Category: Staff Picks

Posted on

Our New Publicist: Meet Graciela!

Hi I’m Graciela and I’m the newest Publicist at the Young Readers division at Penguin Random House Canada! I immigrated to Canada three years ago from the Mexican Caribbean and traded beautiful beaches for the concrete jungle that is Toronto.

I live and breath YA, but you can also catch me singing from the top of my lungs to one of the many showtunes I listen to. (Note: I am not a good singer)

5 Random Facts About Me

  1. I was born and raised in Cancun but I can’t handle spicy food.
  2. I am a sucker for musicals. One of my goals is to open a company for talentless people that want to be on Broadway.
  3. I have two mini schnauzers that are my whole world.
  4. I was a med student for three semesters. Turns out it was nothing like Dr. House
  5. I didn’t learn how to read until I was 7 years old because no one knew that I could not see the letters in the books or whiteboard in the classroom.

Favorite Penguin Random House Titles

Fallen
By Lauren Kate
480 Pages | Ages 12+ | Paperback
ISBN 9780385739139 | Ember
There’s something achingly familiar about Daniel Grigori. Mysterious and aloof, he captures Luce Price’s attention from the moment she sees him on her first day at the Sword & Cross boarding school in sultry Savannah, Georgia. He’s the one bright spot in a place where cell phones are forbidden, the other students are all screw-ups, and security cameras watch every move. Even though Daniel wants nothing to do with Luce–and goes out of his way to make that very clear–she can’t let it go. Drawn to him like a moth to a flame, she has to find out what Daniel is so desperate to keep secret . . . even if it kills her.

If I Stay
By Gayle Forman
272 Pages | Ages 12+ | Paperback
ISBN 9780593403846 | Penguin Books
In the blink of an eye everything changes. Seventeen ­year-old Mia has no memory of the accident; she can only recall what happened afterwards, watching her own damaged body being taken from the wreck. Little by little she struggles to put together the pieces- to figure out what she has lost, what she has left, and the very difficult choice she must make. Heart-wrenchingly beautiful, this will change the way you look at life, love, and family. Now a major motion picture starring Chloe Grace Moretz, Mia’s story will stay with you for a long, long time.

Looking for Alaska
By John Green
272 Pages | Ages 14+ | Paperback
ISBN 9780593109069 | Penguin Books
Miles Halter is fascinated by famous last words-and tired of his safe life at home. He leaves for boarding school to seek what the dying poet François Rabelais called the “Great Perhaps.” Much awaits Miles at Culver Creek, including Alaska Young, who will pull Miles into her labyrinth and catapult him into the Great Perhaps. Looking for Alaska brilliantly chronicles the indelible impact one life can have on another. A modern classic, this stunning debut marked #1 bestselling author John Green’s arrival as a groundbreaking new voice in contemporary fiction.

The Book Thief
By Markus Zusak
608 Pages | Ages 12+| Paperback
ISBN 9780375842207 | Knopf BFYR
It is 1939. Nazi Germany. The country is holding its breath. Death has never been busier, and will become busier still. Liesel Meminger is a foster girl living outside of Munich, who scratches out a meager existence for herself by stealing when she encounters something she can’t resist-books. With the help of her accordion-playing foster father, she learns to read and shares her stolen books with her neighbors during bombing raids as well as with the Jewish man hidden in her basement.

Vampire Academy
By Richelle Mead
352 Pages | Ages 12+ | Paperback
ISBN 9781595141743 | Razorbill
Love and loyalty run deeper than blood. St. Vladimir’s Academy isn’t just any boarding school – it’s a hidden place where vampires are educated in the ways of magic and half-human teens train to protect them. Rose Hathaway is a Dhampir, a bodyguard for her best friend Lissa, a Moroi Vampire Princess. They’ve been on the run, but now they’re being dragged back to St. Vladimir’s – the very place where they’re most in danger . . . Rose and Lissa become enmeshed in forbidden romance, the Academy’s ruthless social scene, and unspeakable nighttime rituals. But they must be careful lest the Strigoi – the world’s fiercest and most dangerous vampires – make Lissa one of them forever.

Favorite Non Penguin Random House Titles

Anticipated Penguin Random House Titles

Posted on

Our New Art Director: Meet Gigi!

Hi, my name is Gigi and I’m the new Art Director at Tundra Books. I’m originally from Vancouver and come from a chatty media-intense family: my parents ran the city’s first Chinese-language radio station with my father hosting live interviews and news shows and my mother as his producer, my sister is a journalist and digital news leader at CBC, while I was the introvert focused on visual storytelling and graphic communications.
 
I love working with creatives across all media and have been lucky to collaborate with so many from all backgrounds throughout my 16 years in publishing. Pure thrill is opening my email to find sketches and final art from artists! Previously, I was Art Director at HTP Books, designing and art directing books across six imprints including YA and MG titles. 
 
I live in Toronto with my husband and two kids. I picked up cycling over the pandemic as a mental health escape and am pushing myself at how far I can go by bike, this year’s longest ride was 140km. Now my must-do when visiting new cities is to explore a city by bike – you can see so much more!

Photo credit: Kristin Lewis

5 Random Facts About Me

  1. I have over 20 cousins.
  2. I love to indoor rock climb. 
  3. I’m a tea drinker (and only Earl Grey) even though I worked in coffee shops in high school and university.
  4. My hands have been photographed for two romance book covers. I retired from amateur hand modelling after there was feedback that my hands looked like kids’ hands.
  5. I can’t watch horror films.

Favorite Penguin Random House Titles

Ten Little Dumplings
By Larissa Fan
Illustrated by Cindy Wume
48 Pages | Ages 4-8 | Hardcover
ISBN 9780735266193 | Tundra Books
In the city of Tainan, there lives a very special family – special because they have ten sons who do everything together. Their parents call them their ten little dumplings, as both sons and dumplings are auspicious. But if you look closely, you’ll see that someone else is there, listening, studying, learning and discovering her own talent – a sister. As this little girl grows up in the shadow of her brothers, her determination and persistence help her to create her own path in the world . . . and becomes the wisdom she passes on to her own daughter, her own little dumpling. Based on a short film made by the author, inspired by her father’s family in Taiwan, Ten Little Dumplings looks at some unhappy truths about the place of girls in our world in an accessible, inspiring and hopeful way.

Story Boat
By Kyo Maclear
Illustrated by Rashin Kheiriyeh
40 Pages | Ages 3-7 | Hardcover
ISBN 9780735263598 | Tundra Books
When a little girl and her younger brother are forced along with their family to flee the home they’ve always known, they must learn to make a new home for themselves – wherever they are. And sometimes the smallest things – a cup, a blanket, a lamp, a flower, a story – can become a port of hope in a terrible storm. As the refugees travel onward toward an uncertain future, they are buoyed up by their hopes, dreams and the stories they tell – a story that will carry them perpetually forward.

Time Is a Flower
By Julie Morstad
56 Pages | Ages 3-7 | Hardcover
ISBN 9780735267541 | Tundra Books
What is time? Is it the tick tick tock of a clock, numbers and words on a calendar? It’s that, but so much more. Time is a seed waiting to grow, a flower blooming, a sunbeam moving across a room. Time is slow like a spider spinning her web or fast like a wave at the beach. Time is a wiggly tooth, or waiting for the school bell to ring, or reading a story . . . or three! But time is also morning for some and night for others, a fading sunset and a memory captured in a photo taken long ago. In this magical meditation on the nature of time, Julie Morstad shines a joyful light on a difficult-to-grasp concept for young readers and reminds older readers to see the wonders of our world, including children themselves, through the lens of time.

The Barren Grounds: The Misewa Saga #1
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 meet Ochek (Fisher). The only hunter supporting his starving community, Misewa, Ochek welcomes the human children, teaching them traditional ways to survive. But as the need for food becomes desperate, they embark on a dangerous mission. Accompanied by Arik, a sassy Squirrel they catch stealing from the trapline, they try to save Misewa before the icy grip of winter freezes everything – including them.

Iron Widow
By Xiran Jay Zhao
400 Pages | Ages 14+ | Hardcover
ISBN 9780735269934 | Penguin Teen Canada
Release Date: September 21, 2021
The boys of Huaxia dream of pairing up with girls to pilot Chrysalises, giant transforming robots that can battle the mecha aliens that lurk beyond the Great Wall. It doesn’t matter that the girls often die from the mental strain. When 18-year-old Zetian offers herself up as a concubine-pilot, it’s to assassinate the ace male pilot responsible for her sister’s death. But she gets her vengeance in a way nobody expected – she kills him through the psychic link between pilots and emerges from the cockpit unscathed. She is labeled an Iron Widow, a much-feared and much-silenced kind of female pilot who can sacrifice boys to power up Chrysalises instead.​ To tame her unnerving yet invaluable mental strength, she is paired up with Li Shimin, the strongest and most controversial male pilot in Huaxia​. But now that Zetian has had a taste of power, she will not cower so easily. She will miss no opportunity to leverage their combined might and infamy to survive attempt after attempt on her life, until she can figure out exactly why the pilot system works in its misogynist way – and stop more girls from being sacrificed.

Favorite Non Penguin Random House Titles

Anticipated Penguin Random House Titles

  • Dim Sum Palace by X. Fang
  • The Song That Called Them Home by David A. Robertson and Maya McKibbin
  • The Only Way to Make Bread by Cristina Quintero and Sarah Gonzales
Posted on

Our New Production Editor: Meet Katelyn!

Hello! My name is Katelyn, and I am a Production Editor at Tundra Books. I am originally from Edmonton, Alberta, but I now live in Toronto, Ontario. In between living in Edmonton and Toronto, I spent five years in England studying and working. Prior to publishing, I worked in public and school libraries, which was great for discovering all kinds of new books.

I have a bad habit of picking up too many hobbies and not having enough time for any of them. Some of my past and current hobbies include drawing, photography, video editing, knitting, stained glass, lockpicking, and kickboxing. Two of my most enduring hobbies are playing the guitar and baking vegan treats.

5 Random Facts About Me

  1. I had a goal to travel to as many countries as I was years old, which was going great until I was stopped by global circumstances outside of my control (27 countries and counting!).
  2. My Chinese name is 嘉敏 (pronounced Jiamin). Literally no one has ever referred to me by this name.
  3. All guests who enter my home unknowingly agree to play a game, the rules of which will only be revealed AFTER winning.
  4. I am a certified deep-water scuba diver.
  5. I can eat fire. (I can also breathe fire less well – ask me about the part of my eyebrow that has never grown back quite the same.)

Favorite Penguin Random House Titles

Tales from Outer Suburbia
By Shaun Tan
96 Pages | Ages 12+ | Paperback
ISBN 9780735265226 | Tundra Books
Breathtakingly illustrated and hauntingly written, Tales from Outer Suburbia is by turns hilarious and poignant, perceptive and goofy. Through a series of captivating and sophisticated illustrated stories, Tan explores the precious strangeness of our existence. He gives us a portrait of modern suburban existence filtered through a wickedly Monty Pythonesque lens. Whether it’s discovering that the world really does stop at the end of the city’s map book, or a family’s lesson in tolerance through an alien cultural exchange student, Tan’s deft, sweet social satire brings us face-to-face with the humor and absurdity of modern life.

My Self, Your Self
By Esmé Shapiro
48 Pages | Ages 3-7 | Hardcover
ISBN 9781774880234 | Tundra Books
From the way you button your coat to the way you tap your toes, from the top of your head to your adorable tummy, there are so many reasons to love your self, and so many reasons to be loved. Join a group of endearing forest creatures as they bake and eat cranberry-butter-pie muffins, sing silly songs at bath time and stop to smell the chestnut-nettle roses, all the while exploring their individuality. This joyously affirming picture book from the inimitable Esmé Shapiro encourages the youngest readers to get to know and love and be kind to their wonderful selves and the equally wonderful selves around them.

How to Teach Your Cat a Trick in Five Easy Steps
By Nicola Winstanley
Illustrated by Zoe Si
52 Pages | Ages 3-7 | Hardcover
ISBN 9780735270619 | Tundra Books
Step one: Decide on a trick
Step two: Get some treats ready
Step three: Hold the treat in your hand and ask your cat to do the trick
Step four: Watch your cat do exactly what you asked him to do
Step five: Reward your cat for doing the trick
Simple, right? This spoof on an instruction manual features an increasingly bewildered human, a nonchalant cat, a very good dog and a know-it-all narrator . . . who really doesn’t know it all. How DO you teach a cat a trick? Read on to find out!

If I Had a Gryphon
By Vikki VanSickle
Illustrated by Cale Atkinson
32 Pages | Ages 3-7 | Hardcover
ISBN 9781770498099 | Tundra Books
Sam just got a hamster for a pet. But the hamster is kind of boring . . . he just eats and sleeps and gets his shavings wet. Inspired by her book of mythological creatures, Sam longs for a more exciting pet. But she soon realizes that taking care of these magical beasts might not be as wonderful as she thought. Sasquatches are messy, unicorns are shy, hippogriffs scare the dogs at the dogpark, and having a fire extinguisher handy at all times makes dragons seem like an awful lot of work. In the end, Sam realizes that her hamster is a pretty sweet and safe pet . . . or is he? If I Had a Gryphon is a raucous rhyming read-aloud about fantastical beasts in everyday situations – and the increasingly beleaguered heroine who has to deal with them.

Petra
By Marianna Coppo
48 Pages | Ages 3-7 | Hardcover
ISBN 9780735262676 | Tundra Books
Petra is a little rock who believes she is a mighty mountain . . . until a dog fetches her for its owner, and she is tossed into a bird’s nest. A mountain? No, Petra is now an egg! An egg of the world in a world of possibility. Until she’s flung into a pond, and becomes an amazing island . . . and, eventually, a little girl’s pet rock. What will she be tomorrow? Who knows? But she’s a rock, and this is how she rolls!

Favorite Non Penguin Random House Titles

Anticipated Penguin Random House Titles

Posted on

Award-Winning Author David A. Robertson Appointed Editorial Director of new imprint at Tundra Book Group

September 27, 2022 (Toronto) – Today Penguin Random House Canada announces an exciting new development in the Tundra Book Group, Canada’s oldest English-language children’s book publisher. Effective November 7, 2022, David A. Robertson will join Tundra Book Group in the newly created role of Editorial Director, in which he will develop, shape, launch, and oversee a new children’s imprint dedicated to publishing Indigenous writers and illustrators.

This yet-to-be-named imprint will attract and create new opportunities for emerging Indigenous talent across the spectrum of fiction and non-fiction, alongside a few already established voices in this space. It will publish books for young readers of all ages across all categories of children’s books.

David A. Robertson is one of the most celebrated writers working today, the bestselling author of the ongoing Misewa Saga (including The Barren Grounds, The Great Bear, and The Stone Child), the two-time winner of the Governor General’s Literary Award (for On the Trapline and When We Were Alone), and the recipient of numerous other awards, among them the Writers’ Union of Canada’s Freedom to Read Award; his books have also been shortlisted for the prestigious TD Canadian Children’s Literature Award and the Ontario Library Association’s Silver Birch Award, among others, and have been included on several best of the year lists.

Kristin Cochrane, CEO of Penguin Random House Canada, said: We are truly honoured to welcome Dave Robertson to our team. It is our hope and expectation that this initiative will provide pathways to publication and literary success for new and emerging writers and illustrators. In this new capacity, Dave’s work will be transformational and will shape the culture for many years to come.

Tara Walker, Tundra Book Group publisher said: Dave is our treasured author, and I’ve long admired his immense talent as a storyteller, his tireless energy, and his remarkable dedication to uplifting Indigenous voices. I can’t think of anyone more perfectly suited to shape and lead the important work of this new imprint. I’ve learned so much from Dave already, and I’m delighted for this opportunity to work more closely alongside him in his new role. Most of all, I’m excited for the kids whose lives will be reflected in and altered by the wonderful books from other Indigenous creators Dave will usher into the world.

David A. Robertson, Editorial Director, Tundra Book Group said: When I was a kid, I dreamed of being an author. As I got older, there were many writers I looked up to who inspired me to continue pursuing the goals I had set for myself. In particular, Indigenous writers such as Thomas King and Beatrice Mosionier not only showed me what was possible but opened doors for me to do what I do. I never imagined that I would be in the position I’m in today, but as my career has progressed, I’ve recognized the importance of creating opportunities for new and emerging Indigenous writers so they can write stories that matter, that heal, that inspire, and that lead us on a good path. Working with Tundra has been an incredible experience. They’ve believed in my vision as an author, and I trust them to carry out that vision. I’m thrilled to strengthen our relationship in this way and work with a team that sees how vital it is to amplify voices and continue to open doors.

More about David A. Robertson: David A. Robertson (he/him/his) was the 2021 recipient of the Writers’ Union of Canada Freedom to Read Award. He is the author of numerous books for young readers including When We Were Alone, which won the 2017 Governor General’s Literary Award and the McNally Robinson Book for Young People Award. The Barren Grounds, the first book in the middle-grade The Misewa Saga series, received a starred review from Kirkus, was a Kirkus and Quill & Quire best middle-grade book of 2020, was a USBBY and Texas Lone Star selection, was shortlisted for the Ontario Library Association’s Silver Birch Award, and was a finalist for the 2020 Governor General’s Literary Award. His memoir, Black Water: Family, Legacy, and Blood Memory, was a Globe and Mail and Quill & Quire book of the year in 2020 and won the Alexander Kennedy Isbister Award for Non-Fiction as well as the Carol Shields Winnipeg Book Award at the 2020 Manitoba Book Awards. On The Trapline, illustrated by Julie Flett, won David’s second Governor General’s Literary Award and was named one of the best picture books of 2021 by the Canadian Children’s Book Centre, The Horn Book, New York Public Library, Quill & Quire, and American Indians in Children’s Literature. Dave is the writer and host of the podcast Kíwew, winner of the 2021 RTDNA Prairie Region Award for Best Podcast. He is a member of Norway House Cree Nation and currently lives in Winnipeg.

More about Tundra Book Group: Tundra Books (tundrabooks.com) is Canada’s oldest English-language children’s book publisher. Tundra is home to some of the world’s most accomplished authors and illustrators as well as exciting new voices. We are renowned across North America and throughout the world for our beautifully illustrated and designed award-winning books.

Penguin Random House Canada aims to nourish a universal passion for reading by connecting authors and their writing with readers everywhere. The company publishes over 800 books in various formats each year in the North American market across nineteen distinct imprints and distributes another 10,000 titles in Canada on behalf of Penguin Random House publishers in the U.S. and the U.K., and many clients. It has also developed its own internationally recognized audiobook program and runs an in-house recording studio. Visit penguinrandomhouse.ca for more information and follow us at @PenguinRandomCA.

Posted on

Our New Production Editor: Meet Bharti!

Hi, my name is Bharti and I am a Production Editor at Tundra. While I have been with Penguin Random House Canada for just over a year, my association with the bigger Penguin Random House family goes back a decade (before I moved to Canada in 2019, I worked at DK India). Growing up, I never thought that I would land in the publishing industry, but always liked being surrounded by books – as a kid, I liked playing librarian, forcing my family members to check out their own books and stamping crudely made library cards (remember those?). I still have my first handwritten and hand-illustrated storybook hidden at my parents’ house, away from the public eye and embarrassment.

When I am not working, you can find me cleaning or organizing different corners/cupboards at home. When I run out of things to clean, I move to a friend’s home (okay, that just happened once!).

5 Random Facts About Me

  1. You can find me with a cup of chai at all times – masala chai and ginger chai being my favorites. I even grind the masala at home!
  2. Before COVID ruined all travel plans, I enjoyed visiting new countries. I have been to 11 countries so far, many as a solo traveler.
  3. I am True Crime podcast enthusiast (no, I am not starting a version of Only Murders in the Building). Some of my go-to podcasts are RedHanded, Canadian True Crime, and The Desi Crime Podcast.
  4. Watching Bollywood movies is my guilty pleasure – yes, even the most crappy ones.
  5. I am not a morning person. Not even with my chai.

Favorite Penguin Random House Titles

Little Witch Hazel
By Phoebe Wahl
96 Pages | Ages 4-8 | Hardcover
ISBN 9780735264892 | Tundra Books
Little Witch Hazel is a tiny witch who lives in the forest, helping creatures big and small. She’s a midwife, an intrepid explorer, a hard worker and a kind friend. In this four-season volume, Little Witch Hazel rescues an orphaned egg, goes sailing on a raft, solves the mystery of a haunted stump and makes house calls to fellow forest dwellers. But when Little Witch Hazel needs help herself, will she get it in time? Little Witch Hazel is a beautiful ode to nature, friendship, wild things and the seasons that only Phoebe Wahl could create: an instant classic and a book that readers will pore over time and time again.

Iron Widow
By Xiran Jay Zhao
400 Pages | Ages 14+ | Hardcover
ISBN 9780735269934 | Penguin Teen Canada
The boys of Huaxia dream of pairing up with girls to pilot Chrysalises, giant transforming robots that can battle the mecha aliens that lurk beyond the Great Wall. It doesn’t matter that the girls often die from the mental strain. When 18-year-old Zetian offers herself up as a concubine-pilot, it’s to assassinate the ace male pilot responsible for her sister’s death. But she gets her vengeance in a way nobody expected – she kills him through the psychic link between pilots and emerges from the cockpit unscathed. She is labeled an Iron Widow, a much-feared and much-silenced kind of female pilot who can sacrifice boys to power up Chrysalises instead.​ To tame her unnerving yet invaluable mental strength, she is paired up with Li Shimin, the strongest and most controversial male pilot in Huaxia​. But now that Zetian has had a taste of power, she will not cower so easily. She will miss no opportunity to leverage their combined might and infamy to survive attempt after attempt on her life, until she can figure out exactly why the pilot system works in its misogynist way – and stop more girls from being sacrificed.

The Hound of the Baskervilles
By Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
256 Pages | All Ages | Paperback
ISBN 9780451528018 | Signet
A country doctor has come to 221B Baker Street, the lodgings of famed detective Sherlock Holmes, with the eerie tale of the Hound of the Baskervilles. The legend warns the descendants of the Baskerville family never to venture out on the moors that surround their ancestral home, for fear that they will meet the devil-beast that lurks there. Such a story sounds preposterous to any man of reason, but now Sir Charles Baskerville is dead – and the footprints of a giant hound have been found near his body. Sherlock Holmes and his faithful friend Dr. John Watson agree to investigate the truth of the matter. They will soon learn that in this case, nothing is quite as it seems . . . . 

The Kite Runner
By Khaled Hosseini
400 Pages | All Ages | Paperback
ISBN 9780385660075 | Anchor Canada
Amir and Hassan are childhood friends in the alleys and orchards of Kabul in the sunny days before the invasion of the Soviet army and Afghanistan’s decent into fanaticism. Both motherless, they grow up as close as brothers, but their fates are to be different. Amir’s father is a wealthy merchant; Hassan’s father is his manservant. Amir belongs to the ruling caste of Pashtuns, Hassan to the despised Hazaras. This fragile idyll is broken by the mounting ethnic, religious and political tensions that begin to divide Afghanistan further. An unspeakable assault on Hassan by a gang of local boys tears the friends apart; and when the Soviets invade Afghanistan, Amir and his father flee to San Francisco, leaving Hassan and his father to a pitiless fate. Only years later will Amir have an opportunity to redeem himself by returning to Afghanistan to begin to repay the debt long owed to the man who should have been his brother.

The Book Thief
By Markus Zusak
608 Pages | Ages 12+| Paperback
ISBN 9780375842207 | Knopf BFYR
It is 1939. Nazi Germany. The country is holding its breath. Death has never been busier, and will become busier still. Liesel Meminger is a foster girl living outside of Munich, who scratches out a meager existence for herself by stealing when she encounters something she can’t resist-books. With the help of her accordion-playing foster father, she learns to read and shares her stolen books with her neighbors during bombing raids as well as with the Jewish man hidden in her basement.

Favorite Non Penguin Random House Titles

Anticipated Penguin Random House Titles

Follow Bharti: instagram

Tundra Book Group