Coming in at the perfect time for your summer reading list, The Stones of Burren Bay by Emily De Angelis, published by Latitude 46, is a moving, heartfelt, and fast-paced YA novel set on Manitoulin Island that combines magical realism, Irish Celtic spiritualism, and the core themes of YA fiction to which readers are drawn: the need to belong, self-discovery, and overcoming obstacles.

The story begins with a tragic accident that kills Norie’s father and leaves her mother injured and emotionally fragile, after which Norie vows never to draw again. With the help of a mother/daughter duo in Burren Bay and the spiritual world that’s more easily accessed in such a hallowed place, Norie and her mother rebuild their relationship and Norie learns to deal with her grief and guilt through the power of art.

The fictional place of Burren Bay feels like one of the most powerful characters in this beautiful book, so in this Power Q & A, we had to ask Emily about how and why she chose to set her story here.

Welcome, Emily!

Bring home ***The Stones of Burren Bay*** by Emily De Angelis.

Q: Place itself is a character in your novel—a character that changes and develops like any compelling character. Would you tell us about how Burren Bay came to you, and why it was the place this story needed to be told?

A: The Stones of Burren Bay is set on beautiful Manitoulin Island, the world’s largest freshwater island situated on the Canadian side of Lake Huron, west of Georgian Bay along the North Channel. Manitoulin Island, often referred to as Spirit Island, has been home to the Anishinaabe people for centuries, long before white settlers arrived. When you’re there, it’s clear that it’s a place steeped in spirit and sacredness. This divine atmosphere makes you take a deep breath and relax into the otherworldliness of the hills, forests and lakes. The deep, restorative mood was definitely the impetus for my story being told from this place. This is especially true in a world full of social and political dysfunction, global conflict and fear. There is much healing for the protagonist, 15-year-old Norie, to experience. Furthermore, as a magical realism novel, the very nature of the setting lent itself to the thread of Irish Celtic spiritualism woven through the novel. Norie’s spirit guide Oonagh, the ghost of a young immigrant girl from Ireland, moves effortlessly between the contemporary and the past because the veil between the past and present is thin in this hallowed place.

I have been visiting the Island, as it is known to locals, since I was a child and have had the opportunity to explore its many nooks and crannies. Originally The Stones of Burren Bay was set in a real location, but over time I realized that a real place in such a small community had its pitfalls. I needed characters to be in locations that were impossible to get to easily and in a timely manner, especially since my protagonist is a young teenager. Real places have real people too, and I feared that readers would try to find themselves or others in the story, even when assured that none of the characters were actual living people. Finally, any flexibility with known history is out of the question when the setting is a real place. A forest fire that took place in 1910 in a real location cannot magically take place in 1892. This is especially true when considering Indigenous history at the beginning of settler occupation on the Island. I wanted to tell a story that reflected rather than retold the historic account. I wanted to be respectful, appropriate and accurate while having the flexibility to tell a fictionalized tale. So the fictional Burren Bay and its bordering First Nation, Rocky Plain, emerged.

As a continuation of the Niagara Escarpment, parts of the Island share similar and somewhat rare exposed limestone surfaces called alvar pavements, characterized by grooves, grikes, and glints cut into the limestone rock by glacial movement and erosion. The Burren, an ecologically sensitive area in County Clare, Ireland, also has these limestone karst formations. Through early drafts and research, I knew rock and stones would figure into the story and the similarities between Manitoulin Island and The Burren solidified my plans. The stone in both places holds memory—geological memory, historical memory, and the memory of the characters. The stone allows for an attachment or a sense of belonging to place and time. The fact that early explorers and surveyors liked to name new places with names from their home countries gave me a link between the past and the present, with Burren Bay on Manitoulin Island as the contemporary fictional setting and The Burren in Ireland as the historic setting.

Like any well-developed character, the landscape in The Stones of Burren Bay seems to change and develop while holding on to its fundamental identity. The use of two timelines and settings gives the impression that the landscape itself has responded to the changes in both the historic record and the human world. Norie and Oonagh are both products of their time and place, but time and place are not static. Burren Bay and the Rocky Plain First Nation feel real and alive because they exist in the spiritual landscape that is Manitoulin Island.

More about Emily De Angelis:

Emily De Angelis comes from a long line of visual artists, musicians and storytellers.

She wrote her first novel when she was 11-years-old on an old manual typewriter with a well-worn ribbon and keys that had to be hammered to get letters and words onto the page.

This first novel was called The Mystery of the Golden Ankh and was not unlike the many Nancy Drew novels she read.

Prior to a long career as a teacher in Sudbury, Ontario, where she was born and raised, Emily was a Children/YA Librarian with both the City of York and the City of Toronto.

She has spent many years developing her writing through independent study, workshops, conferences and courses.

An active member of the literary community, Emily has had western-style poems as well as short stories published in various anthologies. She has also won or placed in the top three of four short story contests.

Emily wrote and performed original tales as storyteller Madame Garbanzo in daycares, schools and library.

She served as the President of the Sudbury Writers’ Guild 1998–2000, and recently served as Treasurer as well as Facilitator of the Guild’s Children/Young Adult Inner Circle.

Emily has recently completed a magical realism YA manuscript entitled The Stones of Burren Bay, which has been accepted for publication by Latitude 46 Publishing. The story follows the protagonist Nori on her journey through grief and healing. This novel will be coming out some time in 2024.

Her current YA project, entitled For the Sake of Mercy, is also a magical realism story exploring forgiveness in the face of unspeakable tragedy.

Emily De Angelis is wintering in Woodstock, Ontario, while spending summers on her property on Manitoulin Island.