children’s books

What to Give?

| kirsti

Book Store Cat

The Phoenix on Bowen Cat | Canon 40D| 50mm 1.4

Give a book! CWILL BC authors and illustrators make it a bit easier with themed book pairings over at the CWILL BC blog. The wonderful idea was borrowed from MotherReader and given a British Columbian twist.

I was visiting Phoenix, the bookstore (and more) on Bowen Island, when I came across a bunch of books I remember from when I was a kid. I just had to buy them. I’m not sure how to adequately express this, but reading them today, as an adult, I realised that I was enjoying them on two levels – for how my adult mind appreciated the writing and the illustrations and for the way my child mind suddenly swam to the surface when I saw something familiar from a long time ago. I loved these books in a totally different way when I was a kid, unhampered by the 31 years of experience that influence me today. Seeing them again today I got back a bit of what was wonderful about childhood. Not only did I recall the book, I remembered where I was when the book was read to me – details about the house we lived in at the time. I remembered what I felt about the book, how my parents read it to me, what my favourite pages were, what pages my brother liked best and what it was like to be able to finally read it to myself. It seems that I’m getting all sentimental and nostalgic in my adult age.

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Book Store Cat

The Phoenix on Bowen Cat | Canon 40D | 50mm 1.4

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Looking for Loons Review in Cottage Life

| kirsti

Looking for Loons review in Cottage Life

There’s a really nice review of Looking for Loons in the Winter 2007 issue of Cottage Life.

Author Jennifer Lloyd and illustrator Kirsti Anne Wakelin, both Canadians, create a sensory feast, from the sunlight on a pillow to the bang of a cast-iron pan on the stove.

-Liann Bobechko, Cottage Life, Winter 2007

The magazine is full of all things cottage as well as the 2007 photo contest winners – images of enviable times spent with family and friends, surrounded by nature.

Looking for Loons review in Cottage Life

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Book Launch ~ Looking for Loons @ The Hycroft Event

| kirsti

I will be launching Looking for Loons, written by Jennifer Lloyd, (Simply Read Books pub.) at this year’s Hycroft Event. Every year The Vancouver Children’s Literature Roundtable puts on the Hycroft Event, an evening of book launches by CWILL BC members. This year, the authors and illustrators from around the province will launch their books published in 2007 from 6pm-9pm on Wednesday, November 14, 2007 at Hycroft Mansion (1489 Macrae – just east of Granville at 16th). This year’s special guest speaker is Nan Gregory.

There is no registration required, the event is free and light refreshments will be served after the launch. Books will be available for sale before and after the presentations.

A complete list of this year’s presenters and their books [pdf].

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Book Sneak Peek ~ Unveiling

| kirsti

I saw the published/finished/completed/totally done/hardcover form of Looking For Loons at Vancouver Kidsbooks today. (thanks for letting me know Kari!). Here’s a photo of the cover:

Looking for Loons

Details:
Jennifer Lloyd; Kirsti Anne Wakelin, illus.;
$19.95 cloth
ISBN:978-1894965-54-5
32 pp., 8-1/2 x 11
Simply Read Books, Aug.
(ages 4-7)

um. yay!

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Holgas & Paperbacks

| kirsti

Wood Burning Oven/Yellow Table

Wood Burning Oven/Yellow Table
Holga | Fuji NPZ 800

The Holga is a spontaneous sort of camera and I’m trying to get better at the whole spontaneous photography thing. I’ve just found out that my local 30 minute photo lab processes 120 (thanks for the tip Rachael). Now I don’t have to wait so long to see what new way I’ve managed to damage a roll of film.

Yesterday, while waiting for a roll of 35mm to develop, I wandered around the neigbourhood with my Holga, took some photos, dropped off the roll for developing and went to Vancouver Kidsbooks to kill the half hour until pickup time. I saw that one of the books I illustrated a few years ago is now out in paperback – they had a whole stack on a rack on the outside of a shelf – cover facing out.

As for the photographs, I managed not to destroy a single frame this time and even pulled off of a couple I’m happy with, like the one above. Not a bad day.

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First Review for Looking for Loons

| kirsti

Book Review

Looking for Loons, (Jennifer Lloyd auth., Kirsti Anne Wakelin illust., published by Simply Read Books) won’t be out until the fall, but was reviewed from the proofs in the Quill & Quire.

excerpt from the Q&Q, July/August 2007, page 68:

Vancouver illustrator Kirsti Anne Wakelin’s luminous watercolours are an excellent match for the natural beauty of the tale’s setting. Glowing reds, oranges, and golds fill the double-page spreads.

-Jessica Kelley, a youth librarian from Vancouver living in Fresno, California

For this and other reviews of new Canadian (and international) books – both kidlit and adult – pick up a July/August copy of the Quill & Quire, Canada’s Magazine of Book News and Reviews.

EDIT: the review is now up on the Quill & Quire site.

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