Category: Canada

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CTV Your Morning Kids’ Book Segment on Fresh Fall Reads

Our Marketing and Publicity Director, Vikki VanSickle, was on CTV’s Your Morning today to talk about fresh fall reads for kids. Check out our titles from her recommended list below and don’t forget to watch her segment!

AGES 3-7

The Barnabus ProjectThe Barnabus Project
By The Fan Brothers
72 Pages | Ages 5-9 | Hardcover
ISBN 9780735263260 | Tundra Books
Deep underground beneath Perfect Pets, where children can buy genetically engineered “perfect” creatures, there is a secret lab. Barnabus and his friends live in this lab, but they are all Failed Projects. Barnabus has never been outside his tiny bell jar, yet he dreams of one day seeing the world above ground . . . so he decides to escape. Barnabus sets out to find freedom – and a place where he and his friends can finally be accepted for who they are.

Terry Fox and MeTerry Fox and Me
By Mary Beth Leatherdale
Illustrated by Milan Pavlovic
40 Pages | Ages 4-8 | Hardcover
ISBN 9780735267688 | Tundra Books
Celebrating the 40th anniversary of the Terry Fox Marathon of Hope, this picture book biography tells the story of a friendship defined by strength and love. Before Terry Fox become a national hero and icon, he was just a regular kid. But even then, his characteristic strength, determination and loyalty were apparent and were the foundation for his friendship with Doug.

I Talk Like a River
By Jordan Scott
Illustrated by Sydney Smith
40 Pages | Ages 4-8 | Hardcover
ISBN 9780823445592 | Holiday House
When a boy who stutters feels isolated, alone, and incapable of communicating in the way he’d like, it takes a kindly father and a walk by the river to help him find his voice. Compassionate parents everywhere will instantly recognize a father’s ability to reconnect a child with the world around him. A book for any child who feels lost, lonely, or unable to fit in.

AGES 8-12

The Barren GroundsThe Barren Grounds
By David A. Robertson
256 Pages | Ages 10+ | Hardcover
ISBN 9780735266100 | Puffin Canada
Morgan and Eli, two Indigenous children forced away from their families and communities, are brought together in a foster home in Winnipeg, Manitoba. They each feel disconnected, from their culture and each other, and struggle to fit in at school and at their new home – until they find a secret place, walled off in an unfinished attic bedroom. A portal opens to another reality, Askí, bringing them onto frozen, barren grounds, where they must try to save Misewa before the icy grip of winter freezes everything – including them.

Pine Island HomePine Island Home
By Polly Horvath
240 Pages | Ages 9-12 | Hardcover
ISBN 9780735268623 | Puffin Canada
Fiona, Marlin, Natasha, and Charlie McCready are left on their own when their missionary parents are washed away in a tsunami. Fortunately, their great aunt Martha volunteers to have them live with her on her farm in British Columbia. But while they are traveling there, Martha dies unexpectedly, forcing Fiona, the eldest, to come up with a scheme to keep social services from separating the girls – a scheme that will only work if no one knows they are living on their own.

AGES 12+

He Must Like You
By Danielle Younge-Ullman
336 Pages | 14+ | Hardcover
ISBN 9780735265691 | Penguin Teen Canada
After dumping a pitcher of sangria on an overly handsy customer, Libby has to navigate the fallout of her outburst, plus deal with her rage at the guys who’ve screwed up her life – and her increasing crush on the one guy who truly gets her. A story about consent, rage, and revenge, and the potential we all have to be better.

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Putting the YA in FRIYAY: Heather Smith’s Guide to St. John’s, Newfoundland

A pandemic is no time to travel but we’re always dreaming about the next place we’d love to visit when things are safe again. Thanks to Heather Smith, St. John’s, Newfoundland is now high up on our list – it’s the setting for her latest YA novel, Barry Squires, Full Tilt.

Keep scrolling for Heather’s top five reasons to visit St. John’s!

Heather and her husband outside of Fred’s

1. The People

Get off the plane at the St. John’s International Airport and you might bump into a stranger who’ll treat you like a long-lost friend. “How was your flight, my duck? Bit bumpy at the end there, wasn’t it? We got some wicked wind here, I tells ya. Where are ya staying to anyway? The Newfoundland Hotel? Jeez b’y, that’ll cost you a pretty penny. Why don’t you stay with me? Uncle Dwight’s not in the basement anymore, God rest his soul. Don’t worry, I’ve changed the sheets. Purex was only $4.99 at Pipers this week. I got Aunt Bev a bottle too. She doesn’t get out as much as she used to. Not since the accident.”

Newfoundlanders are a hospitable bunch. Chatty too. Over the course of your stay, you’ll be called duck, love, darlin’, hon, trout, and the ubiquitous ‘buddy’ or ‘missus’. Ask a question and you’ll get a life story. Accept a cup of tea and you’ll get a turkey dinner, a tall tale, and a pair of Nan’s handknitted socks. Don’t worry, your confusion over whether you’re a houseguest or a hostage is completely normal. Some would argue it’s part of the experience.

Of course, Newfoundlanders aren’t perfect. You’re sure to meet a hard ticket who’ll call you something unsavoury, but look on the bright side – at least you can return home with a funny story about the dude in Dildo who said you had a face on ya like a boiled boot.

2. The Food

There are a lot of traditional foods in Newfoundland and Labrador and there are many fine restaurants in and around the St. John’s area that present them in new and interesting ways. You wouldn’t believe what some of these places can do with a slice of bologna! Chinched on Bate’s Hill even make their own! They also do a mean charcuterie board that features house made meats, local cheeses, and homemade mustards and pickles. Delicious! Other notable restaurants include Mallard Cottage and Hungry Heart Café. There’s also Chafe’s Landing which just happens to be located in Petty Harbour, the birthplace of Alan Doyle! (If you’re lucky you might get held hostage by some of his kin!)

3. The Landscape

As soon as the plane emerges from the fog you will see the most rugged beauty you’ve ever seen in your whole entire life. (No exaggeration, Newfoundlanders never stretch the truth.) By the way, did I mention that you might meet Gordon Pinsent? He hands out handknitted socks to newcomers at the airport. Nice guy. I shared a Chinched bologna sandwich with him on Signal Hill once. What’s Signal Hill you ask? Read on, my duck!

Newfoundland in the summer

4. The Touristy Stuff

Downtown St. John’s:

The Duke of Duckworth (Get some beer!)
The Ship Inn (Get some more beer!)
Fred’s Records (Get some music!)
Caine’s Deli (Get a cold plate!)
The Golden Tulip (Get some jewellery!)
Nonia (Get some handknitted socks!)

Other places of note:

Signal Hill National Historic Site (Home of Cabot Tower)
The Narrows (the passage from St. John’s Harbour to the Atlantic – stunning views!)
Cape Spear (North America’s most easterly point)
The Rooms (Fabulous museum and art gallery)
Any hike along the East Coast Trail (more spectacular views!)

5. The Weather (Bahahahahahhahaha!)

Don’t worry, it won’t all be RDF*. If you go in the summer, you’ll be sure to get some fine days – enjoy them while you can!

*Rain, drizzle, and fog.

Now that you know what to expect in Newfoundland, make sure you pick up Barry Squires, Full Tilt when it comes out on September 22!

Barry Squires, Full Tilt
By Heather T. Smith
232 Pages | Ages 12+ | Hardcover
ISBN 9780735267466 | Penguin Teen Canada
It’s 1995. When the Full Tilt Dancers give an inspiring performance at the opening of the new bingo hall, twelve-year-old Finbar (Barry) Squires wants desperately to join the troupe. Led by Father O’Flaherty, the Full Tilt Irish Step Dancers are the most sought-after act in St. John’s, Newfoundland (closely followed by popular bagpiper, Alfie Bragg and his Agony Bag). Having watched Riverdance twice, Barry figures he’ll nail the audition. And good thing too – it’d be nice to be known for something other than the port wine stain on his cheek. With questionable talent and an unpredictable temper, Barry’s journey to stardom is jeopardized by his parents’ refusal to take his dreams seriously. Thankfully, Barry has the support of a lively cast of characters: his ever-present grandmother, Nanny Squires; his adorable baby brother, Gord; an old British rocker named Uneven Steven; a group of geriatrics from the One Step Closer to God Nursing Home; and Saibal, a friend with whom Barry gets up to no good.

Other books by Heather:

The Agony of Bun O’Keefe
By Heather T. Smith
232 Pages | Ages 12+ | Paperback
ISBN 9780735267466 | Penguin Teen Canada
It’s Newfoundland, 1986. Fourteen-year-old Bun O’Keefe has lived a solitary life in an unsafe, unsanitary house. Her mother is a compulsive hoarder, and Bun has had little contact with the outside world. What she’s learned about life comes from the random books and old VHS tapes that she finds in the boxes and bags her mother brings home. Bun and her mother rarely talk, so when Bun’s mother tells Bun to leave one day, she does. Hitchhiking out of town, Bun ends up on the streets of St. John’s, Newfoundland. Fortunately, the first person she meets is Busker Boy, a street musician who senses her naivety and takes her in. Together they live in a house with an eclectic cast of characters: Chef, a hotel dishwasher with culinary dreams; Cher, a drag queen with a tragic past; Big Eyes, a Catholic school girl desperately trying to reinvent herself; and The Landlord, a man who Bun is told to avoid at all cost. Through her experiences with her new roommates, and their sometimes tragic revelations, Bun learns that the world extends beyond the walls of her mother’s house and discovers the joy of being part of a new family — a family of friends who care.

Chicken Girl
By Heather T. Smith
232 Pages | Ages 12+ | Paperback
ISBN 9780735267466 | Penguin Teen Canada
Poppy used to be an optimist. But after a photo of her dressed as Rosie the Riveter is mocked online, she’s having trouble seeing the good in the world. As a result, Poppy trades her beloved vintage clothes for a feathered chicken costume and accepts a job as an anonymous sign waver outside a restaurant. There, Poppy meets six-year-old girl Miracle, who helps Poppy see beyond her own pain, opening her eyes to the people around her: Cam, her twin brother, who is adjusting to life as an openly gay teen; Buck, a charming photographer with a cute British accent and a not-so-cute mean-streak; and Lewis a teen caring for an ailing parent, while struggling to reach the final stages of his gender transition. As the summer unfolds, Poppy stops glorifying the past and starts focusing on the present. But just as she comes to terms with the fact that there is good and bad in everyone, she is tested by a deep betrayal.

Heather Smith: website | twitter | instagram

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Tuesdays with Tundra

Tuesdays with Tundra
Tuesdays with Tundra is an ongoing series featuring our new releases. The following book is now available in stores and online!

Maud and Grand-MaudMaud and Grand-Maud
By Sara O’Leary
Illustrated by Kenard Pak
40 Pages | Ages 3-7 | Hardcover
ISBN 9781101918692| Tundra Books
Maud loves the weekends that she stays over at her grandma’s house. There’s always breakfast-for-supper, matching nightgowns, black-and-white movies and best of all – having someone to listen to her dreams for when she grows up. But what makes the visit extra-special is what Grand-Maud has hidden in an old chest under her bed. Sometimes there are paint sets, toys, homemade cookies, hand-knit mittens or sweaters. But Maud finds a wonderful surprise when she finds a belonging from Grand-Maud’s childhood. When she grows up, Maud wants to be just like Grand-Maud. Maud and Grand-Maud is a sweet celebration of the unique bond between grandparents and grandchildren.

We can’t wait to see you reading these! If you share these books online, remember to use #ReadTundra in your hashtags so that we can re-post.

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Learn and Play with Activity Books

Whether your kids are physically back at school or learning virtually, activity books are an entertaining and educational resource – here are a few that we love!

Ages 5-9

More Hidden Pictures Two-Player Puzzles
By Highlights
144 Pages | Ages 6-9 | Paperback
ISBN 9781684372584 | Highlights Press
This companion to the innovative Hidden Pictures® Two-Player Puzzles book includes even MORE fun and challenging puzzles to solve. In a unique new twist on the best-selling classic Hidden Pictures® puzzle books, each puzzle duo is created to engage pairs of players while honing their concentration skills and attention to detail. This is the perfect addition to family game night, ideal for a rainy-day activity–and makes a great gift!

My Book with No Pictures
By B. J. Novak
40 Pages | Ages 5-8 | Paperback
ISBN 9780593111017 | Dial BFYR
Now YOU can create some of those amazing words. YOU can write a book that makes grown-ups have to say silly things. Just fill in the blanks with whatever unusual, nonsensical words come to mind (or use the sticker sheet with its funny options). Then ask your favorite adult to read your book to you, and laugh and laugh at YOUR book with no pictures!

The 2021 Almanac of Fun
By Highlights
304 Pages | Ages 6-9 | Paperback
ISBN 9781684379224 | Highlights Press
Get ready for 2021 with favorite Highlights puzzles and activities that celebrate traditional and wacky holidays, historical anniversaries, world events, and everything in between. Kids can puzzle their way through each month while learning lots of interesting facts, and documenting their own occasions!

The Dot: Make Your Mark Kit
By Peter H. Reynolds
Ages 5-9 | Hardcover
ISBN 9780763669782 | Candlewick
An enchanting invitation to self-expression, Peter H. Reynolds’s The Dot is the much-loved story of a reticent girl who discovers that being an artist is simply a matter of making a mark and seeing where it takes you. Now everyone’s inner artist can come out to play with the help of a hardcover edition of The Dot, enticingly packaged with The Blank Book and a set of colored pencils at the ready.

Where’s Waldo? The Boredom Buster Book: 5-Minute Challenges
By Martin Handford
220 Pages | Ages 5-9 | Hardcover
ISBN 9781536211450 | Candlewick
Flying off on vacation or taking a long car ride? Stuck inside for hours on a rainy day? Fend off boredom with this hefty compendium of searches and activities featuring everyone’s favorite wanderer and his wily friends. You’ll find mazes, matching games, connect-the-dots, coloring pages, word searches, quizzes, and more, all guaranteed to occupy sharp-eyed fans.

Ages 8-12

Amazing Ancients!: Egypt
By Gabby Vernon-Melzer
32 Pages | Ages 8-12 | Paperback
ISBN 9781524790622 | Penguin Workshop
Fourteen fabulous spreads of lively nonfiction topics like geography, games, daily life, customs and rituals, inventions and architecture, and more are matched with mazes, word searches, craft ideas, and puzzles. Read about the importance of papyrus to the Egyptian culture then learn to make your own papyrus placemat at home! Learn to decode hieroglyphs, try making a dessert fit for a queen, and make your own senet board and learn how to play the most popular Egyptian game.

Amazing Ancients!: World of the Maya
By Elaine A. Kule
32 Pages | Ages 8-12 | Paperback
ISBN 9780593093061 | Penguin Workshop
The classic Maya period from 250 AD to 900 AD was a time of tremendous cultural growth in Central America. Stretching from Mexico in the north to Guatemala, Belize, El Salvador, and to Honduras in the south, the Maya established trade routes, city-states, mathematic and scientific calculations, and a hieroglyphic style of writing. In fourteen fabulous four-color spreads, Amazing Ancients! takes readers into the geography, games, daily life, customs and rituals, inventions and architecture in the World of the Maya. Through cool mazes, word searches, craft ideas, and puzzles, readers will learn how this fascinating culture lived and thrived.

Animation Studio
By Helen Piercy
32 Pages | Ages 8-12 | Hardcover
ISBN 9780763667016 | Candlewick
Do you know how to build a storyboard? Design a character? What does the action of “squash and stretch” have to do with making animation look realistic? From hand-drawn sequences to 3-D models, from lighting a set to using a variety of camera shots, Animation Studio offers expert tips to help kids transform a series of still images into an original animated movie.

Brain Games: Colossal Book of Cranium-Crushers
By Stephanie Warren Drimmer and Gareth Moore
160 Pages | Ages 8-12 | Paperback
ISBN 9781426336751 | National Geographic Children’s Books
Prepare to have your mind blown! Inside this book you’ll find mind-bending games and puzzles that are backed by the latest neuroscience discoveries and designed to fine-tune your mental muscle. Journey through elaborate mazes, solve crossword puzzles like a pro, and get your creative juices flowing with fun art challenges. And that’s not all: This write-in, full-color book also includes expert-level sudoku puzzles, storytelling games, code-cracking riddles, and much more. You’ll also get the inside scoop on the brain science at work behind the challenges.

Discovery Globe: Build-Your-Own Globe Kit
By Leon Gray
Illustrated by Sarah Edmonds
48 Pages | Ages 8-12 | Hardcover
ISBN 9780763697488 | Candlewick
For curious adventurers everywhere comes a unique guide to the amazing diversity of life on planet Earth. From the poles to the equator, from dense cities to vast wildernesses, from deep below the sea to high in the forest canopy, this illustrated globe and guide take readers on a rich and exciting tour of discovery and revelation.

Dungeons & Dragons: Big Trouble
By Matt Forbeck
128 Pages | Ages 8-12 | Hardcover
ISBN 9781536202458 | Candlewick
When evil giants attack your home in Ardeep Forest, your parents think you’re dead and they go hunting for your missing little brother. You wake up and set out after them, helped by a giant wizard who lives in a flying tower. You don’t know where they’ve gone, but you know that if you don’t find them, you’re all in big trouble. Wield your magic wisely against the giants, wizard.

Get Coding!: Learn HTML, CSS & JavaScript & Build a Website, App & Game
By Young Rewired State
208 Pages | Ages 9-12 | Paperback
ISBN 9780763692766 | Candlewick
Crack open this book and set off on several fun missions – while simultaneously learning the basics of writing code. Want to make a website from scratch? Create an app? Build a game? All the tools are here, laid out in a user-friendly format that leads kids on an imaginary quest to keep a valuable diamond safe from dangerous jewel thieves. Presented by Young Rewired State – an international collective of tech-savvy kids – in easy-to-follow, bite-size chunks, the real-life coding skills taught in this engaging, comprehensive guide may just set young readers on the path to becoming technology stars of the future.

Maps Activity Book
By Aleksandra Mizielinska and Daniel Mizielinski
72 Pages | Ages 7-10 | Paperback
ISBN 9780763677718 | Big Picture Press
Following the best-selling Maps, the Mizielinskis return with a companion activity book. Bursting with fascinating facts and puzzles from around the world, this book offers hours of entertainment to young adventurers. Informative and inspiring, the myriad activities in this book challenge the reader to discover something new and explore their imagination to draw, decorate and design on every pull-out page.

National Geographic Kids Cats and Dogs Super Sticker Activity Book
By National Geographic Kids
112 Pages | Ages 4-8 | Paperback
ISBN 9781426338113 | National Geographic Children’s Books
This bind-up of Cats and Dogs combines two super-cute, fun-filled sticker books in one! It’s chock-full of information about kids’ favorite furry friends: kittens, puppies, different breeds of cats and dogs, behaviors, pet care, and much more! With a colorful design and loaded with tons of games and activities–such as mazes, matching, drawing, and counting–kids are sure to love these pages of 2,000 stickers!

All Ages

Guess How Much I Love You Coloring Book
By Sam McBratney
Illustrated by Anita Jeram
96 Pages | All Ages | Paperback
ISBN 9780763694678 | Candlewick
Love is a colorful thing! Fans old and new, young and not so young will revel in these intricate scenes of nature featuring Little Nutbrown Hare and Big Nutbrown Hare. In ninety-six pages of beautifully rendered images and words inspired by the beloved story, the world of Guess How Much I Love You stands ready to come to life with the help of some crayons or markers, dozens of stickers, and a whole lot of love.

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Window Wednesday

#WindowWednesday: We are incredibly fortunate to have stores create window features of our books. We want to highlight their amazing work here on our blog for you to see (and perhaps you’ll discover a new local bookstore).

Mosaic Books
411 Bernard Avenue, Kelowna, BC V1Y 6N8

Monsters 101 window reveal 1
Cale Atkinson on standby for the window display reveal!

Monsters 101 window reveal 2
Look at all those monsters!

Monsters 101 window reveal 3
Puppy approved!

Monsters 101 window reveal 4
Visit Mosaic Books to pick up Cale Atkinson’s newest picture book: Monsters 101! Signed copies are available!

Tundra Book Group