Pebbles to the Sea

Written by Marie-Andrée Arsenault
Illustrated by Dominique Leroux
Translated by Shelley Tanaka
Groundwood Books
978-1-77306-824-4
40 pp.

Ages 3-6
October 2022

 

Les Îles de la Madeleine, a Quebec archipelago, is a truly unique maritime community in the Gulf of St. Lawrence. And La Grave, a heritage site on les Îles de la Madeleine, is the center of life for sisters Flo and Fée. It is quiet and lively, a solitude and a community, and it is home. 

From Pebbles to the Sea by Marie-Andrée Arsenault, illus. by Dominique Leroux

On a gray day, the two girls are told to stay put as their parents, separated in marriage and residence, head to work: Papa to the marina, and Maman to her workshop. Along the shore, Flo and Fée collect pebbles and decorate them with bits of colour. But, when a dot flies across the sky, they know it's Henri using his giant trebuchet and venture away to investigate, leaving their coloured pebbles to mark their path. They pass the marina, and then the café where Jean-Marc plays the piano that makes them dance. While they eat a large piece of three-layer cake, Jean-Marc heads out with a pot of paint.

From Pebbles to the Sea by Marie-Andrée Arsenault, illus. by Dominique Leroux

Another dot across the sky and Flo and Fée continue on their journey, stopping to visit with artist Francine at her shop, and admire her art that reflects their community, including Maman's house and Papa's, and share in her ice cream. Francine too takes off with a pot of paint and a brush as the two girls leave another pebble and move on. At Henri's giant trebuchet, the girls look out over the water and islands and learn of the ice bridge that once connected their own island–Havre-Aubert–with l'île de'Entrée.

The bridge between the two islands can never be broken, the same way you two will always link your mother and father.

When the two finally are returned home by their parents, there is a surprise for them that could only come from the many who united as one for them. 

 

Though artist Dominique Leroux gives Pebbles to the Sea a cool and damp feel, appropriate for a maritime landscape in which lined rubber books, thick woolen tights and hats are needed for outdoor play, the story is one of warmth and community. Marie-Andrée Arsenault's words, translated with honesty and heart by Shelley Tanaka, gives the story that spirit, even as the girls recognize the separation that is part of their family now. Still, they are reminded by everyone that they are part of something bigger. They are part of a community that will teach them, feed them, entertain them and watch over them. And they will do it with colour and affection.  The illustrations, multi-media created with paint and collage of photos, torn paper and lace, may mirror the same, seeming to be pervasively cool, as the girls might feel their circumstances may be, but brightened with colour and textures that cheer.

Des Couleurs sur la Grave (2019), the original French-language edition of Pebbles to the Sea, won the 2020 Le Prix Harry Black de l'album jeunesse for the best French-language Canadian picture book for children. Pebbles to the Sea will now introduce La Grave, les Îles de la Madeleine and creators Marie-Andrée Arsenault and Dominique Leroux to English-language young readers and perhaps reassure them that parental separation is not necessarily familial separation, and that family can go beyond the nuclear family.  Like Jean-Marc says of La Grave, Pebbles to the Sea is "the perfect playground for a happy life."

From Pebbles to the Sea by Marie-Andrée Arsenault, illus. by Dominique Leroux

Lana Llama

Written and illustrated by Lori Doody

Running the Goat, Books & Broadsides

978-1-927917-81-7

32 pp.

Ages 3-7

July 2022

 

Lana Llama looks similar to her flock. She is wooly like the sheep and she has four legs and two ears and a fuzzy tail. But she still notices that her legs and neck are longer and she can't bleat.

From Lana Llama by Lori Doody

As with any creature who wants to fit in, Lana tries to emulate the sheep of her flock. But it's awkward and she is unsuccessful.

From Lana Llama by Lori Doody

Still, when a barnyard bully, also with the same attributes of wooliness, four legs, two ears and a fuzzy tail, comes along, Lana Llama uses her differences to stand up to it and be accepted by her flock exactly as she is.

Now she's happy to stand up for others,

just by standing out.

 

From Lana Llama by Lori Doody

Every Lori Doody picture book that comes out is a treat for the heart and the eyes. Her folk art consists of simple lines and bold colours but it is more. It's both subtle and striking, and still cozy and true. She doesn't overwhelm with details in her characters or landscapes but the farm and its animals are definitive and real. Based in that reality is always a story that will resonate with young readers (and old ones too). Here it's about trying to fit in but finding the best fit comes from being oneself. Of course, Lana Llama wants to be like the sheep of her flock. They are her people, her community, and she believes that they give her her identity too. But Lori Doody reminds us that what makes us different makes us unique and valuable, with Lana Llama being the only one who can stand up to a barking bully by virtue of those very differences.

Whether you're a bleater, a hummer, a clucker or a barker, Lori Doody will find you the right community as she did for Lana Llama. After all, we all belong.

2022 Canadian Children's Book Centre Book Awards: English-language Winners announced

 

Yesterday, the Canadian Children's Book Centre announced the winners of the 2022 English-language CCBC Awards at a streamed event presented from Harbourfront as part of the Toronto International Festival of Authors. (See the CCBC website announcement here with pdf here.)

 

These are the children's book awards presented this year:

• TD Canadian Children’s Literature Award ($50,000), Sponsored by TD Bank Group;
• Marilyn Baillie Picture Book Award ($20,000), Sponsored by A. Charles Baillie;
• Norma Fleck Award For Canadian Children's Non-Fiction ($10,000), Sponsored by the Fleck Family Foundation;
• Geoffrey Bilson Award for Historical Fiction for Young People ($5,000), Sponsored by the Canadian Children’s Book Centre’s Bilson Endowment Fund;
• Amy Mathers Teen Book Award ($5,000), Sponsored by Amy Mathers' Marathon of Books;
• Jean Little First-Novel Award ($5,000);
• Arlene Barlin Award for Science Fiction and Fantasy ($5,000), Sponsored by Elly Barlin-Daniels; and
  
• David Booth Children’s and Youth Poetry Award ($3,500), Sponsored by Shelly Stagg Peterson.
  

 

Congratulations 

to all winners!

 

 📚📚📚

 

TD Canadian Children's Literature Award

WINNER

On the Trapline

Written by David A. Robertson

Illustrated by Julie Flett

Tundra Books

Marilyn Baillie Picture Book Award

WINNER 

Time is a Flower

Written and illustrated by Julie Morstad 

Tundra Books

Norma Fleck Award For Canadian Children's Non-Fiction

WINNER

The Power of Style: How Fashion and Beauty Are Being Used to Reclaim Cultures
Written by Christian Allaire
Illustrated by Jacqueline Li
Annick Press

Geoffrey Bilson Award for Historical Fiction for Young People

WINNER

Second Chances
Written by Harriet Zaidman
Red Deer Press

Amy Mathers Teen Book Award

WINNER

Iron Widow
Written by Xiran Jay Zhao
Penguin Teen Canada

Jean Little First-Novel Award

WINNER 

Elvis, Me, and the Lemonade Stand Summer

Written by Leslie Gentile
DCB

 

 

 

 

Arlene Barlin Award for Science Fiction and Fantasy

WINNER 

Iron Widow
Written by Xiran Jay Zhao
Penguin Teen Canada

 

 

 

 

 

David Booth Children’s and Youth Poetry Award

WINNER 

Summer Feet
Written by Sheree Fitch
Illustrated by Carolyn Fisher
Nimbus Publishing

 📚📚📚

n.b. The French-language award short lists will be announced in October and winners celebrated in November.
 

The Line in the Sand

Written and illustrated by Thao Lam

Owlkids Books

978-1-77147-570-9

48 pp.

Ages 5-8

September 2022

 

When a monster drags a stick behind them and creates a line in the sand, they are unaware of the conflict that results. But how that conflict is resolved is up to those who perceive it.

From The Line in the Sand by Thao Lam

A varied assortment of monsters are playing at the beach: collecting shells, playing games, flying kites and building sand structures. One seven-eyed and four-limbed creature amuses itself by dragging a stick behind itself. (Haven't we all dragged sticks through sand and dirt to create shapes?) But several of the other monsters notice this line. It divides them. And when one tries to step over the line, another gets distressed and directs it back.

From The Line in the Sand by Thao Lam

This does not please the purple-eyes-on-antennae creature who promptly lifts its foot across the line and stomps on the green webbed foot of the other. Though it is deliberate, the purple-eyed monster does not realize the impact it would have, causing the green one to stumble and fall across the line and into its assailant, blurring the line in the sand.

From The Line in the Sand by Thao Lam

Then a bee flies into the mix.  Both monsters are thrown into a tizzy trying to evade the insect and in the process kick up the sand, obliterating the line. Looking up to see the roughened sand, the two creatures realize that beyond their interaction are numerous more lines, all drawn by the same stick-dragging monster. But, no one is reacting to those lines at all. They walk across them, they ignore them, or they are oblivious. The lines are present but of no concern.  Soon enough, our two rivals recognize the emptiness of their conflict, especially as they'd already joined forces to try to defeat a bee.

Conflict is often borne of words so it's meaningful that Thao Lam wrote a picture book about conflict as a wordless story. That just tells you how much words can get in the way. (They can also work wonders when used well.) In The Line in the Sand, no words are needed to convey distress, discord, territoriality, shock or even rage. These creatures, though their morphologies suggest otherwise, are as human as Thao Lam's readers.  (Don't we all differ to some degree in our shapes, colour, limbs and more?) Like all of us, they can be protective and defensive if they perceive a slight, intentional or not. And intention is key here because the creature with the stick intended nothing except play. Sadly, that line in the sand was the basis for some inadvertent conflict. Only when the two come together in a common goal–ridding themselves of a bee–do they see their squabble as insignificant.

From The Line in the Sand by Thao Lam

From her very quirky characters, that vary in colour from green to orange, yellow, pink and blue, with or without stripes or dots or other patterns, and with various limbs, eyes and more, Thao Lam includes everyone and spotlights no one. In their peculiarities, they are us. And we are them, drawing lines accidentally, taking offence indiscriminately, and coming together only when we see our similarities, not our differences. 

The Line in the Sand reminds us that conflict can be borne of misunderstanding or disregard but with communication, even without words, and awareness, resolution is possible.

I Can, Too!

Written by Karen Autio

Illustrated by Laura Watson

Scholastic Canada

978-1-4431-9008-4

24 pp.

Ages 3-7

September 2022

In a a story about differences, Karen Autio and Laura Watson show us that we're all the same, or can be, when it comes to mobility.

From I Can, Too! by Karen Autio, illus. by Laura Watson

From birth, Kayla and Piper move the same: they're pushed in strollers, they roll and then they crawl. As they reach for new milestones like standing, they begin to do things slightly differently. Piper uses a chair to support her and Kayla uses a standing frame. Riding their tricycles, zooming around the streets, riding horses, gliding over ice and skiing are all the same and yet different. Still the joy that the girls get from movement is palpable in their smiles, cheers, and twinkling eyes.

Once they start to attend school, the girls participate fully in their play and learning. Whether outside on an inclusive playground with a raised sand table and accessible slides or field trips in nature, all the kids can enjoy a satisfying experience. Moreover, the others get to learn how Kayla moves in a wheelchair when her mom brings an extra chair for her classmates to try out.

From I Can, Too! by Karen Autio, illus. by Laura Watson

When it comes to the kids, they can all move and have fun, even if differently. 

The dedication to I Can, Too! suggests that Karen Autio's experiences come from those of her daughter Annaliis "who joyfully gave all mobility equipment that came her way a try" and it's evident that the range of adaptive equipment, from hand-propelled tricycles to hiking wheelchairs and sit-ski, is staggering. What is most important are the opportunities this equipment gives to those with mobility issues and it's fairly obviously that Kayla, and undoubtedly Annaliis, were able to enjoy all activities that children should experience wholeheartedly, from sports to trick-or-treating and beach play. (Yes, there is a beach wheelchair with oversized tires.) But, while BC author Karen Autio explains the use of these devices, appending her story with "Amazing Ways to Move!," her goal isn't to highlight the differences but rather the commonalities and connections children make through their play and learning.

 

Ontario illustrator Laura Watson brings that joy of movement and play to the children of I Can, Too! Her characters are full of life and colour, different in their clothing, skin, and abilities, same in their pleasure at connecting with others and engaging in fun.

 

I Can, Too! is an affirmation that, with accessibility, comes equity and opportunity. Whether it's Reciprocating Gait Orthoses or inclusive playgrounds, adaptive equipment helps everyone to find happiness.

The Book of Elsie (Orca Currents)

Written by Joanne Levy

Orca Book Publishers

978-1-4598-3424-8

160 pp.

Ages 9-12

RL 2.8

August 2022

With the upcoming Jewish holiday of Purim–that commemorates the salvation of the Jewish people against the evil Haman in 5th c. BCE  Persia, as told in the Book of Esther–Elsie Rose-Miller is buzzing with excitement. For her synagogue's Purim party, she's planning on going as the fierce Queen Esther. Abba, her father, is a theatre costume designer and he's helping with her dress. But when her other dad who is on the temple's board learns that the party will have to be cancelled because of finances, Elsie jumps into action, emulating the strong Queen Esther, determined to save the party and the synagogue.

Rallying Rabbi Alisha and members of their Sunday school, Elsie suggests selling tickets to the Purim party and extending sales beyond their temple. It would seem that everyone is on board and sales are going well, especially with some hamantaschen cookies (recipe appends the book!) to accompany the tickets. But community outreach becomes a little tricky, particularly when approaching strangers, and Elsie and her best friend Grace must contend with antisemitism and racism respectively. Worse yet, when a hate crime is perpetrated against the synagogue, a cancelled Purim party may be the least of their worries.

Joanne Levy has written several middle grade novels where she enlightens young readers about Jewish traditions and the community (e.g., Sorry For Your Loss, The Sun Will Come Out) but this may be the first in which she tackles antisemitism and hate crimes against the Jewish community. That's a heavy topic but Joanne Levy embeds it in a story about courage and communities rather than focusing on the violence or the brutality of offensive remarks. Both Elsie, a Jewish child, and Grace, a person of colour, are exposed to the hate but their histories with that hate are different and, as such, their immediate responses may be different. They both recognize the ignorance involved; however, as part of communities of caring individuals, they see beyond the fear and sadness–"Hate has never solved any problems" (pg. 130)–and work to make things better. 

The story line is strong, encompassing social justice and Jewish traditions, tolerance and inclusivity. But the writing is persuasive, especially as Joanne Levy has written it as a hi-lo (high interest-low reading level) book, thereby reaching a wider audience with her story. As part of the Orca Currents series, The Book of Elsie may be geared to middle graders who are reading below grade level but it's actually opened up the opportunity for younger readers, middle graders and even teens who are striving to read to get a compelling story with a contemporary theme. In a time when hatred is voiced openly on social media and threatens many communities, The Book of Elsie reminds us that there is goodness out there and, with a little courage and determination, it can overcome everything.

Made 4 You

Written by Eric Walters

DCB

978-1-77086-661-4

296 pp.

Ages 13+

September 2022

 

Except for the headaches which have started plaguing her–and for which she has had multiple MRIs–seventeen-year-old Becky James's senior year is mapped out as getting good grades, prepping for the SATs, volunteering at a seniors' residence, and partaking in extracurricular activities like school band and social justice club and managing the boys' basketball team.  Then she meets Gene Newman, a previously-homeschooled student from New York state whom she will host and offer assistance.

As smart as Gene is, he needs support to fit in at their Nobleton, Indiana high school. His first-day blue suit and shiny brief case, as well as his formal speech, make him a standout. But he's a fast learner, following Becky's advice with respect to dress and more. Soon he's not just fitting in but he's attracting attention as an exceptional student, saxophone musician and basketball player. As they spend more and more time together, and Gene reveals the research his adoptive parents have been conducting on human intelligence and strategies for learning, the two teens become closer. But it's not smooth sailing for the young couple as there are secrets that could put them both in danger and perhaps keep them separated forever.

When science fiction is written well, it becomes less fantasy and more possibility, and Made 4 You is so plausible that readers will wonder if the story is based in reality. (Of course, that's also the finesse that is Eric Walters's writing.) Research on human intelligence is vast and expanding, as scientists look to how we learn, apply and adapt, so raising a young man like Gene who can learn anything quickly and thoroughly is not surprising. However, the depth of his learning, from math to sports and social interactions, is astounding, especially as it is coupled with empathy and love. Because Eric Walters takes Gene beyond the genius he is and makes him into a teen in love, Gene is a complete, albeit extraordinary, human.  And with dangerous adversaries looking to exploit the science behind Gene's intellectual development, Made 4 You goes beyond a sci fi romance into a thriller and action adventure. It's a story that has it all: sweet moments of falling in love, mysterious scientific research, and chase scenes across land and sky. Moreover, with Eric Walters at the writing helm, not only is it a story made for any middle-grader or teen who reads across genres, Made 4 You is also complex, nuanced and full of heart. (Even the dedication will give readers an "Awww" moment of pause.)