Never Weres launch with Fiona Smyth

On Sunday, Fiona Smyth launched her new graphic novel The Never Weres at the Gladstone Hotel. The well-attended event was organized by This Is Not A Reading Series and Annick Press, and featured:

A comic jam:

A performance of the first chapter by Fiona and four talented actors:

A lively interview with RM Vaughan, art critic for The Globe & Mail:

And, of course, a book signing!

Check out the rest of the photos on our Flickr site and Facebook page. You can read a recent review of the book here, or check out Fiona's blog post about the event. And for a sneak peek inside the book, click here!

A Snack of Shoes

Today, we have a guest blog post from author Sarah Tsiang, who recently launched her book A Flock of Shoes in Kingston. Take it away, Sarah!

Children in Kingston will tell you that shoes are pretty tasty if you give them a try. On October 2nd, over 50 kids got their choice of chocolate or vanilla sandals at the Flock of Shoes book launch. Don't the sandals look delicious?

Even the local library got involved, planning an entire morning’s program around the theme of shoes and boots. At the end of the program, I read “A Flock of Shoes” and everyone headed upstairs for some crafts, cakes, and general partying.

Kids made wings for their shoes, sandals, and boots--there were quite a few children that we had to convince off the ceiling (wings and icing--you try keeping kids on the ground)! Abby, the star of the book, was busy all morning eating cake, demonstrating the craft, and assuring the grown-ups that the book is actually a true story (Abby wants me to write a side note to kids: the book isn’t really a true story, but grown-ups don’t know that).

Many thanks to all the great kids and grown-ups who came!

Cry of the Giraffe Launch

Last night, we celebrated the launch of Judie Oron's book Cry of the Giraffe with a party at the Gladstone Hotel in Toronto. Guests mingled and enjoyed delicious hors d'oeuvres while waiting to get copies of the book signed by Judie.

Esteemed MC Theo Heras kicked off the evening's presentations with a short, moving speech. Next, Annick Press Director Rick Wilks said a few words, and then Judie shared some of her experiences writing the book. The presentations concluded with a touching speech by Judie's adopted daughter, on whom the main character Wuditu was based. (One of Judie's sons, Daniel, assisted by being both an interpreter and a supportive brother.)

It was a wonderful night--thank you to everyone who came out to help us celebrate this book. You can see the rest of the photos on our Flickr account.


For more info on Cry of the Giraffe:
Listen to a podcast interview with Rick Wilks (starts at 1:24) for The Book of Life:

Book Expo: Kids sound clip

Watch the book trailer:

Thunder over Kandahar Launch

On Tuesday, Annick Press and Canadians in Support of Afghan Women (CSAW) threw a book launch for Sharon McKay's novel Thunder over Kandahar. The event was held at the historic Enoch Turner Schoolhouse in Toronto, and included delicious Afghan food, an Afghan market, and, of course, Sharon McKay signing her books! (She also donated 40% of the proceeds from sales of her book to CSAW.)

The evening's events included presentations from CSAW, an introduction from Annick Press Director Rick Wilks, and some words from Sharon McKay.

There was also a moving speech from Mrs. Zuhra Bahman-Ludin, wife of Afghanistan's Ambassador to Canada, His Excellency Jawed Ludin, who opened by saying, "I love events like this because they bring three of my favorite things together: books, education, and Afghanistan." She went on to relate how the Taliban took over her home town in Afghanistan when she was a student, and she was no longer able to go to school. Undaunted, she began to read through her father's extensive library and discovered that reading offered an escape from living in a conflict zone. Her passion for education has remained strong ever since: she is now working on her PhD.

Three sisters (left to right: Yasna, Nagesa, Weeda) then gave a wonderful reading from Thunder over Kandahar.

Congratulations, Sharon! To see the rest of the photos, visit our Flickr album!

It's all about sex, baby...

Well, that's not absolutely true. It's also about relationships, youth culture, and staying healthy. That was the message when The Little Black Book for Girlz: A Book on Healthy Sexuality and The Little Black Book for Guys: Guys Talk About Sex, were officially launched last Thursday at St. Stephen's Community House in downtown Toronto. Hailed as "necessary," "honest," "frank," and "empowering," these two books are the result of an amazing collaboration among teens who would drop in regularly to The Youth Arcade at the community-based St. Stephen's. The combination of well-researched facts, personal stories, poetry and art makes these two books ground-breaking in their ability to reach young adults. Many of the youth who wrote the books came out to celebrate, as well as people from other social service agencies, The Hospital for Sick Children, St. Stephen's Board of Directors and the media. After speeches, the crowd was treated to an original song beautifully sung by one of the teen contributors to The Little Black Book for Guys. This launch was the culmination of many years of hard work, persistence and the knowledge that these books have the potential to change, and perhaps save, young lives.