I’ve just come out of a week-long fog caused by a nasty flu bug that has been circulating and am just beginning to feel (somewhat) normal. Being saddled with the flu is like spending weeks planning for a party only to have that annoying neighbourhood kid show up and ruin everything. He wrecks all the [...]
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Since starting this blog I’ve become synonymous with children’s books to my friends and family and I don’t mind it one bit (better than being the gecko lady or the weird clown collecting lady!) And often I am asked for tips on great books and on getting kids into reading and doing it more. I [...]
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I’m a lucky person in many ways. One of the areas I am truly blessed is in my family. I have a large extended family (and super in-laws) and it’s a nice feeling. Another great part of my family is that there are a lot of women. I have a number of aunts who I [...]
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Posted in Ages 10-14, Ages 14 and above, Award Winners, Better than TV, Canadian Superstars, Good Canadian Stuff, Great Books for Boys, Juvenile Fiction, Unique Books, YA fiction on May 13th, 2011
The day before last I finally completed the 2011 Census and I think it was the short form for all of those who remember the hoopla of the long versus short form. Anyway it’s really easy and you can do it online. Right after I was asked to participate in another voluntary household survey and [...]
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Posted in Ages 10-14, Ages 14 and above, Better than TV, Blog Tours, Canadian History, Contests, Good Canadian Stuff, Great Books for Girls, Historical Fiction, Just Out, Juvenile Fiction, Launches and Events, Unique Books, YA fiction on Apr 25th, 2011
As a parent I often have this insatiable urge to shield my daughter from the unpleasant things in life. Whether in song verse (you’d be amazed at how negative, macabre and downright scary some popular children’s songs are if you really listened to them. I mean “down will come baby cradle and all” isn’t the [...]
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Maybe it’s because I am a woman and pregnant (initially I was going to write pregnant and a woman but then I thought about that sentence…) but lately I have been thinking quite a bit about the strength and power of women. Having gone through pregnancy and birth, nursing, parenting and surviving on little sleep [...]
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I can remember loving fairy tales in childhood, especially the Disney versions. There was always the added magic of being able to talk to cute little animals and the village breaking out in a song that still gets to me (much to my husband’s chagrin, I love the musical!) but it was also the somewhat [...]
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Johanna Skibsrud is the winner of the 2010 Scotiabank Giller Prize for her book The Sentimentalists. This prize is the only Canadian literary event broadcast on national television and honours the best in Canadian literature. The 30-year-old Nova Scotian’s book is based on the story of her father, Olav, who was a Vietnam War veteran. [...]
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Posted in Ages 9 to 12, All Ages, Better than TV, Canadian History, Good Canadian Stuff, Great Books for Boys, Halloween Books, Magic and Lore, Series, Spooky Halloween Reads on Oct 27th, 2010
It would be an understatement to say I spook easily. I am the person squealing out loud in movie theatres when the serial killing monster pops out from behind the door and I am jumpier than a long-tailed cat in a room full of rocking chairs! Even when I know something is coming I can’t [...]
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Posted in Ages 10-14, Ages 9 to 12, All Ages, Artsy Kids' Books, Better than TV, Concept books, Good Canadian Stuff, Great Books for Boys, Great Books for Girls, New Books, Sports on Oct 20th, 2010
I think being active is very important for children and am always surprised at how little stock the education system, parents and educators put into it. Perhaps one of the most valuable things we can do for our children (aside from instilling a love of reading of course!) is to model or encourage children to [...]
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