Once again, the wonderful team at Open Book: Toronto interviewed some of our Fall 2009 authors and illustrators. Many thanks to Clelia and Amy for their hard work! Click on the links below to read Open Book: Toronto’s Ten Questions with:
Here is a guest post from Nan Forler, author of Bird Child, about her reading at Elmira Library! Photos courtesy of Nan Forler and Kevin Coates.
Nan Forler: Recently, I had the unique pleasure of doing a reading of Bird Child in my hometown of Elmira, with the students of the elementary school I attended so many years ago. Bette Cummings, the Children’s Librarian at the Elmira Library has passed on her love of books to hundreds of children over the years. I used to drive my own children up to Elmira for storytime with “Miss Bette,” as they lovingly referred to her, to enjoy her patient and gentle manner. Bette has followed the path of Bird Child and was eager to have me come in for a reading.
Bette had everyone and everything well-prepared for the reading. The display case at the entrance was decked out with a Bird Child scene, complete with snowy roads, tiny houses, a school bus, and a raven perched on a fence.
The children not only had uniquely hometown comments such as, “I know your sister,” and “Do you know my parents?” but also insightful thoughts on how to be a bystander who challenges the power of a bully. Rather than ideas for taking revenge, responses such as “How would you feel if someone did that to you?” showed a deep understanding of how to take an active and positive role as a bystander.
The children were amazingly attentive and demonstrated a strong sense of empathy in our role-playing. Empathy, along with the ability to respond with courage and compassion, are learned behaviours that I hope we can all pass on to the children in our lives.
At the end of the reading, Bette presented me with a beautiful, festive wreath she had created, decorated with items from the story of Bird Child, including a school bus, fence, paintbrush, and music, and invited us to a reception of Christmas cookies and juice. I left feeling that we all need more “Miss Bettes” in this world.
Read Nan Forler’s previous guest post about her first bookstore reading!
Season’s Greetings from Tundra Books! Here are some gift ideas for the book lovers on your list:
A Thousand Years of Pirates Written and illustrated by William Gilkerson
ISBN 978-0-88776-924-5
Ages 10+
Hardcover
“Gilkerson captures the adventure of the high seas in his illustrations … a testament to his devotion to authenticity. His depictions make the ships and seadogs come to life, creating a richer experience for the reader … a great example of how history can be made interesting to young readers … The popularity of pirates will initially attract readers, but the combination of interesting stories and Gilkerson’s illustrations will keep 9-13 year olds reading the book till the very end, and hopefully beyond that.” – ForeWord Magazine
Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland
Written by Lewis Carroll
Illustrated by Oleg Lipchenko
ISBN 978-0-88776-932-0
All Ages
Hardcover
“… There is something very surreal about the illustrations in this one… If you have an older Alice fan, this would be a great gift book for them … [they] will definitely appreciate the intricate drawings and beautiful faces the illustrator creates.” – A Patchwork of Books
A Star for Christmas Written and illustrated by Trisha Romance
ISBN 978-0-88776-836-1
All Ages
Hardcover
“A Star for Christmas … has family favourite written all over it – the kind of book that will be reread year after year as part of a family family’s Christmas traditions … children are bound to be captivated by the warm, cozy images.” – The Montreal Gazette
The Nutcracker
Written by Karen Kain
Illustrated by Rajka Kupesic
ISBN 978-0-88776-696-1
All Ages
Hardcover
“One of Canada’s great ballerina’s brings the verve, grace and sensibility she brought to ballet to her retelling of Tchaikovsky’s ‘The Nutcracker.’ An added bonus are artist Rajka Kupesic’s very Russian, definitely pre-Bolshevik era paintings: rich and wondrous they are, with onion-domed churches, horse-drawn sleighs, and a velvet-coated uncle – all this before we even set eyes upon sugar plum fairies and their ilk.” – The Globe and Mail
The Little Toy Shop
Written and illustrated by Frances Wolfe
ISBN 978-0-88776-865-1
Ages 3-6
Hardcover
“… Wolfe has crafted an exquisite and wondrous tale that will warm the hearts of readers of every age. The rich and luminous illustrations perfectly capture the feel of an old-fashioned toy shop at Christmas, transporting readers effortlessly into the heart of one anxious toy bunny and the old man who knows just where the bunny ought to be. Each sumptuous spread tells its own story of love, a little bit of luck and dreams come true….” – Atlantic Books Today
One Hundred Shining Candles
Written by Janet Lunn
Illustrated by Lindsay Grater
ISBN 978-0-88776-889-7
Ages 5-8
Hardcover
“This touching story is about creating a beautiful memory out of very limited supplies, a story of giving from deep within the heart. The language is poetic and deeply textured, the characters real and engaging. In addition, the dialogue is authentic and nuanced, drawing the reader easily into the world…” – Excellent from Resource Links
The Hockey Sweater Written by Roch Carrier
Illustrated by Sheldon Cohen
Translated by Sheila Fischman
ISBN 978-0-88776-174-4
Ages 8+
Paperback
“….not only sweet and funny, but a wise parable about Quebec and English Canada.” – The Toronto Star
Tales from Outer Suburbia Written and illustrated by Shaun Tan
ISBN 978-0-7710-8402-7
All Ages
Hardcover
“For those who loved Tan’s surreal and evocative The Arrival, the Austrailian author follows up with a brilliant collection of illustrated vignettes. …this book is a small treasure, or, rather, a collection of treasures.” – Starred Review from School Library Journal
Tundra wishes everyone a safe and happy holiday season!
Guess where Pamela, Kathryn, and I were last night? Here are some hints to the answer:
Look at the pretty holiday decorations, the funny sign, this all points to… the team at McNally Robinson Booksellers!
Yesterday, Shane Peacock was invited to talk about his Boy Sherlock Holmes series at McNally Robinson Booksellers. The store has a book club for children and they had just finished reading Eye of the Crow (some were almost finished reading Death in the Air too). This was a great opportunity for the club members (and their parents) to ask Shane some questions. He brought in his laptop and we hooked it up to the projector to show his book trailers.
Shane did a dramatic reading from each of his books after showing the individual book trailers. Below, Shane reads an excerpt from Vanishing Girl:
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6cK9QUiuluw]
Thank you to the book club readers and their parents for coming out to meet Shane Peacock. Thank you once again to Nicola and to the wonderful staff for making the event a success!
Note from Tundra: We hope people are happy to see pictures of themselves on Talking with Tundra, but if you would like your photo removed, please contact us at tundra@mcclelland.com. Thank you.
Tundra author, Monica Kulling, shares with us in this guest post about her event on Wednesday, November 18, 2009:
Monica Kulling: I had the distinct pleasure last week of participating in my first-ever Canadian Children’s Book Week event. I read my first Canadian book, It’s a Snap! George Eastman’s First Photograph, to a group of grade fours and fives at the Black Creek Branch of the Toronto Public Library.
Clip art credit: www.arthursclipart.org
Since publishing my first picture book, in the U.K. and the U.S. in 1992, I have looked longingly (each November) at the Canada Book Week poster and felt a like the poor match-girl in the fairy tale, uninvited because she has never published a book in Canada. A sad state of affairs. But sad no longer!
Enter TUNDRA BOOKS and Kathy Lowinger and all the talented people who work so hard to produce the beautiful books that Tundra is famous for. And a huge thanks to Bill Slavin, the illustrious Canadian illustrator, whose work is so well-known that doors open for me when I mention his name! Thank you for putting me on the Canadian map! I am tickled pink to be a Canadian author and to have the opportunity to share my books with kids across our great country.
So … with my symbolic invitation in hand, I drove to the Black Creek library located in the North York Sheridan Mall. Driving up Black Creek Drive, I passed the perfectly named, “Photography Drive,” which indicates the street that leads to the old Kodak plant. In 2005 Kodak became a casualty of the digital age and was forced to close down its plant. Until then it had employed hundreds of people for nearly 100 years. All the Kodak film and photography paper used in Canada were manufactured at the place that was called, “Kodak Heights.” Now one solitary building remains-building number 9:
Photo from: "The End of Kodachrome and the Death of Kodak Heights" by Rick McGinnis (July 3, 2009 on www.blogto.com)
The Black Creek Library is on the lower level of the Sheridan Mall, tucked behind an escalator. But the strategy of arriving early, allowed me to get lost, at least once. Anne-Marie Di Lello, the librarian who contacted me, greeted me warmly. She is proud of the library. “This library is a pearl in the mall,” Anne-Marie tells me. “Most people don’t know it’s here. But when they discover it, they keep coming back.” And as I entered its cozy and quiet domain, I can see why.
I was shown the room where the reading was going to be. Nancy Velez, another Black Creek librarian, had gone to great lengths to search the Toronto system for every book of mine she could get. The table at the front of the room, made me feel right at home.
The group was a little late, but worth waiting for. I began my presentation by taking a panoramic photograph of the entire group. So see for yourself what a grand bunch of kids I had in front of me.
And did they have questions? They did indeed! For that Kirkus reviewer who thought that “a few phrases may confuse young readers (“George had a brain wave”),” you can rest easy. Not only did my young listeners understand the term “brainwave,” one astute young man answered my query this way, “It’s when you have a wave of an idea in your brain and then a lightbulb comes on over your head!” Sounds about right to me.
Note from Tundra: We hope people are happy to see pictures of themselves on Talking with Tundra, but if you would like your photo removed, please contact us at tundra@mcclelland.com. Thank you.
Once again, the wonderful team at Open Book: Toronto interviewed some of our Fall 2009 authors and illustrators. Many thanks to Clelia and Amy for their hard work! Click on the links below to read Open Book: Toronto’s Ten Questions with:
A Thousand Years of Pirates
Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland
A Star for Christmas
The Nutcracker
The Little Toy Shop
One Hundred Shining Candles
The Hockey Sweater
Tales from Outer Suburbia
