Bridie and her brother and sister love to sit up late, listening to the adults trade stories. One stormy night the talk is not only about the price of fish, ghosts and pirates, but also about Poor Keye, a neighbor in hospital who had always loved these storied nights. A loud bang and the sound of his familiar shuffling footsteps suggests that perhaps he is home after all, and has come to join the gathering. But when Bridie’s mother goes to welcome him, Poor Keye is nowhere to be found. The next morning a telegram arrives with shocking news.
“A good old-fashioned ghost story sure to deliver spine tingles…Scrumptiously spooky.”
– Kirkus Reviews
“Based on a story that Newfoundland storyteller Brian Walsh told Cotter about something that happened to his own mother in the 1920s, this is a wonderfully spine-tingling book. Dwyer’s illustrations create just the right atmosphere for this haunting tale of the supernatural.”
– The Globe and Mail
“Although brief, and told from a six-year-old’s viewpoint, the story is creepy enough to be best suited for slightly older children and sits somewhere between conventional picture book and middle-grade markets. A quirky production from Newfoundland micropress Running the Goat, Footsteps in Bay de Verde may be slight but it doesn’t patronize its young audience – and will likely send a few shivers down older spines, too.”
– Quill & Quire
“Charis Cotter has carved a rich, specific niche for her writing: the eerie, the uncanny, pitched to a younger audience.”
– The Telegram
“This picture book is the perfect addition to a summer evening spent by a campfire. Well paced and perfectly worded to raise the hairs on the back of your neck. Share with a group of listeners, but be prepared for frightened listeners to scooch in closer, grab tightly to one another’s arms and stare wide eyed and breathless until the last page is turned. Adults and children can share in this exceptionally creepy tale enhanced by the incredible illustrations by Jenny Dwyer.”
– Atlantic Book Reviews
Newfoundland and Labrador Book Awards (NLBA) Bruneau Family Children’s/Young Adult Literature Award | 2022 | Winner
CCBC Best Books for Kids & Teens | 2020 | Commended
Next Generation Indie Book Awards - Children's Educational Picture Book | 2021 | Short-listed
