Launch of: Whimsy’s Heavy Things

What a lovely launch for Whimsy’s Heavy Things! The event was held on Wednesday, October 3 at Modern Baby with Mabel’s Fables on hand to sell books. A fantastic turnout of friends, families, and fans came to congratulate Julie Kraulis on her first picture book publication. Here are some photos from the reception:

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Modern Baby is all spruced up and ready to welcome guests!

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Who’s already exhausted from all the fun? Snack break!

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Julie Kraulis’s original art on display.

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Each piece is a spread from Whimsy’s Heavy Things.

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Making the way to the back, everyone is in line to have their book(s) signed.

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No snack break for Julie Kraulis, the line to meet her doesn’t end!

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Gorgeous prints of the art from the book are available for sale.

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Editor Samantha Swenson saying a few words about working with Julie Kraulis on Whimsy’s Heavy Things.

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All smiles for Julie Kraulis! Congratulations on creating such a beautiful first book!

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By audience request, Julie Kraulis gave an impromptu reading of Whimsy’s Heavy Things.

Thank you to those who came out on the splendid Wednesday evening and many thanks to the team at Modern Baby and Mabel’s Fables.

Finalists for the 2013 Governor General’s Literary Awards

GG2012Each year, the Governor General’s Literary Awards (the GGs) honours the best in Canadian literature. Tundra Books would like to showcase our two finalists!

For Children’s Text, congratulations to Shane Peacock!

Becoming HolmesBecoming Holmes: The Boy Sherlock Holmes, His Final Case
Written by Shane Peacock
Hardcover | 264 Pages
ISBN: 978-1-77049-232-5
eBook: 978-1-77049-291-2
“This final book in Shane Peacock’s award-winning Boy Sherlock Holmes series combines brilliant storytelling with fascinating historical detail, including famous people, popular myths and street-level views of London. A surprising and shocking conclusion to a mystery worthy of one of the greatest sleuths in English literature.”

Congratulations to the other finalists in the text category: Beverley Brenna for The White Bicycle, Jean E. Pendziwol for Once Upon a Northern Night, Valerie Sherrard for Counting Back From Nine, and Teresa Toten for The Unlikely Hero of Room 13B.

For Children’s Illustration, congratulations to Rachel Berman!

Miss Mousies Blind DateMiss Mousie’s Blind Date
Written by Tim Beiser
Illustrated by Rachel Berman
Hardcover | 24 Pages
ISBN: 978-1-77049-251-6
eBook: 978-1-77049-363-6
“A story about self-acceptance, and love lost and found, told through the eyes of a little mouse, and her possibly-not-so-handsome suitor, Mole. Charmingly illustrated, cleverly told, the message is timeless, and the illustrations endearing.”

Congratulations to the other finalists in the illustration category: Gary Clement for Oy, Feh, So?, text by Cary Fagan; Matt James for Northwest Passage, text by Stan Rogers; Jon Klassen for The Dark, text by Lemony Snicket; and Julie Morstad for How To.

The winners will be announced Wednesday, November 13, 2013 at 10 am at the Betty Oliphant Theatre at Canada’s National Ballet School in Toronto. For the official press release, please click here. For more information about the award and other finalists, please visit ggbooks.canadacouncil.ca

In Conversation: Robbie Robertson

Legends, Icons & Rebels at Indigo
You’re Invited!
Join Canadian broadcaster and music writer Alan Cross in conversation with Jim Guerinot and Robbie Robertson – Canadian Rock and Roll Hall of Fame singer-songwriter and guitarist for The Band – about their captivating new book with two CDs. Legends, Icons & Rebels profiles twenty-seven music legends that changed the very landscape of music and still influence us today. Book signing to follow.

Where: Indigo Bay & Bloor at Manulife Centre
Address: 55 Bloor Street West, Toronto, Ontario
When: Tuesday, October 8th, 2013
Time: 7 PM

Tuesdays with Tundra 33

Tuesdays with Tundra is a post on our new releases. The following books are available today in stores and online!

Whimsy Heavy ThingsWhimsy’s Heavy Things
Written by Julie Kraulis
Illustrated by Julie Kraulis
Hardcover | 32 Pages | Ages 4-6
ISBN: 978-1-77049-403-9
“[Whimsy’s] … solutions are ingenious, and the ending surprises with a mature little twist that is reassuring as well as realistic. Every page is sweetly rendered by author and illustrator Julie Kraulis’s oil and graphite artwork, which evokes a softer, gentler version of Tim Burton’s style.” – Quill & Quire

Making ContactMaking Contact!
Marconi Goes Wireless

Written by Monica Kulling
Illustrated by Richard Rudnicki
Hardcover | 32 Pages | Ages 5-8
ISBN: 978-1-77049-378-0
The fifth book in Tundra’s Great Idea Series, Making Contact! tells the story of Guglielmo Marconi, who became the father of wireless communication. As a boy, Marconi loved science and invention. At the age of twenty, Marconi realized that no one had invented a wireless telegraph. Determined to find a way to use radio waves to send wireless messages, Marconi found his calling. And, thanks to his persistence, on December 12, 1901, for the first time ever, a wireless signal traveled between two continents. The rest is history!

Escape from BerlinEscape from Berlin
Written by Irene N.Watts
Trade Paperback | 432 Pages | Ages 8-12
ISBN: 978-1-77049-611-8
eBook: 978-1-77049-612-5
Life for Jewish families in 1938 Berlin is increasingly difficult. Neighborhood shops and synagogues are looted and burned, homes are invaded by the Gestapo, Jewish children are expelled from school, their fathers and brothers imprisoned without cause. With even darker times on the horizon, parents are searching for an escape route for their children. On the morning of December 1st, 1938, eleven-year-old Marianne Kohn and seven-year-old Sophie Mandel meet on a train, the first Kindertransport that will take children to safety in England. But what will happen when they arrive? Who will be their guardians? Will they be able to learn the customs and language of their new country? Will they ever see their parents again? The Kindertransport saved almost ten thousand children before the outbreak of World War II. The three critically acclaimed, award-winning novels in Escape from BerlinGood-bye Marianne, Remember Me, and Finding Sophie-poignantly chronicle what happens to Marianne and Sophie as they grow up away from home. December 1, 2013, marks the 75th Anniversary of the first Kindertransport.

Pub Date Giveaway: In the comments below, please tell us which new September release of Tundra’s you would love to read and one lucky reader will receive their requested book! One request per person and please review our rules. This giveaway ends at midnight on Monday, October 1, 2013!

UPDATE: Congratulations to Susan who will be getting a copy of Whimsy’s Heavy Things.

You’re Invited to the Launch of Whimsy’s Heavy Things

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You are invited to the launch of Whimsy’s Heavy Things. Please join debut author and illustrator, Julie Kraulis, as she celebrates her first picture book publication!

Whimsy Heavy ThingsWhen: Wednesday, October 2, 2013
Time: 6 pm to 8 pm
Where: Modern Baby
Address: 208 Christie Street, Toronto, ON M6G 3B8
Telephone: 416-536-9977
RSVP: RSVPCanada@randomhouse.com

In addition, the original artwork from Whimsy’s Heavy Things will be on display. Book and prints will be availble for purchase.

Praise for Whimsy’s Heavy Things:

“Every page is sweetly rendered by author and illustrator Julie Kraulis’s oil and graphite artwork, which evokes a softer, gentler version of Tim Burton’s style. The text is easy to follow for early readers, and parents will enjoy how naturally the story flows.” – Quill & Quire

Tundra Book Group