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Coming October 2022

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Canada Wild: Animals Found Nowhere Else on Earth

A full-colour illustrated guide to Canada's endemic species for young readers. Canada is home to over 308 endemic species of plants and animals — meaning they're found nowhere else on Earth.  Canada Wild introduces readers to twelve uniquely Canadian animals — many of which are threatened or endangered. Like the Sable Island sweat bee, which lives on a single sandbar three hundred kilometres off the coast of Nova Scotia; the Kermode bear, the rare white black bear also known as the "Spirit Bear," which calls the coastal rainforests of northwestern BC home; and the Peary caribou, which can be found clomping through the Arctic tundra of the Northwest Territories and Nunavut.

Profiles of each animal showcase their habitat, diet, and status, while sidebars highlight fascinating facts about each animal, and a How's It Doing section explains where it falls on the endangerment spectrum. Informative backmatter gives young readers practical advice on conservation and combating climate change, while colour illustrations throughout — including a map of Canada, showing the animals' habitats — offer whimsical yet scientifically accurate depictions.

From the coasts to the prairies to the mountains to the tundra, and every nook and cranny in between, Canada Wild is the perfect read for budding naturalists.

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Snooze-O-Rama: The Strange Ways That Animals Sleep

Discover the strange – and sometimes familiar – ways animals settle down for bed

 

While you brush your teeth and turn out the light, animals all over the world are getting ready for bed in their own unique ways. Otters snuggle under seaweed blankets, plump walruses use their throat pouches as pillows, and just like putting on pajamas, parrotfish cover themselves with a coat of slime before bed.

 

Drawing on scientific research, this nonfiction book for young readers playfully compares the ways humans and animals prepare for a good night’s sleep. On one page, a child dozes during a car ride or cuddles up to their parents in bed. Flip the page, and readers will delight in discovering how other creatures catch some z’s.

 

Vibrant collage illustrations bring color and humor to the fascinating facts about animals both familiar and unusual. With lively descriptions of each animal’s bedtime routine, Snooze-O-Rama is a playful introduction to STEM―and an invitation to sleep!

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  • 2022 Silver Birch Express Award, Nominee​

  • Best Books for Kids and Teens, Canadian Children's Book Centre, Fall 2021

"The text's tone is lighthearted, with humorous word choices conveying fascinating facts... Quirky, informative, and far from soporific."  Kirkus Reviews

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"A fun and factual title, sure to be a bedtime favorite." School Library Journal

"A fresh, appealing book perfect for bedtime read-aloud. A neat science-investigation starter for young readers." Canadian Review of Materials

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"Playful, comforting... This book will have wide appeal with its cute animals and their unusual and often humorous adaptations." Canadian Children's Book News

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"Impressively informative, charmingly entertaining." Midwest Book Review

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Acting Wild: How We Behave Like Birds, Bugs, and Beasts

How are humans different from other animals? This is a question scientists have long tried to answer. As it turns out, some of the very things researchers once though distinguished humans—our creativity, our problem-solving ability, our capacity for planning or abstract thought—actually make us very similar to other animals! This nonfiction book introduces several different behaviors that humans and other animals share, including farming, teaching, laughing, building, mourning, communicating, grooming, playing, traveling, using tools, and working together. 

Narrated by a funny and friendly ant, this book is packed with humor and playful phrasing to bring lightness to the exploration of animal behavior. Brought to life by bright and wacky cartoon-style illustrations, Acting Wild will leave kids with the understanding that acting like an animal is simply in their nature. 

  • Finalist for the Diamond Willow Award, 2020

  • Shortlisted for the Hackmatack Award, 2020-2021

  • Best Books for Kids and Teens, Canadian Children's
    Book Centre, Spring 2020, Starred Selection

"Chock full of interesting ideas, this entertaining and informative selection’s distinct focus makes it stand out."  Kirkus Reviews

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"[The author] presents a large amount of zoological information in a focused, well-organized, and highly entertaining manner." Quill & Quire

"Acting Wild is a wonderfully wacky look at how we behave an awful lot like the birds, bugs and beasts that we share the planet with." The Globe and Mail

"A fun, well-designed book, [that] sets the tone for understanding our place in the natural world."  Canadian Review of Materials

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"Fascinating, and just what intrigued kids need to do further research." Sal's Fiction Addiction

Biometrics: Your Body and the
Science of Security

Biometrics — the science of using the body to identify a person — is not just found in science fiction. It's part of everyday life. Today, biometrics is on the cutting edge of security. It’s used for access into banks and airports, as well as to keep money and personal information safe. Methods like fingerprinting and retinal scanning might be more familiar, but biometrics can also identify people based on ear shape, scent, vein pattern, and much more.

Biometrics: Your Body and the Science of Security explores nine biometrics in detail, explaining how each works, where it’s used, its pros and cons, and how it compares to other techniques. It also discusses privacy, security, why we need methods of identification, and touches

on biometrics of the future. Engaging and colorful design alongside surprising anecdotes, historical context, and humor make this a fun,
in-depth look at a hot topic.

  • Winner of the 2017 Lane Anderson Award

  • 2018 Silver Birch Non-Fiction Award, Nominee

  • Shortlisted for the 2018 Children's Literature Roundtables of Canada

  • Shortlisted for the 2018 Science In Society Book Award

  • 2018/2019 Red Cedar Award Nominee

  • Best Books for Kids and Teens, Canadian Children's Book Centre, Spring 2018

A Beginner's Guide to Immortality:
From Alchemy to Avatars
 

 

 

Is it possible to live forever? People have been trying to figure out a way
to escape mortality since, well, forever. This book takes readers on a
fast-paced tour of the wacky and wise methods humans have used to try prolonging their lives -- from ancient immortality elixirs and quests for a fountain of youth to modern-day research into cryogenics and robotics.

Touching on folklore from around the world, famed literary immortals and studies of animals unaffected by aging, the book delves into topics as diverse as genetics, a spiritual afterlife, and basic lifestyle choices that can impact longevity. As readers learn about the quest to live forever, they'll discover the beauty, sincerity, and playful side of human curiosity.

  • 2016 Norma Fleck Award, Finalist

  • 2017 Red Maple Award, Nominee

  • 2017 Rocky Mountain Book Award, Nominee

  • Shortlisted for the 2015 Science In Society Book Award

  • Best Books for Kids and Teens, Canadian Children's Book Centre, Spring 2016

  • A Best YA Title of Winter 2016, Foreword Reviews

"This fun, enjoyable read manages to inform and entertain--a combination perhaps as rare as the fountain
of youth--and will be a welcome addition to both school and public libraries."  Booklist

 

"Birmingham takes readers on a lively tour of the many ways people have sought to cheat death
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hroughout history... a visually striking, thought-provoking look at a topic that will encourage further investigation."  School Library Journal


"Whimsical...quirky...humorous and engagaing. A must-read for anyone interested in science, magic, and everything in between." Foreword Reviews

 

"The author fills the book with fun facts and thought-provoking info in a manner that is sure to pique
the interest of even the least morbid kids." Quill & Quire

 

"A tasty distillation of history, religion, chemistry, biology, technology, and pop culture."  Kirkus Reviews

 

"Light-hearted and, often, tongue-in-cheek...breezy enough in its style to be an enjoyable casual read, this beginner's guide also asks interesting questions. Recommended." School Library Connection

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