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Award-Winning Titles 2004English Awards English AwardsAMELIA FRANCES HOWARD-GIBBON AWARD
Stanley is a good dog -- he knows that he shouldn't climb up on the couch. But one night when his owners are out, that's exactly what he does. It's so wonderful! Just before midnight, he tidies up so no one will suspect a thing. The next night, he plays music, dances around the living room and even helps himself to snacks from the refrigerator. Stanley has lots of fun but is tired of playing alone. He wants a party and decides to invite all the dogs from the neighbourhood. Unfortunately, on the night of the party, his owners come home early. Stanley gets in trouble and has to help clean up the mess, which takes two days. From now on, every time his owners go out, Stanley goes with them. This is another winning book by Linda Bailey and Bill Slavin, the team that gave us the Good Times Travel Agency series. Bailey's simple and straightforward text is complemented by Slavin's detailed and humorous acrylic illustrations, each capturing Stanley's spunkiness. Stanley's Party is sure to delight young readers and become a favourite. -AC ANN CONNOR-BRIMER AWARD
Reef was raised by his alcoholic, abusive grandfather and his long-suffering grandmother. After their deaths, he drifted through a string of foster homes, eventually developing into an angry young man who attempts to gain control over his life by committing random acts of violence. In one incident, he throws a rock off an overpass, smashing the windshield of Leeza Hemming's car. Due to his Young Offender status, Reef is sent to a group home. As part of his sentencing, Reef ends up volunteering at the Halifax Rehabilitation Centre, the same place where the injured Leeza has been sent to recover. At the centre, neither recognizes the other. Reef soon begins helping Leeza to heal, but then the inevitable happens -- Leeza's mother recognizes him and, having always believed his sentence too lenient, secures a court order banning Reef from seeing her daughter. Yet Reef is not the same angry young man who threw the rock, and while he would like Leeza to forgive him, he has at last forgiven himself. Ironically, Leeza's mother drags her to church where they hear a sermon on forgiveness: "Let the person who is without sin cast the first stone." Neither Leeza nor her mother has forgiven Reef. Parents should be advised that this book contains crude language and graphic medical descriptions. -LS ARTHUR ELLIS AWARDS
'Acceleration,' as defined in the FBI handbook describing serial killers, is the "escalation of increasingly destructive aberrant behaviour." Why is 17-year-old Duncan reading an FBI handbook? It all starts with his rather boring summer job at the lost and found of the Toronto Transit Authority. Stationed below subway level, Duncan works alone with his ancient, crabby supervisor Jacob, inventorying items as they come in. One day, Duncan starts reading some of the books that have been turned in. One particular book catches his full attention -- the diary of a madman. It outlines acts of arson and the mutilation and killing of animals. The writer describes himself as a hunter, and he now has a new target: women on the subway. Duncan must find him before he can claim his first human victim. As his friend Vinny says, "Me an' you going after this guy, it's like the Hardy Boys meet Hannibal Lecter." The story builds in suspense, leading to a dramatic and violent conclusion. Author Graham McNamee's first novel, Hate You, was an ALA Best Book for Young Adults, won the Austrian Children's Book Award and was nominated for a Governor General's Literary Award. Acceleration is his fourth novel. -LS BLUE SPRUCE READING PROGRAM
Stanley is a good dog -- he knows that he shouldn't climb up on the couch. But one night when his owners are out, that's exactly what he does. It's so wonderful! Just before midnight, he tidies up so no one will suspect a thing. The next night, he plays music, dances around the living room and even helps himself to snacks from the refrigerator. Stanley has lots of fun but is tired of playing alone. He wants a party and decides to invite all the dogs from the neighbourhood. Unfortunately, on the night of the party, his owners come home early. Stanley gets in trouble and has to help clean up the mess, which takes two days. From now on, every time his owners go out, Stanley goes with them. This is another winning book by Linda Bailey and Bill Slavin, the team that gave us the Good Times Travel Agency series. Bailey's simple and straightforward text is complemented by Slavin's detailed and humorous acrylic illustrations, each capturing Stanley's spunkiness. Stanley's Party is sure to delight young readers and become a favourite. -AC BOOK OF THE YEAR FOR CHILDREN AWARD
With the novel Boy O'Boy, Brian Doyle demonstrates his mastery of plot and characterization. We are introduced to Martin O'Boy, a gentle and loving boy who lives with his parents and an incapacitated twin brother in a small house in Lowertown Ottawa during the Second World War. Times are hard and money is scarce. Martin and his friend Billy become summer choirboys to earn a few nickels. The organist, Mr. George, shows an unhealthy interest in both boys. The children feel trapped but find the strength to ask the help of a trusted friend to escape the unsavoury Mr. George. When dealing with the complex and difficult topic of sexual abuse, Brian Doyle shows respect for his characters and young readers. Boy O'Boy is a beautifully written novel, filled with memorable characters created by a writer who understands children and their fears, and who shows humanity and compassion in transcending the dreadful actions in his story. Nominated by IBBY Canada for the prestigious Hans Christian Andersen Award in 1998, Brian Doyle has received many accolades. He is a three-time winner of the Canadian Library Association's Book of the Year for Children Award and is the recipient of numerous other national and international honours. -JP CANADIAN JEWISH NEWS PRIZE FOR CHILDREN'S LITERATURE
Benny's grandfather makes the best bagels in town. Everyone thinks that the bagels are so good because they are baked with love, but Grandpa explains to Benny that it is God, after all, that they should thank. What follows is a touching story of a boy's efforts to be heard by God. At first, the young Jewish boy is unsure about how to thank God, but his strong desire to do so leads him to the synagogue, a place where people go to connect with God. He bravely opens the big wooden door of the Holy Ark and leaves a steaming bag of bagels inside. He continues to leave bagels for God week after week until he discovers that a hungry, tattered man has been eating them. Grandpa reassures the disappointed Benny that by making the world a better place he has indeed thanked God. Bagels from Benny is told with humour and sensitivity by talented storyteller Aubrey Davis. This heart-warming adaptation of a Jewish folk tale from Spain will appeal to all children. The humour and emotion of Dušan Petričić's expressive illustrations enhance the story. Each illustration is encased in a round, warm beige circle, just like a bagel. -BF THE CHRISTIE HARRIS ILLUSTRATED CHILDREN'S LITERATURE PRIZE
Stanley is a good dog -- he knows that he shouldn't climb up on the couch. But one night when his owners are out, that's exactly what he does. It's so wonderful! Just before midnight, he tidies up so no one will suspect a thing. The next night, he plays music, dances around the living room and even helps himself to snacks from the refrigerator. Stanley has lots of fun but is tired of playing alone. He wants a party and decides to invite all the dogs from the neighbourhood. Unfortunately, on the night of the party, his owners come home early. Stanley gets in trouble and has to help clean up the mess, which takes two days. From now on, every time his owners go out, Stanley goes with them. This is another winning book by Linda Bailey and Bill Slavin, the team that gave us the Good Times Travel Agency series. Bailey's simple and straightforward text is complemented by Slavin's detailed and humorous acrylic illustrations, each capturing Stanley's spunkiness. Stanley's Party is sure to delight young readers and become a favourite. -AC ELIZABETH MRAZIK-CLEAVER CANADIAN PICTURE BOOK AWARD
A clown is searching everywhere for Pup, his missing dog. He asks all the circus performers if they know where Pup is, to which they reply using simple rhyming phrases: "Don't know. / Go ask Jo. / She's feeding Mo," or "No guess. / Go ask Jess. / He's training Bess." The reader meets silly characters and is introduced to various circus acts: a magician sawing a lady in half, a mouse jumping through a hoop, two trapeze artists and a horseback rider among them. The acrylic illustrations are simple, captivating and funny; whether it be a gorilla wearing a polka-dot bib or a goggle-sporting pig about to be shot out of a cannon, artist Pierre Pratt uses bright oranges, reds and blues to evoke the curious world of the circus. At the end, the clown finally discovers his beloved dog (a foldout page reveals Pup at the top of a human pyramid). Dodd's rhyming text and Pratt's expressive illustrations make Where's Pup? a great interactive book filled with humour and playful suspense. -AC GEOFFREY BILSON AWARD FOR HISTORICAL FICTION FOR YOUNG PEOPLE
With the novel Boy O'Boy, Brian Doyle demonstrates his mastery of plot and characterization. We are introduced to Martin O'Boy, a gentle and loving boy who lives with his parents and an incapacitated twin brother in a small house in Lowertown Ottawa during the Second World War. Times are hard and money is scarce. Martin and his friend Billy become summer choirboys to earn a few nickels. The organist, Mr. George, shows an unhealthy interest in both boys. The children feel trapped but find the strength to ask the help of a trusted friend to escape the unsavoury Mr. George. When dealing with the complex and difficult topic of sexual abuse, Brian Doyle shows respect for his characters and young readers. Boy O'Boy is a beautifully written novel, filled with memorable characters created by a writer who understands children and their fears, and who shows humanity and compassion in transcending the dreadful actions in his story. Nominated by IBBY Canada for the prestigious Hans Christian Andersen Award in 1998, Brian Doyle has received many accolades. He is a three-time winner of the Canadian Library Association's Book of the Year for Children Award and is the recipient of numerous other national and international honours. -JP
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