Manitoba Young Readers' Choice Awards 2013 Nominees announced

The Manitoba School Library Association marked the International Year of Literacy, 1990, with the implementation of a literacy program aimed at promoting literacy for children of ages 10 to 14 years of age.

The Manitoba Young Readers' Choice Awards (MYRCA) program presents 15 to 18 Canadian novels written in English for the targeted young readers.  Those young people who have read or heard a minimum of 3 nominated titles vote for their favourite title in April.  The winning title and honour books are announced in May and celebrated at an awards ceremony in October.

This week's press release which announced the winners for 2012 also announced the shortlist of nominated titles for the 2013 MYRCA.  Congratulations to the authors and publishers of these eighteen nominees:

Against All Odds 
by Natale Ghent
HarperCollins
227 pp.
Ages 8-12

The Bedmas Conspiracy 

by Deborah Sherman

Fitzhenry & Whiteside

172 pp.

Ages 8-11

Blood Red Road 
by Moira Young
Doubleday
459 pp.
Ages 14+ 

Box of Shocks

by Chris McMahen
Orca
160 pp.
Ages 9-12

The Case of the Missing Deed
by Ellen Schwartz
Tundra
189 pp.
Ages 8-12

Dragon Seer's Gift 

by Janet McNaughton
HarperCollins
282 pp.
Ages 10+ 

The Dragon Turn: The Boy Sherlock Holmes, His 5th Case
by Shane Peacock
Tundra
220 pp.
Ages 10-14

Encore Edie 

by Annabel Lyon
Puffin Canada
163 pp.
Ages 9-12

End of Days
by Eric Walters
Doubleday
316 pp.
Ages 10-15

Fly Boy

by Eric Walters
Puffin Canada
192 pp.
Ages 8-12

Ice Storm (Disaster Strikes #6)
by Penny Draper
Coteau Books
198 pp.
Ages 9-13

Peter Nimble and His Fantastic Eyes

by Jonathan Auxier
Puffin Canada
381 pp.
Ages 10-13

This Dark Endeavour: The Apprenticeship of Victor Frankenstein
by Kenneth Oppel
HarperCollins
298 pp.
Ages 12+

The Tiffin

by Mahtab Narsimhan
Dancing Cat Books
190 pp.
Ages 9-12

Timber Wolf
by Caroline Pignat
Red Deer Press
206 pp.
Ages 11-14

True Blue

by Deborah Ellis
Pajama Press
229 pp.
Ages 11-14

Undergrounders
by David Skuy
Scholastic Canada
194 pp.
Ages 11-14

Witchlanders

by Lena Coakley
Atheneum Books for Young Readers
416 pp.
Ages 12+ 

Ruth and Sylvia Schwartz Children's Book Awards 2012 Short Lists announced!

Today, the Ontario Arts Foundation, on behalf of the Ruth Schwartz Foundation, announced the 2012 short lists for the Ruth and Sylvia Schwartz Children’s Book Awards.

Administered by the Ontario Arts Foundation, the Ruth and Sylvia Schwartz Children’s Book Awards recognize artistic excellence in writing and illustration in English-language Canadian children’s literature. The award was established in 1976 by Sylvia Schwartz in memory of her sister, Ruth Schwartz, a respected Toronto bookseller.  In 2004, the Schwartz family renamed the awards to honour both sisters.

While funded generously by the Ruth Schwartz Foundation ($6000 for each award) and administered by the Ontario Arts Foundation, the awards are selected by two juries of young readers from Parkdale Junior and Senior Public School.  Five students from Grades 2 and 3 select the award-winning book for the Children's Picture Book Award, and five students from Grade 8 select the Young Adult/Middle Reader Book Award recipient.

Here are the titles short-listed for the 2012 Ruth and Sylvia Schwartz Children's Book Awards:

CHILDREN'S PICTURE BOOK CATEGORY

Along a Long Road
by Frank Viva
HarperCollins Canada

Loon
by Susan Vande Griek
Illustrated by Karen Reczuch
Groundwood

Migrant
by Maxine Trottier
Illustrated by Isabelle Arsenault
Groundwood

Picture a Tree
by Barbara Reid
Scholastic Canada

The Vole Brothers
by Roslyn Schwartz
Owlkids Books

 YOUNG ADULT/MIDDLE READER CATEGORY

Blink and Caution
by Tim Wynne-Jones
Candlewick Press

No Ordinary Day
by Deborah Ellis
Groundwood

Scribbling Women: True Tales from Astonishing Lives
by Marthe Jocelyn
Tundra

That Fatal Night: The Titanic Diary of Dorothy Wilton, Halifax, Nova Scotia, 1912
by Sarah Ellis
Scholastic Canada

The Whole Truth
by Kit Pearson
HarperCollins Canada

The 2012 winners will be announced at Toronto’s Parkdale Junior and Senior Public School at 1:00 p.m. on May 31, 2012.

Arthur Ellis 2012 Shortlists announced!

In a series of events nation-wide, the Crime Writers of Canada last night announced the nominated titles for the 2012 Arthur Ellis Awards for Excellence in Canadian Crime Writing. Details about the awards were posted here in January but the award short-lists for books and others writings from 2011 were only announced last night.

Congratulations to the nominated authors in all seven award categories.  On May 31, 2012, some of them will be leaving the Arthur Ellis Awards Banquet in Toronto with their own wooden statuette of a hanging man (whose arms and legs flail when the string is pulled).

As an aside (okay, more like its own paragraph), the origin of the statuette's design has an interesting connection to children's literature.  Children's and YA author, Tim Wynne-Jones, author of Blink and Caution (Candlewick, 2011), recently reviewed here, apparently had a role in its design.  However,  Tim Wynne-Jones, who became an officer of the Order of Canada in December of 2011, humbly explains his role in this note on the Crime Writers of Canada website.

A note on Arthur by Tim Wynne-Jones

I'm happy to clarify Arthur's history. It was my job to head the committee, as Tony said. And my big contribution, as far as I'm concerned, was in realizing that a book prize is kind of a stage prop. The darn thing should look good in somebody's hands as well as on their mantel. So I thought to go to a stage designer, Peter Blais, who happened also to be a wonderful actor, and who happened to be someone I had acted with and knew to have a wicked sense of humour. He got it! He understood what I was trying to say and came up with the jumping jack. So Peter very much deserves the kudos for Arthur and I'm just pleased to have got him on board. It's the best prize around, as far as I'm concerned. I'm lucky enough to have won one and also to have won an Edgar and Arthur beats Edgar all to heck!  (Retrieved from http://www.crimewriterscanada.com/awards/arthur-ellis-awards/history on April 19, 2012.)

Now, back to the shortlists.

Here are the titles and authors nominated for the  2012 Arthur Ellis Award for Best Juvenile/Young Adult Crime Book:

Blink and Caution 
by Tim Wynne-Jones
Candlewick

Charlie's Key
by Rob Mills
Orca Books

Empire of Ruins: The Hunchback Assignments III

by Arthur Slade
HarperCollins Canada

Held

by Edeet Ravel
Annick Press

Missing
by Becky Citra
Orca Books

 We look forward to the announcement of winners at the end of May.

Special thanks to Bill Selnes at Mysteries and More from Saskatchewan (you can get all shortlists here) and tweeps @evacmo and @barbhowson for the scoops.

Governor-General Literary Awards 2011 Announced

On October 6, 2011, the Canada Council for the Arts announced the finalists for the 75th Governor-General Literary Awards.  Below are the nominees for the two children's literature awards:

Children’s Literature: Text

• Jan L. Coates, A Hare in the Elephant’s Trunk (Red Deer Press)
• Deborah Ellis, No Ordinary Day (Groundwood Books)
• Christopher Moore, From Then to Now: A Short History of the World (Tundra Books)
• Kenneth Oppel, This Dark Endeavour (HarperCollins Canada)
• Tim Wynne-Jones, Blink & Caution (Candlewick Press)

Children’s Literature: Illustration

• Isabelle Arsenault, Migrant; text by Maxine Trottier (Groundwood Books)
• Kim La Fave, Fishing with Gubby; text by Gary Kent (Harbour Publishing)
• Renata Liwska, Red Wagon; text by Renata Liwska (Philomel Books/Penguin)
• Frank Viva, Along a Long Road; text by Frank Viva (HarperCollins Canada)
• Cybèle Young, Ten Birds; text by Cybèle Young (Kids Can Press)