Sweet Ride by Ann Barry is a creative historical non-fiction set in 1943, 4 years into World War II. It is about a great bicycle adventure of a lifetime that 4 ladies took from Blockhouse, Nova Scotia to Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island, a distance of more than 400 miles/ 644 Km. Of the 4 ladies, 2 were sisters, Ruth and Ruby — the latter was also the mother of the author, their second cousin Dorothy (Dot), and their bestie Nora. The young ladies ranged in age from 22 to 32. Their goal was to see Don Messer and his famous band perform live in Charlottetown. Gas was strictly rationed during the war, so they decided to bike there. After much planning and map studying their adventure began on Monday, July 26th, 1943, returning home August 4th by way of Kentville to visit a friend who was being treated for Tuberculosis. Dot and Ruby had kept up a journal by turns of their “Sweet Ride”. The journal and its accompanied pictures inspired the author to bring to life their story.




On the first day of their journey, I was amazed that they rode from Blockhouse all the way to Bedford, 96 Km (60 miles). We have to remember that the bikes at the time were not the speed of bikes we have today, and one of the bikes used was even an antique by 1943 standards. It had wooden rims, and the girls fondly called the bike “Woody”.
I loved the additions made to the story of the cabins they stayed in, what the Bedford Basin would have looked like when they made their journey, and what was happening in the city then. The author did her research and even included pictures from the archives of a convoy in the Bedford Basin and the anti-submarine net that sat across the mouth of the Halifax Harbour at the time, giving the reader more of a context of what was happening during the time the story takes place.
My mouth hung open with the descriptions of the dirt road they traveled on from the Wood Island Ferry to Charlottetown, which would have been extremely difficult to bike on. These ladies’ determination and strength of will were nothing short of amazing. Ann Barry does a superb job of detailing each of the women, in what was and would be, even in this day and age, an adventure of a lifetime. This wonderfully written record of the ladies’ grand adventure will also be an heirloom that will be cherished and passed down to their descendants so that the information is never lost and can be enjoyed!
On July 28th, 2018 a Sweet Ride ’43’ 75th Anniversary Group Bike Ride was held celebrating these 4 amazing women with suggested donations of $20— with proceeds going to the Second Story Women’s Centre and Jumpstart. There are also plans to turn Sweet Ride into a musical!
An avid reader and bibliophile, Ann Barry was a founder of The Ladies Literary and Liberation Society, a community reading club. A student of life writing, she is expanding her interests in the craft of writing with this work of creative non-fiction. She resides in her little house overlooking the water on the south shore of Nova Scotia, not far from where this story took place, Sweet Ride is her first book.
Publisher : WindyWood Publishing (January 1, 2018)
Paperback 9″ x 5″ | 191 pages
ISBN: 978-0987782472
Sue Slade has a Bachelor of Child Study from Mount St. Vincent University in Halifax. After working with children and adults with special needs, she now has her midlife dream job of working with books. Sue manages an independent, locally owned bookstore, Dartmouth Book Exchange. Through her charismatic sharing centred around books and community, Sue has created an engaging cornerstone for authors, customers, and book lovers of all ages. Sue is an avid reader and her reviews cross over many genres.