Books published by Groundwood Books Ltd ,Canada

With the help of her Catholic friend, an eleven-year-old Jewish girl creates a provocative local tourist attraction to save her family's failing motel.Buying and moving into the run-down Jewel Motor Inn in upstate New York wasn't eleven-year-old Miriam Brockman's dream, but at least it's an adventure. Miriam befriends Kate, whose grandmother owns the diner next door, and finds comfort in the company of Maria, the motel's housekeeper, and her Uncle Mordy, who comes to help out for the summer. She spends her free time helping Kate's grandmother make her famous grape pies and begins to face her fears by taking swimming lessons in the motel's pool.But when it becomes clear that only a miracle is going to save the Jewel from bankruptcy, Jewish Miriam and Catholic Kate decide to create their own. Otherwise, the No Vacancy sign will come down for good, and Miriam will lose the life she's worked so hard to build.Correlates to the Common Core State Standards in English Language Arts:CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.4.6Compare and contrast the point of view from which different stories are narrated, including the difference between first- and third-person narrations.CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.5.3Compare and contrast two or more characters, settings, or events in a story or drama, drawing on specific details in the text (e.g., how characters interact).CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.5.4Determine the meaning of words and phrases as they are used in a text, including figurative language such as metaphors and similes.CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.5.6Describe how a narrator's or speaker's point of view influences how events are described.CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.6.3Describe how a particular story's or drama's plot unfolds in a series of episodes as well as how the characters respond or change as the plot moves toward a resolution.CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.6.6Explain how an author develops the point of view of the narrator or speaker in a text.

Holiday! is a funny, offbeat story about how disruptive change can be - even if it's a holiday!

In this hilarious and charming story, a boy wishes his dad had a regular job instead of being Happy the Clown - but when his dad announces he is going back to his old job of being a lawyer, the boy soon realizes that he misses Happy!

In this lyrical poem, author John Sobol and award-winning illustrator Cindy Derby bring us their imagined vision of a universal experience, that of being born.

War at the Snow White Motel is an insightful and funny new collection of short stories from award-winning author Tim Wynne-Jones that brilliantly captures many of the pivotal moments of adolescence.

Set in suburban America, this delightful novel in verse follows the adventures of a brother and sister around the neighborhood, and especially at the corner grocery store!

Rich with wordplay and humor, author Kyle Lukoff and award-winning illustrator Mark Hoffman bring poetry to life in this story about Kilmer Watts, a former piano teacher who decides to investigate a new job at the poem factory.

As the US/Soviet Space Race heats up in 1961, eleven-year-old Arno finds his dreams of becoming an astronomer exploding like an extragalactic supernova.It is the summer of 1961, and eleven-year-old Arno Creelman wants nothing more than to be an astronomer. His claustrophobia rules out flying in a cramped space capsule, so instead, Arno dreams of exploring the galaxies with powerful telescopes back on Earth.Arno's first move: Enter a local radio contest and win a visit to the new observatory that is about to open near his town. The ribbon will be cut by Arno's idol, Jean Slayter-Appleton, a renowned astronomer whose weekly columns Arno clips for his own notebooks. When he finally manages to phone in and correctly answer the skill-testing astronomy question, Arno is thrilled.Then a new boy moves to the neighborhood, and he seems to challenge Arno in every way. Robert even believes in astrology, which Arno argues is not a science at all. Before long, Arno is feeling left behind, on the outs with his friends and even abandoned by his beloved dog, Comet. How did Arno's dream become a cosmic nightmare?Key Text FeaturesillustrationsCorrelates to the Common Core State Standards in English Language Arts:CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.4.3Describe in depth a character, setting, or event in a story or drama, drawing on specific details in the text (e.g., a character's thoughts, words, or actions).

"In this charming story that includes words in Inukitut, a ringed seal returns to his Arctic home after a long journey south. He tells his friends of his adventures--including the discovery of strange, tall statues that sway in the autumn breeze and open their arms to nesting birds in the spring."--Provided by publisher.

Geraldo Valério looks at the nature of true friendship and love in a stunning new wordless picture book.On a dull gray day, a boy puts his dog on a leash and they walk to a shimmering pond where snowy white swans swim freely. One of the swans invites the boy and dog for a ride. They climb on its back and sail into a stunningly beautiful landscape, dotted with wildflowers, spoonbills and ibises. Foxes, rabbits and deer appear in this paradise, then butterflies and even bigger, more beautiful flowers. The boy unleashes his dog on shore, and the dog bounds off to play.Now the boy wraps his arms around the swan's neck - he has a new friend. But when he puts the leash on the swan, the sky turns stormy gray, the water becomes turbulent, and the other swans fly away. Both the boy and swan are miserable, until the boy realizes he must free his friend. When he drops the leash into the pond, warm color fills their world and they return to where the boy's dog happily awaits him.Geraldo Valério, a master of wordless picture books, explores the nature of true friendship and love in his newest creation.Correlates to the Common Core State Standards in English Language Arts:CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.3.7Explain how specific aspects of a text's illustrations contribute to what is conveyed by the words in a story (e.g., create mood, emphasize aspects of a character or setting)