Keeper of the Light

The life of a lighthouse keeper on the east coast was not an easy one. Isolated on stormy shores, their job was to keep those at sea safe, at any cost. After her father dies in a seafaring accident, eleven-year-old Sara goes to work for the Mosher family helping clean, maintain and keep the light. When the Mosher family must leave for the mainland in a medical emergency, Sara is left alone to keep the light as a terrible gale approaches.
Dramatic and beautiful illustrations help tell the tale of a young girl alone and facing an emergency. When Sara sees a boat crashed on the rocks, young readers will feel as though they are standing on the wind-whipped shores making a life or death decision with her.

This story is based on the real experiences of young girls and boys who worked at lighthouses in the early 1900s. Janet Barkhouse has taken their experiences and created a dramatic but realistic story that shows the value of the work young people had to do and the sacrifices they had to make.

JANET BARKHOUSE is Joyce's daughter and has retired from several fascinating worlds -- theatre, academe, education -- and is now writing herself. She lives in Clearland, Nova Scotia.

THÉRÈSE CILIA is a freelance painter and illustrator whose whimsical and detailed work often finds a home in children's books, prints, stationary and commissions. She lives in Belleville, Ontario.