November 2024 Newsletter
News from the Canadian Children's Book Centre & Friends
Thank you for celebrating the 2024 CCBC Book Awards with us.
We had an extraordinary night celebrating Canadian children’s literature at the 2024 CCBC Book Awards! We extend our heartfelt congratulations to the winners and the finalists. These winning books represent a spectrum of childhood experiences, including courage and resilience, being surrounded by the wonders and beauty of the natural world, and reflections on the joy and poignancy of growing up.
Relive the best moments from Awards Night. Watch a recording of the full ceremony on Bibliovideo or read acceptance speeches from the award winners. In addition to our English-language awards, the winner of the Prix TD was recently announced. Les saumons de la Mitis by Christine Beaulieu and Caroline Lavergne took home the honour. Learn more here.
For those interested in purchasing the winning and shortlisted titles, visit the CCBC Book Awards page on Indie Bookstores. Not only will you be supporting the work of Canadian creators, but also your local independent bookseller.
Say hello to Axi!
Axi is a character we’ve created to introduce kids to the world of accessible books. Axi’s mission is to ensure that all readers can find great Canadian books in whatever format works best for them: ebooks, braille, audiobooks, decodable books, and more.
Axi is making his big debut in the November issue of Chickadee magazine, available now! Thanks to artist Rosena Fung for bringing Axi to life.
Learn more about Axi.
Register now for the Get Published! Writing Picture Books virtual session.
What does it take to get a picture book published? What are children’s book publishers looking for? Let our panel of experts show you what you need to do to get your manuscript published! Panelists include industry professionals Naseem Hrab, author, and publisher of Kids Can Press; Vikki VanSickle, author; and Jack Wong, author/illustrator. Register now.
Give the gift of great art this holiday season!
The holidays are just around the corner. Why not celebrate with a beautiful piece of art? Visit the Picture Book Gallery today to find one-of-a-kind art, perfect for gifts, library spaces, corporate use and more.
In November 2021, we launched the Picture Book Gallery as a way to generate funds for Canadian Children’s Book Week, which connects Canadian creators with children and teens across Canada. The Picture Book Gallery supports our annual tour that allows 28,000 young Canadians to participate in over 400 readings and workshops in a single week. Illustrators set their own prices, with 60% of the value of their art sold donated to Book Week. This event is a great opportunity for illustrators to showcase their work to a wider audience, all while generously contributing to a love of reading in children across Canada.
Stock Up on CCBC Illustrated Greeting Cards!
Support the CCBC today by purchasing our pack of eight greeting cards featuring art from past Canadian Children's Book Week posters. Each pack includes art by Barbara Reid, Julie Flett, Ian Wallace, Wallace Edwards, Bill Slavin, Elly MacKay, Gabrielle Grimard and Eugenie Fernandes.
November Book List: Reflect & Remember
Every year on November 11th, Canadians pause to remember those who have served and sacrificed during times of conflict and war. Reading can encourage young readers to engage thoughtfully with what it means to reflect, remember, and give respect on Remembrance Day and throughout the year. See the full Book List.
Creator's Corner: Jean E. Pendziwol & Todd Stewart
At the 2024 CCBC Book Awards, author Jean E. Pendziwol and illustrator Todd Stewart took home the TD Canadian Children’s Literature Award and $50,000—the largest cash prize in Canadian children’s literature. Their book, Skating Wild on an Inland Sea, describes the exhilarating experience that two children have while skating on the wild ice of Lake Superior, including the haunting singing that occurs as the ice expands and contracts.
We had the joy of talking with Jean E. and Todd about the creative processes behind Skating Wild on an Inland Sea.
What inspired the story in Skating Wild on an Inland Sea?
Jean E.: I grew up in Northwestern Ontario and Thunder Bay. I spent a good portion of my childhood out on Lake Superior sailing. Now we have a family home on the shores of Lake Superior in Neebing. We’ve had the opportunity for a number of years—when conditions are ideal—to actually skate on Lake Superior. It's an incredible, powerful experience to be out on the frozen surface of the largest freshwater lake in the world.
Were there details from that skating experience on Lake Superior that made it into the book?
Jean E.: What really stuck out to me when I was out skating was the sound the ice makes as it's moving and living. Even though it's frozen, it's still a lake.
Todd, what were your thoughts when you first read the manuscript? Did a vision come to mind for the illustrations?
Todd: The first time I read the manuscript, I immediately identified with the story. I come from the prairies and have spent time in Northern Ontario. I’ve skated on frozen lakes. And so I had an instant appreciation for the activity that these kids do. My background is in landscape architecture and urban design. I really attach to and identify with place. So I wanted to create this strong sense of place with the illustrations.
How else did you prepare to bring the story to life?
Todd: At the start of the project, Jeannie had invited me out to her parents' place outside of Thunder Bay. I stayed a week in the winter and soaked it all up. I was able to draw from what I saw and experienced out there. I think you can see it in the illustrations in the book.
How did you approach capturing the light and colour of a winter’s day?
Todd: I also come from a background in printmaking and silkscreen. So when I work on an image, I work hard to capture the colour and light from a place. Following the flow of the story, it felt natural to explore that transition between the early part of the morning and the bright, bright daylight. At the beginning of the day, there’s a lot of purple. Then as the day progresses, things are more blue. To me, it was a good way to lend consistency to the story.
Can you two share more about what it was like to collaborate on this book?
Jean E.: As writer and visual artist collaborating on a book, we create independently, with the illustrator taking inspiration from the text. To me, this is such an exciting part of being a creator in the world of picture books for kids. But I want to say how grateful I am that Todd came up to Northwestern Ontario to immerse himself in the environment. This story is evocative of place, and Todd has captured that in such a perfect way. I'm so grateful for that.
Todd: I do feel like this book, of all the books that I've worked on, has that feeling of co-creation—of working together. It was a special experience. We launched the book in Thunder Bay. We also did a panel together on co-creation. I feel privileged to have been in the community as the book went out into the world. It’s become a special place for me. It’s been nice to sort of inhabit this book.
Jean E.: When both forms of storytelling come together, especially as they have in this book, what arrives between the words and images is something entirely new and dependent on the other. That’s the magic of co-creation. I think this book is a testament to that.
Learn more about Jean E. Pendziwold on her website or follow her on Instagram: @jpendzi.
Learn more about Todd Stewart on his website or follow him on Instagram: @toddallanstewart.
Picture Book Gallery Profile: Gary Clement
This month's Picture Book Galley profile is Gary Clement. Gary is a Canadian artist, cartoonist, illustrator and writer. He’s the author and illustrator of several children’s books, among them The Great Poochini, which earned Canada’s Governor General’s Literary Award for illustration. His latest book, K is in Trouble, is a Kafkaesque middle-grade graphic novel. He also draws political cartoons and his freelance illustrations have appeared in National Post, The New York Times, The Boston Globe and many other newspapers and magazines across North America.
You can find out more about Gary at garyclement.ca.
Throughout your career, you’ve been tasked with taking headlines, tweets, poems, songs, Bible stories, etc., and turning them into comics and illustrations. Where do you start when you’re handed a challenging or unusual assignment?
I begin all assignments—illustrations, cartoons, book projects, paintings, drawings—you name it, with the same approach which is that all of the above are puzzles that need to be solved. It’s something I started doing in art school, oh so many years ago, and that has stuck with me ever since. It’s a process that is very satisfying when I arrive at a solution. Maybe because it can be (sometimes, not always) agonizing until I get there.
From playing ice hockey, to swimming at the pool, to tobogganing down a snowy hill, many of your picture books capture familiar moments for young readers and bring up feelings of nostalgia for older readers. Do you have both children and adults in mind when you’re illustrating for picture books?
Yes, absolutely. I think all the children’s author/illustrators I admire most do that. I’m thinking primarily of people like Maira Kalman, Dayal Kaur Khalsa, Peter Sis, Tomi Ungerer and especially William Steig, a writer who challenges and really respects readers of all ages. I just reread Amos & Boris and was astonished by his incredible attention to detail… the list of items Amos takes on his boat includes wheat germ! He sets a pretty high bar for picture books.
As for the nostalgia issue... memory is a huge resource for me. For example, the illustrations for My Winter City really drew (pun intentional) on memories of winter walks with my own father.
Your latest book, K is in Trouble, is a Kafkaesque middle-grade graphic novel. How did you approach bringing the absurdity of Kafka's stories to the page visually for young readers?
The whole project began as an attempt to illustrate the events in Kafka’s childhood that may have formed Franz Kafka, the writer. I’ve been fascinated with his writing since my earliest university days and had been thinking about doing some kind book about him for ages. I was absolutely drawn to the absurdity of his universe but also to the wild humour. This is something I didn’t really get when I was younger. In my first year university course, Kafka was taught with an air of deadly seriousness. It was all about the state of the isolated individual in industrialized urban environments and so on. As I reread the books and stories over the years I began to see that they were, rather than being dark and angsty, actually laugh-out loud hilarious. Thus perfect for young readers.
I should note that I started out writing K is in Trouble as a more serious, researched, illustrated biography of Kafka’s childhood geared towards adults. But as I got more into it, my own childhood biography along with fictional elements got added to the mix until the project spontaneously morphed into a middle-grade reader. But I think I also have to refer you to the previous answer—I wrote/drew the book with all ages in mind!
While many of your books are co-collaborations, you’ve also found success with writing your own stories like in K is in Trouble and The Great Poochini. What advice do you have for illustrators aspiring to write their own stories?
That’s always a tricky one for me to answer because I think everyone must, ultimately, find their own path. And I’m quite certain that every path is unique. But if I had to stress one thing above all else, it’s concept. It doesn’t matter how well you draw—if the idea isn’t there then you don’t have anything. I’d rather read a kids' book with so-so illustrations but a fantastic story than a book with incredible illustrations but a so-so story. It all starts with a good idea. Everything else just flows from that.
And if I could add one more piece of advice: read William Steig.
Experts' Picks
Age 16
Written and illustrated by Rosena Fung
Annick Press, 2024
ISBN 978-1-77321-833-5
IL: Ages 12 and up RL: Grades 7-8
Age 16 is a moving, multi-layered coming-of-age graphic novel that explores three generations of mothers and 16-year-old daughters. Readers are immersed in alternating timelines, points of view and experiences: Roz in Toronto in 2000; Lydia in Hong Kong in 1972; and Mei Laan in Guangdong province, China, in 1954. Each character struggles with body image, gender expectations and identity. The three stories interweave and realistically convey how one generation impacts and shapes the next in so many ways. Rosena Fung’s detailed, expressive illustrations are gorgeous and use a distinct colour palette to delineate time, place, and in a poignant resolution, the ties that bind.
— Linda Ludke, Collections Management Librarian, London Public Library
SWAN: The Girl Who Grew
Written by Sidura Ludwig
Nimbus Publishing, 2024
978-1-77471-321-1
IL: Ages 9-13 RL: Grades 3-4
An absolutely exquisite novel in verse. This book tells the story of Nova Scotia's renowned giantess, Anna Swan. When Anna and her family move into her grandmother's farm in rural Nova Scotia, Anna dreads the thought of having to start at a new school. As always, she stands out because she is so unnaturally tall: she doesn't fit in her desk at school and even at home, she needs to eat at a separate table and move to a downstairs bedroom to accommodate her large size. How she wishes she could find a way to stop growing! But is it possible that people would actually pay money just to see her? Could she actually use her tremendous height to her advantage? Ludwig provides a sensitive depiction of this young woman's early life and the struggles she faced in a world that simply wasn't kind to those who were different. Thoughtful and beautifully crafted, this is a very special book
—Lisa Doucet, Co-Manager, Woozles Children’s Bookstore
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