October 31, 2009

Will Self Reads his Roald Dahl Aloud

Fantastic Mr. FoxIn his marvellously thoughtful review of Wes Anderson’s The Fantastic Mr. Fox, Will Self sounds off on his predilection for (nearly) all things Dahl.

At one point, he admits that although he hasn’t read every book Dahl wrote, those he has read have been read aloud. Subsequently, he speculates that “it might be an idea for all literary critics to read the books they analyse aloud – it certainly helps to fix them in the mind, while providing a readymade seminar with your audience.”

A readymade seminar with your audience. Too right, Mr. Self. On this point, we wholeheartedly agree.

October 27, 2009

Zorgamazoo Shortlisted for the 2010 Silver Birch Award

Forest of Reading 2010Good news everyone! Zorgamazoo has been shortlisted for the 2010 Silver Birch. It’s one of the Forest of Reading awards run by the Ontario Library Association and it’s voted on by actual readers, which is always nice to see.

I’m extremely excited and honoured to have been shortlisted — and to be in such good company! For a detailed description on the award and how the whole program breaks down, head over to this page on the OLA Website.

October 26, 2009

Milton Book Festival for Children

November 8, 2009 12:00pm.

On Sunday the 8th, I’ll be presenting Zorgamazoo at the annual Milton Book Fest. Also appearing will be Hugh Brewster, Judy Ann Sadler, Frieda Wishinsky, Werner Zimmermann, and main presenter, all the way from New Brunswick, Sheree Fitch!

Milton Book Fest

Tickets are $3.00 for children and $5.00 for adults. They’re available at the Milton Public Library or from the Freckled Lion Bookshop in nearby Georgetown, Ontario. Hope to see you there!

 

October 15, 2009

Reading at McNally Robinson Bookshop (Toronto)

McNally Robinson

November 15, 2009 3:00pm.

On the afternoon of Sunday the 15th, I’ll be reading from Zorgamazoo and signing books at the Toronto McNally Robinson store, 1090 Don Mills Road.

If you’re able to come, it’s certainly worth the drive/bus ride north up to Don Mills, if only to see the new store. It’s certainly as exceptional as the others I’ve visited — the original one in Winnipeg, as well as the affiliated McNally Jackson in NYC.

October 6, 2009

Pics from Nuit Blanche 2009

Nuit Blanche ‘09 was even more of a madhouse than last year. In case you missed it, I’m sure there’s a ton of photographs being posted as we speak — and here’s a scant few more to toss on the pile:

Mashmallow ghosts haunt the rooftops.

Mashmallow ghosts haunt the rooftops.

The streets crawled with photographers.

The streets crawled with photographers.

Royal Conservatory of Music.

Royal Conservatory of Music.

Remember those old commercials for Twizzlers?

Remember those old commercials for Twizzlers?

Rock balancers. No glue, no supports. Pretty impressive.

Rock balancers. No glue, no supports. Pretty impressive.

September 27, 2009

Penguin’s Halloweener Author Showcase (Toronto)

Penguin Halloween Author ShowcaseOctober 31, 2009 2:00pm.

I’ll be reading from Zorgamazoo with host Séan Cullen and Matthew Skelton at The Regent Theatre, 555 Mount Pleasant Road.

Séan will be presenting his newest YA novel, The Prince of Neither Here Nor There, and Matthew will be reading from The Story of Cirrus Flux.

It ought to be a wild and ridiculous ride, not to mention a good warm-up to trick-or-treating. Attendees are encouraged to dress up (as characters from one of the three books, provided you’ve actually read them).

Tickets are $15 and that also gets you a signed copy of the book of your choice. They’re available in advance at Mabel’s Fables Bookshop (662 Mt Pleasant Rd), or at the door.

September 24, 2009

TV: Flying by the seat of its pants.

Owl MagazineThis afternoon I received an email from someone I didn’t know. Or at least didn’t remember. His name was Jason and he claimed we’d met at a party some weeks ago. I had only the foggiest recollection of this (sorry, Jason!)

Turns out he’s a producer with CBC news. They were doing a piece on the 30th anniversary of Owl and Chickadee magazines, and they wanted a comment from a children’s writer, preferably one who was a fan as a kid.

Okay, I thought, I was crazy about those magazines. No problem. So I called Jason and he said, “Can you be ready to do an on-camera interview in about an hour?”

No, I thought.

“Yes,” I said.

CBC LogoSixty minutes later, I met Andrew Nichols on a park bench and gave him the lowdown on the how-slash-why I loved Chickadee and Owl. (It also made me recall Ranger Rick and Cricket. Remember them? I was a fiend. I had subscriptions to all four).

Anyway, it’ll be on the local CBC news here in Toronto, “sometime between 5 and 6:30pm tomorrow,” which couldn’t be more vague. But it’s hard to blame them. Television is clearly a medium that flies by the seat of its pants.

PS: Happy 30th, Chickadee & Owl! Thanks for all the years of fun, and here’s to thirty more!

September 15, 2009

Zorgamazoo, Chapter 4 (for your listening pleasure)

Katrina KatrellGood news everyone. Chapter four of Zorgamazoo is now up and running, making it acoustically simple to follow along at home.

Here’s part one:

For the rest of chapter four, plus the preceding chapters one, two and three, click here (or on the Audio tab up top).

Happy listening!

September 9, 2009

Shelf Elf Gives Zorgamazoo the Thumbs Up!

Shelf Elf

A teacher friend of mine (thanks, J!) passed on a link to this recent blog-posting by a middle-school teacher. The Shelf Elf describes herself as a former “harpist, pastry chef, children’s bookseller,”  and I was quite flattered by the praise she heaped on Zorgamazoo; it’s one of the kindest reviews I’ve read.

Many thanks. Very much appreciated!

September 5, 2009

Urban Raccoons, Pets of the City

This morning I was brushing my teeth and when I looked out the window I saw had a guest. He ambled up to the window and — as the photograph clearly attests — apparently tried to give me a high-5.

I figure either my tooth-brushing is innately fascinating to procyonids or he’s addicted to sunscreen. One of the two.

High-5, please.

High-5, please.