"GABBRA is a beautiful story – more than a treat. I absolutely loved it!"
Milly Bird
"This book was great – thrilling to the last. Young adults will read GABBRA’S SONG and enjoy it tremendously. My compliments to Jane Volden – she really made it work!"
Kirsten Lisa Schmid
Grade 8,
"Teenagers from completely diverse backgrounds meet, with narrowing eyes, to look at each other’s lifestyles; their emotions; only to learn they are not so different after all. GABBRA’S SONG is a poignant story of intrigue that ends in tender young love under an African sun; a story that is important to young people growing up in a new world where, hopefully, the poison of old racial issues will be swept away in a new understanding and respect of whom we really are."
Rima Publications, BC
Janey Volden
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© 2007-2010 Janey Volden.com
The Novel:
GABBRA'S SONG centres
on Riley Forbes, a dynamic Canadian teenager and budding
photojournalist. She is virtually abandoned by her
father (an international aid worker) for a two-week
spell in northern Kenya, living as a Borana tribeswoman,
facing the challenges of strange food, odd clothes,
and nomadic tribal life. Gabbra and Nagya, the daughter
and son of the Borana chief, return with Riley to Vancouver,
to complete their education and experience their own
culture shock. Riley is swept into a bittersweet relationship
with Nagya, the strong, roguish warrior, and Gabbra
falls in love with a boy forbidden to her if she were
at home. Most importantly, Riley has a vision: an urgent
fundraising project in her hometown to raise money
for irrigation equipment for her friend’s
village in northern Kenya.
"A fast-paced and moving story filled with discovery, truth, and mystery. Riley sees and experiences change in a country entirely new and strange to her. Suspenseful and powerful, GABBRA’S SONG is a fascinating book!"
Sierra Komar
Grade 7, KVR Middle School
Penticton, BC
GABBRA’S SONG is unique in that it is a story of two vastly different cultures, where both teenage girls visit each other’s homes for an extended period of time. The author passionately believes that she’s provided readers a sensitive and dynamic story which brings the issues of friendship, cultural differences and drought crisis to light for the next generation.
Volden Dedicates First
Novel to World's Water-Poor People
Northern Kenya, currently reeling from a succession
of failed rains, is experiencing the worst drought
in 20 years. Poor rainfall in October, 2006 provided
little hope of improvement for nomadic pastoralists who
are still dependent on underground wells. Determined to
make a difference, Volden is donating a
percentage of her book sales* to Ryan's Well Foundation, Ontario
(www.ryanswell.ca Reg.
88858-7110-RR001). This Canadian organization has made
a difference in the lives of over 300,000 people
in developing countries by restoring and building
over 225 wells, and providing entire communities
with clean water and health-related services.
* First cheque sent to Ryan’s Well Foundation
in April, 2007