What happens when all your apocalyptic nightmares seem to be coming true? In this lyrically poignant piece, Margaret Atwood reflects on growing up in the age of the scarlet fever, diphtheria, polio and the whooping cough that swept Canada in the 1940s. Yellow signs with the words 'QUARANTINED' became a signature of the era and marked doors in neighbourhoods across the country. Drawing from her own experiences and the experiences of her parents who lived through the Spanish flu, Atwood sings words of encouragement, "Take heart! Humanity's been through it before. There will be an Other Side." And while nothing is scarier than an enemy you can't see, there is always hope and there is always another side. In a way that only she can, Atwood takes a look into the past and the present to give us words for the future. Copyright belongs to O.W. Toad and this piece first ran in The Globe and Mail.

Puck You is now available in paperback and e-book! Grace wants to prove herself by making the men's hockey team at her new school. Will a rivalry with the captain - or an attraction between them - get in the way? ***** When Grace Gillman moves to California, she's determined to play hockey -- even if that means making a place for herself on her new school's only team. But Sebastian Evans doesn't want a girl on the men's team, even if she's a great player. He's convinced she'll distract the other boys and cost them their shot at the championship - and with it, his only chance at a scholarship to his dream college. But despite his icy attitude towards her, he can't help but feel a connection building between them - which quickly gets complicated when he learns she has eyes for someone else. Will they remain rivals on the rink, or will things heat up between them? [[word count: 100,000-150,000 words]]