For FICTION and NON-FICTION

(Order The Books)

Note: In the new year, readers who are blind or visually impaired will be able to access a selection of the nominated books in alternate format at the Canadian National Institute for the Blind (CNIB) Library. Contact CNIB Library Reader Services at: 1-800-268-8818 for more information.

Nominees for FICTION are....


Fortress of Kaspar Snit (The)
by Cary Fagan
Tundra Books, 2004

There's something unusual about the Blande family. For one thing, at least one of them can fly. Let your imagination take flight as you join them in their quest to fight the evil that Kaspar Snit intends to unleash on the world. Can two small children make a difference? Read on and find out in this fresh and unique fantasy.

Hero
by Martha Attema
Orca, 2003

This gripping tale is based on a true story. Forced out of hiding with his mother, Izaak is sent to a farm in Northern Holland for the duration of the Second World War. Struggling to accept his new life and identity, Izaak finds comfort in a beautiful stallion, Hero. But just when the war is almost over, the Nazis come for Hero as well as Izaak. Will Izaak have what it takes to save his beloved horse? And himself?

Last Days in Africville
by Dorothy Perkyns
Beach Holme, 2003

Selina Palmer is a twelve-year-old girl growing up in Africville in the mid 1960's.  Struggling with what it means to be the only black student in her grade six class, she takes comfort in the fact that each day she can return to this loving, close-knit community.  Soon she hears ugly rumours that the home she loves is threatened by a change that will affect her and her family forever.

Mable Riley
by Marthe Jocelyn
Tundra Books, 2004

Mable Riley is a girl seeking adventure, who moves to a quiet, little town near Stratford, Ontario at the turn of the century. She is a companion to her bossy sister, Viola, who has accepted a teaching post, and instead of excitement, Mable finds life quite routine and she pines for her old life. She amuses herself by writing saucy romance chapters for her friends back home and then gets caught up in scandal after she meets the mysterious Mrs. Rattle. Her antics and narrow escapes from some of the straight-laced citizens of town make Mable an unforgettable character.

My Name is Mitch
by Shelagh Lynne Supeene
Orca, 2003

Mitch has problems - he's the smallest person in the class, he struggles with reading, and a bully named Philip is making his life at school miserable. However, his life begins to change for the better as he meets some new friends, begins a relationship with his dad, aka "The Creep", and works on a solution to deal with the bully. Philip will probably never steal lunches again! This is a book that will keep you laughing along with Mitch and cheering him on!

No Small Thing
by Natale Ghent
HarperCollins, 2003

Can you imagine reading an ad in the paper that offers a free pony to a good home? Nathaniel and his two sisters become the proud owners of Queenie, but then struggle to find the money for her care and a place for her to stay. Life has not been easy for the three since their dad left and their mom has to try and make ends meet. Nathaniel takes on the role as breadwinner for the pony's care and it seems to be going well...at first. This is a story about perseverance and three children fighting against all odds.

Puppet Wrangler (The)
by Vicki Grant
Orca, 2004

Due to a rather interesting family situation, Telly's parents have sent her away from her small town in Nova Scotia to stay in Toronto with her Aunt Kathleen. Kathleen is the busy television producer of the Bitsie 'n' Bytesie, a children's puppet show, and has no experience or particular desire to spend time with a 12 year old, so Telly spends her days with the puppeteers and other staff of the show. During the evening things get really interesting at the studio when Telly discovers that the star puppet, Bitsie, is actually alive...

Raven Quest
by Sharon Stewart
Scholastic Canada, 2003

Tok, a young, brave raven, embarks on a quest to save both his honour and all of ravenkind. He vows to find the legendary Grey Lords, beings that are both swift and fierce, but sing beautifully. Ravens and Grey Lords, as legend has it, had worked together to survive, until a dispute ended their alliance. The Ravens have been slowly finding less and less food to survive, and Tok believes that finding the Grey Lords will save his fellow ravens. Tok's quest takes him far from the Raven Mountains into dangerous and unknown lands. Will he survive to save ravenkind or is he on a doomed mission?

Scream of the Hawk
by Nancy Belgue
Orca, 2003

Lissa has just moved from Victoria to southwestern Ontario and has difficulty making friends since everyone in her new neighbourhood belongs to the same group, run by a bossy girl who refuses to let anyone associate with Lissa. She accepts a babysitting job looking after eight-year-old Otis who turns out to be the school geek. He recently lost his mother and has inherited a wild imagination from his father, a famous horror-writer. Lissa faces challenges and adventure that prove to be more than she bargained for when she took on the job!

Sorcerer's Letterbox
by Simon Rose
Tradewind, 2004

Jack discovers a letter from someone named Edward hidden deep inside an antique wooden box that he has been given. The letter is from 1493, and it's from the boy king, Edward V of England who is asking for help. Through the mysterious letterbox Jack is drawn back through time to medieval London, England where he meets the boy king face-to-face and is soon fighting for both their lives.
 

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Nominees for NON-FICTION are....


Going Wild: Amazing Animal Adventures Around the World
by Brian Keating
Fitzhenry & Whiteside, 2004

Brian Keating is a naturalist who has traveled around the world visiting isolated animal habitats. Share his narrow escape from a charging lions in Africa, stroll down a penguin superhighway in Antarctica and find out about Borneo’s amazing proboscis monkeys with their huge light-bulb noses dangling between their eyes. Maps, facts, web sites and other resources are there so the reader can continue the journey after the last page is turned.

Ask Me Anything: Strange But True Answers to 99 Wacky Questions
by Marg Meikle
Illustrator: Tina Holdcroft
Scholastic Canada, 2004

Imagine the zaniest question you can and you are sure to find its answer here. These are questions that kids have always wanted to ask; about the kinds of things kids think about. From our bodies to superstitions, to inventions and funny words, discover strange but true facts about our world in this humorous and entertaining book.

The Bear Says North: Tales from Northern Lands
retold by Bob Barton
Illustrator: Jirina Marton
Groundwood, 2003

Ten stories from the northern lands have been passed on through the generations and now are retold by Bob Barton and passed on to you, the reader. So, get cozy and warm, sit back and enjoy wonderful tales from Finland, Lithuania, Russia and the Canadian far north. You'll meet a goat with a silver hoof, a reindeer herder in love with the moon and many other magical characters out on the frozen landscape.

Famous Dead Canadians
by Joanne Stanbridge
Illustrator: B. Dickson
Scholastic Canada, 2003

Tired of reading dry, dusty books about famous Canadian explorers, historical figures or inventors? Looking for something completely different? Join Dr. Plumey Q. Norris on his wild taxi drive through history and you'll learn all the really interesting things about famous dead Canadians in chapters such as "Samuel de Champlain's underwear". Facts but also, fast and furious fun abound in this amusing book describing several of Canada's more famous figures.

Fantastic Feats and Failures
by the Editors of YES Mag
Illustrator: Jane Kurisu
Kids Can, 2004

Some people called the Eiffel Tower a "tragic lamppost" when it was built yet everyone thought that the Titanic was going to be unsinkable. Not every design was appreciated when it first came out and some that everyone liked turned out to be spectacular failures. In this book you'll see examples from both sides of the engineering world. Learn about the first building made out of glass, how a building design was based on an orange, the story behind the CN Tower, how duct tape saved the day for an Apollo spaceship and much, much more.

Kids Guide to Money Cent$ (The)
by Keltie Thomas
Illustrator: S MacEachern
Kids Can, 2004

Money. Most of us love it but few of us know much about it except how to spend it! Learn to be different by following the Money Cent$ Gang while they uncover the secrets of money: earning it, investing it and spending it too. Take a quiz and learn about your money personality. Stick with the gang while they reveal how to ID a counterfeit dollar bill and more. Thinking of becoming a millionaire? Read on! This book, with its colourful cartoon style artwork, presents the often-complex world of money in fun, accessible ways.

On Juno Beach: Canada's D-Day Heroes
by Hugh Brewster
Scholastic/Madison Press, 2004

2004 was the 60th anniversary of the D-Day invasion to liberate Europe from Adolf Hitler and Nazism, and this book covers the gripping story of the Canadians as they landed on Juno Beach in France to do their part. The photos and other memorabilia help to make the historical accounts by eyewitnesses and participants even more vivid. This is a story of bravery in the face of overwhelming odds.

Tree of Life
by Rochelle Strauss
Illustrator: M. Thompson
Kids Can, 2004

From blue-green algae to bumblebees, birds and baboons, there is an amazing variety of life on this planet, and it is all inter-connected. It is stunning to imagine that there are over one million different species of plants, animals, fungi and more, but this book introduces you to many of them and shows how everything is related. Every different species is a leaf on the tree of life - even you.

Tunnel King (The)
by Barbara Hehner
HarperCollins, 2004

This is the true story of Wally Floody, a Canadian airman who spent most of WW II trying to escape by tunneling under German concentration camps. He was a prisoner of war and the movie, The Great Escape, tells the story of him and his fellow escape artists. They were incredibly versatile and invented all sorts of contraptions - like using empty cookie tins to make radios, forging certificates and making their own fake uniforms. This is an exciting, true story about an ex-miner who became a tunnel digger extraordinaire, and took part of one of the most dramatic escape stories of the war.

Wow!: The Most Interesting Book You'll Ever Read About the Five Senses
by Trudee Romanek
Illustrator: R. Cowles
Kids Can, 2004

Why and how do you do things that you do? Find out in this fascinating book all about the five senses. You'll learn a lot about yourself by trying the easy-to-do experiments and will discover many intriguing facts in the pages of this book - from the reasons for colour blindness to a comparison of how well girls can smell things compared to boys.

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