2014 Willow Awards: Winners announced

The winners of the Saskatchewan Young Readers' Choice (SYRCA) awards, the Willow Awards, were announced on May 14, 2015 in Weyburn, Saskatchewan.  From the nominees announced last March, young readers have voted for their favourites and the results tallied.

Congratulations 

to the 

winners 

of  2014 Saskatchewan Young Readers' Choice Awards,

the Willow Awards!

___________________________________________

The winner of this year's

for those books written for youngest readers (K to Grade 3)

is

When I Get Older: The Story behind "Wavin' Flag" 

by K'NAAN and Sol Guy 

Illustrated by Rudy Gutierrez 

Tundra Books 

2013

___________________________________________

The winner of this year's

for those books written for readers of Grades 4 to 6

is

Ultra

by David Carroll 

Scholastic Canada

2013

Reviewed here

___________________________________________

The winner of this year's

for those books written for readers in Grades 7 to 9

is

Live to Tell

by Lisa Harrington

Dancing Cat Books

2012

Reviewed here

___________________________________________

Well done, young readers of Saskatchewan, 

on your wonderful selections!  

2015 Canadian Library Association Book Awards: Nominees announced

Last week and today, the Canadian Library Association announced via press release the shortlists for each of its annual book awards which are generously sponsored by Library Services Centre. Here are the lists of nominees:

This award recognizes an illustrator of a noteworthy Canadian book, published in 2014, that appeals to children up to the age of 12 years. 

Any Questions?
by Marie-Louise Gay
(Groundwood Books)








Bob's Hungry Ghost
by Geneviève Côté
(Tundra Books)

Dolphin SOS

Illustrated by Julie Flett

Written by Roy Miki and Slavia Miki

(Tradewind Books) 

Gustave
Illustrated by Pierre Pratt

Written by Rémy Simard

(Groundwood Books)

If...
Illustrated by Steve Adams
Written by David J. Smith
(Kids Can Press)

Julia, Child
Illustrated by Julie Morstad
Written by Kyo Maclear
(Tundra Books)

The Most Magnificent Thing
by Ashley Spires 
(Kids Can Press)

Nancy Knows
by Cybèle Young
(Tundra Books)

Pirates of the Silver Coast
by Scott Chantler 
(Kids Can Press)

The Tweedles Go Electric
Illustrated by Marie Lafrance 
Written by Monica Kulling
(Groundwood Books)

This notable award recognizes a Canadian author of an outstanding book published in Canada in 2014, which appeals to children up to and including age 12.

The Boundless
by Kenneth Oppel
(HarperCollins Canada)









The Night Gardener
by Jonathan Auxier
(Penguin Canada)

Walking Home
by Eric Walters
(Doubleday Canada)

The Swallow: A Ghost Story
by Charis Cotter
(Tundra Books)

The End of the Line
by Sharon E. McKay
(Annick Press)

Lord and Lady Bunny–Almost Royalty!
by Polly Horvath
Illustrated by Sophie Blackall
(Groundwood Books)

The Circus Dogs of Prague
by Rachelle Delaney
(Penguin Canada)

It's Catching: The Infectious World of Germs and Microbes
by Jennifer Gardy
Illustrated by Josh Holinaty
(Owlkids)

The Elevator Ghost
by Glen Huser
(Groundwood Books)

Rain Shadow
by Valerie Sherrard
(Fitzhenry & Whiteside)

This award recognizes an author of an outstanding English-language Canadian work of fiction (novel, collection of short stories or graphic novel), published in 2014, that appeals to young adults between the ages of 13 and 18.

The Art of Getting Stared At
by Laura Langston
(Penguin Random House)

The Death of Us
by Alice Kuipers 
(HarperCollins)

The Gospel Truth
by Caroline Pignat 
(Red Deer Press)

Moon at Nine
by Deborah Ellis 
(Pajama Press)

Rabbit Ears
by Maggie DeVries 
(HarperCollins Canada)

This One Summer
by Mariko Tamaki 
Illustrated by Jillian Tamaki
(Groundwood Books)

Twisted
by Lisa Harrington 
(Dancing Cat Books)

Unspeakable
by Caroline Pignat 
(Penguin Random House)

The Voice Inside My Head
by S. J. Laidlaw 
(Tundra Books)

What We Hide
by Marthe Jocelyn
(Tundra Books)

During the week of April 20, 2015, the winners of these three awards will be announced, and then presented in May, 2015 at the Canadian Library Association National Conference and Trade Show in Ottawa at a reception sponsored by TD Bank Group and Library Services Centre.

2014 Burt Award for First Nations, Métis and Inuit Literature: winners

I'm so far behind in my award announcements but I couldn't miss this exceptional new award, inaugurated in 2013. The Burt Award for First Nations, Métis and Inuit Literature recognizes excellence in English-language literary works for Young Adults by First Nations, Métis and Inuit writers. The Burt Awards are a part of CODE's mandate to "support(s) literacy and learning in Canada and around the world" (Retrieved from http://www.codecan.org/code on November 19, 2014.)

The jury process for this award is administered by the Assembly of First Nations, the Métis National Council, Inuit Tapiriit Kanatami, the National Association of Friendship Centres, the Association of Canadian Publishers, and the Canada Council for the Arts. 

This year, three of the five finalists were awarded with prizes, with a First Prize of $12,000, a Second Prize of $8,000 and a Third Prize of $5,000.

Congratulations to the following winners:

FIRST PRIZE

Tilly, a Story of Hope and Resilience 

by Monique Gray Smith 

Sono Nis Press

SECOND PRIZE

The Inconvenient Indian: A Curious Account of Native People in North America 

by Thomas King 

Doubleday Canada

THIRD PRIZE

They Called Me Number One 

by Bev Sellars 

Talonbooks

2014 Aurora Awards: Science Fiction & Fantasy Awards winners

The 2014 Auroras, a.k.a. Aurora Award and Prix Aurora, Canada's Science Fiction & Fantasy Awards since 1980, were recently awarded by the Canadian Science Fiction and Fantasy Association (CSFFA). 

Awards were presented in ten categories this year:

1. Best Novel
2. Best YA Fiction
3. Best Short Fiction
4. Best Poem / Song
5. Best Graphic Novel
6. Best Related Work
7. Best Artist
8. Best Fan Music
9. Best Fan Organizational
10. Best Fan Related Work

The nominees for the YA award were announced in May, with voting extended to September.  These were the nominated titles:

Best English YA (Young Adult) Novel

The Ehrich Weisz Chronicles: Demon Gate 

by Marty Chan

Fitzhenry & Whiteside

Ink 

by Amanda Sun

Harlequin Teen

The Lake and the Library 

by S.M. Beiko

ECW Press

Out of Time 

by D. G. Laderoute

Five Rivers Publishing

Resolve 

by Neil Godbout

Bundoran Press

The Rising 

by Kelley Armstrong

Doubleday Canada 

 

The winner of the 2014 Aurora Award for Young Adult Fiction, presented at Canvention 34 in Vancouver on October 3, 2014 is:

Kelley Armstrong

for 

The Rising

Dark Rising Book 3

Doubleday Canada

432 pp.

Ages 12+

2013