News

Warm Winter Wishes

Is it time for a winter party at your house? Here on the west coast, the snow has turned to rain and our umbrellas are out in full force. A perfect time to gather indoors with friends and family!

If you have children in your midst, they might enjoy the story of Bear’s Winter Party, about a lonely bear who invites the other animals to a winter party at his den, not knowing whether anyone will show up. The creatures of the forest have always been afraid of Bear. But Bear is a wonderful host and would love to make friends.

This gentle story will warm your heart on a cold (or rainy!) winter day. It includes a recipe for Bear’s own Honey Ginger Cookies, and is just right for a winter gathering at your place!

Wishing you a very Happy New Year and all the best for 2023! Cheers!

West Coast Research Trip

Karen Reczuch and I are just back from a trip to the west coast of Vancouver Island, doing research on our upcoming book on the rainforests of the area.

We spent our days hiking through multiple old-growth forests and marvelling at their beauty. Karen took many photographs that will provide the basis for her art in the book, which I know will be stunning!

We stayed in our usual spot on MacKenzie Beach and managed to get in some lovely ocean walks as well. It was an active trip! The photo shown here is at dusk on the cove where our cabin was located. Such a gorgeous setting! We can hardly wait to go back!

Book Warehouse Visit

Thank you to Book Warehouse Main Street for inviting my newest writing pal, Scot Richie, and I to visit their store on Saturday. It was a fun afternoon talking about books and signing copies of our most recent titles.

It is a wonderful store with oodles of great books – I wanted to read them all!

Scot’s book Tug is the story of a tug boat pulling a log boom, as seen through the eyes of a young boy, and is accompanied by charming, colourful art. Being multi-talented, Scot writes and illustrates his own books. You can pick up a copy of Tug at Book Warehouse or at Kidsbooks, my favourite children’s bookstore.

And if you are so inclined, you’ll find my latest books, West Coast Wild at Low Tide and West Coast Wild ABC there, too. Enjoy!

Coastal Books for Kids

I was delighted when my two most recent books West Coast Wild at Low Tide and West Coast Wild ABC were featured in Hakai magazine’s collection of new coastal books for kids. Such lovely reviews! And a real honour to be in the company of so many other wonderful titles.

If you’d like to read about these books, please check out the Hakai article: “Turning the Tide: 13 New Books to Get Kids Reading and Exploring Nature.” 

The gorgeous art shown here illustrates the Hakai article and was created by Roy Henry Vickers. It is the cover image for his new book Ben and the Sea Lion.

Munro’s Books

I’m just back from a visit to lovely Victoria, BC. The sun was shining and the city was as beautiful as always.

Every time I am there, I make sure to stop in at Munro’s Books – a gorgeous store with a wonderful collection of books to peruse and purchase.

A highlight of the trip was the warm welcome by Munro’s staff and being invited to sign copies of my books.

And I made sure to come home with a couple of new novels and a selection of delightful greeting cards tucked under my arm.

Thank you, Munro’s. I’ll be back!

 

 

CBC Radio Interview

A huge thank you to CBC Radio’s Sheryl MacKay for interviewing Karen Reczuch and I on North by Northwest.

We were so happy to be invited to talk about our collaboration as author and illustrator on our West Coast Wild series. If you’d like to listen to us, our interview, begins at the 22:48 mark.

Thank you also to  49th Shelf, who posted our photo essay The Joys of a Wild Collaboration that tells the story of Karen’s and my research trips to the west coast of Vancouver Island.

New Book

Today is a happy day! My new book West Coast Wild at Low Tide has arrived in the world!

I feel lucky to share in the creative process with my collaborative partner, Karen Reczuch, who has painted such beautiful pictures. Together, the two of us have taken multiple trips to the west coast of Vancouver Island to do research and breathe in the wonderful sea air. This wild coastline may be the most spectacular place in the world!

We saw many fascinating creatures  while poking around in tidepools. It was fun to choose the marine animals that kids would find most interesting. (The Giant Pacific octopus is one of them!)

If you’d like to read more about our west coast adventures, please see “The Joys of a Wild Collaboration” that was posted on the 49th Shelf blog. I hope you enjoy it!

And if you’d like to purchase our new book, check your favourite local bookstore or online retailer. Or find it at Groundwood Books, our publisher’s website.

Thank you for your interest!

New Year, New Books


As we head into 2022, our pandemic challenges remain. But we bravely carry on! I wish you health and happiness for the New Year.

Looking ahead, I am pleased to say that I will have two new books released in the spring: West Coast Wild at Low Tide and West Coast Wild ABC. Both were written out of my great love for the Pacific west coast and my wish to share this place with children across the country. It’s been a special experience working on these projects – since my collaborative partner, Karen Reczuch, is as fond and fascinated by the wild coast as I am. Together we have had a marvellous time taking research trips to the coast and creating our books about this spectacular place.

Please enjoy this sample of pages from West Coast Wild at Low Tide (available in March, 2022).

Happy New Year!

Nature ABC for Toddlers

Bears amble, cougars prowl and eagles nest in this beautiful nature alphabet book celebrating the Pacific west coast!

It’s been such fun to create a board book for the youngest readers! Here is the first page from West Coast Wild ABC.

Babies and toddlers can delight in the gorgeous watercolour illustrations and learn about the fascinating creatures that inhabit this region. As they turn the pages, they will see an ancient rainforest, a rugged beach and the majestic Pacific Ocean. In addition, the large upper and lowercase letters accompanying the art may be used to encourage alphabet recognition.

This little book will be available on May 1, or it can be pre-ordered at your local bookstore or online now!