Rie Charles Appearance

On Saturday, November 20, 2010 at the Penticton Lake Resort, the second annual Authors & Artists Christmas Faire brought together artistic and literary talent from the Okanagan Valley and beyond. It was a time for artists and authors to connect and support each other and a place for the public to meet their creative neighbours and purchase locally produced items.

Our own Rie Charles was at the event promoting "No More Dragons"

Nifty New Review for the Latest Gargoyle Book

The highly respected Resource Links mag loves The Gargoyle Overhead!

"Philippa Dowding has followed The Gargoyle in my Yard (2009), with a gripping tale of suspense, perfectly moulded for the 8-12 year old reader. The story incorporates magic delightfully into a well-constructed, realist presentation of modern Toronto...

...Dowding's protagonists are genuine and interesting… and readers will fall in love with both of them. I would love to see an illustrated edition, as the body language of Dowding's gargoyles is so much a part of their characterization.

… The ending of the novel, while not precluding further tales, leaves the two gargoyles free agents in their lives: a happy ending, but certainly not what the reader will expect. Overall, I would highly recommend this story to young independent readers with an interest in magic and magical creatures.”

RATING: E (Excellent)

JENNIFER MARUNO's WARBIRD

Here's an article plugging Jennifer's upcoming title, Warbird...out this month!

Friends in High Places

Author Nav K. Gill presented former Ontario cabinet minister and Toronto mayoral candidate George Smitherman with a copy of her book, Under the Moonlit Sky.

The Summer of Nav

Book tours for Nav K. Gill's YA novel "Under the Moonlit Sky" began June 13th in her hometown of Brampton at Chapters. At the Brampton event, local political representatives attended, including Linda Jeffrey, MPP for Brampton Springdale and Minister of Natural Resources for Ontario, and Ruby Dhalla, MP for Brampton Springdale.

The next stop was Vancouver, BC, at Black Bond Books. Again the turnout was incredible and only increased in numbers compared to Brampton. Some readers waited in line for over 2 hours, ensuring that they got a book, after they heard that Brampton sold out quickly. It was a whirlwind of a trip in BC that spanned a full 10 days. Nav visited radio shows, TV networks like OMNI TV, and met with local community leaders, human rights activists, print journalists, and political leaders. The signing was attended by children to seniors, and again local political leaders showed up to show their support. Once again, "UMS" sold out during the signing.

After BC, the next stop - due to popular demand - was Calgary, Alberta, and the signing was held at Chapters. This signing saw a total of 148 books sold. Once again, young and old came out, along with local media such as City TV and OMNI TV. Print journalists, local community leaders and radio hosts came out to support the book, conduct interviews and take in the overwhelming response. Readers were lined up early again and drove from as far as Edmonton to attend the signing.

There will be more stops in the future. So far, the three signings done so far have demonstrated that "Under the Moonlit Sky" is receiving a great reception. It made the regional Top Ten in Calgary and is listed as a Teen Bestseller at the Brampton Chapters.

Brenda Chapman Ottawa Signing

Brenda Chapman signed copies of the Jennifer Bannon series at Pinecrest Chapters in Ottawa on Saturday, July 17th.

Philippa Dowding in The Literary Review of Canada

Napoleon children’s author Philippa Dowding has her poem, Ripple, appearing in the July/August 2010 issue of The Literary Review of Canada. Ripple is a thoughtful rewiring of a parent’s dementia from a grown child’s experience.

Philippa’s poetry has appeared in many journals, including The Adirondack Review, MotherVerse Magazine, Blue Skies Poetry and others. She has written two children’s novels for Napoleon: The Gargoyle in My Yard (2009), and The Gargoyle Overhead (2010).

CHRISTOPHER DINSDALE SCHOOL VISIT

Christopher Dinsdale was at Sharon P.S. to enhance their literature-based unit on First Nation history. The Grade 6 and M.I.D. students used Christopher Dinsdale's first novel, Broken Circle, to investigate first contact between European and First Nation cultures. After finishing the novel, the students then took a field trip to Ste. Marie among the Hurons to further investigate its significant moment in Ontario history. Christopher was pleased to sit down with the students and discuss how he went about creating the storyline for Broken Circle. It was an enjoyable morning for all. Christopher was very impressed with the novel-based artwork and writing that covered most of the classroom. Well done, Sharon P.

BRENDA CHAPMAN HONOURED

Monday, June 14th, the Ottawa Public Library Board presented the Ottawa Public Library Order of Friendship to five deserving volunteers, including Ottawa mystery author Brenda Chapman. Jan Harder, City Councillor and Chair of the Library Board, presented these prestigious awards during a meeting of the Board in the newly renovated Cumberland Branch.

The Order of Friendship Award recognizes "outstanding volunteer contributions made to the Ottawa Public Library by individuals, groups and/or institutions".

Brenda judged the English short story category in this year's Awesome Authors contest. In addition to reading and judging approximately one hundred entries, she conducted a short story writing workshop at Carlingwood Library in January, and presented the short story awards during an evening ceremony at Nepean Centrepointe on May 31st.

CHRISTOPHER DINSDALE HONOURED

Congrats to Christopher Dinsdale, who has been given the Elementary Teachers Federation of Ontario Writer's Award. It's the second time Christopher has been given this honour.

Christopher Dinsdale is the author of the three titles for Napoleon, Broken Circle, Stolen Away and Betrayed: The Legend of Oak Island.

KRISTIN BUTCHER TO HOST FREE WRITING WORKSHOP

On Saturday June 26th, Kristin Butcher (The Last Superhero) will be running a free seminar for aspiring authors entitled The Truth About Writing. The workshop will talk about critical elements of writing, editing and getting a book published. From tips on creating a work that you will be able to sell to publishers, to avoiding the common pitfalls, this workshop will help writers reach their full potential. There will be a Q & A period for participants to have their specific concerns addressed.

Kristin's previous title Return to "Bone Tree Hill" was nominated for a BC Book Prize and a Manitoba Young Readers’ Choice Award. Her Zach and Zoe series has also been nominated for a number of awards recently.

From 9-11am Kristin will be available to autograph her books. The public is invited to stop in and meet her. The workshop will run at 9 am on June 26th at Coho Books located at 1074 Shoppers Row in Campbell River. Pre-registration is recommended as space is limited. info@cohobooks.com or phone (250) 287-2336.

NAV GILL LAUNCH

Nav Gill's fabulous "Under the Moonlit Sky" will be launched at Chapters in Brampton, Ontario on June 13 at 1 pm.

WHEN THE CHERRY BLOSSOMS FELL EVENTS

Not far from where the story began, the employees of Chapters welcomed Jennifer Maruno to their store at Grenville and Broadway in Vancouver on May 21, 2010. Many of the customers knew families that had the same experience as the Minigawa family in her novel When the Cherry Blossoms Fell.

On May 28, The students of Mount Albert Public School, York Region District School Board, enjoyed a spring walk to the Mount Allison Community Centre. Here, in honour of Asian Heritage Month, they visited with author Jennifer Maruno. Jennifer related the family history of Michiko Minigawa, the 9 year-old girl central to the story of When the Cherry Blossoms Fell. The students also asked questions about being an author and what books Jennifer read when she was a child. They even suggested titles for books for her to write!

BRENDA CHAPMAN OTTAWA EVENT

Brenda Chapman will appear at Chapters in the Pinecrest Mall, Ottawa on July 17th, 2010, from 1:00 to 3:00 p.m. She will be signing books from her Jennifer Bannon series for young adults, including Trail of Secrets.

The Gargoyle Overhead flies into Chapters!

Philippa Dowding and her gargoyle puppet visited Chapters (Runnymede) in Toronto on Saturday May 22, 2010.

Philippa read from her books The Gargoyle in My Yard (2009) and The Gargoyle Overhead (2010), both published by Napoleon. Reading from her first book, Philippa gave the audience a taste of what it might be like to have a naughty 400-year-old gargoyle named Gargoth living in your backyard.

After giving clues from her second book, Philippa asked children and their parents to guess where Gargoth’s best friend, another gargoyle named Ambergine, was searching for him throughout Toronto.

Philippa signed lots of books, gave out plenty of bookmarks, and as usual was happy to share her gargoyle puppet with fans!

The Gargoyle Overhead takes flight!

Philippa Dowding launched her new children’s book, "The Gargoyle Overhead" at the Bloor/Gladstone Library on Saturday, May 8th. A full house of nearly eighty people, both children and adults, listened attentively as she read about Gargoth the gargoyle’s first (unfortunate) meeting with a human boy named Philip, 400 years ago.

A lively question and answer period followed, in which Philippa got to explain what it was like to write a sequel, and that no, as far as she knew, gargoyles did not ride dinosaurs!

Lots of books were sold and signed, and a good time was had by everyone in attendance. Thanks to Emma Dolan of Napoleon for playing bookseller for the day.

Heather Kirk Event

Heather Kirk, author of two Napoleon novels for teens will be offering a one-day seminar on writing for children on Saturday May 29, 2010 on the Barrie campus of Georgian College. Recently Heather's YA novel, "Warsaw Spring", set mainly in Poland in 1979, received an endorsement from a distinguished professor of East European and Russian history. Professor Anna M. Cienciala of the University of Kansas wrote: "I liked it very much and I think the italicized thoughts of Eva are a great plus. They explain without being preachy. The drabness of Warsaw at that time is well rendered and Hanna is very intriguing."

Christopher Dinsdale at OLA

Christopher Dinsdale attended the OLA Superconference on February 26th, 2010. He enjoyed the luncheon with Napoleon publisher Sylvia McConnell and the enthusiastic gathering of authors, publishers and librarians. It was also an unexpected pleasure for Christopher to catch up with some old friends, including Peter Rabbit and Winnie the Pooh. Christopher is the author of the Napoleon-published kids' novels Broken Circle, Stolen Away and Betrayed: The Legend of Oak Island.

Nap fall preview!

Here the covers for our fab new lineup of children's fiction and YA for Spring 2010!