2022 Lillian Shepherd Award for Excellence in Illustration

The 2022 Lillian Shepherd Award for Excellence in Illustration is given to an illustrator residing in or from Atlantic Canada, or who has illustrated a book written by an Atlantic Canadian or a book that is set in the region. We would like to congratulate Alea Marley who won this year’s award for illustrating Sara O’Leary’s adorable This Is Ruby!

This Is Ruby
By Sara O’Leary
Illustrated by Alea Marley
32 Pages | Ages 3-7 | Hardcover
ISBN 9780735263611 | Tundra Books
Ruby is a little girl with a sense of curiosity and enthusiasm that’s too big to contain! Ruby is always busy — she loves to make things, watch things grow, and figure out how things work, with her dog Teddy by her side. And Ruby has lots of ideas about what she wants to be: maybe an animal conservationist? Or an archaeologist? She’s great at excavating (i.e. digging holes). Or maybe an inventor? She’s already invented a book with smells instead of words (so dogs can read it) and a time machine (the dinosaurs did have feathers after all, and the future is looking wild). This is Ruby, and this is her world.

2016 Lillian Shepherd Memorial Award for Excellence in Illustration Winner

The Lillian Shepherd award for excellence in illustration is given to an illustrator residing in or from Atlantic Canada, or who has illustrated a book written by an Atlantic Canadian or a book that is set in the region. This year, we have the pleasure of congratulation Ron Lightburn for winning the award for Frankenstink!

FrankenstinkFrankenstink!
Garbage Gone Bad
Written by Ron Lightburn
Hardcover | 32 Pages | Ages 4-8
ISBN: 978-1-77049-694-1
“This fantastic tale of what could happen if we don’t clean up our garbage…. The rhyming text, which should be read aloud to achieve the full effect of the story, provides an opportunity for early readers to have fun playing with juicy words … guaranteed to garner a giggle. Frankenstink! Garbage Gone Bad will appeal to children who hate to clean up as well as those who love all things disgusting. The comic book style illustrations do a good job at punctuating the horrific fun of the story, and a glow in the dark cover is a bonus available in the print version of the book.” – Recommended, CM Magazine

Lillian Shepherd, a long-time buyer for The Book Room in Halifax and life-long lover of books, died suddenly in 1997. Customers and authors visiting The Book Room were always put at ease by Lillian’s ready smile and laughter, but her love of life shone through most clearly when she spoke of her husband Fred and their two daughters, Lynn and Cynthia. In 2002, Lillian’s legion of friends and colleagues from Halifax, Lunenburg, and Bermuda created the Lillian Shepherd Memorial Award to applaud the book that combines Lillian’s love for illustrated children’s books and her affinity for locally produced work. The prize is now funded by the Atlantic Independent Booksellers Association and the Atlantic Provinces Publishers’ Representatives.