News

Book News!

I’ve had a bit of good news in the book department recently and I hope you don’t mind if I share it here.

I’m delighted to announce that Polar Animals has made the leap across the ocean and will be released by the publisher Sandviks (based in Norway), in three Scandinavian languages: Norwegian, Finnish and Swedish. I just love the thought of children in those countries turning the pages of my book. I hope they like it! 🙂

In Canada, it’s awards season and I am happy to report that Rescuing the Children: The Story of the Kindertransport has been named as a finalist for several awards. They include: the Norma Fleck Award for Canadian Children’s Nonfiction, the Information Book Award (Children’s Literature Roundtable of Canada), the Hackmatack Award (Atlantic provinces children’s choice award), and the Red Cedar Award (BC children’s choice award). I’m blushing now…

An enormous thank you to the hard-working juries who read and select the books on these lists. And congratulations to all the other nominees. It’s good to be in your company!

Wherever you are, and whatever you are doing, I hope your fall is going well.

 

Back to School

 

Today, I’m thinking about the students and teachers who are headed back to school after their summer break. Best of luck to all of you!

Special good wishes to those going to school for the first time, including the wonderful twins in my family. 🙂

May your school year be full of friends, fun, and lots of great books to read!

Stamps for Stella

I stopped by the post office to mail a package this week and was excited to see brand new stamps featuring the art of my colleague, Marie-Louise Gay. What an honour for her! Imagine having your work on a Canadian stamp!

The illustration is from Marie-Louise’s award-winning children’s book series that feature charming stories of a sister and brother, named Stella and Sam.

If you’d like to read more about Marie-Louise and her work, check this article from the National Post or her website.

Congratulations, Marie-Louise!

E-books!

 

I’m pleased to announce that three books in my Who Lives Here? series were released as e-books today. It’s great to see them get a second life! If you are interested in the e-book version, they are available at iBookstore, Kobo, B&N Nook and Amazon. And if you’d like to read more about the series, please go here.

Summer Approaches

I packed away my presentation materials a few days ago, after finishing my last talk of the school year.

My final audience may have been the most challenging to date — 3 and 4 year olds at a preschool that the young children in my family attend. But it might have also been the most fun! 🙂

And with presentations over until September, I will turn my mind to various book projects: the revision of one manuscript and the beginning of another. Summer is a good time for writing.

As the year winds down, I’m remembering all the wonderful students, teachers and librarians I met this year. Thank you to everyone who invited me to visit their school.

Have a safe and happy summer!

The Badlands

I’ve just returned from the Badlands of Alberta — a fascinating place where the dinosaurs roamed!

The geography is so interesting, with sedimentary layers of the past millions of years exposed on the hillsides. You could almost feel the dinosaurs lurking there.

We visited the Royal Tyrell Museum to see the huge dinosaur skeletons and models on display. It was amazing!

I feel a book brewing…

Who Lives Here? in China!

Look what came in the mail!
It’s my new book from China, called Who Lives Here? (in English) and is a compilation of the six little books from the earlier series of the same name.

I wish I could read Chinese, but in spite of my shortcomings, I can tell that the publisher, Shanghai Xiron Media Company, has done a lovely job. I’m thrilled that kids in China will be reading my book!

To see the original books in the Who Lives Here? series, please go here.

Shelley Hrdlitschka, Book Launch

I’m back from my tour of schools in the North Okanagan/Shuswap and very grateful to everyone for making me feel so welcome. Thank you, teachers, librarians and students. It was lovely to meet you all!

And now that I’m home, I’m getting back into the swing of literary things right here in Vancouver. Today, I’m looking forward to attending the book launch of my pal, Shelley Hrdlitschka, who is introducing her new teen novel, Allegra, to the world.

You can read all about her novel here. And, if you’re in the neighbourhood, come and join us at the launch.

Congratulations, Shelley!

Thank you, SD 83!

Wow! What an amazing trip it’s been. Thank you so much to all the teachers, librarians, students and staff of the schools I’ve visited this week: Parkview, Hillcrest, Salmon Arm Middle School, Highland Park, and Silver Creek. You were all wonderful!

Today, I visit Bastion and Sorrento Schools. I can hardly wait to meet you.

A HUGE bouquet of thanks to everyone who has made me feel so welcome! I’m not going to want to go home. 🙂

Hello School District 83!

I am busy organizing my presentation materials and beginning to pack for my trip to Salmon Arm, Armstrong, Sorrento and Sicamous next week. I will be visiting schools there and look forward to meeting all the students and staff.

It is a double pleasure for me to travel to the area because this is the school district where I was a teacher some years (decades!) ago. I have many happy memories of teaching at Armstrong Elementary School. In fact, it was teaching those classes of primary children that led to my becoming a writer — something I’ve never forgotten.

A big thank you to my friend and colleague, Chris McMahen, who invited me to the schools and organized my trip. Chris is a teacher-librarian in the district and he is also a popular and award-winning author. His most recent (and wonderfully written) book, Box of Shocks, just won the Manitoba Young Readers Choice Award. Hooray for Chris!

And now, it’s back to packing… See you soon, District 83.