Seven best new books to read in February

In the ring

Fourteen-year-old Bo is a boat person whose family fled Vietnam for Canada. He spends his after-school hours battling bullies and caring for his sister, Orange, who was born with severe deformities. One day he meets Gerry, an agent in the bear-wrestling business who charms him into the profession and gives him his own cub to train. As Bo and Orange’s bond with the little bear grows, so does his mother’s romance with Gerry’s boss — whose schemes to put Orange in his freak show threaten to tear the family apart. A touching story about love, loss and the bonds of all sorts of friendships. – Lora Grady

All the Broken Things, Kathryn Kuitenbrouwer, $24, Indigo and Amazon.

Freedom fighters

On Sarah Grimké’s 11th birthday in 1803, her mother gives her what was then a suitable present for a girl of Sarah’s standing: a lady’s maid. Despite Sarah’s best efforts to release the young slave, named Handful, her family — and society — forbid it. Instead, the pair develop a bond that transcends race and class and is sustained long into their adult lives.

In this adaptation of the true story of abolitionist Sarah Grimké, the juxtaposition of Sarah’s virtual prison — she’s confined by the trappings of society and banned from reading and studying — with Handful’s actual captivity is riveting. Both women bravely struggle to liberate themselves despite the dangers. Sarah eventually leaves her family, particularly her stifling mother, to become a Quaker. She shares her anti-slavery and feminist views, while Handful quietly readies herself to run away — or die trying.

Sue Monk Kidd, author of the bestselling novel The Secret Life of Bees, paints a vivid picture of the Deep South during the time of slavery, but more remarkable is the relationship she creates between two very different protagonists with one common goal: freedom. – Katie Dupuis

The Invention of Wings, Sue Monk Kidd, $30, Indigo and Amazon.

Kidnapped

Lauren O’Neil is only 11 years old when she goes missing. Her family searches tirelessly for six years until — miraculously — she’s found. And Then She Was Gone tells the haunting story of Lauren’s time in captivity and the struggles the O’Neil family faces when they’re finally reunited with their daughter. A story of optimism and encouragement, despite the heart-wrenching subject matter. – Anna Redman

And Then She Was Gone, Rosalind Noonan, $17, Indigo and Amazon.

Identity crisis

Peter Huang is the son his traditional Chinese father always yearned for. But there’s a glitch. Peter idolizes his three sisters, spending all his time with them, even trying on their clothes, much to his father’s disapproval. The thing is that Peter knows he is a girl. In her debut novel, Kim Fu skilfully steers her complex protagonist through relationships with various family members, encounters with schoolyard                                                               bullies and experiences with violent lovers in this significant coming of age story. – Dominique Lamberton

For Today I Am a Boy, Kim Fu, $24, Indigo and Amazon.

A leap into the unknown

Kathryn Craft’s debut novel, The Art of Falling, chronicles a dancer’s physical and emotional fall from grace. Upon waking up in hospital, Penelope Sparrow struggles to come to terms with what really happened to her and embrace the limitations of her body and what she will do with her future. – Allison Hall

The Art of Falling, Kathryn Craft, $18, Indigo and Amazon.

Testing love's limits

Rich in emotion, this war novel is a tale of enduring love. Journalist John Easley leaves his beloved wife, Helen, to pursue a story about the Japanese occupation of Alaska’s remote Aleutian Islands during the Second World War. John talks his way onto a bombing crew’s plane, but when it’s shot down, he parachutes helplessly onto one of the bleak, near-frozen isles. So begins a journey for survival unlike any he’s ever documented. Meanwhile, desperate for information, Helen hatches a plan to find him, joining a dance troupe touring Alaskan army outposts. – Alanna Glassman

The Wind is Not a River, Brian Payton, $30, Indigo and Amazon.

Battle for love