Flaked Out: The Story of Cod and Newfoundland

By C.H. Colman

KIRKUS REVIEW: This second children's book by Colman (The Bald Eagle's View of American History, 2006) tells the story of the overfishing of cod off Newfoundland's coast. Colman's tale begins with the northern land's first settlers, the Beothucks, who arrived nearly 2,000 years ago to a bounty of giant fish swimming off the coast. Colman traces the groups of European explorers and fishermen who followed and, in an air of lawlessness and with a lust for cod, developed various advanced fishing techniques. This led to Queen Elizabeth's claiming of Newfoundland and encouraging of year-round settlement of the territory. As the animals were fished at younger and younger ages, growing smaller and smaller, laws requiring specific kind of nets were put into effect. Around the turn of the 20th century, the first hatcheries appeared to aid in the repopulation of the diminishing species. Colorful stamps-the author has collected stamps since age 5-head each section of the book, depicting scenes, symbols and characters from Newfoundland's history. The rapid and devastating effects of human settlement and consumption take a turn for the better near the end, as we learn that in more recent decades, scientists and the government have taken the helm in the cause of cod. Though the fish are nowhere near the size they were when the Beothucks first feasted on them, their population has been increasing. For readers who want to know more, Colman provides an extensive review of research at the end of the book, where, through a brief, lively narrative, he provides the names of books that go deeper into aspects of cod history that this book sketches out. With its brief, straightforward narrative, Colman's informative book seems to be intended for children, though readers of any level are granted a view of a phenomenon many have likely overlooked. June, 2011THE SOUTHERN GAZETTE: Harold N. Walters(Excerpt)Philately. Philatelist.Now there're a couple of words you don't get to use twice a week. Not unless you're a stamp collector.C. H. Colman, author of 'Flaked Out' [Fancourt Publications] is a philatelist and has been since the age of five when he first dabbled in the practice of philately. [Looka me, I scribbled both words twice! I'm the b'y!]In 'Flaked Out', Colman has combined his passion for philately with his desire to write a children's book about the history of Newfoundland showing "what happens when society fails to control its technology, and how society makes amends."It examines the history of the cod fishery from the time Beothucks scooped cod from the sea until today when efforts are being made to salvage what remains of North Atlantic cod stocks.Sixteen sections of the book open with a picture of a stamp. The first one is a Newfoundland two-cent stamp depicting a bewhiskered cod. In the accompanying text, Colman imagines a giant cod swimming in Newfoundland waters thousands of years ago.Just look: "When the giant reached the bottom, it fed, and the whisker of skin that hung from its chin traced a line in the sand."Chin whisker tracing a line in the sand? That's some size of a codfish, eh b'ys?I've said before I'm like a youngster when I'm reading children's books, so I get a kick out of fancying that brute of a fish dragging his whisker along the bottom...'Flaked Out' is interesting, not only for the more than a dozen stamps but also for tidbits of codfish knowledge.Tidbit: The pearly stones inside a fish's ears are called 'otoliths'.I didn't know that...October 4, 2011FOR THE FULL REVIEW VISIT: southerngazette.ca

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1453856625
• ISBN13: 9781453856628
• Release Date: July 2011
• Publisher: CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform
• Length: 33 Pages
• Weight: 0.26 lbs.
• Dimensions: 10.0" x 0.1" x 7.0"