What Matters by
What happens when one small boy picks up one small piece of litter? He doesn't know it, but his tiny act has big consequences. From the miniscule to the universal, What Matterssensitively explores nature's connections and traces the ripple effects of one child's good deed to show how we can all make a big difference.
From Far Away by
When Saoussan immigrated with her family from war-torn Lebanon, she was only seven years old. This picture book tells the story of how she had to adjust to her new home in Canada. She describes the frustration of not understanding the teacher when she started school, not knowing how to ask to go to the bathroom, and being terrified of a Hallowe'en skeleton. This is the perfect book to help kids empathize with immigrant children whose experiences are very similar to Saoussan's.
ABC of Toronto by
Popular illustrator Per-Henrik Gürth has created a playful alphabet book to showcase all the highlights and wonders in the city of Toronto. Each letter gets its own page (or two pages) and features an illustration and an explanatory sentence about a different Toronto attraction or activity. Both a capital and a lowercase letter begin the sentence, and the featured word for that page also begins with a capital letter to set it off. There are things to see: ?Dd is for Dinosaur, stretching out at the Royal Ontario Museum.' There are things to do: ?Pp is for Picnic, at Trinity Bellwoods Park.' And there are iconic experiences: ?Mm is for Maple Leafs --- go team!? Canadian animal characters (bears, moose, foxes and the like), familiar to readers of the other titles in Gürth's popular Canada Concept Books series, are the ones doing the touring in the book. Gürth's illustration style is friendly and inviting to the youngest children, using bold outlines and bright colors that really pop. The simple drawings provide helpful connections to the vocabulary words for pre-readers being introduced to the alphabet. This book would work perfectly for teaching young children (residents or visitors) about the sights in Toronto, and could also be used as part of a social studies lesson on Canada or on cities in general. With so much going on in the artwork, it makes for a fun, interactive read with small children as well.
Come to the Fair by
What could be more fun than a country fair? There are so many delights to choose from: the many farm animals, the colorful quilts, the penmanship contests, the delicious pies to eat, and best of all, the friends to see. Gilles Pelletier’s colorful naive paintings capture the flavor of country fairs from coast to coast, however they are celebrated.
From There to Here by
A little girl and her family have just moved across the country by train. Their new neighborhood in the city of Toronto is very different from their home in the Saskatchewan bush, and at first everything about "there" seems better than "here." The little girl's dad has just finished building a dam across the Saskatchewan River, and his new project is to build a highway through Toronto. In Saskatchewan, he would come home for lunch every day, but now he doesn't come until supper. The family used to love to look at the stars, and the northern lights dancing in the night sky. But in the city, all they can see is the glare from the streetlights. All the kids used to run and play together, but now older brother Doug has his own friends. Then one day there is a knock on the door. It is Anne, who lives kitty-corner and is also eight, going on nine, and suddenly living in Toronto takes on a whole new light. Laurel Croza and Matt James have beautifully captured the voice and intense feelings of a young child who, in the midst of upheaval, finds hope in her new surroundings.
Great Lakes and Rugged Ground by
Combining evocative haiku, informative text and luminous illustrations, Great Lakes and Rugged Ground is a celebration, for our youngest readers, of more than four hundred years of Ontario's history. Each detail-rich illustration depicts a particular moment in the province's dynamic saga from first European contact, the War of 1812, the building of the railroad and the Rideau Canal, the early development of the industries that have made the province the backbone of the national economy, through the emergence of a unique Canadian cultural identity, the hardships of two World Wars and modern industrial development. Great Lakes and Rugged Ground will give young readers a vivid sense of Ontario's rich history. For more information, sample pages, classroom resources and more, visit the Great Lakes and Rugged Ground Website www.imagining-ontario.ca.
Mary's Atlas: Mary Meets Ontario by
Mary is zipping and zooming again. This time, she's helping a little loon named Gavi discover why Ontario's Great Lakes have dried up. Join in the adventure as Mary meets Ontario.
Once upon a Northern Night by
Once Upon a Northern Night has received starred reviews from Kirkus, Publishers Weekly and School Library Journal. In this exquisite lullaby, the beauty and wonder of a northern winter night unfold, with images of a soft snowfall, the wild animals that appear in the garden, the twinkling stars, the gentle rhythm of the northern lights and the etchings of frost on the window pane. As the young child sleeps, wrapped in a downy blanket, a snowflake falls, and then another and another. The poem describes the forest of snow-covered pines, where a deer and fawn nibble a frozen apple, and a great gray owl swoops down with its feathers trailing through the snow. Two snowshoe hares scamper and play under the watchful eyes of a little fox, and a tiny mouse scurries in search of a midnight feast. When the snow clouds disappear, stars light up the sky, followed by the mystical shimmering of northern lights - all framed by the frost on the window. Jean E. Pendziwol's lyrical poem reflects a deep appreciation of the magic of a northern winter night where, even as a child slumbers, the world outside does not rest but continues its own natural rhythms. Isabelle Arsenault's spare, beautifully rendered illustrations, with their subtle but striking use of color, make us feel that we too are experiencing the enchantment of that northern night. They simultaneously evoke winter's nighttime life and the cozy warmth and security of a beloved child's sleep.
Little Voice by
Eleven-year-old Ray feels like a misfit at school and in her family. Things have been hard for her family since her father's accidental death in a logging accident, and Ray has been unable to express her grief. In school, the green eyes she inherited from her father are unusual for a child from an Ojibway background in a northern Ontario town and get her noticed in ways she doesn't enjoy. At home, Ray believes that her mother, grieving herself and busy with Ray's younger brother and sister, no longer needs her. Ray becomes so withdrawn that at times she hardly speaks. Then Ray gets the chance she's been longing for: to spend a summer in the bush with her beloved grandmother--fishing, camping, and living off the land. During this visit, guided by her grandmother's sure hands, compassionate wisdom, and unfailing sense of humour, Ray begins a marvellous journey. Her grandmother, Agnes, a skilled healer respected in her small community, is the mentor and teacher Ray needs. She sees Ray's need to find her own identity and voice and begins to help her learn traditional skills. At the end of this beautiful and empowering story, which begins in 1978, the withdrawn green-eyed girl has found her voice and is not afraid to use it. Ruby Slipperjackhas three novels to her credit: Weesquachak and the Lost Ones, Silent Words, and Honour the Sun. She is an assistant professor in the Department of Indigenous Learning at Lakehead University in Thunder Bay.
Tyendinaga Tales by
From the introduction: "Folk-tales are the verbal account of the world view and way of life of a people. They hold a special importance when the people lack a formal system of writing. For a thousand years the philosophy, religion, morals, customs, and ideas of the Iroquoian people were perpetuated by means of the spoken word. Folklore may explain the origin of man, animals, plants, and the world. Codes of behaviour, ethics, and social mores are validated in accounts which describe, for example, heroic or malicious deeds. Story- telling was used to socialize and instruct young people and acted as a social cohesive for the whole group." The tales which Rona Rustige has collected contain many folkloric motifs which relate them to other Iroquoian literatures. In the context of this body of Iroquoian folklore the tales take on a broader significance and their preservation allows for future systematic study.