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  Excerpt from  Travels with Elly  (MacDonald) - from chapter 1, BRITISH COLUMBIA Beginning of the chapter: Many Canadians we met during our journey were not quite sure where our hometown of Powell River is located. “Are you on Vancouver Island?” they would ask. “No, but we can see Vancouver Island across the Strait of Georgia. We’re on the mainland two ferry rides north of Vancouver.” Plans are in the works for building a road from Vancouver, but until that happens, Powell River will remain somewhat remote. The town was established in 1910 to sustain a lumber mill that once employed over 2000 people. When we left in 2009, the town had become a city with 15,000 residents and a tenuously surviving paper mill employing less than 400. Powell River has become more of a retirement haven, especially for those who enjoy out door activities such as hiking, biking boating, and fishing. The pace is slow, people are friendly, and the climate is moderate, making it a desirable place to

  MSI Press authors are located all over the world. Getting to know the authors can also mean getting to know a new part of the world. We will be sharing this information on a regular basis. Follow us and map our authors' locations. Larry MacDonald, author of RV Oopsies , Travels with Elly , and Diary of an RVer in Quarantine , hails from Victoria, British Columbia, Canada. Here is some information about Victoria.  A true one-of-a-kindland, Victoria is a city unlike any other. With boutique hotels fit for a queen, world-class attractions, and fresh farm-to-table dining that's measured on a scale of metres not miles. Nestled between the tranquil waters of the Salish Sea and the mighty rainforests of Vancouver Island. Find more information about Victoria here:  Unlock the Beauty of Victoria, BC | Tourism Victoria For more posts about Larry and his books, click HERE . Want a discount on Dennis' books? Use coupon code FF25 for a 25% discount at the  MSI Press webstore . Sign up

  Excerpt from Travels with Elly (MacDonald) - from chapter 2, ALBERTA  “If we hope to preserve our way of life, the first thing we must do is rediscover our respect for the land, the water, and the entire natural world. And if we do manage to regain that respect, then we must make sure that human beings never lose it again.” (Quote from the late, The Honorable Dr. Lois E. Hole, displayed on a plaque at the Lois Hole Centennial Provincial Park in St. Albert)  Shortly after crossing the border, we entered Crowsnest Pass, site of the devastating Frank Slide. In the early morning of April 29, 1903, a mountainside came thundering down in the darkness, burying most of the town of Frank and killing 90 people, the highest death toll from any slide in Canada. Massive boulders, remnants of the slide, remain piled 30-metres high on both sides of the road. An Interpretation Centre provides personal stories of survivors and dynamic, hands-on educational programs. To forewarn residents

  INTRODUCTION  On a balmy afternoon in July, the weather turned ugly shards of lightning, booming thunder, roiling green and black clouds, and an angry wind that shook our trailer unmercifully. Forecasted tornado warnings in the Edmonton area had me peering through rain streaked windows at a darkening sky, scanning for dreaded vortexes that would prompt a hasty retreat to our campground’s washroom.  A little brown head bunted my leg, chimpanzee-esque eyes expressing concern. “Don’t worry,” I said, “The odds of dying in a tornado are 20 million to one.” It’s the ONE I’m worried about, she replied, continuing her frantic pacing.  An hour later, sanity returned with mottled gray skies and peaceful prairie breezes. Friedrich Nietzsche, the German philosopher, said it best: “That which does not kill us makes us stronger.” That’s good—being stronger may have helped us survive even worse weather yet to come, Canada’s “Storm of the Century.”  In 1960, John Steinbeck traveled across th

This book itself contains excerpts from the best of MSI Press's publications on triumphing over difficulties. Want to brighten your day? Find out how others did! From Good Blood by Irit Schaffer -- As soon as I looked into his blue eyes, every cell in my body bubbled with joy. Yes, this must be love. I am in love for the first time. His are the bluest eyes I have ever seen. They are like the deep blue of the ocean on a clear and sunny day. My mom is sitting to my left, my sister, Edna, to my right, and I am falling in love. Ari Ben Canaan is his name. He is in charge of taking a boatload of people to Palestine. The boat, Exodus, is filled with Jewish Europeans planning to make their home in the soon to be independent State of Israel. Unfortunately, the British authorities have detained the boat in Cyprus. They are not allowing Exodus to complete its voyage to Palestine, and Ari has to take charge. His confidence is portrayed in his thin and muscular 5’9” frame. “We can g

Are you a now-grounded RVer? We have some good reading for you! Fun and informative! Get ready to avoid 101 mishaps when you are released with your RV onto the world's highways. 99. STOP, LOOK, AND ASSESS THE MESS Steve was backing his Class C motorhome into a campsite with his wife in the passenger seat. He heard shouts coming from an adjacent campsite and stopped to see what all the commotion was about. He had backed over a small cedar tree, which was lodged at a rakish angle under the rear quarter section. In his haste to extricate his rig from the tree, Steve pulled forward. RIPPPP! The partially uprooted tree ripped off the lower side and rear aluminum panels. After sheepishly replanting the tree, Steve used a handful of metal screws to temporarily reattach the RV panels. His final fix involved a pricey visit to the body shop. Since the mishap, Steve always ensures that his wife is watching behind the rig to give directions when he backs up. He even purchase

Travels with Elly by Larry MacDonald received a 5-star review by Gisela Dixon at Readers' Favorites. She concludes: I enjoyed reading Travels with Elly and thought it was a witty, thoughtful, and at times humorous travel memoir. Larry has written in detail about the people and places they encountered on their road trip. The book also provides a glimpse into what life could be like living in a trailer, camping and traveling the road in this way. The engaging and fun writing style also incorporates the antics of Elly and pet lovers will surely enjoy it. The photographs complement the narrative and provide a visual representation of the events and places. Overall, this is a good travel memoir of travels across Canada in an RV and travel buffs will definitely enjoy it. Read the full review here: Readers Favorite Review . Larry is also author of RV Oopsies. Travels with Elly can be purchased for 25% discount at the MSI webstore . Use coupon code FF25.

Released yesterday! This nonfiction book views Canada from a personal perspective, similar to John Steinbeck's view of America in his 1960 book  Travels with Charley . The author travels from coast to coast in a trailer with his wife and pets, including their Standard Poodle, Elly, in order to gain a better understanding of his adopted country. Interspersed between descriptions of history, cultures, places, and icons are the author's reflections on various things such as Elly's antics, signage, ferries, political injustice, environmental issues, and animal instincts. To provide a canine's perspective, Elly reflects on things of interest to her, including cats, cows, and other critters...but especially cats! Where was Canada's first settlement? What is its prettiest town? When and where was its most devastating shipwreck? And who was its greatest hero? Find out by reading this account of the author's journey through a unique and wondrous country, brimming with