Shape Up, Construction Trucks

Bahram Rahman

illustrated by Gabrielle Grimard

Inspired by Kabul, Afghanistan’s first library bus and colored by family memories, a touching snapshot of one innovative way girls received education in a country disrupted by war

It is still dark in Kabul, Afghanistan when the library bus rumbles out of the city. There are no bus seats—instead there are chairs and tables and shelves of books. And there are no passengers—instead there is Pari, who is nervously starting her first day as Mama’s library helper. Pari stands tall to hand out notebooks and pencils at the villages and the refugee camp, but she feels intimidated. The girls they visit are learning to write English from Mama. Pari can’t even read or write in Farsi yet. But next year she will go to school and learn all there is to know. And she is so lucky. Not long ago, Mama tells her, girls were not allowed to read at all. Author Bahram Rahman grew up in Afghanistan during years of civil war and the restrictive Taliban regime. He wrote The Library Bus to tell new generations about the struggles of women who, like his own sister, were forbidden to learn. Brought to life by the pensive and captivating art of award-winning illustrator Gabrielle Grimard, The Library Bus is a celebration of literacy, ingenuity, and the strength of women and girls demanding a future for themselves.

Bahram Rahman was born in Kabul, Afghanistan, and grew up during the civil war and the Taliban regime. He earned a medical degree at Kabul Medical University and a master’s degree in public policy at the University of Erfurt, Germany, while also working as an activist in Afghanistan in the areas of gender equality and youth political participation. Bahram came to Canada as a refugee in 2012, and today he is a senior policy advisor at the Ministry of Health in Ontario. He wrote The Library Bus, his first picture book, to document the struggle for education experienced by the women in his own family and to draw attention to the barriers that still exist for millions of children, especially girls, living in war torn countries today.

Gabrielle Grimard transformed her love of design into a career in illustration over the course of her studies at Concordia University and the University of Quebec. In 2018, Gabrielle’s picture book Stolen Words won the Ruth and Sylvia Schwartz Children’s Book Award and was a finalist for the TD Canadian Children’s Book Award. Not My Girl was a USBBY Outstanding International Book. In 2019 Gabrielle published the enthusiastically reviewed Nutcracker Night. Her creativity has been applied to children’s publishing, advertising, and educational contexts.

Picture Book for Children Ages 5–8 Rights available: World ex. North America ISBN: 978-1-77278-101-4 Trim Size: 9 x 10 in / 22.86 x 25.4 cm | Pages: 32 List Price: $18.95 USD / $21.95 CAD Hardcover with dust jacket Publication Date: October 13, 2020 Ship Date: September 18, 2020 JUV047000 JUVENILE FICTION / Books & Libraries JUV030110 JUVENILE FICTION / People & Places / Middle East JUV074000 JUVENILE FICTION / Diversity & Multicultural

Anitha Rao-Robinson

illustrated by Karen Patkau

In this touching story of belonging and environmental awareness, a young boy’s courage and ingenuity help an orphaned rhinoceros find safety in a new herd.

Tetenya and his mother have found Faru, a baby rhinoceros, alone on the savannah. They know that rhino herds will adopt orphaned infants, but finding the rangers who protect local herds may be a long and risky prospect—there are poachers lurking about the landscape. Undaunted, Tetenya sets out, leading Faru past giraffes CHOMP-CHOMPING on acacia leaves, amongst the PATTER-PATTERING footsteps of young warthogs, and around guinea fowl SCRITCH-SCRITCHING the earth for seeds. Suddenly, danger is upon them: two poachers are coming near. There are only seconds to spare, and Tetenya has nothing but his wits and a basket of berries to help him.

In A Family for Faru, author Anitha Rao-Robinson draws inspiration from her life-changing time spent on the savannah and from conservationists’ innovation to discourage poachers: injecting a pink dye into rhinoceros horns. Award-winning illustrator Karen Patkau’s dreamy landscapes reflect her own travels in the region and celebrate the courage and ingenuity of a young boy as he helps his four-legged friend find a place to belong. An author’s note rounds out this impactful text.

Anitha Rao-Robinson received her Bachelor of Commerce from Queen’s University and worked as an accountant for twenty-four years before trading numbers for words. Her previous works include Broken Worlds in 2014 and Broken Promises in 2017. Anitha is passionate about environmental awareness and hopes to continue to spread change.

Illustrator, designer, visual artist, and author Karen Patkau’s distinctive art can be found in more than a dozen picture books for children. She is the recipient of the Ezra Jack Keats Memorial Medal for Don’t Eat Spiders, and One Watermelon Seed was a Bank Street Best Book. A Good Trade was a White Ravens Choice, a Bank Street Best Book, and a nominee for the OLA Blue Spruce Award and the Kentucky Bluegrass Award, among others. Karen lives in Toronto, Ontario.

Picture Book for Children Ages 4–7 Rights available: World ex. North America ISBN: 978-1-77278-096-3 Trim Size: 10 x 9 in / 25.4 x 22.86 cm | Pages: 32 List Price: $18.95 USD / $23.95 CAD Hardcover with dust jacket Publication Date: October 27, 2020 Ship Date: October 9, 2020 JUV002330 JUVENILE FICTION / Animals / Hippos & Rhinos JUV013010 JUVENILE FICTION / Family / Adoption JUV029010 JUVENILE FICTION / Nature & the Natural World / Environment