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August 31, 2024Jennifer Maruno Sends a Young Witch and Her Rodent Sidekick on an Adventure in Broom for Two
Prolific children's author Jennifer Maruno may be familiar to readers of Open Book. In fact, as recently as last week, another title written by Maruno was featured on the site.This time we're sharing ...
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April 05, 2025Every Ingredient in Our Ancestors' Kitchen by Willie Poll Thrums With Meaning and Tradition
Métis activist and storyteller Willie Poll has deep connections to her community and traditions, all of which is on full display in a beautiful new picture book from the author. Poll's poetic voice ...
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August 24, 2023Eugenie Fernandes on Breaking Down the Extrovert/Introvert Dichotomy in Her Lovable New Picture Book
In recent years, the idea of introverts (those who may enjoy social interactions but find them draining) and extroverts (those who gain energy from social interactions) has been everywhere, from online ...
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April 20, 2021"Children are Born as Little Scientists" Erin Alladin's Outside, You Notice Captures the Wonder of Exploring the Natural World
Erin Alladin's Outside, You Notice (Pajama Press, illustrated by Andrea Blinick) is just the sort of book we could all use right now. Thoughtful, joyful, and gentle, its celebration of the outdoors, ...
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September 16, 2020Adan Jerreat-Poole on Comfort Reads, Finding Identity in Fairy Tales, & One Fabulous L'Engle Quote
As readers enter Adan Jerreat-Poole's The Girl of Hawthorn and Glass (Dundurn Press), they sink into a richly rendered fantasy world at war, where witches' assassin are the most deadly of weapons. Like Eli, ...
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August 09, 2022Jodi Carmichael on Crafting Lou, a Girl with ADHD & Dyslexia Who is the Irresistible Hero of a New Middle Grade Novel
The irresistible protagonist of Jodi Carmichael's The U-nique Lou Fox (Pajama Press), Louisa Elizabeth Fitzhenry-O’Shaughnessy, is going to be a playwright, and nothing can stop her. Not her overlong ...
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April 18, 2019"Because We Exist and It Is Beyond Time": The FOLD's first ever WIR S.K. Ali on Bringing Diverse Books to Young Readers
Canada's most innovative literary festival, the FOLD (the festival of literary diversity) continues to evolve and add new elements every year. One of the brand new additions for 2019 is the festival's ...
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September 12, 2019Marie-Louise Gay's Celebration of Young Readers' Imaginations in Fern and Horn: "You Have Your Unique Wonderful Way of Seeing the World"
In Fern and Horn (Groundwood Books), the titular twins Fern and Horn might be small, but their imaginations are huge. Fern loves drawing and helps Horn unlock his love of drawing too - the only trouble ...
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August 27, 2018An Open Letter to the Stranger Who Asked Me, “How Did You Write That Book for Children If You Don't Have Children?”
Dear Stranger,I realize that writing a book is kind of a self-important undertaking. When I write, I sometimes imagine that there are people out there who might actually enjoy reading my words and letting ...
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September 24, 2018"In Fiction There is Always a Tension Between What’s Said and What’s Unsaid" Sarah Ellis on her Draft Dodger Novel for Young Readers
Best friends Charlotte and Dawn are 13 in 1970 and not happy about it, longing to skip past the awkwardness of their early teen years and join the larger world - including the excitement of the hippie ...
