Years ago, when I first began writing what would later become The Cammie Series, I knew that Cammie was a survivor of the Ideal Maternity Home, a place that really existed in Nova Scotia during that time. Of course, this information didn’t actually come out until Cammie finally learned a bit about her past in the sequel, Cammie Takes Flight.
Babies born at the home became known as survivors because there so many babies (numbering in the hundreds) that were born there ended up buried in butterboxes. The true story of the Ideal Maternity Home is a tragic one and there have been non-fiction books written about it. If you want to learn more, I’d suggest you check out Bette Cahill’s book, Butterbox Babies. There is a lot of important information in her book.
My latest book in The Cammie Series, The Family Way, is set at The Ideal Maternity Home where Tulia’s mother works and of course the place where Cammie was born.
Years ago, the survivors of the home had a monument placed in the area where the home once stood. It burned many years later. A picture of the The Ideal Maternity is on the cover of my book. The home was expanded over time to become what you see on the cover of my book.
On the weekend we drove out to the monument in East Chester again. I had been there before when I was writing the book to get a sense of the location and the area in general. This time, I wanted to take Cammie back to the place where it started.
My writing takes me on many adventures into the lives of the characters I create. My interest in local history and local settings is always present in the stories I write. I happen to think that our own backyard is just as interesting as stories set in exotic locations.
As with writing any series, the story can either continue or else come to a conclusion. I haven’t yet decided if book 3 will bring Cammie’s story to a conclusion or not as I do see the potential to continue. I suppose much of it will depend upon Cammie and if/when she’s ready to let the cat out of the bag. I’ll be sure to share it with you when I know, but for now I’m as much in the dark as what you are.
well-kept secret. While people nearby knew of The Ideal Maternity Home, many of them had no idea of the atrocities that were taking place there.
I was planning to write a quiet post about how quickly summer is passing by but heck, I’m just going to throw all that out and make this super exciting announcement.
taught himself to become an auto mechanic and had a successful decades long career as “one of the boys.”
about 10 cm of snow last night. Some of it melted during the afternoon, and the eaves are still dripping. That said, we’ve been told to expect another 15 cm overnight. I’m not sure what will happen to the tulips in our garden that suddenly burst through the ground late last week, but I’m hoping they’ re hardy enough to survive this next blast of winter weather this spring. But this is not unusual for spring, nor is our complaints that winter just doesn’t want to give up. Still, with each warm day we’re granted, hope stirs inside us. That’s the one thing about hope. It seems no matter how many times we’re disappointed with the outcome of something, we remain hopeful that next time the results we’re looking for will finally show up.
At last, after weeks of promising, I’m ready to share the cover for Cammie Takes Flight with the rest of the world. Some of you have already seen a version of the cover because, let’s face it, you’re privileged and you know it! The release date is April 30th and, for Canadians, the book is available for pre-order on
And because all books have a front and a back cover, I’ll share the back cover as well. Love the quote they used on the back. It was a bit of a surprise to me, but a pleasant one , especially when I realized I was acquainted with the author of this review written for The Children’s Writers’ Guild. Thanks 
Laura Best 