I am so, so honored to share that Maggie and I are the 2023 recipients of the Ruth and Sylvia Schwartz Children’s Book Awards, Picture book category! This award is especially meaningful to me as the nominating committee consisted of a youth services librarian (Brooke Windsor, Stratford Public Library) along with a bookseller and children’s… Read more »
picture book
It’s been a great year!
What a year! Celebrating firsts, clockwise from the top: First in-person book launch, held with family and friends, at Overflow Brewery in Ottawa This is the Boat that Ben Built was included in the Canadian Children’s Book News publication, and later in their Best Books for Kids and Teens. This is a photo of the shelf… Read more »
Bookstore love: it’s been a great year!
This is the Boat that Ben Built has been out in the world for one year! This is the second post in a short series to mark the occasion. Seeing This is the Boat that Ben Built in local bookstores was such a fantastic feeling! I am grateful for the support of my local booksellers… Read more »
So many readers: It’s been a great year!
This is the Boat that Ben Built has been out in the world for one year! This is the first post in a short series to mark the occasion. The other day, as I was getting ready to go on a school visit, I realized that I was almost out of bookmarks to hand out… Read more »
A school visit to Elmwood!
Had such fun at Elmwood School last Friday, exploring my picture book and the northern river ecosystem with the enthusiastic grade 1-5 students! Their March theme was curiosity, and they really lived up to it with their thoughtful questions about the creative process and the animals in the story.
World Read Aloud Day – Reflections
You never quite can tell what’s going to happen on an in-person school visit. The projector goes out. The microphone screeches. A fire drill is called in the middle of a presentation. (We all lined up in the school yard…) But despite it all, you can usually tell when you’ve connected with them. They’re right… Read more »
Bloopers and Behind the Scenes
It’s been a whirlwind since the book release! My favorite part has been getting photos from readers with my book from all over Canada and the US – especially from kids. I love hearing about their favorite animals in the book, too: so far the owl is quite popular, followed closely by the dog! (note… Read more »
Book Birthday!
Today’s the day: This is the Boat that Ben Built is officially out in the world! I’m so excited for kids to read this playful book that Maggie and I created! Many, many thanks to everyone at Pajama Press including our publisher Gail, editor Erin, graphic designer Lorena, marketing team (Dagmawit, Quinn, & Abhya),… Read more »
Waiting for spring: OWL
Last (but certainly not least!) in my series of wintering and preparing for the launch of THIS IS THE BOAT THE BEN BUILT: a look at what the great horned owl is up to! Unlike some other birds, great horned owls do not typically migrate during the winter. Instead they settle into nests they find… Read more »
Waiting for spring: MOOSE
Next up in my series of wintering and preparing for the launch of This is the Boat that Ben Built: a look at what the moose is up to! Moose tolerate cold weather much better than they tolerate hot weather, but food is scarce and they must conserve their energy to make it through this… Read more »