Kids' Books

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Hey Canada! takes the form of a cross-Canada blog penned by 9-year-old Alice, reporting from the back seat of the car. The other participants on this epic trip include her cousin Cal, who is an eight-year-old fact dispenser, their grandmother, who likes to sing opera (although the kids wish she didn't), and an escaping hamster. Their trip takes them from Cape Spear, Newfoundland to Long Beach on Vancouver Island, and north to the Arctic.
Cal almost falls in the Atlantic Ocean while trying to taste it. His favourite part of Canada is the escalators. Alice learns about the Canadian Shield and wonders, "Where's the sword?" She insists on seeing the Big Moose in Moose Jaw. She gets nervous around grizzly bears.
The kids giggle at gift store souvenirs, get car sick, invent a new dinosaur called Aliceosaurus, and slide on their bums down a snow slope in the Rockies. Gran dances a jig at a Cape Breton ceilidh and demands to be fed cookies. She says she never knew that traveling with a hamster could be so much trouble.
Readers will journey from coast to coast to coast, grinning all the way. Additional features include Cal's Tweets and "Historical U-Turns" (Cartoon versions of famous battles and other important events), Gran's lame poems, lots of photos, playful illustrations by Milan Pavlovic and colourful maps of Canada.
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Crazy About Canada!
Amazing Things Kids Want to Know
OwlKids Books/Maple Tree Press, 2006 Sample
Writing |
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What the
critics say about Crazy About Canada!
The team of Vivien Bowers and Dianne Eastman has done it
again. They’ve
produced yet another book that is humorous, lively and interesting. This fourth
title in a series about Canada features the author herself and her sidekick,
Morton, as narrators. Their role is to answer some of the hundreds of questions
they’ve received from children across Canada…
Readers can
use this book in a number of ways: they can dip into it to mine interesting tidbits
of information with which to impress friends. (For example: “Did you know
that the Canada-U.S. border runs through an opera house in Quebec? The stage
is in Canada while the seats are in the U.S.”) With its extensive index,
they can also use it as a project resource and as a springboard for further writing
about Canada. Whatever use readers make of this book, they’ll find it an
enjoyable read.
Quill & Quire |
That's Very Canadian! An Exceptionally
Interesting Report About All Things Canadian, by Rachel
OwlKids Books/Maple Tree Press, 2004 Sample
Writing
Great Book: Canadian Toy Testing Council, 2005
Finalist: Silver Birch Award |
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What the
critics say about That’s Very Canadian!
Written from the perspective of a young girl who has been given an assignment
about Canada by her teacher, this book is fun, captivating and informative. Rachel,
with the help of Moose, Goose and Bucko Beaver, shares her findings about Canadian
symbols and what it means to be a Canadian…
Bowers’ sense of humour (humour with a “u”)
is evident throughout the book, not only in the main body
of the text, but also in the amusing little comments made
by the moose, goose and beaver in the corners of the pages.
For example, Rachel suggests that, if she were to design
a new coat-of-arms that reflects what Canada is all about,
it would consist of Inuit and Native symbols, artic animals,
two crossed hockey sticks and the motto, “We shoot,
we score!”….
No wonder this book is part of the “Wow Canada” series.
Bravo, Vivien Bowers!
Highly Recommended.
CM Magazine, Manitoba Library Association |
Only in Canada! From the Colossal to the Kooky
OwlKids Books/Maple Tree Press, 2002 Sample
Writing
Finalist, Diamond
Willow Award, Red Cedar Award, Rocky Mountain Book Award
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What
the critics say about Only in
Canada!:
A delightfully fact-filled tour of what's fascinating and unique
about this diverse country. The book is simply jam-packed with
weird and wonderful tidbits about geography, history, wildlife
and "unboring" Canadians. From the educational (e.g.
how plate tectonics carved up Canada) to the heroic (e.g. the
story of Terry Fox) to the downright gross (nose bots are large
hairy flies that lay their eggs in the nostrils of caribou),
readers will delight in this work. Narrated by Moose and Goose
(symbolically Canadian), the book presents a wealth of information
in a wonderfully innovative format that offers something for
everyone. It is visually pleasing with a variety of picture
images (including black-and-white and full colour photos and
cartoons) as well as maps and time-lines mixed into the lively,
easy-to-read text. This volume is a welcome break from the more
traditional "all about a country" books and could
be used for reports or leisure reading. It stands above all
others in its genre and is a must-have for any Canadian library.
School Library Journal |
Wow Canada! Exploring this Land
from Coast to Coast to Coast
OwlKids Books/Maple Tree Press, 1999 Sample
Writing
Winner, BC Book Prize
(Sheila A. Egoff Children's Prize), Information Book Award
(Children's Literature Roundtables of Canada), Red Cedar Book
Award, Hackmatack Children's Choice Award
Finalist, Mr. Christie Award, Canadian
Science Writers Association Award, Libris Award, Alberta Reader's
Choice Award
Best non-fiction children's book of 1999
as rated by Quill & Quire
magazine
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What the critics say about Wow
Canada!
"Wow Canada! is a scrapbook cum
journal of a car trip across Canada written from the perspective
of a 12 year-old boy named Guy. As the narrator, Guy describes
places, flora, fauna and experiences with a terrific sense
of humour and in a language that young readers can easily
relate to. Sidebars with information about Canada's nature
and history are written in the same tone with such titles
as "Exceedingly Weird" and "According to Mom." The colourful
illustrations, which include slides, postcards, memorabilia,
photographs and drawings, are wonderfully designed to make
each spread exciting and inviting but not overwhelming. As
with all trips, many places go unvisited. So author Vivien
Bowers cleverly includes a section titled "Things We'll Do
and Places We'll Go Next Time" at the end of each chapter.
These features, along with the writing and illustrations,
make you want to hop in a car and start exploring Canada right
away.
In addition to a clever visual at the end of the book, there
is an extensive index and three pages of basic facts about
the provinces and territories (including Nunavut). The factual
information includes the origin of the name, symbols, land
size, population, major cities and industries, topography
and climate. This section as well as the rest of the book
is a great resource for school projects. Wow
Canada! truly lives up to its name."
Quill & Quire, December 1999
"This is probably the best Canadian travel book written for
pre-teens. Presented as a narration by 12-year-old Guy, who
is on a cross-country car trip with his parents and younger
sister Rachel, it is a delightful West-to-East odyssey touching
on Canada's most famous sights and attractions. Filled with
facts, simply related history, engaging tales and colour illustrations
presented as souvenirs, postcards and slides, Wow
Canada! is guaranteed to stimulate a youngster's urge
to explore the country." Globe and Mail,
January 29, 2000
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Crime Science: How Investigators Use Science to Track Down
the Bad Guys
OwlKids Books/Maple Tree Press, 1997 Sample
Writing
Winner, Canadian Science
Writers Award
Finalist, Silver Birch Award, Red
Cedar Award
- Information Book "Honor" Award (2nd place), Children's Literature
Roundtables of Canada
- #2 non-fiction children's book of 1997
as rated by Quill & Quire
magazine
Now Revised
Crime Scene:
How Investigators Use Science to Track Down the Bad Guys
Maple Tree Press, 2006
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