Expanding the Alice Munro Festival of the Short Story in order to bring writers and children of all ages together through storytelling is fundamental to nurturing the next generation of great Canadian authors.
This June, four celebrated Canadian authors will share their stories with students in Avon Maitland schools through a partnership with the Foundation for Education.
Lisa Dalrymple wrote her first mystery adventure book for kids when she was just ten years old. Her first published book If It’s No Trouble… A Big Polar Bear, was published in 2012. Her second book Skink on the Brink, was a Rainforest of Reading nominee, and won both the Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators (SCBWI) Crystal Kite Award and the Writers’ Union of Canada’s Writing for Children Award. Lisa lives with her husband and three children in Fergus, Ontario.
Lisa is presenting to Grades JK-4.
Kenneth Oppel is the bestselling author of numerous books, including Airborn, which won the Governor General’s Award for children’s literature, and the Silverwing trilogy, which has sold over a million copies worldwide. Some of his other books include The Boundless, Every Hidden Thing, and Inkling. The Nest and Half Brother both won the Canadian Library Association’s Book of the Year for Children Award. His latest novels are Bloom, Hatch and Thrive.
Kenneth is presenting to Grades 4-8.
Originally from Newfoundland, Heather Smith now lives in Waterloo, Ontario. Her middle-grade novel, Ebb & Flow, was short-listed for the 2018 Governor General’s Literary Award and was the winner of the TD Canadian Children’s Literature Award. Her picture book, The Phone Booth in Mr. Hirota’s Garden, was recently named the winner of the 2019 Freeman Book Award for Children’s Literature. Heather has written several other books for young people including the award-winning, The Agony of Bun O’Keefe. Heather’s Newfoundland roots inspire much of her writing.
Heather is presenting to Grades 5-6.
Sydney Smith is a children’s book illustrator. He lives in Halifax, Nova Scotia with his wife and two sons. Some of his books include: I Talk Like a River, Small in the City, Town is by the Sea, White Cat and the Monk and Sidewalk Flowers.
Sydney is presenting to Grades 1-3.
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The Alice Munro Festival of the Short Story was created to nurture emerging writers and to celebrate the short story in the landscape that inspired Alice Munro, Huron County’s Nobel Laureate for Literature.
An annual 3-day literary festival offers workshops and onstage presentations that celebrate the short story.
June 4 – 6, 2021
www.alicemunrofestival.ca