Jan Thornhill wins $30K award for best Canadian children's book

Prizes celebrating the best of Canadian children's literaturewere handed out at the2017 Canadian Children's Book Centre Awards on Nov. 21, 2017.

Jan Thornhill won the top prize of the night, the TD Canadian Children's Literature Award, for her nonfiction picture book The Tragic Tale of the Great Auk.

The $30,000 prize is given to the best book written for children ages five to 12, in any genre. The Tragic Tale of the Great Auk is an informative and heartfelt nonfiction picture book about the causes behind the North Atlantic Ocean bird's extinction in 1844.

"Thornhilluses perspective brilliantly, emphasizing the wild grandeur of natural creatures one moment, and their desperate vulnerability the next," the jury for the prize said in a statement."Distinctive and evocative images mesh with strong writing about the lifestyle and obstacles that are a part of daily life for this resourceful bird."

• How Jan Thornhill wrote a picture book about the extinct great auk

The $30,000 French-languagePrix TD delittraturecanadiennepourl'enfanceet lajeunessewas awarded on Nov. 8, 2017, to LarryTremblayandGuillaumePerreaultfor their illustrated book,Mmepasvrai.

A public vote was held to determine the CBCBooks Fan Choice winner. Students from across Canada could vote for their favourite finalist for the TD Canadian Children's Literature Award. The Fan Choice winner was The Skeleton Tree by IainLawrence.

• How Iain Lawrence grew his scary middle-grade novel The Skeleton Tree

The remaining finalists for the TD Canadian Children's Literature Awardwere When We Were Alone by David A. Robertson, illustrated by Julie Flett, Tokyo Digsa Garden byJon-Erik Lappano, illustrated by Kellen Hatanakaand A Day of Signs and Wonders by Kit Pearson.

Five other awards were given out, honouring Canadian children's books in a wide array of genres. Those winners were:

• Norma Fleck Award for Canadian Children's Non-Fiction:Canada Year by Yearby Elizabeth MacLeod, illustrated by Sydney Smith
• Marilyn Baillie Picture Book Award:The Snow Knowsby Jennifer McGrath, illustrated by Jose Bisaillon
• John Spray Mystery Award:Shooterby Caroline Pignat
• Amy Mathers Teen Book Award:Exit, Pursued by a Bearby E.K. Johnston
• Geoffrey Bilson Award for Historical Fiction for Young People:Mark of the Plagueby Kevin Sands

You can learn more about each of these books below.

Norma Fleck Award for Canadian Children's Non-Fiction: Canada Year by Yearby ElizabethMacLeod, illustrated bySydney Smith

Canada Year by Yeartraces the country's confederation, challenges, merits, peoples and current state through a compilation of biographies and facts. TheNorma Fleck Award for Canadian Children's Non-Fiction is a $10,000 prize that honours a Canadian book of non-fiction written for an audience under 18 years of age.

Jury members said the book"highlights the moments to celebrate and the moments needing reconciliation and healing....A perfect springboard to a deeper dive into Canadian history."

MarilynBailliePicture Book Award: The Snow Knowsby JenniferMcGrath,illustrated byJoseBisaillon

The Snow Knowscelebrates winter and the animals that thrive in colder climates. The award comes with a $20,000 prize purse. The MarilynBailliePicture Book Award is a prize that recognizes excellence in picture books for readers ages three to eight.

The jurycommended The Snow Knowsfor its visual panache and noted "each gorgeous turn of the page introduces a new creature and a new winter wonder with lyrical verbal grace and masterful, eye-opening visual genius."

John Spray Mystery Award:ShooterbyCarolinePignat

Shooteris aYA suspense novel that entangles the lives of 12 students caught in a school lockdownwith a shooter inside the building. Pignatreceived $5,000 for her development ofcharacters with convincing teen voices. The $5,000 prize is for a mystery book targeted for readers ages eight to 18.

Jury members highlighted that Shooter is Filled with moments of suspense and increasing tension" and that "Pignat has created an enthralling mystery that is impossible to put down."

• Caroline Pignat on making her characters do homework

AmyMathersTeen Book Award: Exit, Pursued by a BearbyE.K. Johnston

Exit, Pursued by a Beardelves intothe experience of a small-town cheerleader trying to cope with the aftermath of a sexual assault and her ensuing pregnancy. The $5,000AmyMathers Teen Book Award honours the best young adult book for readers aged 13-18.

The jurysaid Exit, Pursed by a Bear is "beautifully written" and "will stay with you long after you've turned the last page."

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GeoffreyBilsonAward for Historical Fiction for Young People: Mark of the PlaguebyKevinSands

Set during the time of the black plague, Mark of the Plague features an apothecary whose cure for thedisease embroils him in a conspiracy. It is the second book in Kevin Sands' Blackthorn Key series.

According to the jury, "Sands immerses readers in Restoration England, expertly capturing not just the sights and sounds of London in the 1660s, but also 17th-century conceptions of magic, science, and the spread of disease."

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