The winners were announced on Tuesday night for the 2013 Canadian Children’s Literature Awards. Tundra is extremely happy to tell you that we took home the Marilyn Baillie Picture Book Award, an award that honours excellence in the illustrated picture book format, for children aged 3 to 8. Congratulations to Cary Fagan and Dušan Petričić!
Mr. Zinger’s Hat
Written by Cary Fagan
Illustrated by Dušan Petričić
“A charming, marvelous tale surrounding the art of creating and telling stories, Mr. Zinger’s Hat celebrates the budding friendship between an elderly writer and a young boy who discovers a storyteller within … Fagan’s writing is beautifully crafted. The exchanges between his protagonists are so vivid that one feels as if one is eavesdropping in on a real conversation … Petričić’s engaging artwork deftly juxtaposes two distinct styles which portray a real-life setting and an imaginary world … The illustrations vividly depict the storyteller’s wry humour and the boy’s wide-eyed innocence.”
Many thanks to the jury memebers: Lorraine Filyer, former Literature Officer, Ontario Arts Council; Todd Kyle, CEO, Newmarket Public Library and President, Board of Directors, Canadian Children’s Book Centre; and Senta Ross, children’s book reviewer and former elementary teacher and teacher-librarian.
This year, TD Bank Group, sponsor of the TD Canadian Children’s Literature Award, partnered with CBC Books to present the TD Canadian Children’s Literature Fan Choice Award. Young readers were asked to pick their favourite book from the shortlisted TD Award titles in an online poll. Annaka Leib of Fort Qu’Appelle, Saskatchewan, was in attendance to present the TD Canadian Children’s Literature Fan Choice Award to Polly Horvath for her novel, One Year in Coal Harbour. The other winners were:
TD Canadian Children’s Literature Award
One Year in Coal Harbour written by Polly Horvath
Norma Fleck Award for Canadian Children’s Non-Fiction
Kids of Kabul: Living Bravely Through a Never-Ending War written by Deborah Ellis
Geoffrey Bilson Award for Historical Fiction for Young People
The Lynching of Louie Sam written by Elizbeth Stewart
John Spray Mystery Award
The Lynching of Louie Sam written by Elizbeth Stewart
Monica Hughes Award for Science Fiction and Fantasy
Seraphina written by Rachel Hartman
Congratulations to all the authors and we have photos from the ceremony on Instagram!