2013 Manitoba Young Readers’ Choice Awards Shortlist

The shortlist for the 2013 Manitoba Young Readers’ Choice Awards has been announced! Tundra would like to congratulate Ellen Schwartz, Shane Peacock, and the following authors:

The Case of the Missing Deed
Written by Ellen Schwartz
Hardcover | 200 pages | Ages 8-11
ISBN: 978-0-88776-959-7
eBook: 978-1-77049-267-7
“…This fast-paced mystery is filled with hidden clues and codes and believable, likable characters. It is a book that families could read together after cooking up one of the recipes.” – School Library Journal

The Dragon Turn: The Boy Sherlock Holmes, His Fifth Case
Written by Shane Peacock
Hardcover | 240 pages | Ages 10-14
ISBN: 978-1-77049-231-8
eBook: 978-1-77049-273-8
“…Shane Peacock delivers another intriguing novel exploring the boy detective…. His Sherlock is a penniless but resourceful young man living with an eccentric apothecary who encourages his curiosity and his powers of observation … the Canadian-made Sherlock has a real feeling for Victorian London.” – Winnipeg Free Press

  • Against All Odds – Natale Ghent (HarperCollins)
  • The Bedmas Conspiracy – Deborah Sherman (Fitzhenry & Whiteside)
  • Blood Red Road – Moira Young (Random House)
  • Box of Shocks – Chris McMahen (Orca)
  • The Case of the Missing Deed – Ellen Schwartz (Tundra Books)
  • Dragon Seer’s Gift – Janet McNaughton (HarperCollins)
  • The Dragon Turn – Shane Peacock (Tundra Books)
  • Encore Edie – Annabel Lyon (Penguin)
  • End of Days – Eric Walters (Random House)
  • Fly Boy – Eric Walters (Penguin)
  • Ice Storm – Penny Draper (Coteau)
  • Peter Nimble and His Fantastic Eyes – Jonathan Auxier (Penguin)
  • The Tiffin – Mahtab Narsimhan (Dancing Cat)
  • This Dark Endeavour – Kenneth Oppel (HarperCollins)
  • Timber Wolf – Caroline Pignat (Fitzhenry & Whiteside)
  • True Blue – Deborah Ellis (pajamapress)
  • Undergrounders – David Skuy (Scholastic)
  • Witchlanders – Lena Coakley (Simon & Schuster)

The Manitoba Young Readers’ Choice Awards Inc. (MYRCA) aims to promote reading and Canadian literature by giving young people the opportunity to vote for their favourite Canadian book from an annual preselected list. The books are nominated based on their quality and reader appeal. All young people in grades 5-8 who have read or heard read at least 3 titles from the list can vote. Voting takes place in April and the MYRCA winner is celebrated at a fall award ceremony attended by participating young people.

Tuesdays with Tundra 20

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

The French Fry King
By Rogé
Hardcover | 32 pages | Ages 4-7
ISBN: 978-1-77049-350-6
“…Both the story and the illustrations are appealingly fantastical, with tall-tale exaggerations and witty interactions with satisfied customers…. Roger’s story conveys the subtle and salutary message that material achievement and fame does not necessarily include love and companionship, and a shared venture may be sweeter than solitary success.”
Kirkus Reviews

Hey Canada!
By Vivien Bowers
Illustrated by Milan Pavlovic
Hardcover | 72 pages | Ages 7-10
ISBN: 978-1-77049-255-4
“Arrays of small color photos, cartoons and occasional comic-book pages provide visuals for a young traveler….”
Kirkus Reviews

The Rumor
By Anushka Ravishankar
Illustrated by Kanyika Kini
Hardcover | 32 pages | Ages 4-7
ISBN: 978-1-77049-280-6
“…The Rumor is a brilliantly written tale of the village of Baddbaddpur where people tell tales ‘so tall … they would reach the stars’ …. Combining elements of humour and nonsense into an Indian tale, along with Anushka Ravishankar’s wonderful verse writing, this cautionary tale of rumours is a fun and enjoyable read for any child or parent….”
– Highly Recommended, CM Magazine

Spot the Difference
By Tak Bui
Paperback | 48 pages | Ages 7-10
ISBN: 978-1-77049-279-0
“In a challenging workout for Where’s Waldo? fans a Canadian cartoonist offers 82 teeming scenes in pairs that are identical only at first glance … the figures and action are depicted with fine-lined exactitude, and there’s plenty of stage business and visual humor to keep even browsers uninterested in playing the intended game amused.”
Kirkus Reviews

Wanda and the Frogs
By Barbara Azore
Illustrated by Georgia Graham
Paperback | 32 pages | Ages 4-7
ISBN: 978-1-77049-307-0
Blue-eyed, freckle-faced Wanda is back, and with her comes spring, puddles, and wriggling black tadpoles. Wanda is enchanted. On the way to school one morning, Wanda scoops some tadpoles into her sand pail. When she presents them to her teacher, the teacher agrees to let the class take care of them until they become frogs. But what will happen to the tadpoles once they grow legs and their tails begin to shrink?

Wanda and the Wild Hair
By Barbara Azore
Illustrated by Georgia Graham
Paperback | 32 pages | Ages 3-6
ISBN: 978-1-77049-306-3
Blue-eyed freckle-faced Wanda has a problem: she loves her wild hair dearly, but it drives all the adults in her life to distraction. She loves the way it feels when she touches it. She loves the way it looks when she pats it in front of the mirror. But her mother always nags her to wash it, her father wants to take her to the poodle parlor for a trim, and her teacher threatens to ask the principal to cut it off. What can poor Wanda do?

Wanda’s Freckles
By Barbara Azore
Illustrated by Georgia Graham
Paperback | 24 pages | 3-7 Ages
ISBN: 978-1-77049-308-7
Wanda has freckles. Lots and lots of freckles. They make her feel special, until the day in the park when a group of boys point, laugh, and tease her for having spots. All of a sudden, the freckles she’d liked become a problem. What can she do? Wanda decides that there’s only one thing: make her freckles disappear altogether!

Pub Date Giveaway: Tell us which new release of ours you would love to read in the comments below and one lucky reader will receive their requested book!

One request per person and please review our rules. This giveaway ends at midnight on Thursday, May 10, 2012!

UPDATE: Lucky number 8, congratulations to kittiepride! A copy of Wanda and the Wild Hair will be sent to you. Thank you to everyone who entered!

TD Canadian Children’s Book Week


TD Canadian Children’s Book Week will take place from Saturday, May 5 to Saturday, May 12, 2012. Twenty-nine English-speaking authors, illustrators and storytellers will be visiting schools, libraries, bookstores, and community centres in every province and territory across the country.

We are so happy to have the following authors touring, here are some of the public readings our authors will be appearing at:

ALBERTA
Rina Singh, author

  • Monday, May 7 from 1:30pm – 2:30pm at the Airdrie Public Library
    111 – 304 Main Street, Airdrie, AB T4B 3C3
  • Wednesday, May 9 from 4:00pm – 5:00pm at the Fort McMurray Public Library
    151 MacDonald Drive, Fort McMurray, AB T9H 5C5
  • Friday, May 11 from 9:00am – 10:00am at the Hinton Municipal Library
    803 Switzer Drive, Hinton, AB T7V 1V1
  • Friday, May 11 from 10:30am – 11:30am at the Hinton Municipal Library
    803 Switzer Drive, Hinton, AB T7V 1V1

BRITISH COLUMBIA
Jan Andrews, storyteller & author

  • Thursday, May 10 from 1:15pm – 2:15pm at the Barriere Branch (TNRD Library)
    4511 Barriere Town Rd, Box 100, Barriere, BC V0E 1E0
  • Friday, May 11 from 11:00am – 12:00pm at the Chase Library (TNRD Library)
    614 Shuswap Ave, Box 590, Chase, BC V0E 1M0
  • Thursday, May 10 from 10:45am – 11:45am at the North Shore Branch (TNRD Library)
    795 Tranquille Road, Kamloops, BC
  • Friday, May 11 from 1:15pm – 2:15pm at the Art Gallery (TNRD Library)
    100 – 465 Victoria Street, Kamloops, BC

MANITOBA
Vivien Bowers, author

  • Thursday, May 10 from 1:30pm – 2:30pm at the Springfield Public Library
    60024 Provincial Hwy. #206, Box 340, Dugald, MB R0E 0K0
  • Tuesday, May 8 from 2:15pm – 3:15pm at the Eriksdale Public Library
    c/o Eriksdale School, 1 School Road, Eriksdale, MB
  • Thursday, May 10 from 1:30pm – 2:30pm at the Valley Regional Library
    141 Main Street S. Morris, MB R0G 1K0
  • Wednesday, May 9 from 7:00pm – 8:00pm at the Pinawa Public Library
    Vanier Avenue, Pinawa, MB R0E 1L0
  • Friday, May 11 from 1:30pm – 2:30pm at the Red River North Library
    303 Main Street, Selkirk, MB R1A 1S7
  • Monday, May 7 from 10:10am – 11:10am at the Transcona Library
    111 Victoria Avenue, Winnipeg, MB R2C 1S6

NOVA SCOTIA
Karen Patkau, author & illustrator

  • Tuesday, May 8 from 9:30am – 10:30am at the Cape Breton Regional Library
    562 Chebucto Street, Baddeck, NS B0E 1B0
  • Wednesday, May 9 from 10:00am – 11:00am at the Halifax Public Library
    60 Alderney Drive, Dartmouth, NS B2Y 4P8
  • Tuesday, May 8 from 1:30pm – 2:30pm at the Eastern Counties Regional Libraries
    390 Murray Street, Mulgrave, NS B0E 2G0
  • Tuesday, May 8 from 2:30pm – 3:30pm at the Eastern Counties Regional Libraries
    390 Murray Street, Mulgrave, NS B0E 2G0

Please come out to support our authors! Details may change, please check the TD Canadian Children’s Book Week website for updates and for a full list of public events.

The 2011 Snow Willow Award Winner

The Saskatchewan Young Readers’ Choice’s Willow Awards promote reading by granting a Willow Award to the Canadian books voted by students to be the best of those nominated in three categories: Shining Willow (K-3), Diamond Willow (4-6) and Snow Willow (7-9). The 2011 Willow Awards winners were announced at the SaskEnergy Willow Awards Gala 2012 on April 27, 2012 at the Heritage Inn, Moose Jaw hosted by Holy Trinity School Division.

And the winning authors are…
Kenneth Oppel, L.M. Falcone, and Susin Nielsen! Congratulations to all!

Dear George Clooney, Please Marry My Mom
By Susin Nielsen
Ages 11-14 | 240 pages
Hardcover ISBN: 978-0-88776-977-1
Paperback ISBN: 978-1-77049-295-0
eBook ISBN:978-0-88776-978-8
“…This isn’t a book filled with gorgeous, perfect characters who always say and do gorgeous, perfect things. Oh, no. Violet, her family and their friends are awkward, imperfect and so realistic. She’s a kid who acts like a kid. Kinda refreshing, no? … Dear George Clooney Please Marry My Mom made me happy. It put a smile on my face and made me sigh blissfully. And the George Clooney parts made me snort, for real. Funny stuff. Hell, the whole book was filled with funny stuff, another reason why I love it so freaking much.” – Lavender Lines

“…If you’ve been looking for a novel that is funny, poignant, and demonstrates a love of reading, then you’ll love this novel.” – YA Book Shelf

PS: Word Nerd by Susin Nielsen was the winner of the 2010 Snow Willow Award.

2012 Rocky Mountain Book Award Winner

Tundra is happy to announce that Susin Nielsen’s Dear George Clooney, Please Marry My Mom is the Gold Medal Winner of the 2012 Rocky Mountain Book Award, an Alberta Children’s Choice Book Award.

Dear George Clooney, Please Marry My Mom
By Susin Nielsen
Ages 11-14 | 240 pages
Hardcover ISBN: 978-0-88776-977-1
Paperback ISBN: 978-1-77049-295-0
eBook ISBN:978-0-88776-978-8
Violet’s TV-director dad has traded a job in Vancouver for one in Los Angeles, their run-down house for a sleek ranch-style home complete with a pool, and, worst of all, Violet’s mother for a trophy wife, a blonde actress named Jennica. Violet’s younger sister reacts by bed-wetting, and her mother ping-pongs from one loser to another, searching for love. As for Violet, she gets angry in ways that are by turns infuriating, shocking, and hilarious.
When her mother takes up with the unfortunately named Dudley Wiener, Violet and her friend Phoebe decide that they need to take control. If Violet’s mom can’t pick a decent man herself, they will help her snag George Clooney.

PRAISE:

  • “[Susin Nielsen] … has created a narrator as sassy and candid as this memorable novel’s title….” – Starred Review, Publishers Weekly
  • “…This comic novel scores.” – Kirkus Reviews
  • “…very engaging read.” – Booklist
  • “…funny, witty, and lively….” – Quill & Quire

Gemini Award-winner SUSIN NIELSEN has written sixteen episodes of the hit television show Degrassi Junior High and four of the books in the Degrassi series. She is the co-creator and showrunner of the critically acclaimed television series Robson Arms. She also adapted Susan Juby’s Alice, I Think into a TV series. Susin Nielsen lives in Vancouver with her husband, Goran, son, Oskar, and Sam the cat.

PS: Word Nerd by Susin Nielsen was the Gold Medal Winner of the 2010 Rocky Mountain Book Award.

Tundra Book Group