Tuesdays with Tundra 4

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

Curtain Up!
A Book for Young Performers

By Dirk McLean
Illustrated by France Brassard
ISBN 978-0-88776-899-6
US $17.95 / CAN $19.99
Ages 6-8
“…the illustrator gives Amaya… distinctive features and an appropriately big personality….” – Kirkus Reviews

Dear Toni
By Cyndi Sand-Eveland
ISBN 978-1-77049-249-3
US $9.95 / CAN $11.99
Ages 8-11
Now in paperback!
“Gene dreads the 100-day journal-writing assignment her teacher has given the class. Mr. Mackenzie wants to lock the journals in the town’s museum vault for 40 years for future sixth graders to read. Gene has trouble writing to someone who isn’t even born yet, but little by little, Dear Nobody becomes Dear Somebody, who evolves into Dear Toni.” – Best Books for Kids & Tweens 2009, Junior Fiction, The Canadian Children’s Book Centre

Gunner
Hurrican Horse
By Judy Andrekson
ISBN 978-0-88776-905-4
US $7.95 / CAN $8.99
Ages 8-11
PBJ Decks Smokin Gun (Gunner) is an American Paint Horse, one of the many of Heather Lott Goodwin’s herd, and a valuable show animal that won the World Championship Paint Horse title. When Hurricane Katrina passed over the Goodwin property, it took with it the fences, the cattle, and several horses. Heather and her family lived in their horse trailer for six weeks and considered themselves lucky to have safe, comfortable shelter. After the storm, they searched for the animals and recovered many of them. But three months passed before they located Gunner, a hundred miles away. Gunner’s story is a testament to love and to determination.

Hudson
By Janice Weaver
Illustrated by David Craig
ISBN 978-0-88776-814-9
US $22.95 / CAN $24.99
Ages 8-12
“Failure is not usually at the heart of an exciting adventure story, but this dramatic picture-book biography about Henry Hudson … makes the explorer’s lack of success a gripping read…. Craig’s glowing period portraits, landscapes, and watercolors of the ship in dangerous seas intensify the drama….” – Starred Review, Booklist

Humpty Dumpty and Friends
Nursery Rhymes for the Young at Heart
Illustrated by Oleg Lipchenko
ISBN 978-1-77049-205-9
US $17.95 / CAN $19.99
Ages 3-6
“The highly detailed and surreal nature of Lipchenko’s illustrations will keep readers poring over the pages.” – Publishers Weekly

Splinters
By Kevin Sylvester
ISBN 978-0-88776-944-3
US $17.95 / CAN $19.99
Ages 6-8
“Whether you are adding to your Cinderella story collection or looking for a story with a strong female role-model, snap this one up. Author, illustrator, and sports broadcaster Kevin Sylvester has created a winner…. Sylvester’s playful watercolour and pencil illustrations are full of action and emotion, adding just the right amount of detail to support the story line for young readers…. All of the archetypes are cleverly illustrated in this version of Cinderella on ice. Splinters may become a Canadian classic. Highly Recommended.” – CM Magazine

Pub Date Giveaway: Which book would you love to get your hands on? Leave us a comment below and one lucky reader will receive a copy of their requested book, courtesy of Tundra! One request per person please. This offer ends on Wednesday, September 15th, 2010!

Eden Mills Writers’ Festival 2010

This year, the 22nd Eden Mills Writers’ Festival is being held on Sunday, September 19, 2010 from noon to 6:00pm. Where is Eden Mills you may ask? It is 15 minutes east of the city of Guelph and 5 minutes west of Rockwood. The festival is outdoors, so we would recommend bringing a lawn chair (fold-up ones work best) or blanket for seating, an umbrella (just in case!), a water bottle, and cash (there’s no bank machine) to buy books, souvenirs, and food. Parking is free!

Keep an eye out for our authors participating in the festival this year:


Young Adult Authors
Shane Peacock, author of The Secret Fiend: The Boy Sherlock Holmes, His 4th Case
Marthe Jocelyn, author of Folly


Children’s Writers
Jo Ellen Bogart, author of Big and Small, Room for All
Ann Love and Jane Drake, sisters and co-authors of Talking Tails: The Incredible Connection Between People and Their Pets

Click here for some photos from last year’s festival!

Read Comics in Public Day!

Saturday, August 28, is the first annual celebration of International Read Comics in Public Day. So pick your favourite comic or graphic novel, go outside, and read! Need suggestions? We recommend:

Alison Dare, Little Miss Adventures
Written by J. Torres
Illustrated by J. Bone
Trade Paperback | 96 pages
Ages 8-11 years
ISBN 978-0-88776-934-4
“…Bone’s open art is a wonderful counterpart to these funny tales of derring-do that don’t quite go as expected. His figures are simple and compact, suggesting unexpected power and ability…. Torres’ writing is playful, with occasional pop culture references…. It’s his humor that gives Alison Dare its unique twist. Many kids dream of magical adventures, and Alison’s experiences fill that desire nicely.” – Comics Worth Reading

Alison Dare, The Heart of the Maiden
Written by J. Torres
Illustrated by J. Bone
Trade Paperback | 104 pages
Ages 8-11 years
ISBN 978-0-88776-935-1
“…are packed with action and wit, and I recommend them to kids and adults alike….” – Bildungsroman

Tyranny
Written by Lesley Fairfield
Trade Paperback | 120 pages
Ages 11 UP
ISBN 978-0-88776-903-0
“… This is one of the most moving and important graphic novels to come along in years…. The simple yet powerful black-and-white drawings do wonders in bringing the book’s message to its readers. Tyranny is so important that both younger and older teens will benefit from reading it. Every public and school library should own at least one copy of this amazing book. – Starred Review, School Library Journal

The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde
Adapted by Alan Grant
Illustrated by Cam Kennedy
Trade Paperback | 48 pages
Ages 10 UP
ISBN 978-0-88776-882-8
“This classic has tremendous modern appeal. A complex detective story for the most part, this adaptation depicts the gaslight era of London in all its gloomy grandeur…. Public libraries with an eye to keeping a varied teen fiction shelf should consider this title.” – School Library Journal

Kidnapped
Adapted by Alan Grant
Illustrated by Cam Kennedy
Trade Paperback | 64 pages
Ages 10 UP
ISBN 978-0-88776-843-9
“Grant’s words are clean and gracefully streamline Stevenson’s, while unobtrusively preserving the sense of time and place through colloquialisms and accent. Kennedy’s characters are distinct and dramatic, and his settings, using his trademark greens and blues, are atmospheric and eerie…. This is an adaptation done absolutely right.” – Booklist

Good-bye Marianne: A Story of Growing Up in Nazi Germany
Written by Irene N.Watts
Illustrated by Kathryn E. Shoemaker
Trade Paperback | 128 pages
Ages 8-11 years
ISBN 978-0-88776-830-9
“…one of the most powerful books is a black and white graphic novel. Good-bye Marianne is the retelling of the award-winning novel…. Moody pencil drawings capture the dark despair of that time, of the mother’s desperate, unselfish gamble to save her daughter’s life.” – The Chronicle Herald

August Pub Date Giveaway Winner

Thank you to everyone who entered our first Pub Date Giveaway! We used random.org to generate the winning number:

Then counted through the entries to find out that The1stdaughter (Danielle) is the August winner. Congratulations! I will be emailing you for your shipping address, so please check your inbox.

Danielle picked the lovely picture book, A Night on the Town for her son. This was fun! Don’t worry if you didn’t win anything this round, we’ll do it again on September 14, 2010!

Tuesdays with Tundra 3

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

All Aboard!
Elijah McCoy’s Steam Engine

By Monica Kulling
Illustrated by Bill Slavin
ISBN 978-0-88776-945-0
US $17.95 / CAN $19.99
Ages 5-8
All Aboard! Elijah McCoy’s Steam Engine is an intriguing and readable introduction to Elijah McCoy that whets the appetite for more, but it also touches on other thought-provoking themes such as slavery, the Underground Railroad, racial discrimination, railroad history, everyday inventions and belief in one’s own ideals…. The wonderful effervescent illustrations of Bill Slavin bring the story to life, capturing the atmosphere of the age with authenticity…. Highly recommended.” – CM Magazine

Dear George Clooney
Please Marry My Mom

By Susin Nielsen
ISBN 978-0-88776-977-1
US $15.95 / CAN $17.99
Ages 11-14
“Nielsen (Word Nerd) has created a narrator as sassy and candid as this memorable novel’s title….Nielsen skillfully balances her story’s keen humor…with poignancy. Especially affecting are Violet’s struggles to accept her father’s new family….” – Starred Review, Publishers Weekly

Lucy Unstrung
By Carole Lazar
ISBN 978-0-88776-963-4
US $12.95 / CAN $14.99
Ages 10-14
Teens who get pregnant and raise their babies are often in the news. But what about those children who are growing up with parents scarcely half a generation older than themselves?

Lulu’s Piano Lesson
By Arlene Alda
Illustrated by Lisa Desimini
ISBN 978-0-88776-930-6
US $16.95 / CAN $18.99
Ages 4-7
“…Collage and digital art make for flattened surfaces and stylized shapes, enlivened by varying perspectives. Lulu has a beautiful head of bushy, curly hair and bright blue eyes. As lessons go, it’s a mighty nice one.” – Kirkus Reviews

A Night on the Town
By Caroline Merola
ISBN 978-1-77049-200-4
US $15.95 / CAN $17.99
Ages 3-6
“… Caroline Merola’s bold illustrations saturate every page with colour and create a rich, expressive backdrop to the story. The narrative flows naturally, with light, playful dialogue and a lively pace that will make reading aloud a pleasure. Pickles McPhee and Martha made loveable, spirited heroines…. A Night on the Town is a good-natured, charmingly illustrated book – just the ticket for a vicarious nighttime romp.” – Quill & Quire

Pub Date Giveaway: Which book would you love to get your hands on? Leave us a comment below and one lucky reader will receive a copy of their requested book, courtesy of Tundra! One request per person please. This offer ends on Wednesday, August 11th, 2010!

Tundra Book Group