Our Writers in the Classroom program connects authors with schools for free classroom visits. This spring, eleven authors will travel to schools across Metro Vancouver to facilitate lively, enriching classroom discussions with students from grades 1–12. Check our their books!
Teachers and educators, the deadline to apply for an author to meet your students through the Writers in the Classroom program is Monday, March 4. Click here to learn more.
A group of friends run away from home in order to join a commune. This YA anti-coming-of-age road trip adventure, by comic artist Adam de Souza, captures at once the angst and humor of being a teen during a time of great transition. Grades 8-12
Hockey Girl Loves Drama Boy by Faith Erin Hicks
Hockey Girl Loves Drama Boy, by bestselling author Faith Erin Hicks, is a young adult graphic novel romance about a hotheaded hockey player who asks for temper management lessons from the cool, calm boy in drama club. Grades 8-12
West Coast Wild Rainforest by Deborah Hodge, illustrated by Karen Reczuch
Deborah Hodge provides a clear and engaging look at the interdependence of the forest species and the fascinating cycles of nature in the rare ecosystem that is the Pacific Northwest rainforest, while Karen Reczuch’s lavish watercolors show the rainforest teeming with life in shades of green that can only come from receiving more than ten feet of rain a year. Grades 2-3
Emily Posts by Tanya Lloyd Kyi
Middle school podcast advice columnist and social media influencer wannabe Emily Laurence takes on the principal at her school to stand up for a climate march, in this fun, school-based drama. Grades 4-7
The Pie Reports by Hayley Lowe
Noor and Granddad love pie. They have a pie for every occasion, and despite an ocean of distance between them, and Granddad’s declining health, the pair continue to connect through their shared passion for pastry by meeting for video chats. These weekly pie reports let them chat about what’s new and, of course, discuss and eat pie! Grades 1-3
East Side Story: Growing Up at the PNE by Nick Marino
Author Nick Marino worked six summers at the PNE and the result is this charming memoir of fair life. From arcade bouncers going on midnight roller-coaster rides to riots breaking out at concerts, Marino pulls back the curtain on the culture of carnivals and fairs, an unpredictable and eternally young world of players, scammers, and dreamers. Grades 8-12
Where Was Goodbye? by Janice Lynn Mather
Karmen is reeling in the aftermath of her brother’s suicide and wondering whether she could have helped him. When a blowup at school gets her sent home, life gets more complicated: things between her parents are tense and her best friend’s acting like a stranger. New friend Pru both baffles and comforts Karmen, and there might finally be something happening with her crush, Isaiah, but does she have time for either? Will she ever understand Julian’s struggle and tragedy? If not, can she love—and live—again? Grades 9-12
Get Outside!: How Humans Connect with Nature by Leah Payne
This book explores the important relationship between people and nature. By discussing global issues such as the climate crisis and environmental racism, the book shows us that, by strengthening our relationship with the natural world, we can learn how to take care of the environment and to let the environment take care of us too. Grades 4-7
How to Be Found by Emily Pohl-Weary
Michie and her best friend, Trissa, grew up like sisters, but now that they’re sixteen, their differences in identity and experience have caused a rift. Michie’s an introvert, while extroverted Trissa, dances at the hottest nightclub in town. One night, Michie wakes up to find Trissa missing, having left only a cryptic note. The cops write her off as a party girl, but Michie refuses to believe it. Enlisting help from her friend Anwar, Michie sets off to look for Trissa, knowing she’s the only one who will. The search takes them into unfamiliar, dangerous territory: the backrooms of Trissa’s luxury nightclub, dark alleyways, the online sex industry, and rural cottage country.Grades 10-12
Nightmares in Paradise: Ring of Solomon by Aden Polydoros
Zach and Sandra have their hands full practicing with the archangel Uriel’s flaming sword (in case they ever need to fight monsters again), dodging bully Jeffrey and his sidekicks at school, and doing typical seventh-grade things. But then Naomi disappears during their family’s Passover seder and Zach, Sandra, and Ash are off to Eden—the actual Garden of Eden—to save Naomi and bring her home. Grades 4-7
Queers Like Me by Michael V. Smith
Confessional and immersive, Michael V. Smith’s poetry collection is a broad tapestry that explores growing up queer and working class, then growing into an urban queer life. Queers Like Me is an enveloping book—a meditation on family complexity and a celebration of personal insight. Grades 10-12; WITC workshop grades 6-12