What you are about to read in the pages of this book will surprise you, no doubt delight you, and most certainly enlighten you. This astonishing narrative reveals that before the great glaciers began to melt thousands of years ago and the waters swelled, the North Atlantic Ocean was populated by many small islands. On these islands lived several species of creatures called The Island Hoppers, each with its own unique, and often bizarre, way of life. As their islands began to slip beneath the rising seas they travelled for months, perhaps years, until finally they found a new home. It was a beautiful island, large enough for all of them, with vast resources to meet their needs. That island was what we now know as Cape Breton. This book is the world’s first glimpse into the lives of the Island Hoppers. It will introduce you to the fierce Hhorts, with their thick garnet-hued leathery skin; and the peaceful Brens, who wrapped themselves in eelgrass and slept in stone vaults for fifteen-year hibernation cycles. The secret is out, and the Brens, Hhorts, Velyns, Gnags, Tomboms, Yrtles and Selch are now yours to discover.

Douglas Arthur Brown lived in Toronto and Copenhagen for twenty years. He is the author of the novel A Deadly Harvest and two children’s books, The Magic Compass and Archibald’s Boo-Boo. His short fiction and translations have been published in literary journals, magazines, newspapers and anthologies in Canada and Denmark. He was a past finalist in the Tilden Canadian Literary Awards in conjunction with Saturday Night magazine and CBC Radio. The former publisher and managing editor of Pottersfield Portfolio magazine, Douglas resides on Cape Breton Island where he was born.

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