The Word On The Street 2013: Kitchener, Toronto, Halifax

In addition to the two western communities promoted earlier, Word On The Street, the annual celebration of literacy and the written word, will take place in Kitchener, Toronto and Halifax. 

Below, I've outlined the basics about the Kitchener, Toronto and Halifax WOTS, including listing of children's and young adult authors and illustrators scheduled to appear.  Check the website of the specific WOTS to determine how each author will participate in Word On The Street. Regardless, the list of youngCanLit authors and illustrators is mind-blowing! I truly hope you are near enough to attend one of these festivals.  Go YoungCanLit!

Kitchener

http://www.thewordonthestreet.ca/wots/kitchener

Date:     Saturday, September 21, 2013

Location:    Kitchener City Hall

YoungCanLit writers/illustrators scheduled:

• Don Calame, YA author of Swim the Fly, Beat the Band and Call the Shots

• Meg Tilly, children's author of A Taste of Heaven and Porcupine

WOTS     WOTS     WOTS     WOTS     WOTS     WOTS

Toronto

http://www.thewordonthestreet.ca/wots/toronto

Date:    Sunday September 22, 2013

Times:    11 am - 6 pm

Location:    Queen's Park Circle

YoungCanLit writers/illustrators scheduled:

• Helaine Becker, children's and middle-grade fiction and non-fiction author of Little Jack Horner Live from the Corner, A Porcupine in a Pine Tree, How to Survive Absolutely Everything, and upcoming Ode to Underwear

• Don Calame, YA author of Swim the Fly, Beat the Band and Call the Shots 

• Scott Chantler, graphic novelist for children and YA including the The Captive Prince and Two Generals

• Megan Crewe, dystopian YA author of The Way We Fall and The Lives We Lost

• Lisa Dalrymple, children's book author of Skink on the Brink and If It's No Trouble...A Big Polar Bear

• Suzanne Del Rizzo, picture book illustrator of Skink on the Brink

• Cary Fagan, children's fiction author of Oy Feh So?, Mr. Zinger's Hat, The Boy in the Box and The Fortress of Kaspar Snit

• Gail Gallant, YA author of upcoming Apparition

• Shauntay Grant, spoken word artist and author of Up Home and The City Speaks in Drums

• Chantel Guertin, adult and YA author of recent The Rule of Thirds

• Nancy Hartry, children's author of Watching Jimmy and new Smokescreen

• Heather Hartt-Sussman, children's picture book author of Here Comes Hortense!, Nana's Summer Surprise, and Noni Says No

• Marthe Jocelyn, picture book, children's and YA fiction and non-fiction author of Where Do You Look?, How It Happened in Peach Hill, Scribbling Women and Would You

• Julie Kraulis, picture book author and illustrator of Whimsy's Heavy Things

• Monica Kulling, children's fiction and non-fiction of Lumpito and the Painter from Spain, Going Up: Elisha Otis's Trip to the Top, Mister Dash and the Cupcake Calamity, and Making Contact: Marconi Goes Wireless

• Daniel Lafrance, illustrator of YA graphic novel War Brothers

• Andrew Larsen, children's picture book author of In The Tree House, Bye Bye Butterflies and The Imaginary Garden

• Loris Lesynski, poet and children's author of Boy Soup, Dirty Dog Boogie and Crazy About Basketball

• Elizabeth MacLeod, children's non-fiction author of A History of Just About Everything, Bones Never Lie: How Forensics Helps Solve History's Mysteries, Royal Murder: The Deadly Intrigue of Ten Sovereigns and Everything But the Kitchen Sink

• Sue MacLeod, poet and YA author of Namesake

• Michael Martchenko, illustrator of numerous Robert Munsch books such as The Paperbag Princess, 50 Below Zero, and upcoming Swamp Water, as well as Allen Morgan books including Matthew's Midnight Adventures

• Maureen McGowan, dystopian YA author of Deviants and Compliance

• Sharon McKay, children's and YA fiction author of War Brothers, Whispers from the Ghettoes, Enemy Territory and Thunder Over Kandahar

• Stephanie McLellan, picture book author of Hoogie in the Middle, Tweezle Into Everything and The Chicken Cat

• Gillian O'Reilley, children's author of non-fiction The Great Number Jumble and Slangalicious

• Ruth Ohi, picture book author and illustrator of new Kenta and the Big Wave, Chicken Pig Cow, Me and My Sister, and The Couch was a Castle

• Shelly Sanders, YA historical fiction author of Rachel's Secret and upcoming Rachel's Promise

• Richard Scarsbrook, YA author of The Monkey Chronicles and upcoming Nothing Man and the Purple Zero

• Eve Silver, YA author of Rush, Book 1 The Game series

• Ted Staunton, children's and YA fiction author of Jump Cut, Acting Up and upcoming Who I'm Not and Ace's Basement

• Patricia Storms, picture book author and illustrator of Never Let You Go and The Pirate and the Penguin

• Suzanne Sutherland, YA author of When We Were Good

• Bill Swan, non-fiction author of Real Justice: Convicted for Being Mi'kmaq: The Story of Donald Marshall Jr., and Real Justice: Fourteen and Sentenced to Death: The Story of Steven Truscott

• Kevin Sylvester, picture book, fiction and non-fiction author and illustrator of Splinters, Game Day, Neil Flambé series, and Sports Hall of Weird 

• Jan Thornhill, picture book and non-fiction author of Who Wants Pizza, I Found a Dead Bird, The Wildlife ABC and new Is This Panama?: A Migration Story

• Meg Tilly, children's author of A Taste of Heaven and Porcupine 

• Teresa Toten, YA author of The Unlikely Hero of Room 13B, The Taming, and Me and the Blondes

• Andrew H. Vanderwal, historical fiction author of new Death of a King and The Battle for Duncragglin

• Frank Viva, children's picture book author and illustrator of Along a Long Road and A Long Way Away

• Elizabeth Wein, YA author of Code Name Verity and new Rose Under Fire

• Elizabeth Wennick, YA author of Whatever Doesn't Kill You and Changing Jareth

• Kari-Lynn Winters, children's fiction and non-fiction author of Gift Days, Buzz about Bees, Jeffrey and the Sloth and upcoming Stinky Skunk Mel

 

WOTS     WOTS     WOTS     WOTS     WOTS     WOTS

Halifax

http://www.thewordonthestreet.ca/wots/halifax

Date:     Sunday September 22, 2013

Time:    11 am - 5 pm

Location:    Halifax waterfront, around the Maritime Museum of the Atlantic

YoungCanLit writers/illustrators scheduled:

• Laura Best, children's author of Bitter Sweet and Flying With a Broken Wing

• Lesley Choyce, YA author of Reckless, Crash, Breaking Point and new Jeremy Stone

• Jan Coates, children's fiction author of  The Power of Harmony and A Hare in the Elephant's Trunk

• Charles DeLint, YA author of Eyes Like Leaves, Under My Skin and newest Over My Head

• Sam Fisher, children's author of Scare Scape

• Darren Hynes, YA author of Creeps

• Kat Kruger, YA and adult author of The Night Has Teeth and The Night Has Claws

• Hugh R. MacDonald, author of Trapper Boy

• Jill MacLean, children's and YA author of upcoming The Hidden World of Sigrid Sugden and Nix Minus One

• Jo Ann Yhard, historical fiction author of Buried Secrets at Louisbourg, The Fossil Hunter of Sydney Mines and Lost of Brier Island

 

WOTS     WOTS     WOTS     WOTS     WOTS     WOTS

If there are any errors in this posting, they are completely my own. Please check the Word On The Street websites provided to confirm details.

The Word On The Street 2013: Lethbridge and Saskatoon

Across Canada, five communities are planning their WOTS days.  If you see "WOTS" in Twitter, Twitterers are talking about Word On The Street, an annual celebration of literacy and the written word.  Usually held in late September, readers and writers come together to share their love of books and magazines, participate in workshops, readings, and check out the CanLit book buyer's nirvana of marketplaces. 

Details about WOTS in Lethbridge and Saskatoon follow here, and youngCanLit authors who are scheduled to attend.  I'll post about the other three WOTS directly.

Lethbridge
http://www.thewordonthestreet.ca/wots/lethbridge 

Date:   Sunday September 22, 2013
Time:   11 am - 5 pm
Location:  Main Library at 5th Ave. S. and 8th St. S.

YoungCanLit writers/illustrators scheduled:

• Robert Heidbreder, poet and children's author of Drumheller Dinosaur Dance, Noisy Poems for a Busy Day and new Black and Bittern was the Night

• Celia Barker Lottridge, children's author of Home is Beyond the Mountains, One Watermelon Seed, and Ticket to Curlew

• Norah McClintock, YA mystery author of My Side, Close to the Heel, Robyn Hunter Mystery series, and Chloé and Levesque Mystery series

 

 

WOTS     WOTS     WOTS     WOTS     WOTS     WOTS

Saskatoon
http://www.thewordonthestreet.ca/wots/saskatoon

Date:    Sunday September 22, 2013
Time:    11 am - 5 pm
Location:    Civic Square around City Hall, In front of Frances Morrison Library

YoungCanLit writers/illustrators scheduled:

• Beverley Brenna, children's and YA author of The White Bicycle, Waiting for No One, The Moon Children and upcoming The Bug House Family Restaurant

• Sigmund Brouwer, children's and YA author of Dead Man's Switch, Devil's Pass, and Justine McKeen series

• Alice Kuipers, YA author of 40 Things I Want to Tell You and The Worst Thing She Ever Did

• Lesley Livingston, YA fantasy author of Descendant, Starling, Every Never After, and Wondrous Strange

• Sylvia McNicoll, children's and YA author of Dying to Go Viral, Crush Candy Corpse, and A Different Kind of Beauty

• Gail Sidonie Sobat, YA author of Not With a Bang, Chance to Dance For You, and Gravity Journal

• Lois Simmie, children's and adult author of Mister Got To Go: The Cat That Wouldn't Leave, Mister Got To Go and Arnie, and Mister Got To Go Where Are You?

• Arthur Slade, children's and YA author of the Hunchback Assignments series, Dust, and Megiddo's Shadow

• Ashley Spires, graphic novelist, children's author and illustrator of Binky the Space Cat series, Larf and Small Saul

• Brian Trainor, author of Bully 4 U and Stop Fraud 

• Larry Warwaruk, adult and children's author of Brovko's Amazing Journey and Andrei and the Snow Walker

WOTS     WOTS     WOTS     WOTS     WOTS     WOTS

If there are any errors in this posting, they are completely my own. Please check the Word On The Street websites provided to confirm details.

The Man with the Violin

Written by Kathy Stinson
Illustrated by Dušan Petričić
Annick Press
978-1-55451-565-3
32 pp.
Ages 5-8
August 2013

When Kathy Stinson coupled the story of world-famous violinist Joshua Bell's playing incognito in a Washington subway station with illustrator Dušan Petričić's distinguished artwork, The Man with the Violin became a brilliant portrayal of the sensitivities of children and the sad loss of that wonder by most adults.

Having originally heard Joshua Bell play solo violin for the main character in the movie "Ladies in Lavender" (in which a young Polish violinist is helped by two older British sisters after washing up on the Cornwall coast), I knew how his music could bring an audience to tears.  So it was surprising to learn that, in 2007, Joshua Bell participated in an experiment initiated by the Washington Post in which, wearing the outfit of a street musician (jeans and a baseball cap), Bell played his 1713 Stradivarius for transit goers for 45 minutes.  Only 7 of over a thousand people stopped to watch.  But here is the fascinating statistic:

"There was no ethnic or demographic pattern to distinguish the people who stayed to watch Bell, or the ones who gave money, from that vast majority who hurried on past, unheeding. Whites, blacks and Asians, young and old, men and women, were represented in all three groups. But the behavior of one demographic remained absolutely consistent. Every single time a child walked past, he or she tried to stop and watch. And every single time, a parent scooted the kid away." (Gene Weingarten, Sunday April 8, 2007, The Washington Post. Retrieved from http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/04/04/AR2007040401721.html on September 3, 2013.)

Kathy Stinson takes this astounding demographic and tells the story of a child who becomes enthralled by the music that he hears as his mother pulls him along on her way to work.  Dušan Petričić makes the music swirl and swoop in watercolour pastels of blue, purple, pink, green and peach among the black and white drabness of everyday travel of most adults.  The memory of that music continues to soothe Dylan as his day progresses, elevating him and brightening his day, even as the jarring clatter and clang of machines, dishes, voices drone on and on and on, no matter where he is.  Only when he hears the same music on the radio can Dylan get his mother's attention and take her along on his magical musical ride.

While Gene Weingarten and the Washington Post shared this musical experiment in print and in video on YouTube, Kathy Stinson's simple but powerful representation of The Man with the Violin, so subtly but poignantly depicted by Dušan Petričić's illustrations, is a far more convincing message of the capacity of music to enrich our lives and the wisdom of children that is too often and too easily disregarded.

The Night Wanderer: A Graphic Novel

by Drew Hayden Taylor
Art by Michael Wyatt
Graphic adaptation by Alison Kooistra
Annick Press
978-1-55451-572-1
108 pp.
Ages 12+
September, 2013

Drew Hayden Taylor's original Native gothic novel The Night Wanderer (Annick, 2007) has found its graphic texture in this upcoming release, The Night Wanderer: A Graphic Novel, illustrated in black and white by Michael Wyatt and adapted by Alison Kooistra.

In the story, Tiffany Hunter lives on the Anishnabe First Nations reserve at Otter Lake with her dad and grandmother, and feels like she has more than her share of angst.  Her non-Native boyfriend Tony may take her to drinking parties but never wants to really be seen with her.  Her friends, Darla and Kim, are feeling ostracized by her and reciprocate.  Her mother left and has moved to Edmonton with her white boyfriend, which clouds most of her dad's interactions with anger, including when he discovers her disastrous report card.  And now they've taken on a boarder, Pierre L'Errant, who claims his great-grandfather came from Otter Lake.

"Dad, I'm sick of all this garbage.  I'm just sixteen years old and I've got another seventy years of misery ahead of me.  And right now, the only thing I'm sure of is I can't take it." (pg. 68)

It is Pierre L'Errant, their mysterious boarder, who finds Tiffany and shares some truths about himself to help encourage her self-respect.

While I suspect that this graphic version of Drew Hayden Taylor's story may lack the literary punch of its original form (not surprising when text must be culled), The Night Wanderer: A Graphic Novel still produces the eerie atmosphere of the supernatural enmeshed in the harsh reality of many First Nations' people.  Even without the appearance of Pierre L'Errant (l'errant is French for "the wanderer"), Tiffany's life is a mash up of unfulfilled wishes, loss and confusion.  But, because his reminiscences and secretive actions on the reserve bring into question his true nature, Pierre's involvement with the young Tiffany adds the darker supernatural elements, leaving the reader wondering whether the story will turn out horribly or favourably for her.  Michael Wyatt's sharp-edged illustrations, only black and white with occasional splotches of blood red, complement the text appropriately, definitely prompting trepidation (though his final image surprisingly produced a calm in this reader).  While I would have liked to see how Drew Hayden Taylor would have adapted his own text for this graphic novel of The Night Wanderer, both Alison Kooistra and Michael Wyatt can be commended for bringing this gothic tale to a new audience of young readers, melding the vampire phenomenon with a First Nations' legend.

Max Finder Contest from Owlkids

Originally created by Liam O'Donnell and illustrated by Michael Cho, Max Finder is Owl Magazines' favourite graphic sleuth and he is looking for one reader to become a character in a new mystery!

Six volumes of Max Finder Mystery Collected Casebooks have been published, based on Liam O'Donnell's original character. (Later volumes have been written by Craig Battle and illustrated by Ramón Pérez.)

How to Enter (Owlkids contest website)

• Entrant must be 8-14 years of age
• Parental signature is required
• Submit (electronically or by mail):

1. a photo of yourself
2. explanation (text or video) about why you would make a great character for a Max Finder Mystery

• Deadline: September 30, 2013

Full rules and regulations can be found at http://www.owlkids.com/contests/rules-and-regulations/

Good luck!

Nat the Cat Can Sleep Like That

Written by Victoria Allenby

Illustrated by Tara Anderson

Pajama Press

978-1-927485-52-1

32 pp.

Ages 2-5

September, 2013

Reviewed from unbound galley proofs

The premise behind Nat the Cat Can Sleep Like That may appear obvious to the reader.  Nat the Cat is the older, orange tabby in a household in which a small black and white kitten lives.  While Nat the Cat has no animosity for the young feline, he does what many older cats love to do: sleep.  But the little one does what many kittens love to do: play.  No matter what kind of play the kitten gets up to–with balls, in dresser drawers, on a skateboard–Nat the Cat just keeps on sleeping nearby.

But that isn't the story as told. Victoria Allenby's rhyming text takes the reader through a day in the lives of the two cats beginning with their people (only their feet seen) leaving for the day.  Tara Anderson's cheerful cats then engage in their favourite activities, with the text firmly focused on Nat's sleeping.  But everything changes when it's dark and no one is around to watch the two.  A final twist in the story shows that the two felines are destined to live happily together.

As a household which recently introduced a pair of two-month-old brothers to our ten-year-old grey tabby, I know the relentless play in which the little ones engage.  Thank goodness they have each other to chase, to play fight, to clean, to poke and with whom to snuggle.  But when our older cat comes in from outside, they are all over her.  Their actions shout, "Gracie's here! Gracie's here!  Hi, Grace! Wanna play, Gracie?!"  (As much as I despise frequent exclamation marks, our two kittens always speak with this punctuation.  It's a kitten thing.)  Similarly Victoria Allenby affectionately shows us that this story is all about Nat the Cat and the nameless kitten showing their preferences as generational, never based in animosity.  The lighthearted text is more restful when focused on Nat's sleeping predilections, but its overall whimsy is reflected well in the playfulness of Tara Anderson's illustrations.  From the kitten's shenanigans with a star wand or a fish on a string, Nat the Cat contentedly sleeps on (though likely to enlist his people into rubbing his belly, I think, when they're around).

Seems Tara Anderson does a lot of cover art, though her illustrations from Nat the Cat Can Sleep Like That and The Stripey Cat (by Norene Smiley, Fitzhenry & Whiteside, 2007) demonstrate her knack for felines. Coupled with Victoria Allenby's simple but zippy rhyming story, Nat the Cat Can Sleep Like That is a delightful read, perfect for getting your own little ones to bed, whether they be human or feline.

The Hundred Story Wood: 2013 Young Writers' Workshop (Ontario)

Monday, September 30, 2013

8:45 am-3:30 am

St. John’s-Kilmarnock School,
2201 Shantz Station Road,
Waterloo Region (Breslau), ON
N0B 1M0

Registration costs $35 (includes lunch)

The full brochure can be viewed here

Ontario high school students with an interest in writing have a unique opportunity here to work with Canadian authors and a graphic novelist.  For the incredibly low cost of $35, a limited number of students will enjoy a full day of writing and learning with the following published authors (bios from EMWF):

SCOTT CHANTLER

Scott Chantler is the acclaimed cartoonist of the graphic novels Two Generals (which was longlisted for CBC’s Canada Reads: True Stories, named one of Chapters-Indigo’s Best Books of 2010, and selected for Best American Comics 2012), Northwest Passage (which was nominated for Eisner, Harvey, Shuster, andDoug Wright Awards), and the Three Thieves series (the first book of which, Tower of Treasure, won the Joe Shuster Award for Best Comic for Kids). He also teaches Writing for Graphic Novels at Max the Mutt Animation School in Toronto.


GRACE O’CONNELL

Grace O'Connell was the only author to be included on both the CBC’ s “10 Writers To Watch” and the Globe and Mail’s “CanLit’s Hottest Up and Comers”. O’Connell’s Magnified World was published as part of the Random House Canada New Face of Fiction program. Her work has appeared in various publications including The Walrus, Quill & Quire, The Journey Prize Stories and Taddle Creek, where she also serves as Associate Editor. She won the Great Canadian Literary Hunt and has been nominated for the RBC Bronwen Wallace Award and two National Magazine Awards. She writes a books column for This Magazine, works as the Contributing Editor for Open Book: Toronto and teaches creative writing at the University of Toronto.


COREY REDEKOP  

Corey Redekop's Shelf Monkey (ECW Press, 2007) was awarded the Gold Medal for Popular Fiction at the Independent Publisher Book Awards. His second novel Husk (ECW Press, 2012) was named one of the best books of 2012 by Amazon.ca. The Toronto Star said of Husk, “Redekop tosses so much into this zombie stew that instead of wearing out Corey Redekop’s debut novel his premise quickly it almost seems as though he needs a bigger pot. Corey is currently a publicist for Goose Lane Editions. He lives in Fredericton, NB. Corey is looking forward to providing an engaging workshop on how to write the surreal.


PATRICIA WESTERHOF 

Patricia Westerhof lives in Toronto, Canada, where she writes fiction and teaches English and creative writing. Westerhof is the author of The Dove in Bathurst Station, a novel, and Catch Me When I Fall, a collection of linked stories. She also coauthored The Writer’s Craft, a textbook used in many Writers Craft courses. Her stories have been published in The Dalhousie Review, Room, and the anthology Trees Running Backward. Along with fiction, Westerhof writes curriculum, and she has presented at education conferences in Canada and the U.S.

For information about the workshops, contact Adrian Hoad-Reddick at hoad@hoadworks.com