award for Young People's Literature, the Boston Globe-Horn Book Honor, the Vicky Metcalf Award for Children's Literature, the Mr. Christie Award, the international White Raven, and the Young Adult Canadian Book of the Year. Horvath grew up in Kalamazoo, Michigan. She attended the Canadian College of Dance in Toronto and the Martha Graham School of Contemporary Dance in New York City. She has taught ballet, waitressed, done temporary typing, and tended babies, but while doing these things she has always also written. Now that her children are in school, she spends the whole day writing, unless she sneaks out to buy groceries, lured away from her desk by the thought of fresh Cheez Whiz. She lives on Vancouver Island with her husband and two daughters.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 196 reviews
November 7, 2018
This is the sequel to "Everything on a Waffle." My stepson and I read that book for the Battle of the Books, and thought it was a little strange for a middle grade book. In this installment, I came to love Primrose and her quirky town.
With her parents rescued, Primrose's lifve stabilizes, with the charming perk of her Uncle and old foster parents resuming large roles in her life. Evie and Bert also has a new foster child, a teenager named Ked.
This is an unconventional book, with some deep philosophical musings, especially about Ked and the "thin space" he occupies in his own life. I thought it did a lovely job of explaining Primrose's frame of mind in the first book.
With her parents rescued, Primrose's lifve stabilizes, with the charming perk of her Uncle and old foster parents resuming large roles in her life. Evie and Bert also has a new foster child, a teenager named Ked.
This is an unconventional book, with some deep philosophical musings, especially about Ked and the "thin space" he occupies in his own life. I thought it did a lovely job of explaining Primrose's frame of mind in the first book.
November 26, 2012
One Year in Coal Harbor drops us back into the oceanside town in British Columbia where you can play hockey at Uncle Jack’s house or have Miss Bowzer fix you up something to eat–just know it’s going to come on a waffle. It’s been a year since Primrose’s parents returned, and she to her home with them. She’s more rich now than ever with her Uncle Jack staying on in town, as well as Bert and Evie, her temporary foster parents who had moved to Coal Harbor all sticking by her. She visits all of them regularly, along with keeping up her regular sessions at The Girl in the Red Swing learning to cook all variety of dishes with Miss Bowzer.
I observed in the last novel that Primrose Squarp is surprisingly resilient and full of faith, but also lacking in companions her own age. This is rectified in One Year in Coal Harbor when Bert and Evie take on a new foster child, Ked, who Primrose quickly comes to think of as her best friend (even though she’d never tell him that). Primrose recognizes in Ked the loneliness and thin places she herself was in when her parents were missing and instinctively finds he is someone she can relate to and wants to protect, despite his reluctance to reveal anything about his own past.
I didn’t want to say he was Bert and Evie’s foster child. As soon as people find out someone is a foster child they treat them as if they are criminals or diseased. One thing I learned when my parents disappeared at sea was that it is human nature to secretly suspect that the things that happen to people are really their own fault in some way. That we bring our misfortunes upon ourselves. Even if the bad things that happen to us are clearly just a case of bad luck, there’s a kind of underlying belief that there’s a certain amount of bad luck in the world and it attaches to people who are less deserving. I wanted to protect Ked from this even though it was probably something he already knew.
As in its predecessor, the problems in One Year in Coal Harbor are very real and bigger than the little girl telling the story. However, because of that little girl the story feels cozy and personal. Primrose is able to gauge issues the way we adults let slip from our perspectives at times. Her care for Ked, her concern for Uncle Jack and Kate Bowzer who she is certain must get married, and observations of a town protesting the logging of a mountain in their backyard are all reflected through Primrose’s insightful thoughts, and of course, we are graced with more recipes.
One Year in Coal Harbor is a wonderful story about not letting our pasts dictate who we will be, and also the reality that some things just are. Primrose realizes somewhere along the road that the majority of things in life we cannot fix or ruin, but we can still change them. She tries her hardest to change those things she sees in need, but also finds out that you can’t really control other people’s lives if they want certain things. I was so happy to see Primrose gain a friend at last, and it was wonderful to see her stick her neck out for someone who was currently going through something so akin to what she’d known.
Originally review posted at Bunbury in the Stacks.
I observed in the last novel that Primrose Squarp is surprisingly resilient and full of faith, but also lacking in companions her own age. This is rectified in One Year in Coal Harbor when Bert and Evie take on a new foster child, Ked, who Primrose quickly comes to think of as her best friend (even though she’d never tell him that). Primrose recognizes in Ked the loneliness and thin places she herself was in when her parents were missing and instinctively finds he is someone she can relate to and wants to protect, despite his reluctance to reveal anything about his own past.
I didn’t want to say he was Bert and Evie’s foster child. As soon as people find out someone is a foster child they treat them as if they are criminals or diseased. One thing I learned when my parents disappeared at sea was that it is human nature to secretly suspect that the things that happen to people are really their own fault in some way. That we bring our misfortunes upon ourselves. Even if the bad things that happen to us are clearly just a case of bad luck, there’s a kind of underlying belief that there’s a certain amount of bad luck in the world and it attaches to people who are less deserving. I wanted to protect Ked from this even though it was probably something he already knew.
As in its predecessor, the problems in One Year in Coal Harbor are very real and bigger than the little girl telling the story. However, because of that little girl the story feels cozy and personal. Primrose is able to gauge issues the way we adults let slip from our perspectives at times. Her care for Ked, her concern for Uncle Jack and Kate Bowzer who she is certain must get married, and observations of a town protesting the logging of a mountain in their backyard are all reflected through Primrose’s insightful thoughts, and of course, we are graced with more recipes.
One Year in Coal Harbor is a wonderful story about not letting our pasts dictate who we will be, and also the reality that some things just are. Primrose realizes somewhere along the road that the majority of things in life we cannot fix or ruin, but we can still change them. She tries her hardest to change those things she sees in need, but also finds out that you can’t really control other people’s lives if they want certain things. I was so happy to see Primrose gain a friend at last, and it was wonderful to see her stick her neck out for someone who was currently going through something so akin to what she’d known.
Originally review posted at Bunbury in the Stacks.
June 18, 2018
I read Everything On A Waffle for the first time in college, and I’ve been reading it on the reg ever since.
So, when I found out that Horvath had written a sequel I was pumped.
A Year in Coal Harbor has the same chatty, preternaturally wise narrator, Primrose Squarp, and I loved spending more time with the people of Coal Harbor. Where Everything On A Waffle felt cozily self-contained, AYiCH sprawls a bit more. Maybe it meanders a tad.
But Primrose is great, finds a best friend, and has such beautiful observations about life and pain it made my breath catch. Funny and insightful, just right for middle-grade readers (and beyond!).
So, when I found out that Horvath had written a sequel I was pumped.
A Year in Coal Harbor has the same chatty, preternaturally wise narrator, Primrose Squarp, and I loved spending more time with the people of Coal Harbor. Where Everything On A Waffle felt cozily self-contained, AYiCH sprawls a bit more. Maybe it meanders a tad.
But Primrose is great, finds a best friend, and has such beautiful observations about life and pain it made my breath catch. Funny and insightful, just right for middle-grade readers (and beyond!).
December 30, 2021
This book was perfect. Absolutely perfect. Every Polly Horvath book I read astounds me even more. Her writing style is different than any other writer I've ever read. She meanders and gets lost in asides and yet every word is perfectly chosen. I end up with so many quotes for my quote book.
This second book about Primrose Squarp finds her adjusting to her parents' return, matchmaking for Uncle Jack and Miss Bowzer, befriending Bert and Evie's new foster son, amassing recipes for a cookbook, and joining environmentalists protesting clear cut logging. This book was an absolute joy.
This second book about Primrose Squarp finds her adjusting to her parents' return, matchmaking for Uncle Jack and Miss Bowzer, befriending Bert and Evie's new foster son, amassing recipes for a cookbook, and joining environmentalists protesting clear cut logging. This book was an absolute joy.
September 30, 2025
I didn't realize this book was a sequel until after I had started it, but the author does a pretty good job of catching the reader up on the events in the past that have left the main character where she is currently. I really liked the mc and her way of thinking, it kind of reminded me of Anne of Green Gables. She's a quirky kid with a big vocabulary who is wise beyond her years, but because she is so atypical and lives in a small town where all the other kids already have best friends she finds herself without one. This book deals with a lot of hard topics such as the loss of pets and the way people move in and out of our lives in ways we can't always control. I really enjoyed the writing and the story, though I disliked some of the mystical ideas woven into it. For example, the main characters mom believes that everyone's fate is beautiful. As an adult I can think of many deaths and losses that do not have a positive side, and I wouldn't want to teach kids that they should always have to find positives in terrible events. Of course sometimes good things come after or as a result of tragedy such as meeting someone you might not have in other circumstances, but I'm leery of toxic positivity where someone can't accept that bad things are bad and then grieve and process them accordingly. Still, I enjoyed the story, especially its humorous and satirical aspects. 3.5 stars
November 11, 2012
This didn't have the charm of the first book, and somehow, despite many serious things that happened, also seemed to lack the depth. What was cute and quirky in EVERYTHING ON A WAFFLE got schticky here. And there were a lot of loose plot threads that didn't seem quite to come together. I'm glad I made myself finish it, because it did get more interesting at the very end, and the last page is very satisfying.
March 27, 2013
Dang, I was confused reading this book. Granted it wasn't all the author's fault. I've turned into a loopy menopausal reader which means momentary brain shutdowns. At least that's my excuse. I also DESPERATELY NEED SPRING BREAK! First, I thought Quincehead was a parrot. He ain't. He's a gawl dong blasted dog. If you read too fast the word, Cockapoo, is quite similar to cockatoo. Then I read Bert and Evie as Bert and Ernie. Their spitfire dialogue made me think they were hyperactive ten-year-old twins (I've been teaching a few lately). They ain't. They're a husband and wife who like to use the word "ain't" and quirky sentences such as "No people is different, is all." The description of Ked made me think he was a special needs kid. He ain't either. Some terrific lines and oddball characters kept me flipping the pages, but I was left scratching me head when it came to plot and I skimmed parts.
I think the main point of the story was that Primrose doesn't have a best friend and she makes one in Ked... not that I was on my top reading behavior. The subplot is her playing matchmaker with Uncle Jack and Miss Bowzer. This goal gets lost at times as the plot wanders. I wasn't sure why the teacher Miss Conner had to go and Miss Larkin had to replace her except that the author loved the awful poems Miss Larkin wrote. They are funny but they don't advance the plot. The theme of teachers having such tough jobs that they get mental illness lacked authenticity and kind of irked me.
Primrose has long interior monologues and sounds like an adult more often than a twelve-year-old child. When she was fighting with Eleanor I thought she finally sounded like a child. Usually her humor is adult-like and I'm not sure if it will appeal to kids. Sure, I laughed, but is a twelve-year-old going to have that much wisdom? Particularly when it comes to romance? For example, "I forgot that Uncle Jack was a lefty and sat next to Miss Bowzer, where his cutting arm kept knocking into hers, which might have been a good thing if she'd been a sly, flirty, go-ahead-and-knock-into-me-with-your-knife-arm-you-big-lug type. But she wasn't. She was more the I'm-going-to-try-to-ignore-the-line-of-bruises-forming-up-my-arm type. If I was less invested in their future happiness, I might have found it entertaining. Well, all right, it was entertaining anyway." I laughed, but thought she sounded more like a fourteen or fifteen-year-old. Sometimes the audience felt YA with the touched on themes of drugs and abuse and romance, but nothing is gone into great depth so perhaps it is fine.
I liked lines here and there such as, "It is a terrible thing to have pockets of emptiness where something or someone should be. I felt it when my parents were missing," but I found other lines confusing or too many asides, such as when granny and the Hacky Sack boy were talking about him being a hair stylist. I kept waiting for the complete story regarding the parents being lost at sea for a year, but it is never elaborated on. How can you be lost at sea for a year and survive? I grew up in the middle of the country so perhaps this is a dumb question? I know that the "lost at sea" angle is used so that Primrose has empathy toward Ked, but Horvath emphasizes it so much, I thought there was more to it.
The use of mini-marshmallows as an object that has many different meanings for different characters is clever. Evie uses them to make people feel better. When a character is having a rough patch, Evie is always there with food. I ate more food reading this book because of all the food references. Horvath has recipes at the end of the chapters and many scenes take place in a restaurant. The end-of-chapter recipes reminded me of Hattie Mae's articles in "Moon Over Manifest." In both novels, I read them at first, then skipped them at the end. That's just me. I like sticking to the story. Make sure you read this on a full stomach or you'll be like me reaching for some snack every time you curl up in your favorite reading spot.
One last thing, and this is a SPOILER so don't read on if you don't want to know... the opening scene has a dog being put to sleep. Unless you are like me and think it is a parrot being put to sleep. Doesn't have the same emotional punch as a dog dying. Later on another dog gets hit by a car and killed. The deaths reveal Primrose dealing with the loss of her friend Ked and her mother giving her advice on dealing with death, but I think readers who are sensitive to the loss of an animal will be turned off. Just pretend it is a cockatoo, not a Cockapoo. My spell checker just asked me if I meant Kickapoo. If you like word play and understated humor, then give this book a go. If not, give it a kick-a-poo.
Reading Level 5.0
I think the main point of the story was that Primrose doesn't have a best friend and she makes one in Ked... not that I was on my top reading behavior. The subplot is her playing matchmaker with Uncle Jack and Miss Bowzer. This goal gets lost at times as the plot wanders. I wasn't sure why the teacher Miss Conner had to go and Miss Larkin had to replace her except that the author loved the awful poems Miss Larkin wrote. They are funny but they don't advance the plot. The theme of teachers having such tough jobs that they get mental illness lacked authenticity and kind of irked me.
Primrose has long interior monologues and sounds like an adult more often than a twelve-year-old child. When she was fighting with Eleanor I thought she finally sounded like a child. Usually her humor is adult-like and I'm not sure if it will appeal to kids. Sure, I laughed, but is a twelve-year-old going to have that much wisdom? Particularly when it comes to romance? For example, "I forgot that Uncle Jack was a lefty and sat next to Miss Bowzer, where his cutting arm kept knocking into hers, which might have been a good thing if she'd been a sly, flirty, go-ahead-and-knock-into-me-with-your-knife-arm-you-big-lug type. But she wasn't. She was more the I'm-going-to-try-to-ignore-the-line-of-bruises-forming-up-my-arm type. If I was less invested in their future happiness, I might have found it entertaining. Well, all right, it was entertaining anyway." I laughed, but thought she sounded more like a fourteen or fifteen-year-old. Sometimes the audience felt YA with the touched on themes of drugs and abuse and romance, but nothing is gone into great depth so perhaps it is fine.
I liked lines here and there such as, "It is a terrible thing to have pockets of emptiness where something or someone should be. I felt it when my parents were missing," but I found other lines confusing or too many asides, such as when granny and the Hacky Sack boy were talking about him being a hair stylist. I kept waiting for the complete story regarding the parents being lost at sea for a year, but it is never elaborated on. How can you be lost at sea for a year and survive? I grew up in the middle of the country so perhaps this is a dumb question? I know that the "lost at sea" angle is used so that Primrose has empathy toward Ked, but Horvath emphasizes it so much, I thought there was more to it.
The use of mini-marshmallows as an object that has many different meanings for different characters is clever. Evie uses them to make people feel better. When a character is having a rough patch, Evie is always there with food. I ate more food reading this book because of all the food references. Horvath has recipes at the end of the chapters and many scenes take place in a restaurant. The end-of-chapter recipes reminded me of Hattie Mae's articles in "Moon Over Manifest." In both novels, I read them at first, then skipped them at the end. That's just me. I like sticking to the story. Make sure you read this on a full stomach or you'll be like me reaching for some snack every time you curl up in your favorite reading spot.
One last thing, and this is a SPOILER so don't read on if you don't want to know... the opening scene has a dog being put to sleep. Unless you are like me and think it is a parrot being put to sleep. Doesn't have the same emotional punch as a dog dying. Later on another dog gets hit by a car and killed. The deaths reveal Primrose dealing with the loss of her friend Ked and her mother giving her advice on dealing with death, but I think readers who are sensitive to the loss of an animal will be turned off. Just pretend it is a cockatoo, not a Cockapoo. My spell checker just asked me if I meant Kickapoo. If you like word play and understated humor, then give this book a go. If not, give it a kick-a-poo.
Reading Level 5.0
April 11, 2012
ARC provided by NetGalley
It’s true I’m probably not the age for this book, but it being a sequel to an award winning book I thought I’d give it a try. And I’m sorry but book is one of the worst I've read in a while. First of all I don’t understand why they’d release a sequel 10 years after the original book. It just seems like an awful long time to wait to regale readers with the next tale in Primrose’s life (I also didn’t think the original was that great.) Secondly every time I encountered a plot point in the story I thought it was trying to be too much like Romona and Bezus from Beverly Clearly. From the way Primrose and Ked interacted with each other to Primose trying to set Kate and her Uncle up.
In addition, I just couldn’t find any of the characters likeable. Primrose carried on monologues in her head that went on for pages and veered off on weird tangents that I couldn’t ever trace back to the original point and just bored the snot out of me. Ked, the Uncle, and even Kate in this book often felt one dimensional and there was nothing in the story to make me feel like I wanted to know them.
I just can’t recommend this book at all. 2 out of 5 stars and I think I’m being nice with that.
It’s true I’m probably not the age for this book, but it being a sequel to an award winning book I thought I’d give it a try. And I’m sorry but book is one of the worst I've read in a while. First of all I don’t understand why they’d release a sequel 10 years after the original book. It just seems like an awful long time to wait to regale readers with the next tale in Primrose’s life (I also didn’t think the original was that great.) Secondly every time I encountered a plot point in the story I thought it was trying to be too much like Romona and Bezus from Beverly Clearly. From the way Primrose and Ked interacted with each other to Primose trying to set Kate and her Uncle up.
In addition, I just couldn’t find any of the characters likeable. Primrose carried on monologues in her head that went on for pages and veered off on weird tangents that I couldn’t ever trace back to the original point and just bored the snot out of me. Ked, the Uncle, and even Kate in this book often felt one dimensional and there was nothing in the story to make me feel like I wanted to know them.
I just can’t recommend this book at all. 2 out of 5 stars and I think I’m being nice with that.
October 2, 2012
Is it wrong that the entire time I read this book (and Waffle) I wanted so much to go out to coffee with Polly Horvath? She writes the kinds of books that I would have gobbled up as a tween and now love as an adult. They are not sugary sweet or predictable. They are actually kind of dark. I love them.
That said, this one bogged down a pinch for me in the middle. Perhaps I am a bad person and did not care enough about the logging to want to read so much about it. Or perhaps this one was a little harder for me because bad things were not happening to Prim (who I know can handle it), but to those around her. And I fully felt her frustration at not being able to control everyone's situation, even when she is so sure she knows what is best for everyone else. In this manner I felt detached from what was going on (just like her).
While my favorite will always be Canning Season, Everything on a Waffle and its companion: One Year in Coal Harbor are close seconds. Just wonderful and perfect for the reader who is ready to move out of hot pink candy fiction and into something a little more realistic.
That said, this one bogged down a pinch for me in the middle. Perhaps I am a bad person and did not care enough about the logging to want to read so much about it. Or perhaps this one was a little harder for me because bad things were not happening to Prim (who I know can handle it), but to those around her. And I fully felt her frustration at not being able to control everyone's situation, even when she is so sure she knows what is best for everyone else. In this manner I felt detached from what was going on (just like her).
While my favorite will always be Canning Season, Everything on a Waffle and its companion: One Year in Coal Harbor are close seconds. Just wonderful and perfect for the reader who is ready to move out of hot pink candy fiction and into something a little more realistic.
January 11, 2023
I liked this book because Primrose's voice is so distinct. However, I'm not sure a young reader would be able to discern that this character's perspective is not the truth about children in foster care.
I think OYICH is a good book for introducing young readers to the concept of foster care and encouraging them to befriend kids in foster care. However, I would not want a child in foster care to read this book.
Why?
I think OYICH is a good book for introducing young readers to the concept of foster care and encouraging them to befriend kids in foster care. However, I would not want a child in foster care to read this book.
Why?
November 2, 2023
And we’re back in Coal Harbor with Primrose! This is the sequel to “Everything on a Waffle”. A cute middle school level read, heavy topics but palatable for a younger audience. And of course it wouldn’t be proper Primrose literature without her recipes, one to close out each chapter. I still need to make the lemon cookies from the first book. From this book I would try the cinnamon sugar toast.
Overall, I did like the first book more. ButI did enjoy getting caught up on what my friends were up to- some closure made and some loose ends were tied up. 3.5 stars- to put it into perspective: I don’t need this one in my library, but I would reread the first one.
Overall, I did like the first book more. ButI did enjoy getting caught up on what my friends were up to- some closure made and some loose ends were tied up. 3.5 stars- to put it into perspective: I don’t need this one in my library, but I would reread the first one.
November 4, 2018
It’s a sweet story- my daughter learned a lot about how foster care works which was good. It was probably a little Old for her (she’s 9) but we enjoyed the audio version nevertheless.
October 29, 2012
I am always buying copies of "Everything on a Waffle" when I see it, and giving it to people, but I couldn't clearly remember why I loved it so much. Then I read the first page of "One Year in Coal Harbor" and it all came flooding back.
Delightful.
Loved it.
I read the entire thing in one sitting while waiting for my car to be fixed, and the dealership employees got to watch me laugh, grin, shake my head, and, finally, cry.
THIS is Polly Horvath! (I was so disappointed in the bunnies last year.) There are so so so so many quotable quotes.
12: "All your worry should be able to be traded in for a good result. i know that's superstitious but somehow I can't help thinking I can save the things I love with the force of my feelings."
33: "I liked everyone at that table and I couldn't believe how wrong they were all getting it. I felt I should hand out scripts."
72: "You know none of us can stay entertained with just our own life. We gotta be kept up to date with a bunch of different lives and what's happening in them. That's why TV's so popular, I guess."
75-6: "They didn't improve the ice cream but they didn't hurt it either and I thought that was what you could say about most things. Although I couldn't quite get to the kernel of that idea, the feeling of it made me happy because it meant in a way you didn't have to sweat and work so hard to improve things and you couldn't much ruin them either. You could change them but that was the most you could do. It kind of took the pressure off your time on earth. Mini marshmallow theory of life."
88: "This was to ward off any of the attempts they might make to throw us into burlap bags and drown us in the river. I knew this was probably just a flight of my imagination but I think it is better to be prepared in such instances than not. Then I wondered why burlap bags? ... was it because guys who looked like these were usually very environmentally conscious and wouldn't even think of using plastic?"
Vegetarian war orphans
167: Poem by Miss Lark:
Pussy pussy on the hill
Why so quiet, why so still?
Why no movement for so long?
Was it something I did wrong?
Are you just a peaceful cat?
Meditating this and that?
On your tranquil grassy bed.
Oh, my goodness, you are dead!
Delightful.
Loved it.
I read the entire thing in one sitting while waiting for my car to be fixed, and the dealership employees got to watch me laugh, grin, shake my head, and, finally, cry.
THIS is Polly Horvath! (I was so disappointed in the bunnies last year.) There are so so so so many quotable quotes.
12: "All your worry should be able to be traded in for a good result. i know that's superstitious but somehow I can't help thinking I can save the things I love with the force of my feelings."
33: "I liked everyone at that table and I couldn't believe how wrong they were all getting it. I felt I should hand out scripts."
72: "You know none of us can stay entertained with just our own life. We gotta be kept up to date with a bunch of different lives and what's happening in them. That's why TV's so popular, I guess."
75-6: "They didn't improve the ice cream but they didn't hurt it either and I thought that was what you could say about most things. Although I couldn't quite get to the kernel of that idea, the feeling of it made me happy because it meant in a way you didn't have to sweat and work so hard to improve things and you couldn't much ruin them either. You could change them but that was the most you could do. It kind of took the pressure off your time on earth. Mini marshmallow theory of life."
88: "This was to ward off any of the attempts they might make to throw us into burlap bags and drown us in the river. I knew this was probably just a flight of my imagination but I think it is better to be prepared in such instances than not. Then I wondered why burlap bags? ... was it because guys who looked like these were usually very environmentally conscious and wouldn't even think of using plastic?"
Vegetarian war orphans
167: Poem by Miss Lark:
Pussy pussy on the hill
Why so quiet, why so still?
Why no movement for so long?
Was it something I did wrong?
Are you just a peaceful cat?
Meditating this and that?
On your tranquil grassy bed.
Oh, my goodness, you are dead!
February 24, 2015
I think that Polly Horvath may be in the running as one of my favorite authors. Of course I've only read 2 of her books... But the 2 that I've read have made me happy.
This book is a sequel to "Everything on a Waffle" which i stumbled upon years ago and read it simply because the title was so silly... And i like waffles.
Primrose Squarp, the main character, is revisited in this book and she is just as quirky, loveable, wise, and wacky as she was the first time around. The other characters are perfect and equally wacky in their own way and there are funny recipes at the end of each chapter... many including mini marshmallows.
This is not a deep book or one that a lot of people will be raving about... But it made me smile, had some ingenious nuggets that made me ponder a little, and made me want to eat mini marshmallows... Which i don't even like.
I had to include a quote.. This is one of my favorites from Primrose after her friend's dog died. This just gives you a taste of Polly Horvath's cleverness and quirkiness.
"You can't replace one dog with another anymore then you can replace one person with another, but that's not to say you shouldn't get more dogs and people in your life. Even though no one you love is replaceable, you need a dog for the dog place in the heart, and a child for the child place, if you have a child place in your heart, not everyone does, or a dog place either, I guess. I've known people who have a ferret place, to which I can only say I'm thankful I was not born with one of those".
This book is a sequel to "Everything on a Waffle" which i stumbled upon years ago and read it simply because the title was so silly... And i like waffles.
Primrose Squarp, the main character, is revisited in this book and she is just as quirky, loveable, wise, and wacky as she was the first time around. The other characters are perfect and equally wacky in their own way and there are funny recipes at the end of each chapter... many including mini marshmallows.
This is not a deep book or one that a lot of people will be raving about... But it made me smile, had some ingenious nuggets that made me ponder a little, and made me want to eat mini marshmallows... Which i don't even like.
I had to include a quote.. This is one of my favorites from Primrose after her friend's dog died. This just gives you a taste of Polly Horvath's cleverness and quirkiness.
"You can't replace one dog with another anymore then you can replace one person with another, but that's not to say you shouldn't get more dogs and people in your life. Even though no one you love is replaceable, you need a dog for the dog place in the heart, and a child for the child place, if you have a child place in your heart, not everyone does, or a dog place either, I guess. I've known people who have a ferret place, to which I can only say I'm thankful I was not born with one of those".
September 7, 2012
One Year in Coal Harbor by Polly Horvath is the sequel to Everything on a Waffle. Although Primrose returns to narrate, she isn't the main character. That honor goes to Evie and Bert's newest foster child, a troubled boy named Ked.
Ked spends one year with his foster parents. In that time Primrose does her best to help him fit in. She can still remember the time when she was ridiculed for being a foster child.
Primrose's uncle and the owner of the Girl on the Red Swing continue to compete. Now it's all about cooking. Nudged on by Primrose, Kate Bowzer is convinced that Uncle Jack doesn't think she can do French cooking. She wants to show him a thing or too about her skills!
Meanwhile outside of town there's a protest over the proposed clear cutting of the nearby mountain. It seems as though Coal Harbor is on the eve of becoming a very different place. Primrose observes and reports on the adults' protests and meetings over the logging.
Although Coal Harbor is a fictional small town on Vancouver Island, it's history as laid out in Horvath's two books bear an uncanny resemblance to that of the city of Vancouver. Readers familiar with the story of Stanley Park — next door to an area named Coal Harbour, might see some similarities with this fictional Coal Harbo(u)r.
The Canadian edition, by the way, is One Year in Coal Harbour and frankly I wish the U.S. edition kept the Canadian spelling.
Ked spends one year with his foster parents. In that time Primrose does her best to help him fit in. She can still remember the time when she was ridiculed for being a foster child.
Primrose's uncle and the owner of the Girl on the Red Swing continue to compete. Now it's all about cooking. Nudged on by Primrose, Kate Bowzer is convinced that Uncle Jack doesn't think she can do French cooking. She wants to show him a thing or too about her skills!
Meanwhile outside of town there's a protest over the proposed clear cutting of the nearby mountain. It seems as though Coal Harbor is on the eve of becoming a very different place. Primrose observes and reports on the adults' protests and meetings over the logging.
Although Coal Harbor is a fictional small town on Vancouver Island, it's history as laid out in Horvath's two books bear an uncanny resemblance to that of the city of Vancouver. Readers familiar with the story of Stanley Park — next door to an area named Coal Harbour, might see some similarities with this fictional Coal Harbo(u)r.
The Canadian edition, by the way, is One Year in Coal Harbour and frankly I wish the U.S. edition kept the Canadian spelling.
March 30, 2016
I liked this book a good bit more than the first one, Everything on a Waffle. This one did not have a sombre overtone. Laughed out loud a few times - Polly Horvath is really good at creating comical situations and then having the characters act in deadpan ways and describing it all matter-of-factly.
There were more characters than before and so it was more interesting. Primrose's parents became part of the comedy pair/couple trope of Horvath's, like Evie and Bert, Miss Bowser and Uncle Jack, Primrose and Ked, etc. Each pair had the funniest conversations and really understood or complimented each other.
I also really liked (and saw myself in) Primrose because she's a little lonely but also uppity, unrelenting in her ways, and a real matchmaking-romantic. Also it's great how people tolerate/come to like/genuinely like these things about her!
There were a few dark twists near the end, typical Horvath, I shouldn't even be surprised. But
I also loved the cover art! Long live beautiful cover art.
There were more characters than before and so it was more interesting. Primrose's parents became part of the comedy pair/couple trope of Horvath's, like Evie and Bert, Miss Bowser and Uncle Jack, Primrose and Ked, etc. Each pair had the funniest conversations and really understood or complimented each other.
I also really liked (and saw myself in) Primrose because she's a little lonely but also uppity, unrelenting in her ways, and a real matchmaking-romantic. Also it's great how people tolerate/come to like/genuinely like these things about her!
There were a few dark twists near the end, typical Horvath, I shouldn't even be surprised. But
I also loved the cover art! Long live beautiful cover art.
September 3, 2012
Thank you very much for allowing me to read One Year in Coal Harbor. This review will be published at revingsblog.blogspot.com and on goodreads.com.
Polly Horvath is a beautiful writer. Her books are the kind that you fall right into and get lost in the world she has created. I've loved everything I've read from her and I really enjoyed One Year in Coal Harbor. This is a sequel to Everything on a Waffle and tells the further adventures of Primrose, her family, Burt and Evie, Uncle Jack and a new character, Ked, who is the new foster child of Burt and Evie. What I like most of Horvath and Coal Harbor is that the book is written for middle schoolers, but it doesn't talk down to them like so many middle school books do. It also isn't pretentious at all. It has that delicate balance of being wicked smart, but not being smart for smart's sake, or preachy. Great story. Very funny in places. Very touching.
Polly Horvath is a beautiful writer. Her books are the kind that you fall right into and get lost in the world she has created. I've loved everything I've read from her and I really enjoyed One Year in Coal Harbor. This is a sequel to Everything on a Waffle and tells the further adventures of Primrose, her family, Burt and Evie, Uncle Jack and a new character, Ked, who is the new foster child of Burt and Evie. What I like most of Horvath and Coal Harbor is that the book is written for middle schoolers, but it doesn't talk down to them like so many middle school books do. It also isn't pretentious at all. It has that delicate balance of being wicked smart, but not being smart for smart's sake, or preachy. Great story. Very funny in places. Very touching.
September 18, 2013
This sequel to Everything on a Waffle brings Primrose back, and the plot revolves around her machinations to get her uncle Jack together with the owner of the Girl on the Red Swing restaurant (the one that serves everything on a waffle). The fact that everything does come together in almost Dickensian fashion by the end doesn't rob from the fact that none of it happens the way Primrose wants it to. Nothing is really in her control, and she goes through a lot to figure this out. But while she was doing so, I thought she became a really annoying busybody and found that I didn't like her as much as I did in Waffle. But by the end of the story I didn't mind even this character flaw so much. I think Horvath was more preachy in delivering the 'life lessons' through Primrose's ending reflections, but it was an enjoyable experience despite these shortcomings. Not my favorite Horvath, but worth the bedtimes we spent listening to the audiobook.
February 26, 2013
This is the first Polly Horvath book I've read, but I regret that I can't praise it as much as I'd like. The story itself was interesting enough, and I liked the MC and her former foster parents, but the other characters left me feeling a bit cheated. I felt they were rushed in their development and I never did get a good feel for them, except possibly her uncle. I liked him quite a bit.
The main problem I had with this was the voice. I know a lot of twelve-year-olds, but can't name one that has this kind of vocabulary. I can't imagine the intended audience plowing through this and finding it an enjoyable read that they would recommend or want to read again. Perhaps I am wrong, but it just didn't strike me as being a middle grade read.
The main problem I had with this was the voice. I know a lot of twelve-year-olds, but can't name one that has this kind of vocabulary. I can't imagine the intended audience plowing through this and finding it an enjoyable read that they would recommend or want to read again. Perhaps I am wrong, but it just didn't strike me as being a middle grade read.
January 14, 2016
I did not read the first installment of this children's series but it's an easy to pick up storyline with some pretty eccentric and fun characters.
I absolutely loved the exchanges shared between characters and the dialogue was incredibly witty, but still simple and easy to digest.
For the 9-12 age bracket, I definitely think this little chapter book is wonderfully written (however, as a 23 year old, I found myself chuckling gleefully along more than a few times-don't pay heed to that silly '12' limitation!).
I absolutely loved the exchanges shared between characters and the dialogue was incredibly witty, but still simple and easy to digest.
For the 9-12 age bracket, I definitely think this little chapter book is wonderfully written (however, as a 23 year old, I found myself chuckling gleefully along more than a few times-don't pay heed to that silly '12' limitation!).
July 29, 2013
Really enjoyed this quiet book about a girl who makes observations about her logging town, plays matchmaker for two adults she adores, meets an unlikely friend, and discovers her own subtle talents. Horvath is a master of "voice".
March 26, 2013
I found myself laughing aloud a lot during this book! I love primrose's perception of the world. I also cried. Polly is a favorite author.
March 31, 2021
3.5 - so sweet! but not as whimsical as the first one felt. prim’s philosophical musings are satisfying and did make me think deeper + there are mary oliver quotes!! loved it.
sadly the recipes weren’t as good as the first.
TW, also fuck her for letting the dog loose. I get she was overwhelmed and didn’t actually mean for something like that to happen, but her actions had deadly consequences. it was just irresponsible and unnecessary for her to literally throw a temper tantrum as ked pointed out. it just doesn’t sit well with me that no one really seemed even a little mad idk. used to love her character but kind of hate her now. oh well. (cmon horvath, this shouldn’t be an event that’s so easily moved on from!! I feel disappointed by it especially after the whole gentle creature/we are all one universe spiel.)
“It can be a cruel world for the gentle creatures. Sometimes there ain’t nothing you can do. Not even for the things you love best. Not even for the things that trust you to care for them.”
“And looking at him, I was curious. Some people you meet and it’s like they’re a door you go through. In and out and that’s that. And sometimes you meet someone and they share everything about themselves, give it up so quickly and fully that you know there’s nothing left to mine for there, it’s all on the surface for you to see. But sometimes you meet someone and it’s as if they’re this whole biosphere and you want to go in and roam around and find out what all is in there—as if it’s so rich and plush a space you’ll never find all the animals living under the ferns. No matter how much you roam and look, there’s always going to be more interesting stuff hidden in the depths, microbes and reptiles and plant life and mammals and things you couldn’t even guess at.”
“Maybe we don’t live in a just universe. Maybe we live in a universe where all you have control over is your own kindness.”
“And it made me realize that stillness isn’t because nothing is there. It is because so much is.”
“I don’t know what to tell you honey. On the odd days I think it takes more courage to think such things are crazy and on the even days I think it takes more courage to think they’re not.”
sadly the recipes weren’t as good as the first.
TW, also fuck her for letting the dog loose. I get she was overwhelmed and didn’t actually mean for something like that to happen, but her actions had deadly consequences. it was just irresponsible and unnecessary for her to literally throw a temper tantrum as ked pointed out. it just doesn’t sit well with me that no one really seemed even a little mad idk. used to love her character but kind of hate her now. oh well. (cmon horvath, this shouldn’t be an event that’s so easily moved on from!! I feel disappointed by it especially after the whole gentle creature/we are all one universe spiel.)
“It can be a cruel world for the gentle creatures. Sometimes there ain’t nothing you can do. Not even for the things you love best. Not even for the things that trust you to care for them.”
“And looking at him, I was curious. Some people you meet and it’s like they’re a door you go through. In and out and that’s that. And sometimes you meet someone and they share everything about themselves, give it up so quickly and fully that you know there’s nothing left to mine for there, it’s all on the surface for you to see. But sometimes you meet someone and it’s as if they’re this whole biosphere and you want to go in and roam around and find out what all is in there—as if it’s so rich and plush a space you’ll never find all the animals living under the ferns. No matter how much you roam and look, there’s always going to be more interesting stuff hidden in the depths, microbes and reptiles and plant life and mammals and things you couldn’t even guess at.”
“Maybe we don’t live in a just universe. Maybe we live in a universe where all you have control over is your own kindness.”
“And it made me realize that stillness isn’t because nothing is there. It is because so much is.”
“I don’t know what to tell you honey. On the odd days I think it takes more courage to think such things are crazy and on the even days I think it takes more courage to think they’re not.”
September 18, 2024
This is the companion book the the Newbery honor "Everything on a Waffle." I read both aloud to the kids (ages 1-8) and it got 4 stars. Primrose's parents are now safe at home. They were definitely an interesting addition to the dynamic in Coal Harbor--a lot of cozy marital banter from the two of them. Evie and Bert, Primrose's temporary foster parents, also stay in town along with their new foster kid, Ked. Primrose instantly decided that Ked needed a friend. Ked is going through a lot, but he is not revealing any of his struggles until the very end of the book. It was beautiful to see how Primrose and Uncle Jack, who also stuck around, were able to see past Ked's tough outside to see that he was just a kid on the inside looking to be accepted. As a middle-grade book, some of the content was a bit deep and dark.
For example, there were references to petty theft, parental negligence, drugs, being high, and environmental issues. I tried to use these topics as learning opportunities for my kids, but their eyes glazed over and they weren't really following me. Primrose as a main character navigates through these issues with compassion and really tries to understand. Definitely a good book for a young person dealing with those issues in their own life.
Polly Horvath's writing is quirky and rambling. The best words for it. I laughed out loud at some of the dialogue between characters, but I had to explain the jokes to the kids. In some ways, it's a 5 star book, but in other ways, it's only a middle grade book because Primrose is ten. The things she goes through are not usually topics covered in a middle grade.
The book on its own without any "labels" (e.g. middle-grade) is a 5 star book with a beautiful message that people are not choosing to be bad and we are all trying to find our way. It is a 4 star book for us, because apparently they were not ready for some of the darker issues in the book.
For example, there were references to petty theft, parental negligence, drugs, being high, and environmental issues. I tried to use these topics as learning opportunities for my kids, but their eyes glazed over and they weren't really following me. Primrose as a main character navigates through these issues with compassion and really tries to understand. Definitely a good book for a young person dealing with those issues in their own life.
Polly Horvath's writing is quirky and rambling. The best words for it. I laughed out loud at some of the dialogue between characters, but I had to explain the jokes to the kids. In some ways, it's a 5 star book, but in other ways, it's only a middle grade book because Primrose is ten. The things she goes through are not usually topics covered in a middle grade.
The book on its own without any "labels" (e.g. middle-grade) is a 5 star book with a beautiful message that people are not choosing to be bad and we are all trying to find our way. It is a 4 star book for us, because apparently they were not ready for some of the darker issues in the book.
August 31, 2023
Towards the end of this book, Miss Bowzer proclaims: “Life takes a lot of courage.” This could be the thesis of the book. There’s a lot of tough subjects contained but it felt more hopeful than heavy most of the time. All with Horvath’s typical dry humor and absurdity. She takes her readers seriously and trusts them to figure things out, to understand the offbeat humor, to handle a little darkness.
This is a middle grade book but I listened to it with my six and (almost) four year old. I’m sure a fair amount of it went over their heads but enough registered to make them laugh and to lead to many unprompted and thoughtful conversations. I’m sure we’ll be revisiting this as they get older.
So many good lines! Saving two:
“People and animals and trees and everything alive are born into circumstances they have no control over. Bad and unfair things, undeserved things, happen to them every day. And knowing this and how lucky we are, we feel so helpless. And maybe a little guilty. Because by chance we were born into better circumstances. And we can’t change that. We can’t level the playing field. We can’t make those circumstances not exist. But, although we can’t keep undeserved bad things from happening, we do have control in making undeserved good things happen. We can say maybe this person technically doesn’t deserve that I give him a break or look the other way or let him get away with it. But I can. I have that power.”
“Maybe we don’t live in a just universe. Maybe we live in a universe where all you have control over is your own kindness.”
This is a middle grade book but I listened to it with my six and (almost) four year old. I’m sure a fair amount of it went over their heads but enough registered to make them laugh and to lead to many unprompted and thoughtful conversations. I’m sure we’ll be revisiting this as they get older.
So many good lines! Saving two:
“People and animals and trees and everything alive are born into circumstances they have no control over. Bad and unfair things, undeserved things, happen to them every day. And knowing this and how lucky we are, we feel so helpless. And maybe a little guilty. Because by chance we were born into better circumstances. And we can’t change that. We can’t level the playing field. We can’t make those circumstances not exist. But, although we can’t keep undeserved bad things from happening, we do have control in making undeserved good things happen. We can say maybe this person technically doesn’t deserve that I give him a break or look the other way or let him get away with it. But I can. I have that power.”
“Maybe we don’t live in a just universe. Maybe we live in a universe where all you have control over is your own kindness.”
May 14, 2018
A companion to Everything on a Waffle, this novel follows Primrose's life in the year following the return of her parents. Things seem to be going along smoothly, and everyone who cares about Primrose is still in her life. When Evie and Bert get another foster child (Ked), Primrose is quick to make friends with him. She spends her free time trying to set up Uncle Jack with Miss Bowzer and coming up with ideas about how Ked can stay in Coal Harbor, all amidst the town being divided on the fate of a mountaintop.
I have taught Everything on a Waffle for several years and it was sweet to see the follow up to that story. This seemed like a more innocent book than Waffle, no digits were lost and bad luck seemed to stay at bay. Overall, a nice companion novel that stands well on its own.
I have taught Everything on a Waffle for several years and it was sweet to see the follow up to that story. This seemed like a more innocent book than Waffle, no digits were lost and bad luck seemed to stay at bay. Overall, a nice companion novel that stands well on its own.
September 7, 2018
the book One year in coal harbor is a super book a very nice continuation after the first book everything on a waffle. The book just like the first one is about primrose but this time her parents do not get lost at sea. The is basically a continuation of her life after her parents come home. primrose is still friends with her once was foster parents Evie and Burt. the book is a Harte wormer but happy and sad at times, The book's title is not as creative as the first but the content is just as fresh and new. The book 100% deserves five stars because it's awesome and just the thing we needed after the amazing first book.
September 12, 2018
We've only recently discovered Polly Horvath (and that quite by accident, really), but she has quickly become a favorite author. This sequel to Everything on a Waffle was another excellent contribution. Quaint and whimsical in many ways, yet philosophical and profound in its observations. The various characters are distinctive and endearing, quirky in believable and likable ways, and well developed. I would still compare it favorably to the Ramona books by Beverly Clearly, though more grown-up in its perspective and discussion. But it's really not quite like anything else I've ever read before. Certainly a worthwhile book (an excellent sequel to the likewise worthy Everything on a Waffle).
September 24, 2024
A sequel to Everything on a Waffle. Primrose Squarp is navigating life with her parents after their return from being lost at sea. Primrose becomes friends with Ked, as well as keeping track of her Uncle and Ms Bowzer who owns the local restaurant. A fun follow up to the original story with deeper plot lines that include foster families, friendship problems, relationships with different groups of people who live in Coal Harbor. Every chapter ends with a fun and sometimes unique recipe that Primrose is collecting from friends and family. Polly Horvath never disappoints with character development and making connections with readers.
August 19, 2017
I was confused many times in the story because it kept referring to past events and the book started in the middle of a story and kept referring to past events...come to find out this is the second book in the series. Not sure how I missed that detail. I loved that it took place on Vancouver Island, BC because I lived in the area once upon a fun time in my life (fun to hear the names of places I once knew). But the reader of the audiobook did not speak like a Canadian and that ruined the ambience.
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