Celebrate Tundra’s 50th Anniversary at the Penguin Shop!

tundra-takeover-19Celebrate Tundra’s 50th Anniversary at the Penguin Shop!

One of Toronto’s littlest bookstore is now dedicated to the littlest readers. To celebrate the 50th anniversary of Canada’s oldest children’s publisher, Tundra Books, we have transformed the shop to feature Tundra’s classic and new children’s books.

The Tundra takeover is taking place from May 15th through June 9th, 2017. Plan your visit to see Tundra’s latest books, check out some staff picks and enjoy story time and crafts in the shop.

Weekly Activities

All activities take place from 1pm – 2pm on the days specified below.

STORYTIME

CRAFTS & ACTIVITIES

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tundra*Receive a limited edition Tundra Tote Bag with a purchase of $20 or more

The 2017 OLA Forest of Reading® Nominees

Forest of Reading BannerToday, the Ontario Library Association revealed the nominated titles for the 2017 Forest of Reading® program. Tundra Books would like to congratulate our nominated authors and illustrators!

2017 Blue Spruce Award™ Nominated Titles

The Good Little BookThe Good Little Book
Written by Kyo Maclear
Illustrated by Marion Arbona
Hardcover | 40 Pages | Ages 5-9
ISBN 9781770494510
While banished to a dusty study one day “to think things over”, a boy pulls a book off a shelf and with great reluctance begins to read. As the afternoon passes, the story nabs him and carries him away. Before long, this good little book becomes his loyal companion, accompanying him everywhere . . . until, one day, the book is lost. Will this bad little boy get back his good little book?

If I Had a GryphonIf I Had a Gryphon
Written by Vikki Vansickle
Illustrated by Cale Atkinson
Hardcover | 32 Pages | Ages 3-7
ISBN 9781770498099
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, gryphons scare the dogs at the dog-park, 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.

InvisiBillInvisiBill
Written by Maureen Fergus
Illustrated by Dušan Petričić
Hardcover | 40 Pages | Ages 5-9
ISBN 9781770496132
Bill just wanted someone to pass him the potatoes. Unfortunately, no one even noticed – not his mother (a very busy woman with an important job), not his father (a very important man with a busy job), not his very intelligent older brother, not even his very athletic little sister. If someone had noticed, the wonderful, terrible thing that happened might never have happened. But it did. InvisiBill is the hilariously absurd, tongue-in-cheek story of an ordinary middle child who feels so overlooked by his busy, distracted family that he becomes invisible . . . or InvisiBill!

2017 Silver Birch Fiction Award® Nominated Titles

Heart of a ChampionHeart of a Champion
Written by Ellen Schwartz
Hardcover | 272 Pages | Ages 9-12
ISBN 9781770498808
eBook 9781770498822
Ten-year-old Kenny (Kenji in Japanese) worships his older brother, Mickey (Mitsuo), a baseball hero whose outstanding performance on the Asahi baseball team has given him fame and popularity. Despite Kenny’s suspected heart condition, he is determined to practice secretly with Mickey so he, too, can one day try out for the Asahi.

But world events soon overtake life in this quiet community. When Japan attacks Pearl Harbor in 1941, everything for Kenny and his family spirals out of control: schools are closed, businesses are confiscated, fathers are arrested and sent to work camps in the BC interior and mothers and children are relocated to internment camps. When Mickey is arrested for a small act of violence, Kenny manages to keep his family’s spirits up, despite the deplorable conditions in camp.

Coming across a “vacant” field covered with scrap wood, broken shakes and torn tar paper, Kenny gets permission to clear it and convert it into a baseball field. One by one, the boys in the camp pitch in, and the work gives purpose to their long days. Kenny’s persistence, hard work and big dreams shape the teen he is to become in this story of happiness found despite all odds.

Seven Dead PiratesSeven Dead Pirates
Written by Linda Bailey
Hardcover | 304 Pages | Ages 8-12
ISBN 9781770498150
eBook 9781770498174
Lewis Dearborn is a lonely, anxious, “terminally shy” boy of eleven when his great-grandfather passes away and leaves Lewis’s family with his decaying seaside mansion.

Lewis is initially delighted with his new bedroom, a secluded tower in a remote part of the house. Then he discovers that it’s already occupied – by the ghosts of seven dead pirates. Worse, the ghosts expect him to help them re-take their ship, now restored and on display in a local museum, so they can make their way to Libertalia, a legendary pirate utopia. The only problem is that this motley crew hasn’t left the house in almost two hundred years and is terrified of going outside.

As Lewis warily sets out to assist his new roommates – a raucous, unruly bunch who exhibit a strange delight in thrift-store fashions and a thirst for storybooks – he begins to open himself to the possibilities of friendship, passion and joie de vivre and finds the courage to speak up.

2017 Red Maple Fiction Award™ Nominated Titles

Sea ChangeSea Change
Written and Illustrated by Frank Viva
Hardcover | 120 Pages | Ages 10+
ISBN 9781101918524
One summer can change your whole life. As soon as school lets out, Eliot’s parents send him to the very edge of the world: a fishing village in a remote part of Nova Scotia. And what does the small town of Point Aconi have to offer? Maggots, bullies, and grumpy old men. But along the way, Eliot discovers much more – a hidden library, starry nights, and a mysterious girl named Mary Beth.

Critically acclaimed author and artist Frank Viva (Along a Long Road) brings us this warm, funny, and innovatively designed coming-of-age story. See Point Aconi through Eliot’s eyes, as he finds that this place he never wanted to visit is becoming a home he doesn’t want to leave.

2017 White Pine Award™ Nominated Titles

Fifteen LanesFifteen Lanes
Written by S.J. Laidlaw
Hardcover | 304 Pages | Ages 14+
ISBN 9781101917800
eBook 9781101917824
Noor has lived all of her fourteen years in the fifteen lanes of Mumbai’s red light district. Born into a brothel, she is destined for the same fate as her mother: a desperate life trapped in the city’s sex trade. She must act soon to have any chance of escaping this grim future.

Across the sprawling city, fifteen-year-old Grace enjoys a life of privilege. Her father, the CEO of one of India’s largest international banks, has brought his family to Mumbai where they live in unparalleled luxury. But Grace’s seemingly perfect life is shattered when she becomes a victim of a cruel online attack.
When their paths intersect, Noor and Grace will be changed forever. Can two girls living in vastly different worlds find a common path?

Award-winning author S.J. Laidlaw masterfully weaves together their stories in a way that resonates across class and culture. Fifteen Lanes boldly explores the ties that bind us to places and people, and shows us that the strongest of bonds can be forged when hope is all but lost.

We  can’t wait to cheer on our authors and illustrators at The Festival of Trees™ next year!

#GetBehindPictureBooks

During the past month of April 2016, Penguin Random House Canada got behind Tundra picture books! This all started out as an innocent e-mail linked to the campaign from the Eric Carle Museum. For more information, visit their website here.

We hope this inspires you to get behind picture books, don’t forget to use the hashtag #GetBehindPictureBooks and share it with us too!

Indigo’s Best Books of 2015 for Kids and Teens

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Indigo shared their best books of 2015 for kids and teens on the weekend and we are thrilled to see our titles on these lists. Congratulations to our talented and hardworking authors and illustrators!

Best Kids’ Books of 2015 | Ages 3 to 5

This Is SadieThis Is Sadie
Written by Sara O’Leary
Illustrated by Julie Morstad
Hardcover | 32 Pages | Ages 3-7
ISBN: 978-1-77049-532-6
Sadie is a little girl with a big imagination. She has been a girl who lived under the sea and a boy raised by wolves. She has had adventures in wonderland and visited the world of fairytales. But more than anything Sadie likes stories, because you can make them from nothing at all. For Sadie, the world is so full of wonderful possibilities … This is Sadie, and this is her story

The Good Little BookThe Good Little Book
Written by Kyo Maclear
Illustrated by Marion Arbona
Hardcover | 32 Pages | Ages 5-9
ISBN: 978-1-77049-451-0
While banished to a dusty study one day “to think things over”, a boy pulls a book off a shelf and with great reluctance begins to read. As the afternoon passes, the story nabs him and carries him away. Before long, this good little book becomes his loyal companion, accompanying him everywhere … until, one day, the book is lost. Will this bad little boy get back his good little book?

Bug in a VacuumBug in a Vacuum
Written by Mélanie Watt
Hardcover | 96 Pages | Ages 5-9
ISBN: 978-1-77049-645-3
A bug flies through an open door into a house, through a bathroom, across a kitchen and bedroom and into a living room … where its entire life changes with the switch of a button. Sucked into the void of a vacuum bag, this one little bug moves through denial, bargaining, anger, despair and eventually acceptance – the five stages of grief – as it comes to terms with its fate. Will there be a light at the end of the tunnel?

Outstanding in the RainOutstanding in the Rain
Written by Frank Viva
Hardcover | 32 Pages | Ages 3-7
ISBN: 978-1-101-91768-8
Step right up! Step right up to the amusing amusement park! It’s a whole story, and the pages have holes! Watch the holes make pictures! Frank Viva’s tale of a boy spending his birthday at the amusement park will amaze readers big and small with astounding die-cuts that transform both words and pictures in delightful ways.

InvisiBillInvisiBill
Written by Maureen Fergus
Illustrated by Dušan Petričić
Hardcover | 40 Pages | Ages 5-9
ISBN: 978-1-77049-613-2
InvisiBill is the hilariously absurd, tongue-in-cheek story of an ordinary middle child who feels so overlooked by his busy, distracted family that he becomes invisible … or InvisiBill!

Snow White and the 77 DwarfsSnow White and the 77 Dwarfs
Written by Davide Cali
Illustrated by Raphaëlle Barbanègre
Hardcover | 32 Pages | Ages 3-7
ISBN: 978-1-77049-763-4
Snow White is on the run from an evil witch when she comes across some dwarfs in the forest. They agree to take her in and keep her safe if she will help them with their chores. She soon realizes she’s taking on a lot more than she bargained for. 77 breakfasts to make, 77 lunches to pack (don’t forget the juice boxes!), 77 pairs of pants to mend and a whole lot of dishes. This is a hilarious retelling of the classic tale, with bright, energetic illustrations featuring busy dwarfs, and the even busier Snow White.

IndigoLights

Best Kids’ Books of 2015 | Ages 6 to 8

The Adventures of Miss PetitfourThe Adventures of Miss Petitfour
Written by Anne Michaels
Illustrated by Emma Block
Hardcover | 144 Pages | Ages 6-9
ISBN: 978-1-77049-500-5
Miss Petitfour enjoys having adventures that are “just the right size – fitting into a single, magical day.” She is an expert at baking and eating fancy iced cakes, and her favorite mode of travel is par avion. Join Miss Petitfour and her equally eccentric felines on five magical outings – a search for marmalade, to a spring jumble sale, on a quest for “birthday cheddar”, the retrieval of a lost rare stamp and as they compete in the village’s annual Festooning Festival. A whimsical, beautifully illustrated collection of tales that celebrates language, storytelling and small pleasures, especially the edible kind!

IndigoLights

Best Kids’ Books of 2015 | Ages 9 to 12

Seven Dead PiratesSeven Dead Pirates
Written by Linda Bailey
Hardcover | 304 Pages | Ages 8-12
ISBN: 978-1-77049-815-0
Lewis Dearborn is a lonely, anxious, “terminally shy” boy of eleven when his great-grandfather passes away and leaves Lewis’s family with his decaying seaside mansion. Lewis is initially delighted with his new bedroom, a secluded tower in a remote part of the house. Then he discovers that it’s already occupied – by the ghosts of seven dead pirates. Worse, the ghosts expect him to help them re-take their ship, now restored and on display in a local museum, so they can make their way to Libertalia, a legendary pirate utopia. The only problem is that this motley crew hasn’t left the house in almost two hundred years and is terrified of going outside. As Lewis warily sets out to assist his new roommates – a raucous, unruly bunch who exhibit a strange delight in thrift-store fashions and a thirst for storybooks – he begins to open himself to the possibilities of friendship, passion and joie de vivre and finds the courage to speak up.

Finalists for the 2015 Governor General’s Literary Awards

Each year, the Canada Council for the Arts honours the best books in Canadian literature with the Governor General’s Literary Awards. This year, we have four finalists in Children’s Literature, two in text and two in illustrations. Huge congratulations to our authors and illustrators!

Children’s Literature – Text

Audrey-cowAudrey (cow)
Written by Dan Bar-el
Illustrated by Tatjana Mai-Wyss
Hardcover | 240 Pages | Ages 7-10
ISBN: 978-1-77049-602-6
eBook: 978-1-77049-604-0
Animal Farm meets The Great Escape…. The result is purely delightful, as are Tatjana Mai-Wyss’s appropriately vintage-looking spot illustrations. The short first-person passages help move the story along, ending with a comedy-of-errors that culminates in Audrey happily living out her days at an animal sanctuary. Bar-el manages to gently and thoughtfully introduce kids to the concept of the abattoir while also underscoring that a farm’s very purpose is producing food. At its heart, Audrey (cow) encourages kids to think even as it entertains – the mark of wonderful children’s literature.” – Starred Review, Quill & Quire

We Are All Made of MoleculesWe Are All Made of Molecules
Written by Susin Nielsen
Hardcover | 256 Pages | Ages 12 and up
ISBN: 978-1-77049-779-5
eBook: 978-1-77049-781-8
“Drama, humour, poignancy, and suspense are rarely found in such perfect proportions as in Governor General’s Literary Award–winner Susin Nielsen’s new novel about a teen odd couple forced together in a blended family situation…We Are All Made of Molecules is chockablock with timely and weighty issues, yet it feels feather-light thanks in large part to some truly funny writing. Teens will be so busy turning pages they won’t even realize they’re thinking. This is stellar, top-notch stuff.” – Starred Review, Quill & Quire

Congratulations to the other finalists in this category: Darren Groth for Are You Seeing Me?, Caroline Pignat for The Gospel Truth, and Emil Sher for Young Man with Camera.

Children’s Literature – Illustrated Books

The Good Little BookThe Good Little Book
Written by Kyo Maclear
Illustrated by Marion Arbona
Hardcover | 40 Pages | Ages 5-9
ISBN: 978-1-77049-451-0
“Maclear steers clear of ‘reading is good for you’ and focuses instead on a boy’s affection for a dearly loved object and sorrow at its loss. But with the affection is something more subtle, a celebration of the comfort of rereading, of having a favourite book that’s the only book for you. And Arbona’s art works well at aiding and abetting that play of imagination and feeling. Cockeyed perspectives, vivid colours and comic, surreal scenes show how dynamic, how animated, the love for a favourite story can be. Funny and thoughtful.” – The Toronto Star

Bug in a VacuumBug in a Vacuum
Written by Mélanie Watt
Hardcover | 96 Pages | Ages 5-9
ISBN: 978-1-77049-645-3
“In a story heady and intellectually ambitious enough for a jaded adult, yet suited to a child’s down-to-earth appetites, a wide-eyed fly gets vacuumed up. Trapped, it goes through the five stages of grief … each first depicted by Watt as a funny retro product like bug spray…. There’s a journey, yes, into the light, but it’s a happy ending that may just prompt sheer joy at the simple fact of being alive.” – The New York Times

Congratulations to the other finalists in this category: Andy Jones and Darka Erdelji for Jack, the King of Ashes, JonArno Lawson and Sydney Smith for Sidewalk Flowers, and John Martz for A Cat Named Tim and Other Stories.

Go online to discover the year’s best books and their authors, illustrators and translators, on the new interactive GG website. Follow the conversation on Twitter through @CanadaCouncil and by using the hashtag #GGbooks. Like the GGs on Facebook for all the latest updates.

The winners of the 2015 Governor General Literary Awards will be announced on Wednesday, October 28 at 6:30 am.