Canadian Children's Book Week 2024

Canadian Children’s Book Week connects Canadian creators with children and teens across Canada. Our touring authors, illustrators, and storytellers speak to audiences about the delights of reading Canadian children’s books, and offer an inside look into their own work. These workshops and presentations can be a turning point in a child’s life, inspiring a lifelong love of reading. This year's Canadian Children's Book Week will be happening from April 28-May 7, 2024.

Joanna Cacao

This year the Winkler and Morden branches of South Central Regional Library are excited to host author/illustrator Joanna Cacao.  

Joanna Cacao is a Canadian Filipino author-illustrator who lives in snowy Winnipeg with her grumpy Pomeranian, Danny. Her first published collaboration, The Tryout, became an instant #1 Indie Bestseller and has gained starred reviews from Kirkus, Publishers Weekly, Shelf Awareness and School Library Journal. Joanna’s author-illustrator debut, The Secret of the Ravens, was published in 2023 by Clarion Books.

Ever wondered how artists go from an idea to a full fledged main character? Together with Joanna, brainstorm a brand new character from start to finish; from designing their hairstyle and clothes, to choosing their hopes and dreams. Discover the fundamentals of character creation, and what makes a character unique. Imagine and draw a character on your own or follow along as Joanna demonstrates live with the help of the audience/group. 

    Joanna will be in here on Tuesday April 20th at 11 am in Morden and 2 pm in Winkler.  Registration is required. Contact Morden or Winkler branches for more information.

Joanna's Book

Twin siblings Elliot and Liza only have each other. Their parents are gone. Their home was taken, and to survive on their own, they’re forced to scrounge up plastic and metal to trade for coin within an abandoned garbage heap. Desperate to escape the vagabond cycle that they’re trapped in, the answer to their plight seemingly appears when they stumble upon a Raven Quest—magical tasks offered by mysterious message-carrying ravens that when successfully completed, promise the victors coin and untold riches. In a gamble to change their fates, Elliot and Liza follow the trail of Raven Quests to the kingdom’s capital, where the greedy rulers of the Kawumiti Kingdom reign and young people are enlisted to train as royal mages for the kingdom's army. But the Ravens Quests aren’t as they seem, and the King is on a mission to hunt down vagrant participants like the twins. When a quest goes terribly wrong, Liza is poisoned, and Elliot finds himself racing against the clock to find the cure. Now the only way to save his sister is to join forces with a royal apprentice and a dark mage with mysterious motives of her own—even if it means sacrificing everything.

To check out Joanna's book The Secret of the Ravens, click here.

For more information on Canadian Children's Book Week, visit their website at https://bookcentre.ca/book-week