Town Is by the Sea

Winner of CILIP Kate Greenaway Medal
Winner of the TD Canadian Children’s Literature Award

A young boy wakes up to the sound of the sea, visits his grandfather’s grave after lunch and comes home to a simple family dinner with his family, but all the while his mind strays to his father digging for coal deep down under the sea. Stunning illustrations by Sydney Smith, the award-winning illustrator of Sidewalk Flowers, show the striking contrast between a sparkling seaside day and the darkness underground where the miners dig.

With curriculum connections to communities and the history of mining, this beautifully understated and haunting story brings a piece of Canadian history to life. The ever-present ocean and inevitable pattern of life in a Cape Breton mining town will enthrall children and move adult readers.

Correlates to the Common Core State Standards in English Language Arts:

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.2.7
Use information gained from the illustrations and words in a print or digital text to demonstrate understanding of its characters, setting, or plot.

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.3.7
Explain how specific aspects of a text's illustrations contribute to what is conveyed by the words in a story (e.g., create mood, emphasize aspects of a character or setting)

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.4.1
Refer to details and examples in a text when explaining what the text says explicitly and when drawing inferences from the text.

JOANNE SCHWARTZ was born in Cape Breton, Nova Scotia. She is the author of Town Is by the Sea, illustrated by Sydney Smith, winner of the TD Canadian Children’s Literature Award and the CILIP Kate Greenaway Medal, among many other honors. Her first picture book, Our Corner Grocery Store, illustrated by Laura Beingessner, was nominated for the Marilyn Baillie Picture Book Award. She has written several other highly acclaimed picture books, including Pinny in Summer and Pinny in Fall, both illustrated by Isabelle Malenfant. Joanne has been a children’s librarian for more than twenty-five years. She lives in Toronto.

SYDNEY SMITH is the creator of Small in the City, which received the Kate Greenaway Medal and the Ezra Jack Keats Award. Other books he has illustrated include The White Cat and the Monk by Jo Ellen Bogart; Sidewalk Flowers by JonArno Lawson; and Town Is by the Sea by Joanne Schwartz, which received the Kate Greenaway Medal. His other accolades include two Governor General’s Awards and four New York Times Best Illustrated Book of the Year citations. He is also the illustrator of I Talk Like a River by Jordan Scott, which received the Schneider Family Book Award and the Boston Globe–Horn Book Award, and My Baba’s Garden, also written by Jordan Scott. Sydney lives with his family in Halifax, Nova Scotia.

• Horn Book FanfareCommended 2017
• NPR Book ConciergeCommended 2017
• Lillian Shepherd Memorial Award for Excellence in IllustrationWinner 2018
• Kirkus Best Picture BooksCommended 2017
• Cooperative Children's Book Center Best of the YearCommended 2018
• School Library Journal Best BooksCommended 2017
• Governor General's Literary Award, Young People's Literature — Illustrated BooksShort-listed 2017
• Denver Public Library Best Children's & Teen BooksCommended 2017
• New York Times / New York Public Library Best Illustrated Children’s Books AwardCommended 2017
• BookPage Best Children's & Young Adult BooksCommended 2017
• CILIP Kate Greenaway MedalWinner 2018
• TD Canadian Children's Literature AwardWinner 2018
• Shelf Awareness Best Books of the YearCommended 2017
• Boston Globe–Horn Book Honor BookCommended 2017
• New York Times Notable Children’s BooksCommended 2017
• CCBC Best Books for Kids and TeensCommended 2017
• ALSC Notable Children's BooksCommended 2018
• Ruth and Sylvia Schwartz Children's Book AwardShort-listed 2018
• Bank Street College of Education Best Children's Books of the YearCommended 2018