Pandas on the Eastside

Ten-year-old Journey lives with her mom, a recovering alcoholic, in the Downtown Eastside in the 1970s, but she doesn’t dwell on the hardships; rather, she accepts and develops friendships with the diverse people in her community. She also faces two key events: the arrival of her father who she has never met and two pandas on their way to the US that are caught in a political dispute. Journey builds a relationship with her father and, with the help of her neighbours, ensures the pandas are safe and healthy. This engaging novel, suitable for novel study, read-aloud, independent reading, or literature circles, examines poverty, addiction, disability, mental illness, grief, abandonment, homelessness, and uncertainty.