Orca Echoes Books

Helen Flook was born and grew up in the beautiful countryside of Wales. She has a degree in graphic design from the Norwich School of Art. Helen has illustrated numerous children’s books, including many Orca picture books and early chapter books in the Orca Echoes series. She lives and works in Abergwyngregyn, a village in Wales.

This is Sara Cassidy’s tenth book for children. Her books have been short-listed for the Chocolate Lily Award, the Ruth and Sylvia Schwartz Children’s Book Award, the Kirkus Prize for Young Readers’ Literature and the Bolen Books Children’s Book Prize, and two were Junior Library Guild selections. For more information, visit www.saracassidywriter.com.

Monique Polak has written many novels for young adults, including her historical novel What World is Left, which won the 2009 Quebec Writers’ Federation Prize for Children’s and Young Adult Literature. Monique is the author of Passover (Orca Origins), which the Jewish Book Council called “a musthave title.” When not writing award-winning books, Monique teaches English and Humanities in Montreal, Quebec, where she also works as a freelance journalist. For more information, visit www.moniquepolak.com.

Laurie Elmquist holds an ma in Literature and Creative Writing from the University of Windsor in Ontario. She enjoys writing for kids and is the author of Beach Baby (2016) and Where’s Burgess? (2018) for Orca Book Publishers. She teaches at Camosun College in Victoria, British Columbia, and is an online instructor at the University of Calgary in Alberta.

Jeff Pinkney likes to be out in his canoe or on his mountain bike on forest trails, where he has met a few porcupines. He works as a business advisor in Peterborough, Ontario. Soapstone Porcupine and Soapstone Signs draw on Jeff’s experiences while traveling as a development consultant in Canada’s James Bay Frontier, where he acquired a deep appreciation for the people and the landscape. For more information, visit www.jeffpinkney.com.

Alison Hughes writes for children of all ages. Her books have been nominated for Silver Birch, Red Cedar, Diamond Willow, Hackmatack and Alberta Literary Awards, as well as the Sigurd F. Olson Nature Writing Award. She shares her love of writing by giving lively presentations and workshops at schools and young-author conferences. She lives in Edmonton, Alberta, with her husband and children, where her three snoring dogs provide the soundtrack for her writing. For more information, visit www.alisonhughesbooks.com.

Award-winning author Natasha Deen loves stories: exciting ones, scary ones and, especially, funny ones! As a kid of two countries (Guyana and Canada), she feels especially lucky because she gets a double dose of stories. When she’s not working on her books or visiting schools, she spends a lot of time trying to convince her dogs and cats that she’s the boss of the house.For more information, visit natashadeen.com and follow her on Twitter and Instagram @natasha_deen.

Shannon Stewart teaches in a francophone school in Vancouver, British Columbia, where she has had the opportunity to meet and learn from students all over the world. She is the author of Sea Crow (Orca, 2004), Alphabad: An Alphabet Book for Wicked Children! (Key Porter Books, 2005) and Captain Jake (Orca, 2008). She holds an MFA in creative writing from the University of British Columbia.

Pamela McDowell’s first career was in education, teaching junior high and high school. She began writing when she left teaching and has now written more than fifty nonfiction books for children. Pamela grew up in Alberta and enjoys writing about the diverse animals and habitats of her home province. Pamela lives in Calgary with her husband, two kids and an Australian shepherd.

Eric Walters, Member of the Order of Canada, began writing in 1993 as a way to get his fifthgrade students interested in reading and writing. Eric cofounded a children’s program called Creation of Hope that supports orphaned children in the Mbooni district in rural Kenya and is recognized by the Mbooni community as an elder. He spends time each year working with the children and helping to run the organization. For the rest of the year he lives in Guelph, Ontario. For more information, visit www.ericwalters.net.

Amy Meissner currently lives and works in Anchorage, Alaska. Her two, bad orange cats keep her company in the studio all day long where she paints, draws, writes, cuts fabric and moves cats off the things they aren’t supposed to sleep on. Creating art for children’s books is Amy’s favorite job, but she also illustrates for posters and articles. She recently completed an MFA in Creative Writing and has undergraduate degrees in both Art and Textiles.

Jane Heinrichs is a children’s book writer and illustrator. She starts her day at a clear desk with her huge sketchbook (for books) and her tiny sketchbook (for daily drawings) but usually ends up sitting on the floor, surrounded by a collection of paints, pencils and papers. Jane lives in the UK with her family.

David Parkins has illustrated numerous children’s books. He also does editorial illustrations, political cartoons, and strip cartoons. David lives in Lansdowne, Ontario.

Darlene Gait was born on Vancouver Island and began painting as a child. Inspired by nature and by her Coast Salish heritage, Darlene brings a rich understanding of the natural world to her work, which is held in private collections and exhibited worldwide. Darlene lives in Shawnigan Lake, British Columbia. For more information, please visit www.onemoon.ca.

Charlene Chua grew up in Singapore, where she divided her time between drawing, reading comics and failing her Mandarin classes. She has worked with clients from Canada, USA, Europe, Singapore and Australia on a wide variety of illustration projects. Charlene lives in Hamilton, Ontario with her husband and their two cats. For more information, visit www.charlenechua.com.

Marcus Cutler is a freelance children’s illustrator from Ontario, Canada. His work has appeared in magazines, books, apps and more. Visit his website at marcuscutler.com.

Sabrina Gendron has a degree in visual arts from Cégep de Ste-Foy, as well as 2D/3D animation from Coll&egravege Bart. She loves to work on animation and visual arts projects and has illustrated a number of French-language books. Her art is colorful and lively and will make you want to dive into the worlds she has created. Sabrina lives in Mont-Saint-Hilaire, Quebec. For more information, visit sabrinagendron.blogspot.com or follow her on Facebook and Instagram @sab.gendron.

Working in watercolor and colored pencil, Kasia Charko creates detailed, colorful paintings that bring period, place and character to life. Born and educated in England, Kasia lives in Alton, Ontario, with her family of animals.