News from Orca Book Publishers

News From Orca Book Publishers
April 2009

News and notes...
(Click on the covers for more info).

Excellence in Book Design...

The Alcuin Society has announced the winners of its 27th annual Awards for Excellence in Book Design. Teresa Bubela, Orca Director of Art and Production, along with illustrator Vladyana Krykorka, have won for The Littlest Sled Dog, a picturebook written by Michael Kusugak. This is the second year in a row that Teresa has won the prestigous award. She also won for last year's Art's Supplies, with Chris Tougas.

The winning books will be shown across Canada and exhibited at the Tokyo International Book Fair in Japan, and the Frankfurt and Leipzig International Book Fairs. They will compete in the biggest annual book-design competition in the world, in Leipzig, Germany, in February 2010.

And action...

Film rights have been optioned by Teoli Films of Vancouver for the The Lit Report by Sarah N. Harvey.

The Globe & Mail said of The Lit Report: "Harvey depict[s] authentic relationships. She also reveals, quite wonderfully, the fluid line between family and friends. She opens us up to the joyous unpredictability of life. And through the example of Julia's mother, she demonstrates the transformative power of a gentle, adaptable faith."
Break out the popcorn! The Lit Report is also a nominee for the BC Book Prizes and for the Canadian Library Association's YA Book Award.

And in other film news, the option for Beth Goobie's The Lottery has been extended for another year by Vancouver's Serious Filmed Entertainment. Serious has obtained initial funding from Movie Central and Telefilm Canada so production is becoming more likely.

For more info, have your people call my people.

Orca's film rights are negotiated by Sarah Cooper of the Saint Agency.

BC Book Prizes...

Two teen novels from Orca have been nominated for the BC Book Prizes.
A Thousand Shades of Blue by Robin Stevenson and The Lit Report by Sarah N. Harvey have both made the short list for the Sheila A. Egoff Children's Literature Prize, sponsored by the BC Library Association.

Winners of the BC Book Prizes will be presented at the 25th Annual Lieutenant Governor's BC Book Prize Gala, Saturday April 25th in Vancouver.

More info here.

Would you like herring with that?

It seems that Canadian fiction has found a home in the Nordic countries. Could it be the cold winters? Or maybe a love of curling? Whatever it is, we are seeing more and more titles publishing in Norway and Sweden, Denmark and beyond.
Just recently, All Season Edie, by Annabel Lyon, sold to Stabenfeldt for Norway and Sweden; and Hegas, a Swedish publisher, has bought four more titles in the Orca Soundings series. Chill by Colin Frizzell, One More Step by Sheree Fitch, Dead-End Job by Vicki Grant and
The Trouble With Liberty by Kristin Butcher, join Tell by Norah McClintock and Something Girl by Beth Goobie which sold previously.
All sales were arranged by Samantha Haywood of Transatlantic Literary Agency.

Orca rights info here.

Advance reviews...

A bunch of Spring titles have been garnering great reviews.
Among the highlights:

Five Minutes More (Darlene Ryan) "...young adult fiction doesn't get much better than this. Highly Recommended" (CM Magazine)
Back (Norah McClintock) "Perfect for reluctant readers up for some soul-searching." (Booklist)
The Solstice Cup (Rachel Dunstan Muller) "fast pace, believable dialogue ... a good choice for readers seeking a fiendish-faery fix." (Kirkus Reviews)

See the full list of New Spring titles here.

Making Change, one sole at a time...

Fund-raising philanthropist Bilaal Rajan is going barefoot and urging others to join him as he raises awareness about children and poverty during International Volunteer Week, which begins Sunday.
In a recent piece in the Globe & Mail, Bilaal says he has mobilized more than 500 participants to go shoeless for at least one day next week.

Bilaal is the author of Making Change - Tips From an Underage Overachiever, released last fall and selling well.

Voice of Youth Advocates said of Bilaal's book: "Part personal odyssey and part motivational guide..., this book's strength is its realistic approach to charitable work."

Walk on, Bilaal!

Books, books and, oh yes, more books...

The Orca warehouse is full to over-flowing with the recent influx of new Spring titles. Help us help warehouse manager David Small and his friend Forky the forklift make some space by ordering books - now!

Titles in stock and shipping include:

Soccer Sabotage - new in the Graphic Guides adventure series from Liam O'Donnell and Mike Deas;
Bank Job - a juvenile bank caper novel from James Heneghan and Norma Charles;
Queen of Disguises - the sixth hilarious installment in the Dinah Galloway mystery series from Melanie Jackson
Warden of Greyrock - book three in the Warlocks of Talverdin from KV Johansen;
and much more - thirty new titles in all.

Sneak Peeks...
Looking ahead to Fall and beyond we have some wonderful titles coming, including:

Simon Says Gold - Simon Whitfield's incredible story of his pursuit of Olympic gold, written with Cleve Dheensaw;
The Salt Trilogy - epic fantasy adventure from New Zealand's Maurice Gee;
Death on the River - a thrilling Civil War adventure by John Wilson
Pierre Le Poof - a hilarious new picturebook series from Andrea Beck, creator of Elliot the Moose.

and much more! The new catalogue will be available shortly.

Thanks for reading!
Remember customer service? We do too. If you have a question about a title, want us to customize a collection for your school or library, are interested in what we can can do for your store, or just want to chat and exchange gossip, give us a call. Our toll-free customer service line is manned (personed?) from 8:30 to 4:30 PST.
Really - call us. We're waiting.