News from Orca Book Publishers

News from Orca Book Publishers
November 2009

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

YALSA Quick Picks...

A number of titles have been nominated for the American Library Association's YALSA Quick Picks for Reluctant Readers list.

Taken by Norah McClintock;
Jacked, an Orca Soundings novel by Carrie Mac;
First Time, an Orca Soundings novel by Meg Tilly;
Five Minutes More by Darlene Ryan.

The list will be voted on at the ALA Midwinter Conference in Boston in January.

More info here.

Forest of Reading Awards...

The Ontario Library Association has announced the short list for the Forest of Reading awards. The Forest of Reading is a group of reading lists for various ages.

Orca has six titles on the lists.

Leaving Fletchville by Rene Schmidt for the Red Maple (grades 7-8); Impact by James C. Dekker in the Golden Oak category (adult literacy); Meeting Miss 405 by Lois Peterson and Going Places by Fran Hurcomb in the Silver Birch Express (grades 3-4); Mealworm Diaries by Anna Kerz in the Silver Birch (grades 3-6); and
Sister Wife by Shelley Hrdlitschka for the White Pine (high school).

More info here.

Review attention...

More great reviews. A couple of highlights:

Me Myself and Ike by K.L.Denman, saw a great review in Publishers Weekly: "...a stark and fascinating portrait of a paranoid and delusional teenager."
The book also saw a starred review from Quill & Quire - "Completely riveting, suspenseful, and heartbreaking, Me, Myself and Ike is one of the best young adult releases of the year."

A starred review for Salt by Maurice Gee in School Library Journal: "Salt succeeds in being not only plot-driven and fast-paced, but also character-oriented... Salt will delight lovers of dystopic fantasies and leave them anxious for the second installment."

The Big Dip, an Orca Currents novel by Melanie Jackson was reviewed by School Library Journal: "The suspense is intense... this compact story is sure to appeal to reluctant readers, and the ending is a surprise."

More reviews are constantly being posted on the website so keep an eye out.

New Packaging...

Following the success of our packaged collections for the Soundings, Currents and Sports series, we have developed new display packaging for the classroom and for retail.

Including an attractive shelf display and Resource Guide (if ordered) this packaging will make these popular titles even more accessible to your struggling readers or those looking for a quick read.

Also available: new packaging for the Orca Echoes series and a new Echoes Resource Guide.

More info here.

Download this...

Media Meltdown, Book 4 in the Graphic Guide Adventure series, was part of an online experiment last month. Orca offered the entire book up as a free download. More than 25,000 people took us up on it, downloading the book and briefly crashing our servers in the process!
The dedicated website - mediameltdown.net - had over 100,000 hits in the month.
The website includes information for teachers and librarians on media literacy and has comic-drawing activities and games for readers.

Check it out--and see how media-savvy you are!

Amelia Bloomer...

Sister Wife by Shelley Hrdlitschka has been nominated for the Amelia Bloomer list.

The list "presents well-written books with strong feminist messages that are recommended for young people from birth through eighteen years of age. It is a list of quality fiction and nonfiction titles that affirm positive roles for girls and women."
The Amelia Bloomer Project is a committee of the Feminist Task Force of the Social Responsibilities Round Table of the American Library Association.

Governor General's Literary Awards...

The finalists for the 2009 Governor General's Literary Awards, Canada's most prestigous literary honors, were announced recently.

Sister Wife by Shelley Hrdlitschka and A Thousand Shades of Blue by Robin Stevenson were among the five titles nominated in the Children's Literature - Text category.

Sister Wife is also a nominee for YALSA's Best Books for Young Adults.

The winner will be announced on Tuesday, November 17.

Cybil Awards...

Walking Backward, a novel by Catherine Austen, has been nominated for the Cybil Awards from the children's book blogging community.

The Cybils honor the best children's and young adult literature of the year, as selected by the children's book blogging community. Books must have both literary merit and "kid-appeal."

"An elegantly crafted volume of lasting power." Kirkus Reviews.

Thanks for reading!
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