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AASL’s Standards for the 21st Century Learner
Standards for the 21st-Century Learner offer vision for teaching and learning to both guide and beckon our profession as education leaders. They will both shape the library program and serve as a tool for school librarians to use to shape the learning of students in the school.
BC Book Prizes–Finalists for Children’s Literature
For more information go to http://www.bcbookprizes.ca/winners/2011
Sheila A. Egoff Children’s Literature Prize
Supported by the BC Library Association
Dear George Clooney, Please Marry My Mom
by Susin Nielsen
Publisher: Tundra Books
Violet’s TV-director dad has traded a job in Vancouver for one in LA, their house for a home complete with a pool, and, worst of all, Violet’s mother for a “trophy” wife. Violet’s younger sister reacts by bed-wetting, and her mother ping-pongs from one loser to another and Violet gets angry in ways that are infuriating, shocking, and hilarious. When her mother takes up with (the unfortunately named) Dudley Wiener, Violet and her friend Phoebe decide that they need to take control. If Violet’s mom can’t pick a decent man herself, they will help her snag George Clooney. Gemini Award-winner Susin Nielsen got her start with Degrassi Junior High, writing sixteen episodes and four of the books. She also adapted author Susan Juby’s books into a TV series. This is her fifth book for children. More
Fatty Legs
by Christy Jordon-Fenton, Margaret Pokiak-Fenton
Illustrated by Liz Amini-Holmes
Publisher: Annick Press
Eight-year-old Margaret Pokiak wants to learn to read, even though it means leaving her village and family. Her father finally agrees to let her attend school, but he warns Margaret of the terrors of residential schools. At school, the Raven, a black-cloaked nun, immediately dislikes the strong-willed young Margaret. In the face of cruelty, mocking and humility, Margaret refuses to be intimidated and gives the Raven a lesson in the power of human dignity. Fatty Legs is complemented by artwork by Liz Amini-Holmes and archival photos. Christy Jordon-Fenton lives with her family in Fort St. John, BC and co-wrote the book with her mother-in-law, Margaret Pokiak-Fenton, who attended a residential school in Inuvialuit. More
Free as a Bird
by Gina McMurchy-Barber
Publisher: Dundurn Press
Born with Down syndrome, Ruby Jean Sharp comes from a time when being a developmentally disabled person could mean growing up behind locked doors and barred windows, being called names like “retard” and “moron.” When Ruby Jean’s caregiver and loving grandmother dies, her mother takes her to Woodlands School in New Westminster and rarely visits. It’s here, in an institution that opened in 1878 and was originally called the Provincial Lunatic Asylum, that Ruby Jean learns to survive isolation, boredom, and abuse—she learns a lesson about patience and perseverance. Gina McMurchy-Barber was the recipient of the 2004 Governor General’s Award for Excellence in Teaching Canadian History. Her first novel, Reading the Bones, was nominated for the Silver Birch Award and the Langley Book of the year Award. More
Hunger Journeys
by Maggie de Vries
Publisher: HarperCollins Canada
During WWII in Amsterdam, 19-year-old Lena leaves her starving family to travel by train with her friend, Sofie, to Almelo, a town close to the German border. It’s a risky plan. They have false papers and are quickly pulled off the train by German soldiers. Only with the help of Albert, one of the soldiers, do they make it back on the train. Lena soon fears her new friendship with the helpful Albert may lead her into more danger as Sofie befriends a soldier too, resulting in a relationship that quickly turns serious and has unforeseen consequences for both girls. Maggie de Vries is a writer, editor, teacher, and the award-winning author of several children’s books. More
Northward to the Moon
by Polly Horvath
Publisher: Groundwood Books
Featuring the characters from My One Hundred Adventures, Northward to the Moon can be read as a sequel or as a stand alone book. When her stepfather, Ned, is fired from his job as a high school French teacher, the family packs up and Jane embarks on a series of new adventures. Setting off by car, they wind up spending the summer with Ned’s eccentric mother on her ranch out west. As Jane lives through it all—developing a crush on a ranch hand, reevaluating her relationship with Ned, watching her sister Maya’s painful growing up—she sees her world, which used to be so safe and secure, shift in strange and inconvenient ways. Polly Horvath has written many award-winning books for children and lives in Metchosin, BC. More
Christie Harris Illustrated Children’s Literature Prize
Supported by Kate Walker and Company
The Cowboy Fisherman
by Seiji Hiroe
The Cowboy Fisherman is a story of friendship between Slim and Tomizou during the Great Depression. Slim was a man trying his hand at fishing to support his family, and Tomizou was a seasoned Japanese fisherman who took Slim under his wing. Find out how Slim uses his cowboy skills to save his and his son’s life when they find themselves in dangerous water and the rock anchor disappears into the ocean.
Fraser Bear: A Cub’s Life
by Maggie de Vries
Illustrated by Renné Benoit
Publisher: Greystone Books
Fraser Bear: A Cub’s Life is a moving, beautifully illustrated story follows a black bear cub’s life in the Pacific Northwest from his birth to his first salmon catch, uniting the cycles of bear and fish. A map and further information about bears and salmon are included. The book is based on a top-selling plush toy named Fraser Bear, created by the Pacific Salmon Foundation and Rocky Mountaineer Vacations. This toy, holding a salmon in his mouth, is sold on Rocky Mountaineer trains and through their souvenir catalogue, with sales benefiting the Pacific Salmon Foundation. Maggie de Vries is a writer, editor, teacher, and the award-winning author of several children’s books. Renné Benoit is an award-winning artist who has illustrated many books for children. More
Owls See Clearly at Night (Lii Yiiboo Nayaapiwak lii Swer): A Michif Alphabet / L’alfabet di Michi
by Julie Flett
Publisher: Simply Read Books
Languages are precious; they capture the very essence of a culture. Once spoken by hundreds of thousands across the Canadian Prairies and the northern United States, Michif, the language of the Métis people, is now endangered. Métis elders in scattered parts of North America may still speak the language, but the young are largely monolingual English speakers. From Atayookee! to Lii Zyeu: this simply, elegantly illustrated picture book introduces young and old alike to the unique Michif language. Julie Flett is a Vancouver-based Metis artist and illustrator who incorporates photography, drawing, and painting into her practice. More
The Salmon Bears: Giants of the Great Bear Rainforest
by Ian McAllister, Nicholas Read
Illustrated by Ian McAllister
Publisher: Orca Book Publishers
Great bears need a great rainforest to survive. Extensively illustrated with Ian McAllister’s magnificent photographs, The Salmon Bears explores the delicate balance that exists between the grizzly, black and spirit bears and their natural environment, the last great wilderness along the central coast of BC. Key to this relationship are the salmon that are born in the rivers each spring, who then go out to sea as juveniles and return as adults to spawn and die, completing a cycle of life that ensures the survival of not only their own species but also virtually every other plant and animal in the rainforest. Ian McAllister, a founding director of both the Raincoast Conservation Society and Pacific Wild, is an award-winning photographer and filmmaker. Nicholas Read, a lifelong lover of animals, has written on animal issues for the Vancouver Sun and works with Animal Aid in the UK. More
Up We Grow! A Year in the Life of a Small, Local Farm
by Deborah Hodge
Illustrated by Brian Harris
Publisher: Kids Can Press
Up We Grow! highlights the importance of small, local farms with photos that invite children into the world of a small, co-operative farm over four seasons. Readers will get to know the hardworking farmers who plow, plant, compost, mulch, harvest and market fruits and vegetables, and care for animals. Discover people of all ages and abilities working together to grow and share food, while protecting and respecting the land and animals we depend upon for our sustenance. Deborah Hodge is the award-winning author of more than 20 books for children. Award-winning photographer Brian Harris uses his images to help charitable organizations raise awareness and create a better world to live in. More
Bill Duthie Booksellers’ Choice Award
Supported by The BC Booksellers’ Association
Adventures in Solitude: What Not to Wear to a Nude Potluck and Other Stories from Desolation Sound
by Grant Lawrence
Publisher: Harbour Publishing
From Captain George Vancouver to Muriel “Curve of Time” Blanchet to Jim “Spilsbury’s Coast” Spilsbury, visitors to Desolation Sound have left behind a trail of books endowing the area with a romantic aura that helps to make it British Columbia’s most popular marine park. In this hilarious and captivating book, CBC personality Grant Lawrence adds a whole new chapter to the saga of this storied piece of BC coastline. With plenty of laugh-out-loud humour and inspired reverence, Adventures in Solitude delights with the unique history of a place and the growth of a young man amidst the magic of Desolation Sound. Grant Lawrence hosts the popular CBC Radio 3 Podcast, and Grant Lawrence Live on CBC Radio 3 and can also be heard on various CBC Radio One programs. More
Darwin’s Bastards: Astounding Tales from Tomorrow
by Zsuzsi Gartner (editor)
Publisher: Douglas & McIntyre
Social satire, fabulist tales and darkly humorous dystopian visions by some of Canada’s most adventurous and distinguished writers. These 23 stories take us on a twisted, wild ride into some future times and parallel universes where characters as diverse as a dead boy, a one-legged international actuarial forensics specialist, a pharmaceutical guinea pig, and a far-sighted fetus engage in their own games of the survival of the fittest. Darwin’s Bastards: Astounding Tales from Tomorrow includes the first new short story by William Gibson to be published since 1997, as well as original, previously unpublished fiction by Lee Henderson, Timothy Taylor, Heather O’Neill, Mark Anthony Jarman, and more. Edited by Zsuzsi Gartner, critically acclaimed author and the current creative director of Vancouver Review’s ‘Blueprint BC Fiction’ series. More
Defiant Spirits: The Modernist Revolution of the Group of Seven
by Ross King
Publisher: Douglas & McIntyre
Beginning in 1912, Defiant Spirits traces the artistic development of Tom Thomson and the future members of the Group of Seven: Franklin Carmichael, Lawren Harris, A. Y. Jackson, Franz Johnston, Arthur Lismer, J. E. H. MacDonald, and Frederick Varley. Covering more than a dozen years in Canadian history and working in an eclectic and sometimes controversial blend of modernist styles, they produced some of the most treasured works of the 20th century. Illustrated, rigorously researched and drawn from archival documents and letters, Defiant Spirits details not only the lives of the artists, but also the political and social history of Canada during a time when art exhibitions were venues for debates about Canadian national identity and cultural worth. Ross King is the author of three books on Italian history and art. More
Fishing with Gubby
by Gary Kent
Illustrated by Kim La Fave
Publisher: Harbour Publishing
Fishing with Gubby is the marvelously illustrated, authentic account of one season in the life of a salmon fisherman. Based on actual events, Gubby is a salmon fisherman who lives with his wife Millie and cat Puss in a small seaside village on the west coast of BC. Gubby’s adventures takes him all over BC’s west coast trolling for spring and coho salmon and visiting other fishermen and homesteaders along the way. Gary Kent was a commercial fisherman and salmon troller for nine years and is now a furniture maker and instructor living in Roberts Creek, BC. Kim La Fave also lives in Roberts Creek and is the award-winning illustrator of a number of children’s books. More
Voices of British Columbia: Stories from Our Frontier
by Robert Budd
Publisher: Douglas & McIntyre
Between 1959 and 1966, the late CBC Radio journalist Imbert Orchard travelled across BC with recording engineer Ian Stephen interviewing nearly a thousand of the province’s pioneers. The resulting collection—2,700 hours of audiotapes describing both extraordinary events and everyday experiences—is considered by historians to be one of the best sources of primary information about the province. To the general public, however, the tales in these tapes remain virtually unknown. Combining text, archival photographs and the original sound recordings from the CBC Archives onto three CDs, Voices of British Columbia draws 24 stories from this collection to immerse us in daily life in the early 20th century. Robert Budd, known to many as Lucky, holds an MA in history, with a focus on oral history. More
Testing May Facilitate Learning Better Than Active Methods
According to a recent article published in Science, taking a test is not just a passive mechanism for assessing how much people know. It actually helps people learn, and it works better than a number of other studying techniques.
Read the full article here.
TD National Reading Summit II–Montreal
The TD National Reading Summit II live webcast (sponsored by UBC’s School of Library, Archival and Information Studies, Irving K. Barber Learning Centre and Education Library) connected BC participants to the conference in Montreal. The first day’s events were both informative and thought provoking. The second day of the conference will take place on
Friday January 21 in the Dodson Room, Irving K. Barber Learning Centre
9:30-11:30 Spotlight on Boys and Reading
The Boys and Reading panel kicks off with keynote speaker, author, Jon Scieszka, renowned for his humour and re-invention of classic fairytales, The True Story of the 3 Little Pigs and Stinky Cheese Man. A tireless advocate for Boys and Reading, Scieszka grew up in Michigan with five brothers and no sisters and runs Guys Read, a non-profit literacy organization for boys.
After Scieszka’s presentation, Marie Désilets, Executive Advisor, Libraries, regional programs and services division, Montreal Public Library, introduces the video coup de Poing, followed by Jean-François Bouchard, Group Publisher of Bayard Press who will moderate an insightful and lively discussion on Boys and Reading.
The panel features: trained sociologist, Félix Maltais, Editor and founder of Éditions les Débrouillards, a youth science education movement; Shane Peacock, Novelist, playwright, screenwriter, journalist, and author of The Boy Sherlock Holmes series and; Jean-Yves Levesque who holds a PhD in psychopedagogy and is a research chair in the Department of Education at the Université du Québec à Rimouski. Levesque is currently heading a group research project on learning and socialization (APPSO).
Wrapping up the panel, Martine Boucher and Pierre Richard Simon will provide a presentation on Point de Match, a ground-breaking organization which pairs youth sports teams and libraries.
The afternoon sessions 12:00-2:30 will focus on technologies and reading. Note: The next Reading Summit will take place in 2012 in Vancouver.
To view the complete Summit program, packed with exceptional speakers and panelists from Quebec, Canada and abroad, and go to www.nationalreadingcampaign.ca.
The National Reading Campaign is a campaign to incorporate and promote reading as a central feature of 21st century Canadian citizenship.
New Canadian Children’s Book Award Announced
Toronto, January 26, 2011 — The Canadian Children’s Book Centre is very pleased to announce a major new Canadian children’s literature award. The John Spray Mystery Award will honour excellence in the children’s mystery book format and comes with a $5,000 cash prize which will be awarded annually beginning in November 2011. To be eligible the book must be an original work in English, aimed at readers ages eight to sixteen, and written by a Canadian author. A mystery book can be a thriller, a crime novel, or a ‘whodunit’.
John Spray, President of the Mantis Investigation Agency, is delighted to give the prize, saying that reading mysteries made him a passionate reader at an early age and helped him find his chosen career. “For many years, through the publishing career of my wife, Gail Winskill, I became acquainted with both contemporary children’s literature as well as the unwavering support of the Canadian Children’s Book Centre for children’s writers and illustrators. While attending the 2010 TD Book Awards, I was struck by the absence of an award for mystery writing. My childhood was spent rapidly turning the pages of the Nancy Drew and Hardy Boys books, which morphed into the Spillanes and le Carres on my adult bookshelf. Offering a prize for children’s mystery books seemed to me to be a modest payback for a lifetime of joy spent reading great mysteries.”
The John Spray Mystery Award is organized and administered by the Canadian Children’s Book Centre, a national, not-for-profit organization founded in 1976 to encourage the reading, writing and illustrating of Canadian books for young readers. “We are thrilled that John Spray has entrusted us with the co-ordination of this important and generous new award that will recognize all the elements that make a great mystery book. The winning book will be recognized for its high literary qualities as well as for a great story with lots of suspense and thrills. Although there already exist a few Canadian literary awards for the mystery genre, this is the first one that comes with a cash prize and such a generous one at that. This new award is yet another way of bringing national recognition to the great Canadian creators writing for young people.” said Charlotte Teeple, Executive Director of the Canadian Children’s Book Centre.
The three inaugural judges for this important new award are Ken Setterington, librarian, author, reviewer and former Child and Youth Advocate for the Toronto Public Library; Marian Misters, co-owner of the Sleuth of Baker Street Mystery Bookstore, former judge for Crime Writers of Canada and the International Association of Crime Writers, and Eric Wright, retired Professor of English at Ryerson University, writer, and winner of numerous awards including four Arthur Ellis Awards for Best Crime Novel, and the Derrick Murdoch Award for lifetime contribution to Canadian crime writing.
Complete details of the John Spray Mystery Award can be found at www.bookcentre.ca.
For further information contact: Charlotte Teeple Canadian Children’s Book Centre 416 975-0010, x 226 charlotte@bookcentre.ca