2024 Lane Anderson Award: Shortlists for Canadian science books

This fall, the finalists for the Lane Anderson Award, a book award that celebrates excellence in Canadian science writing, were announced. The Lane Anderson Award, created and sponsored by the Fitzhenry Family Foundation, is given in two categories, one for adults and the other for young readers. Each winner receives a generous $10,000.

 

The basic criteria for submissions are the following: 

• The author must be a Canadian citizen or permanent resident of Canada.
• The book must be published by a Canadian-owned publishing house, have an ISBN, and be available for sale in bookstores in Canada.
• All entries must be published in English between January 1st, 2023 and December 31st, 2023. 
  

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This year, the 2024 Lane Anderson Award Ceremony will be a free event and open to the public though you must register for a ticket through Eventbrite at https://www.eventbrite.com/e/the-lane-anderson-award-ceremony-tickets-1111735323279

Date:        Wednesday, January 29, 2025 

Time:        7-10 PM

Location:  Concourse Event Space, North York Central Library

                   5120 Yonge Street 

                   Toronto, ON 

                   M2N 5N9

 

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Congratulations to this year's finalists 

in the Young Reader category

 

Bompa’s Insect Expedition

Written by David Suzuki with Tanya Lloyd Kyi

Illustrated by Qin Leng

Greystone Kids

48 pp.

Ages 4-8

2023

 

Operation Cupcake: How Simple Machines Work
Written and illustrated by Bambi Edlund

Kids Can Press

44 pp.

Ages 7-10

2023

 

Polar: Wildlife at the Ends of the Earth
Written by L. E. Carmichael
Illustrated by Byron Eggenschwiler 

Kids Can Press

48 pp.

Ages 7-11

2023

The Rez Doctor

Written by Gitz Crazyboy

Illustrated by Veronika Barinova

Coloured by Azby Whitecalf

Lettered by Toben Racicot

HighWater Press

978-1-55379-924-5

64 pp.

Ages 12+

September 2024

Though this is Ryan Fox's story, it is also the story of any Indigenous person who has been disregarded in their health care, undervalued in their education, and an heir to a history of social injustice. It's also the story of those who endure, persevere, challenge, and succeed.

From The Rez Doctor, written by Gitz Crazyboy, illustrated by Veronika Barinova, coloured by Azby Whitecalf, lettered by Toben Racicot

Ryan recalls what it was like going to the walk-in clinic as a child with his mom. From his experiences and those of the other patients seeking medical help, the non-Indigenous doctor finds it easier to condemn their lifestyles and push painkillers on them rather than really try to help. At school, his classmates dream of careers like lawyers and doctors but with teachers who criticize his work, either telling him he isn't working hard enough or not to become conceited because he'd done well, Ryan couldn't imagine himself achieving much.

From The Rez Doctor, written by Gitz Crazyboy, illustrated by Veronika Barinova, coloured by Azby Whitecalf, lettered by Toben Racicot

Thankfully, Ryan finds much comfort in his family and their traditions. Even with an uncle who struggles with alcoholism, Ryan values the support and encouragement he receives. Still, it's a school visit from Dr. Esther Tailfeathers, a former student, who recalled the words of her grandfather that "You always have to prove yourself to your community" that helps Ryan focus on medicine.

Through hard work, Ryan graduates from high school and is admitted to the University of Lethbridge. With new responsibilities come new challenges. He's living away from family, he wants to fit in with his peers, and he's responsible for motivating himself. And while there's good that happens to him, like meeting Charm, Ryan is convinced he's messing everything up. Only his uncle, now at a remand centre, reminds him to not let his chance at a good life slip away. Ryan heeds his sage advice.

The Rez Doctor is an inspiring story of self-empowerment. For Indigenous youth who are faced with prejudice at school and outside of their community, The Rez Doctor reminds them that regardless of their circumstances, like having family with addictions, studying far from home, struggling with finances, and clashing with those who diminish their capabilities–Ryan is encouraged to switch from medicine to geology so he can get a job in the oil fields–they can work hard and try their best to reach their goals. As with all of us, they may not get what they want but they may, as does Ryan, who is able to return to his community and work in a Tribal Clinic making things better for the health of his Indigenous community.

From The Rez Doctor, written by Gitz Crazyboy, illustrated by Veronika Barinova, coloured by Azby Whitecalf, lettered by Toben Racicot

Gitz Crazyboy is a Siksikaitsitapi (Blackfoot) and Dene writer who works as a youth facilitator in Calgary. The story he tells in The Rez Doctor is a literary exemplar to Indigenous youth about what can be. Though Ryan's family shows him wonderful support, encouraging his culture and traditions and his aspirations, he still is responsible for his choices. He has big ones to make, but Gitz Crazyboy has Ryan demonstrate that, even when distracted by good and bad, he steps up.

From The Rez Doctor, written by Gitz Crazyboy, illustrated by Veronika Barinova, coloured by Azby Whitecalf, lettered by Toben Racicot

The realism of Ryan's story is unmistakable, though I don't know if Gitz Crazyboy is telling someone's story. It reads like a creative biography, and the artwork by Veronika Barinova, now also of Calgary, reflects that. Her artwork, coloured by Azby Whitecalf and lettered by Toben Racicot, manifests that realism in the stark clinic examination room, the austere classroom, and the grimness of the remand centre. She also brings joy through Charm and Ryan's relationship, the connections Ryan experiences with family, and the heart that he demonstrates when he returns to serve his community.

It's not necessarily easy or possible to break away from a legacy of prejudice and discrimination. However, Ryan of The Rez Doctor was able to do so, and in doing so he did good for more than himself. He brought compassion and understanding and true service to his community that could only bring more goodness and success for all.

The Inside Scouts Help the Strong Cheetah

Written by Mitali Banerjee Ruths

Illustrated by Francesca Mahaney

Acorn (Scholastic)

978-1-338-89504-9

64 pp.

Ages 5-7

October 2024

 

Our intrepid inside-the-body explorers from The Inside Scouts Help the Kind Lion and The Inside Scouts Help the Brave Giraffe are back to help another animal with a body ailment.

From The Inside Scouts Help the Strong Cheetah, written by Mitali Banerjee Ruths, illustrated by Francesca Mahaney

Sanjay and Viv, the children who can shrink down and go inside animals to help them feel better, discover that the cheetah has a leg cramp. Explaining it as a muscle that is stuck and will not relax, the two grab their gear and head out to meet Zora the cheetah. Zora explains how she'd been running when her leg started to hurt, and she had to stop. (This may be familiar to many young readers.) They carry her to their Care Lab and head inside Zora for a "little poke."

From The Inside Scouts Help the Strong Cheetah, written by Mitali Banerjee Ruths, illustrated by Francesca Mahaney

Inside Zora, Sanjay and Viv pass through the fur, the skin and into the muscle, all appropriately depicted. The kids reach the muscle, described as made of bigger and smaller ropes and surrounded by a sleeve (connective tissue), and locate where the ropes are bunched up i.e., the cramp. With the help of a few nifty tools, they repair the muscle and head out. As a pain-free Zora returns to the wild, they advise her to rest, and stay hydrated.

From The Inside Scouts Help the Strong Cheetah, written by Mitali Banerjee Ruths, illustrated by Francesca Mahaney

With a couple of information pages called "Fun Facts about Muscles," describing how muscles work in our bodies, including the use of terms like skeletal muscles, fibers and connective tissue, Mitali Banerjee Ruths informs while telling a sweet story about kids who help others. She's got a great blend of animals, kids, compassion and STEM to make the Inside Scouts a valuable and charming addition to Acorn's early reader books. And by focusing on an injury or ailment that any child might experience, some common and others less so, Mitali Banerjee Ruths's Inside Scouts will help kids understand and be comforted.

From The Inside Scouts Help the Strong Cheetah, written by Mitali Banerjee Ruths, illustrated by Francesca Mahaney

The illustrations by New England's Francesca Mahaney have the right chemistry of biology and art. She keeps her shapes bold and distinct and surprisingly defined as necessary for a book that looks at the body structures. As a primer for health and the body, The Inside Scouts Help the Strong Cheetah shows the strong collaboration between Francesca Mahaney's art and the story of Mitali Banerjee Ruths, working like the body itself: distinct parts supporting and integrating.

 

I don't know if there will be more books in the series but, with plenty of injuries and body functions to delve into, the Inside Scouts would have heaps of helping to do. And by helping an assortment of animals, Sanjay and Viv are helping young children understand their own bodies and what can go wrong without taking them into circumstances like hospitals and doctors' offices which have the potential to cause anxiety. With these characters just trying to do good and using fabulous tech to do it, children get a playful but informative look at their own bodies.

 

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The Inside Scouts Help the Kind Lion (2024)

The Inside Scouts Help the Brave Giraffe (2024)

The Inside Scouts Help the Strong Cheetah (2024)

Mad at Dad

Written and illustrated by Janie Hao

Kids Can Press

978-1-5253-1026-3

32 pp.

Ages 2-6

October 2024 

What gets this child riled up? It's her dad who is just being a dad, trying to get her to eat her vegetables so he can tidy up the dishes. But when she gets this big feeling, she has an arsenal of strategies to get her out of it.

From Mad at Dad, written and illustrated by Janie Hao

She tries a host of activities to get her out it her anger. She talks it out with her stuffies, she counts, she draws, and she does cartwheels. She tries quiet activities that might not be so, and energy-burning ones that might help her let go of her annoyance at her father. She might not like being mad but it's an emotion that's hard to let go of. 

From Mad at Dad, written and illustrated by Janie Hao

With time, that anger transforms into sadness, probably from the exhaustion of those big feelings, and her dad, the original source of her ire, is there to help her through.

From Mad at Dad, written and illustrated by Janie Hao

Like the emotions the child is feeling, bigger than just being displeased, Mad at Dad is larger than its 9" x 9" format. Mad at Dad is an interactive picture book that allows the reader to fold-out pages that allow for immense four-page spreads that are equal to the size of her emotions. Not only will young readers get the full force of her wrath, depicted with furrowed brows and a clenched jaw–when she's not releasing outraged squiggles from her expressive mouth–they'll see the bigness of those feelings in the slams and the shouts and the cries. Janie Hao, a Sheridan College grad of illustration, gives the full range of anger in her character's fury, using colours of red and yellow, black and orange. It's not until the child is wearing herself out and crashing under a comforter in the dark that the tones become primarily blue. Fortunately, her dad also brings the light and colour with him. 

From Mad at Dad, written and illustrated by Janie Hao

Janie Hao's digitally-rendered artwork relays the full scope of this rollercoaster of a father-daughter relationship but also the changes that happen as the child attempts to calm herself with strategies readers' own parents and teachers might have taught them. It'll be refreshing for young children to see that not everything works and that they just need to try something different. And even if nothing works, time will heal and remind them that the big deal that started the anger does not have to remain a big deal and being mad at dad doesn't have to be a permanent state. In fact, it might be the very thing that reminds them of the love that exists between a parent and child regardless of tough moments.

An Unbalanced Force

Written by Valerie Sherrard

DCB 

978-1-77086-764-2

200 pp.

Ages 12+

November 2024

 

When your family gives you everything, from a comfortable lifestyle and money to support and love, it's not unusual to feel beholding to them, even if they don't make you feel like it's a transactional relationship. (Sadly, there are families that do this.) But imagine if you owe your life to a dad who saved you when you'd snuck into an abandoned house and were bleeding out from an injury? Would you feel indebted forever? Or would there be a point where doing the right thing would feel like the wrong thing?

Seventeen-year-old Ethan Granger has a pretty nice life. He and his parents live in a gated community in Ottawa near enough to the Gatineau that he can take his trail bike there regularly. He just got a new bike, and his parents are talking about taking him to do the Inca Trail in Peru. His dad who became rich with his company, The Granger Group, is generous with his cash, especially whenever he goes on a business trip, which is frequently. Part of Ethan's circle include his best friend, Owen, who enjoys getting away from his alcoholic mother by hanging at Ethan's, and Ethan's girlfriend Nora with whom he often has an on-again-off-again relationship.

When he sees his dad in a parking lot near a strip mall in town when he's supposed to be on a trip, Ethan has questions, even more so when he texts his dad and his dad claims he's just getting off his flight. Recalling an earlier incident in which Mom claims to have seen someone driving Dad's car when he was out of town, Ethan decides to hire a private investigator to check things out. Ethan knows his dad is a smooth talker and a great storyteller but is he really a liar? Ms. Abboud, the investigator, reminds Ethan that, "It's important to realize that whatever you find out, it's going to be something you'll carry for the rest of your days." (pg. 36)

 

Working with Ms. Abboud and his friends, Ethan discovers where Dad is spending time during his supposed business trips, and what Ethan learns puts him in an uncomfortable position. Does he stand by his father, a man who'd saved his life, or does he go to the police? Does he jeopardize all he and his family have or consider the needs of others?

Being a teen is often a balancing act of following the rules of the adults in your life–parents, teachers, coaches, guardians–and your own inclinations, whether for interests, friends, ambitions or just independence. And even though Ethan is fortunate that he comes from a wealthy family in which his wants are rarely limited, Valerie Sherrard gives us a typical teen who looks for support in his peer group, and who wants to have a good relationship with his family and girlfriend. He's also honest with himself, seeing things he doesn't like, whether in the way Nora treats him, in his father's lies, or in his own responses to disappointment and confusion. He's a teen and he's an insightful one.

Valerie Sherrard, who was recently named the 2024 Literary Arts Laureate of the New Brunswick Lieutenant Governor’s Award for High Achievement in the Arts, is an accomplished writer of all genres, from picture books and middle grade novels to YA and non-fiction. (See a few of my reviews of some of her books, including A Bend in the Breeze, Counting Back from Nine, Standing on Neptune, Driftwood, Random Acts, and Rain Shadow, to see the range of her writing.) While she can write everything from funny to angsty, novels in free verse to information texts, I think Valerie Sherrard excels at realistic YA in which young people are challenged by ordinary feelings in perhaps uncommon circumstances. In An Unbalanced Force, Ethan is challenged with doing what's right which may be at odds with what his family might want. His choice could also impact others around him. Perhaps the circumstances are exceptional but his reactions, from confusion to disappointment and even rage, are all legit, as are the means by which he decides upon his response.

With the overload of decisions which young people must make before reaching adulthood, with respect to their careers, their relationships, and even the risks they take, it's reassuring to know that, even when given circumstances beyond their control, like Owen's alcoholic mother and Ethan's deceitful father, they can see different perspectives and make good choices for themselves. Best of all, they can remain open to possibilities and stay confident in their choices, regardless of what others may toss at them.

One Hen and Then: The Story of a Small Loan and a Big Dream (Citizen Kid)

Written by Katie Smith Milway with Mary Beth Leatherdale

Illustrated by Tequitia Andrews

Kids Can Press

978-1-5253-1126-0

40 pp.

Ages 5-8

September 2024 

For those running around buying, buying, buying for the holidays, I would like you to consider how a very small gift can make a large difference. Kojo's story, first told in One Hen: How One Small Loan Made a Big Difference (2008), was inspired by the experiences of Ghana's Kwabena Darko, and now in One Hen and Then, that difference is felt throughout his community.

From One Hen and Then, written by Katie Smith Milway with Mary Beth Leatherdale, illustrated by Tequitia Andrews

When his mother takes a loan for a used sewing machine, she lends Kojo the leftover coins. He buys a white hen. When the hen lays eggs, he sells them and pays back his mother. He also buys more hens. More hens means more eggs and consequently more money. 

Kojo does not waste his money. He pays for his school fees and uniform, gets new glasses, and studies hard to learn more about everything, eventually getting to college.

From One Hen and Then, written by Katie Smith Milway with Mary Beth Leatherdale, illustrated by Tequitia Andrews

His studies at college lead him to own a poultry farm, using his money to buy land and build coops. When he wants to buy hundreds of chickens, he convinces a reluctant banker to give him a loan based on his prior successes. That helps Kojo hire helpers which allows him to be more successful and expand sales. But Kojo does not just want to build a business, he wants to build his community. And so, with more workers who earn money, they too can buy their own hens and send their children to school. With each gain, Kojo finds a way to pay it forward with his workers, including offering loans to others with the condition that they too would help others out.

From One Hen and Then, written by Katie Smith Milway with Mary Beth Leatherdale, illustrated by Tequitia Andrews

Because I know if you give someone a chance to follow their dreams, bit by bit the lives of everyone in their family, community and even the country will get better.

Microfinance programs, even an informal one such as Kojo's, inspire communities to raise themselves up and support a variety of endeavours. Katie Smith Milway and Mary Beth Leatherdale have taken a true story about one boy who started with very little and worked tirelessly and cleverly with others to build on his successes and help others do the same. It is a story of entrepreneurship but also generosity and hard work. Like Kojo, the book is told with kindness and encouragement, and Katie Smith Milway and Mary Beth Leatherdale's text is complemented by the digital artwork of Tequitia Andrews of Virginia. The illustrations reflect a Ghana of street vendors and villages and varied nature scapes. There is as much life and range in the landscapes as there is the endeavours of the people.

From One Hen and Then, written by Katie Smith Milway with Mary Beth Leatherdale, illustrated by Tequitia Andrews

As you consider buying yet another new piece of tech for a gift or how much to spend on a beloved family member, think about the impact a small gift might have on one who demands little but who is willing to work to make something of that gift and, even better, to pay it forward so that others may succeed. It's always a win when we encourage microfinance programs whether here in Canada or internationally and when we show kindness, including through serial reciprocity.

Marvellous Munsch!: A Robert Munsch Collection

Written by Robert Munsch

Illustrated by Michael Martchenko

Scholastic Canada

978-1-0397-0696-5

184 pp.

Ages 3-8

August 2024 

What's better than a Robert Munsch-Michael Marchenko picture book? Six! In Marvellous Munsch!, young readers are treated to a hard cover collection of six fabulous stories by Robert Munsch, illustrated by Michael Marchenko. So instead of trying to decide which picture book to give them for Christmas, get Marvellous Munsch! for an assortment of wild tales about ice fishing, wildlife, getting muddy, story writing and consumerism. And all stupendously ridiculous!

 

The six stories in Marvellous Munsch! are, in the order of their presentation:  Give Me Back My Dad!, Down the Drain!, Moose!, Put Me In a Book!, Too Much Stuff! and Hugs.

In Give Me Back My Dad! a father and daughter have the tables turned on them while ice fishing. As with each story, Robert Munsch also describes how he came to write the story.

From "Give Me Back My Dad!" in Marvellous Munsch!, written by Robert Munsch, illustrated by Michael Marchenko

In Down the Drain!, a fiasco in the bathtub becomes a dangerous but funny game of blackmail as water spills out and about and threatens everything. In Moose!, a moose comes to visit, and Luke has some difficulties getting his family to believe him. (Robert Munsch's note about the story has some interesting variations of the story he tells.) Put Me in a Book! focuses on a girl whose wish to become part of a book becomes a humourous reality but not how she expected.

 

At this time of year, Too Much Stuff! would seem a cautionary tale about consumerism but more about packing for air travel and how everything that seems necessary and can't-live-without may have happy consequences. Finally, Hugs! is exactly as it suggests: a story about a child who takes hugs from a variety of animals, all distinct but perhaps a little bizarre. (A porcupine? A skunk? A snail?)
 

Robert Munsch's stories have never failed to charm with the diversity of his characters, the circumstances of their outrageous situations, and their emphatic and repetitive vocalizations, like "Swish! Swish! Swish! Swish! Swish!" in Down the Drain and Cheryl jigging her line "up and down and up and down and up and down and up and down" in Give Me Back My Dad! There's a reason he's a favourite of children around the world and Marvellous Munsch! reminds us of the wonderful medley of stories that he has told.

From "Give Me Back My Dad!" in Marvellous Munsch!, written by Robert Munsch, illustrated by Michael Marchenko

While kids, either those remembering stories told decades ago or new audience or readers to Robert Munsch's stories, will be enthralled with the laughs and the silliness, they'll recognize the art of Munsch's long-time collaborator Michael Marchenko. Though Robert Munsch has worked with other amazing illustrators, including Dave Whammond, Mike Boldt, Janet Wilson, Dušan Petričić and Jay Odjick, Michael Marchenko is the artist whose work is quintessential for Robert Munsch stories. He gets the goofiness of the stories in the scale of the circumstances, the shock and animation seen in characters' faces, and the liveliness of their stories. Michael Marchenko matches Robert Munsch's word for art and never gives us pause. And there's a telling note about their collaborative process at the of Marvellous Munsch!

From Marvellous Munsch!, written by Robert Munsch, illustrated by Michael Marchenko

If you know little ones who haven't been introduced to Robert Munsch and Michael Martchenko's books–is that possible?–then they're in for a treat with Marvellous Munsch! It's the book that keeps on giving, with six tales to make them laugh at the ridiculous and the familiar. And if they already know of this dynamic youngCanLit duo, then there will be more reading and laughter in their future, whether for bedtime reads or Christmas tree snuggles.

The First Ones on the Ice

Written by Lana Button

Illustrated by Alex MacAskill

Nimbus Publishing

978-1-77471-305-1

32 pp.

Ages 3-7

November 2024

 

With many parts of Canada having had their first snowfall, there will be many looking forward to frozen lakes and rivers as well as outdoor rinks, whether in a yard or a park, to get their skating and hockey seasons started. And they'll think about being the first ones on the ice.

From The First Ones on the Ice, written by Lana Button, illustrated by Alex MacAskill

This story starts with a brother and sister, bundled in their hats and scarves, boots and coats and mittens, heading out in the predawn, forging a path through fresh snow. There is only a snowplow on the road and wildlife and a lot of snow. They carry their skates and hockey sticks but also shovels. They know what must be done.

From The First Ones on the Ice, written by Lana Button, illustrated by Alex MacAskill

With shovels to the snow, they clear the ice before the sun is even up, anticipating that others would soon arrive. When done, they skate. Then the others come, kids their age and even older ones that play pro hockey. The sibs skate and play, and cheer and dig pucks out the snow. And when they've headed inside for some hot soup and everyone else follows suit, there's one last special opportunity for enjoying that ice.

From The First Ones on the Ice, written by Lana Button, illustrated by Alex MacAskill

For many children who grew up in Canada or northern environments, first snows and outdoor skating are a hallmark of the onset of the season. Lana Button's story may or may not be based on her own experiences but it's definitely reminiscent of all of ours and those of children in many rural areas where every day would be spent on the ice.  There's no grumbling about the cold or getting up the morning or sharing the ice with others. For these kids, being on the ice was a time of camaraderie and pure joy, and they squeeze out over moment from predawn to after nightfall. It might not be the way it is now, with fears for stranger danger and ice that doesn't stay frozen but Lana Button's story, in addition to taking some of us back to simpler times when we could spend whole days on the ice, reminds us that we are part of communities in which we do for others and we share. But because Lana Button tells the story that has a nostalgic winter theme, the messaging is sweet and never preachy.

From The First Ones on the Ice, written by Lana Button, illustrated by Alex MacAskill

And if Lana Button's story doesn't take you onto the ice and feeling that cold air and the satisfaction of all-day play, then the art of Halifax's Alex MacAskill will definitely do so. From the skies and the snow, this winter landscape is tangible. He gives temperature and texture and life to his illustrations, whether it be a dog slipping on the ice, a child getting stuck in deep snow, or the siblings enjoying hot soup indoors. I could hear the crunch of the snow and slap of a stick on the ice and even the quiet of a landscape newly covered in snow.

My family may not have the amount of snow these kids are living with in The First Ones on the Ice, but we've already had discussions about whether the river here is frozen. (The coyotes suggest it is.) So winter is here, and lakes and rivers and even local outdoor rinks are freezing and readying for young skaters and hockey players to take to the ice. As Lana Button and Alex MacAskill show us, being the first ones, and the last ones, on the ice is something very special.

Good Boy Timmy

Written by Eric Walters

Illustrated by Eugenie Fernandes

DCB Young Readers

978-1-77086-736-9

24 pp.

Ages 3-5

November 2024

 

Who is Timmy the dog? Is he the old dog who is too old to act badly? Or is he the dog who can get into trouble when no one is around?  Or is he the good dog this little girl and her dad believe him to be?

From Good Boy Timmy, written by Eric Walters, illustrated by Eugenie Fernandes

Timmy loves going to the park. He gets to see all the other dogs and the kids at play, but Dad is convinced Timmy loves being at home. So, when they must leave Timmy alone, well provided with food and water, they are convinced he'll be a good boy since, after all, he's too old to misbehave.

From Good Boy Timmy, written by Eric Walters, illustrated by Eugenie Fernandes

Timmy is offended by what he hears, knowing that he is a relative of wild wolves and a descendant of daring dingoes, and he knows how to be rambunctious. He's watched "Animal Planet" on TV! So, Timmy chooses to be Bad Boy Timmy, ripping things apart including the girl's favourite pink sweater, getting into cupboards, and spilling the goldfish bowl. Or does he?

From Good Boy Timmy, written by Eric Walters, illustrated by Eugenie Fernandes

From the text to the illustrations, Good Boy Timmy has a familiar feel to the innocent stories of mid-century primers but with more heart. Instead of the stereotypical characters of those early stories, Eric Walters has given us a family of father and daughter with Timmy and a story about choosing our best behaviours. Just because you can do something doesn't mean you should do it. And by making the behaviour of that of a dog, Eric Walters doesn't judge children who will all experience different and difficult choices in their lives. His story is instead a gentle reminder to choose well even when tempted to do otherwise.

Eugenie Fernandes also illustrated Eric Walters's picture book Today is the Day as well as her own books including When Rabbit Was a Lion and Finding Lucy. She has a light touch, keeping the stories about the characters and their connections to each other. She gives them life and light and a sense of fun. Timmy may be the star of the book, and Eugenie Fernandes makes him an adorable star, but the little girl and dad are just as captivating, especially in their affection for him.

For a charming story that reminds us all why we should make good choices, Good Boy Timmy is the read. It's also a gentle reminder that dogs will be dogs, as is their nature, but even an old dog can remember important lessons learned.

 

It's My Brain!

Written and illustrated by Elise Gravel

North Winds Press (Scholastic Canada)

978-1-0397-1009-2

40 pp.

Ages 6-9

October 2024

 

From the brilliant brain that first brought us lessons about our bodies and how they work comes a fabulous follow-up about the control centre of those bodies. Elise Gravel, known for the quirkiness of her amorphous creatures in books such as It's My Body!, Everybody!, and Killer Underwear Invasion, has brought them back to teach young readers about the brain and its functions. Perfect for our youngest readers who are just learning the basics of the human body, It's My Brain! takes an in-depth but comical look at the brain and what it does for us.

From It's My Brain!, written and illustrated by Elise Gravel

From an introduction in which the brain is described as "big, jellyfish, squishy wods of chewing gum," It's My Brain! covers the basics of the brain's form and function. The text describes how information is collected through our senses, processed and responded upon. It talks of the learning that has to happen for babies. Most importantly, it talks about how, though our brains are essentially the same in what they do, they can work differently.

From It's My Brain!, written and illustrated by Elise Gravel

The spreads that discuss how we learn differently and at different rates are important ones. Readers will undoubtedly appreciate that some people learn through independent work while others prefer socializing to help them learn. Some learn better through play and activity, whereas others learn best through quiet observation. This acknowledgement of the diversity of brains and the positive message to respect these differences are a hallmark of so many of Elise Gravel's illustrated non-fiction books and one that elevates the lessons within from just content to a model of STEM teaching for young children.

From It's My Brain!, written and illustrated by Elise Gravel

But beyond lessons about the human body and how it works, Elise Gravel reminds us that sometimes the brain is challenged and struggles, and that talking to a trusted person, whether it be a parent or teacher, friend or doctor, "can help our brains feel better."

From It's My Brain!, written and illustrated by Elise Gravel

Young kids need to learn about body parts and what they do but It's My Brain! takes anatomy lessons from form and function to ones of sensitivity and appreciation. As always, everyone is included in It's My Brain! whether they be blobs of turquoise, red or gold. It doesn't matter whether they have ears or not, or pickle-shaped bodies or use a wheelchair; they all have brains that work for them and so deserve care.

 

Elise Gravel's colour palette and unique creatures are her trademark and will always get readers excited for a new lesson or story that reminds us that we are human and how to be our best selves. By making connections for kids between what their brains do to help them be and do, Elise Gravel boosts learning about a squishy mass to an appreciation of wonder for the human body and the diversity of its form.

 

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Scholastic Canada provides activities like connect the dots and more for It's My Brain! as well as other Elise Gravel books at https://www.scholastic.ca/books/app/webroot/elise-gravel/.

 

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