Authors & Illustrators
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Barbara Adjun
Barbara Adjun is a homemaker. She loves to sew, bake, and cook. Every fall she used to love picking berries and would go every day until snowfall. These days she stays close to home because of a disability she got in 2016, so she loves to hear berry-picking stories from other people. She lives in Kugluktuk, Nunavut.
Books by Barbara Adjun:
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Roselynn Akulukjuk
Roselynn Akulukjuk was born in Pangnirtung, Nunavut, in the Canadian Arctic. In 2012, Roselynn moved to Toronto to pursue a career in film and attend the Toronto Film School, where she fell in love with being behind the camera. After finishing her studies and working in Toronto, Roselynn returned home to Nunavut, where she began working with Taqqut Productions, an Inuit-owned production company located in the capital of Nunavut, Iqaluit. Part of Roselynn’s love of filmmaking is the ability to interview elders, listen to their traditional stories, and share them with the world. In 2015, Roselynn wrote and directed her first film, the live-action and puppetry short The Owl and the Lemming, on which her book by the same title is based. Her film won Best Animation at the 2016 American Indian Film Festival.
Books by Roselynn Akulukjuk:
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Bernard Andreason
Bernard Andreason was born and raised in the beautiful landscapes of Tuktoyaktuk, Northwest Territories. He spent some of his childhood going to Stringer Hall Residential School in Inuvik, NT. He currently lives in Vancouver, which has become a place he calls home. Bernard is passionate about his culture and wants to share the richness and beauty of the Inuvialuit with as many people he can. Be it country foods, dancing, speaking and learning from Elders, Bernard stays connected with what matters most to him: culture.
Books by Bernard Andreason:
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Coco Apunnguaq Lynge
Coco Apunnguaq Lynge is a Kalaaleq/Danish illustrator and artist. She was born in Greenland and raised in Denmark, which has made her long for her Greenlandic roots. This longing often expresses itself through her personal work. She is a graduate of The Animation Workshop in Denmark, and has also studied multimedia and fashion design.
Books illustrated by Coco Apunnguaq Lynge:
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Astrid Arijanto
Astrid Arijanto is a designer and illustrator who spent her childhood drawing on any surface she could get her hands on: from papers to walls to all the white fences around her parents’ house. Since then, her work has appeared in various media and publications across Canada and Asia. She lives in Toronto and spends most of her days designing and illustrating beautiful books. In her free time she enjoys travelling with her partner, exploring the great outdoors, and chasing after their wild and rambunctious puppy, Spanky.
Books illustrated by Astrid Arijanto:
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Jaypeetee Arnakak
Jaypeetee Arnakak is a linguist, translator, and educator. He spent many years as a policy analyst specializing in Inuit culture, language and education issues. He is the editor of Unikkaaqtuat Qikiqtaninngaaqtut, a collection of thirty-three versions of traditional stories, transcribed and edited from oral recordings of ten Inuit elders from two High Arctic communities, Arctic Bay and Igloolik. He has also adapted several traditional Inuit stories into children's storybooks.
Books by Jaypeetee Arnakak:
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Germaine Arnattaujuq (Arnaktauyok)
Germaine Arnattaujuq (Arnaktauyok) is an Inuit artist and illustrator, best known for her prints and etchings depicting Inuit myths and traditional ways of life. In 1999, she designed the special edition two-dollar coin commemorating the founding of the territory of Nunavut. She is the co-author, with Gyu Oh, of My Name Is Arnaktauyok: The Life and Art of Germaine Arnaktauyok. She lives in Yellowknife, Northwest Territories.
Books illustrated by Germaine Arnattaujuq:
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Looee Arreak
Looee Arreak lives in Iqaluit, Nunavut. However, she grew up in Pangnirtung, Nunavut, located just south of the Arctic circle. Looee is an award-winning Inuktitut singer and songwriter. Her songs are lyrical, full of beautiful sounds, and capture themes of hope, strength, playfulness, and love of family and land. Looee has released three of her own albums and has toured all over Nunavut and Nunavik. Looee recently composed a song “Qaujimavunga Kinummangaarma - I know Who I Am,” which was premiered and sung by the Cantiamo Choir of Ottawa at the Ottawa Chamberfest. Looee is passionate about Inuit language preservation and creativity. She is regularly commissioned to teach Inuit youth and facilitates musical youth training and master workshops. Looee is married to James T. Arreak, and they have six children together.
Books by Looee Arreak:
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Shavanna Ashevak
Shavanna Ashevak was born in Yellowknife, Northwest Territories. She lives in Kugaaruk, Nunavut.
Books by Shavanna Ashevak:
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Arnarulunnguaq Audlaluk
Arnarulunnguaq Audlaluk was born in Iqaluit and raised in Grise Fiord, Nunavut, where she currently resides. She attended Nunavut Sivuniksavut from 2011 to 2012. She currently teaches Kindergarten, Grade 1, and Grade 2 students at Umimmak School.
Books by Arnarulunnguaq Audlaluk:
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Jenna Bailey-Sirko
Jenna Bailey-Sirko has a Masters of Education from the University of New Brunswick and over ten years of experience in education. She began her teaching career in Clyde River, Nunavut, and now teaches in Ottawa, where she taught the only Inuit kindergarten class in southern Canada. Jenna has presented numerous workshops for educators in Ottawa and Nunavut on the use of Indigenous storytelling in math and received the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee medal from the Congress of Aboriginal Peoples for her contributions to First Nation, Métis, and Inuit education.
Books by Jenna Bailey-Sirko:
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Hannah Barrett
Born and raised in Canada, with a deep Irish heritage, Hannah has always had a love for telling stories through illustration. With a Degree in Illustration from Sheridan College and a strong passion for creating works of nature, folklore and the macabre, Hannah’s work helps give the story an even stronger voice with her detailed and dynamic imagery. Her research is a passion that assists in creating emotional, thought-provoking narrative work that instils many different types of emotions from readers and viewers.
Books illustrated by Hannah Barrett:
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Sherry Blake
Sherry Blake is an Inuk throat singer who performs with the group The Blake Sisters. She grew up in Rigolet, Labrador, and now lives in St. John’s, Newfoundland. She loves watching movies, laughing with her son, Marcel, and husband, Roman, taking care of plants, beadwork, and baking cookies.
Books by Sherry Blake:
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Sean Bigham
Sean Bigham is an artist based out of London, Ontario. He works in the video games industry as a concept artist. Sean attended the Alberta College of Art and Design.
Books illustrated by Sean Bigham:
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Tamara Campeau
Tamara Campeau is an illustrator residing in a small town called Port-Cartier in northern Quebec. She studied at Sheridan College, where she spent four years attaining her Bachelor of Illustration. When she is not illustrating, she can be found working out outside or at the local gym or spending time with her better half and their brown poodle, Pinut.
Books illustrated by Tamara Campeau:
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Olivia Chan
Olivia Chan is an interdisciplinary graphic designer who holds a Bachelor of Design from the York University and Sheridan College Joint Program in Design. Her passion is to do meaningful design and bridge the gaps between people. With Inhabit Education, she takes part in creating children’s books and educational resources.
Books illustrated by Olivia Chan:
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Danny Christopher
Danny Christopher has travelled throughout the Canadian Arctic as an instructor for Nunavut Arctic College. He is the illustrator of The Legend of the Fog, A Children’s Guide to Arctic Birds, and Animals Illustrated: Polar Bear, and author of Putuguq and Kublu. His work on The Legend of the Fog was nominated for the Amelia Frances Howard-Gibbon Illustration Award. He lives in Toronto with his wife, four children, and a puppy.
Selected books by Danny Christopher:
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Neil Christopher
Neil Christopher is an educator, author, and filmmaker. He first moved to the North many years ago to help start a high school program in Resolute Bay, Nunavut. It was those students who first introduced Neil to the mythical inhabitants from Inuit traditional stories. The time spent in Resolute Bay changed the course of Neil’s life. Since that first experience in the Arctic, Nunavut has been the only place he has been able to call home. Neil has worked with many community members to record and preserve traditional Inuit stories. Together with his colleague, Louise Flaherty, and his brother, Danny Christopher, Neil started a small publishing company in Nunavut called Inhabit Media Inc., and has since been working to promote Northern stories and authors.
Selected books by Neil Christopher:
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Charlene Chua
Charlene Chua worked as a web designer, senior graphic designer, web producer, and interactive project manager before she decided to pursue illustration as a career. Her work has appeared in American Illustration, Spectrum, and SILA’s Illustration West, as well as several art books. She illustrated the children’s picture books Julie Black Belt: The Kung Fu Chronicles and Julie Black Belt: The Belt of Fire. She lives in Hamilton, Ontario, with her husband and two cats.
Selected books illustrated by Charlene Chua:
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Luke Coleman
Luke Coleman is a director and storyboard artist, working in Toronto. After graduating from Sheridan Animation he moved to Iqaluit, Nunavut. There he started working at Taqqut Productions, working on Inuit language children’s content. He helped build the animation team for the series Anaana’s Tent, and spinoff property Ukaliq and Kalla. He directed, storyboarded, and animated on a variety of projects.
Books illustrated by Luke Coleman:
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Marcus Cutler
Marcus Cutler is both a children's illustrator and an occasional climber of rocks. He lives in Windsor, Ontario, with his wife and two daughters.
Books illustrated by Marcus Cutler:
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César Sebastián Diaz
César Sebastián is a cartoonist, illustrator and teacher living in Valencia (Spain). He graduated from the San Carlos Fine Art School at the Polytechnic University of Valencia. As an illustrator, he has created art for book covers, posters, story boards, advertising and text books. He is also the regular cover designer for El Nadir Gráfica, a Spanish publisher's imprint specialized in historical comics and artwork. As a cartoonist, his work has appeared in several comics and anthologies.
Books illustrated by César Sebastián Diaz:
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Natasha Donovan
Natasha is a Métis illustrator from Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, with a focus on comics and children's illustration. Her short comic work has appeared in The Other Side Anthology (2016), edited by Melanie Gillman and Kori Handwerker, and This Place Anthology (2018), published by Portage & Main. She illustrated the award-winning children’s book “The Sockeye Mother” (written by Brett Huson) and the graphic novel “Surviving the City” (written by Tasha Spillett). She has a degree in Anthropology from the University of British Columbia, and has worked in academic and magazine publishing. She currently lives in Bellingham, Washington.
Books illustrated by Natasha Donovan:
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Aaron Edzerza
Aaron Edzerza is an illustrator surviving in the wilds of Calgary, Alberta. A graduate of ACAD, now AUArts, he spends his time writing and illustrating comic books, and trying to convince strangers that he knows how the pyramids were built.
Books illustrated by Aaron Edzerza:
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Napatsi Folger
Napatsi Folger was born and grew up in Iqaluit, Nunavut. She lived there until her family moved to Vancouver in 1991. Napatsi returned to Iqaluit in 2004 to work for the Department of Education, Government of Nunavut. In 2010 she moved to Toronto to continue her education at the University of Toronto.
Books by Napatsi Folger:
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Louise Flaherty
Louise Flaherty grew up in Clyde River, Nunavut. Early on, Louise was fortunate to be surrounded by great storytellers. Her grandparents instilled in her a passion for Inuktitut, and an understanding that speaking Inuktitut is a fundamental part of Inuit identity. In 2005, Louise co-founded Inhabit Media Inc., an independent publishing house dedicated to the preservation and promotion of Inuit knowledge and values, and the Inuktitut language. Inhabit Media has since published dozens of books and Inuktitut resources that are used in classrooms throughout Nunavut.
Books by Louise Flaherty:
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Edel Marit Gaino
Edel Marit Gaino was born in 1972 and grew up in the small Saami village of Láhpoluoppal in Northern Norway. In her writing, she likes to showcase the traditional Saami story telling tradition, which is also the way she likes telling stories to children. Saami culture and the Saami language are the subjects closest to her heart.
Books by Edel Marit Gaino:
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Alan Gallo
Alan Gallo is an Illustrator based in the Philippines with more than a decade of experience in the industry. His passion for art and interest in comic illustrations started at an early age. Today, Alan has worked on diverse projects with various studios including Outland Entertainment. He has multiple hobbies including playing rock guitar and collecting bonsai plants, but drawing has always been his primary passion. He has two dogs.
Books illustrated by Alan Gallo:
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Julia Galotta
Julia Galotta grew up in Alberta and has always had a strong affinity for nature due to her closeness to the mountains. She incorporates natural elements and animals into her work whenever she can!
Books illustrated by Julia Galotta:
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Toma Feizo Gas
From his early days of reading sci-fi and fantasy books, Toma Feizo Gas has been fascinated with the dramatic scenes portrayed on the covers of those books. There started his lifelong love affair with telling stories through pictures. Today, Toma’s key influence remains the people in these stories, the motives that drive us, and the decisions that shape us, propelling him to craft bold visual statements and contrast in his own art. As a career illustrator, his work can be found gracing the pages and covers of titles such as Dungeons & Dragons, Pathfinder, the Star Wars and Mutant Chronicles role playing games, as well as several upcoming fantasy novel series.
Books illustrated by Toma Feizo Gas:
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Nuria Muro Gio
Nuria Muro Gio is a Peruvian illustrator who was born and raised in Lima. Nuria’s art was inspired by Genndy Tartakovsky’s work on Nuria's favourite childhood shows. However, Nuria is glad her own style has evolved a lot through the years and is now characterized by lineless shapes, textures, and rich, bright colours, all made digitally. She loves sharing art with her favourite fan communities, which fills her with joy. She also loves exploring her own thoughts through doodles and working on art about everyday life in Peru to rediscover the magic of her own city. When she is not drawing, you’ll find her baking bread or discovering new music with her best friend.
Books illustrated by Nuria Muro Gio:
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Hannah Gifford
Hannah Gifford is a writer and editor living in Toronto, Ontario.
Books by Hannah Gifford:
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Athena Gubbe
Athena Gubbe is an Ontario-based artist. She works as an animator and painter. In her spare time you can find her backpacking in the wilderness and working with wildlife.
Books illustrated by Athena Gubbe:
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Jazmine Gubbe
Jazmine Gubbe is an illustrator and background artist for animation. She lives in Toronto, Ontario.
Books illustrated by Jazmine Gubbe:
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Rebecca Hainnu
Rebecca Hainnu lives in Clyde River with her daughters. Her work includes Math Activities for Nunavut Classrooms and Classifying Vertebrates. She is also the author of The Spirit of the Sea. Her book A Walk on the Tundra, co-authoured with Anna Ziegler, was a finalist for the 2013 Canadian Children’s Literature Round Table Information Book Award, and was among the 2012 “Best Books for Kids and Teens,” as selected by the Canadian Children’s Book Centre.
Books by Rebecca Hainnu:
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Jessie Hale
Jessie Hale is an editor and project manager based in Iqaluit, Nunavut. She has been an avid reader all her life and now works full time helping to make books for young people in Nunavut. Her favourite Arctic animal is the narwhal.
Selected books by Jessie Hale:
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Merle Harley
Merle Harley works slowly, continuously creates, and builds visual alternate realities. A chaos creature with too many projects and no fixed medium they create with anything readily available. Merle has done projects involving drawing, knitting, weaving, comic books, videos and built structures. Who knows what they will do next. They have exhibited work across Canada and beyond with an ongoing dedication to their artistic practice. Merle has extensive experience facilitating workshops and coordinating community art programs for organizations such as Art Bikers, Wonder’neath Open Studio, Jumblies Theatre and Shadowland Theatre. Catch them on the shoreline as they zip back and forth between the Atlantic Ocean and Lake Ontario.
Books illustrated by Merle Harley:
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Kim Hedges
Kim Hedges has been teaching and writing for the last decade. She had the privilege of working with youth in Igloolik, Nunavut for five years, and she stays connected with Nunavummiut through the Nunavut Sivuniksavut program in Ottawa. In her spare time, she likes outdoor adventuring with her three kids.
Books by Kim Hedges:
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DJ Herron
DJ Herron is not a DJ Heron, a tall bird who spins sick jams. DJ studied animation at Loyalist College, where she spent the bulk of her time designing characters, writing stories, and not being an avian mixmaster. When not storyboarding, sculpting, or designing monsters, she is likely to be found thumbing through fashion history and old medieval etiquette books.
Books illustrated by DJ Herron:
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Ali Hinch
Ali Hinch has been working as a full-time illustrator and designer in educational kids’ literature since getting her degree in illustration from Sheridan College. She’s also dabbled in puppet concepts, set design, storyboarding, and writing for animation. Currently living in Toronto, she spends a lot of time drinking iced tea and making new dog friends.
Selected books illustrated by Ali Hinch:
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Jordan Hoffman
Jordan Hoffman is a marine mammal biologist based in Iqaluit, Nunavut. His work has focused on multiple species of dolphins and whales in Hong Kong, Malaysia, Taiwan, and Australia before taking a position in Nunavut. He has a background studying how marine mammals interact with their environment and their communication patterns.
Selected books by Jordan Hoffman:
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Dana Hopkins
Dana Hopkins is an editor and writer who gets to help make books for readers of all ages. She loves storytelling and learning about the world around us.
Books by Dana Hopkins:
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Erin Hunting
Erin Hunting is an Australian illustrator who draws pictures for books, television, games, and comics. She has illustrated books for Penguin Random House and drawn comics for Archie and Garfield. When she’s not drawing, she enjoys collecting vinyl toys, hanging out with her cat Louie, and watching movies in her hometown of Melbourne, Australia.
Books illustrated by Erin Hunting:
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Alex Ittimangnaq
Alex Ittimangnaq is proud of his hometown, the Nattilik hamlet of Kugaaruk, Nunavut, and believes in working hard for the future of his community. A graduate of Nunavut Sivuniksavut, Alex is the Community Development Officer for Kugaaruk and a member of the District Education Authority. From an early age, Alex has been involved in sports in the community. He remembers playing basketball outside in the summer sun until 3AM. Alex enjoys being a mentor for youth, setting up a basketball league for kids in Kugaaruk complete with team jerseys, a scoreboard, and a trophy for the annual championship. He has also served as the lead organizer for the community’s hockey league, which continues to bring large crowds of fans, young and old, to the arena three nights a week! With his first book, The Great Fishing Derby, Alex wants to pass on an important message to young readers who feel like things aren’t going their way: if you keep a positive attitude, and keep doing the right thing, things often turn out better than you expected.
Books by Alex Ittimangnaq:
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Monica Ittusardjuat
Monica Ittusardjuat is a residential school survivor who grew up in a time when Inuit lived a subsistence way of life, moving camps and following animals where they were plentiful. Monica has thirty years of experience in education and language studies. She has taught in elementary and high schools, as well as in the Teacher Education Program at Nunavut Arctic College. She also worked at the National Inuit Organization for the unification of the Inuktut writing system. After trying to retire, Monica started a new career as a Senior Inuktitut Editor, which she says is her “dream job”.
Selected books by Monica Ittusardjuat:
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Emily Jackson
Emily Jackson is a teacher and educational consultant based in Toronto, Ontario. She spent three fantastic years teaching in Nunavut and continues to visit often. She likes reading, being outside, and finding quiet places to explore.
Selected books by Emily Jackson:
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Steve James
Steve is originally from a small village in North Yorkshire, but he now lives on the outskirts of the vibrant city of Leeds with his partner and their daughter. There are lots of arty folk in Steve’s family, so it was only natural that he should have a love for drawing from a young age, taking his early influence from the Beano and Dandy comics to Warner Brothers and Disney cartoons. When Steven isn’t illustrating, he likes to see live music, watch films, play video games, take walks in the countryside and play guitar.
Books illustrated by Steve James:
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Valentina Jaskina
Valentina Jaskina always wanted to be an artist. As a child, she painted on the walls of her parents' house. She dreamed of illustrating books or drawing cartoons. In her school years, she studied at a children's art school and then studied classical drawing, painting, and graphic design at the Novosibirsk Art College. She lives in Siberia with her husband, two daughters, and their funny dog Waffle. The world of children and their vivid emotions and unbridled imaginations are an endless source of inspiration for her work.
Books illustrated by Valentina Jaskina:
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Jennifer Jaypoody
Jennifer Jaypoody is from Clyde River, Nunavut. She has two children: a daughter, Amelia Jaypoody, and a son, Lloyd Palluq. Inuktitut language is very important to Jennifer! She loves to read.
Books by Jennifer Jaypoody:
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The Jerry Cans
The Northern stars The Jerry Cans create music inspired by their hometown of Iqaluit, Nunavut. With their unique mix of Inuktitut alt-country, throat singing, and reggae, The Jerry Cans are a distinctly Northern, one-of-a-kind group. The band members perform many of their songs in Inuktitut and are passionate about preserving the language even as the North and their home community of Iqaluit evolve. They are committed to representing Northerners and to challenging common misperceptions they have encountered about life in the Arctic; their music evokes the contemporary North and the spirited people who reside there.
Books by The Jerry Cans:
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Anguti Johnston
Thomas Anguti Johnston grew up moving around the Baffin region of Nunavut and northern Quebec (Nunavik). He now lives in Iqaluit, Nunavut, with his two daughters, Amy and Leah, and his partner Aqattuaq. Anguti has been involved in the Inuit political realm, with the National Inuit Youth Council and Inuit Tapiriit Kanatami. He decided to pursue his passion of filmmaking and writing full-time in 2014 and hasn’t looked back. Anguti has received the Nunavut Commissioner's award for youth development and the Diamond Jubilee award for media arts. Anguti is an actor, writer and film director with a passion for telling Inuit stories.
Books by Anguti Johnston:
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Aviaq Johnston
Aviaq Johnston is a young Inuk author from Igloolik, Nunavut. Her debut novel Those Who Run in the Sky was released in the spring of 2017. In 2014, she won first place in the Aboriginal Arts and Stories competition for her short story “Tarnikuluk,” which also earned her a Governor General’s History Award. Aviaq is a graduate of Nunavut Sivuniksavut, and she has a diploma in Social Service Work from Canadore College. Aviaq loves to travel and has lived in Australia and Vietnam. She spends most of her time reading, writing, studying, and procrastinating. She goes back and forth between Iqaluit, Nunavut, and Ottawa, Ontario.
Selected books by Aviaq Johnston:
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Irene Jonas
Irene Jonas and her husband live in Clyde River with their two children Audrey and Troy. Irene graduated from the Nunavut Teacher Education Program through the Nunavut Arctic College.
Books by Irene Jonas:
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Kaja Kajfež
Kaja Kajfež was born in the small but charming city of Varaždin, Croatia in 1992. She developed a love of drawing as child and later invested in a graphics tablet that steered her work into the digital realm. Kaja's artistic passion together with her interest in computer technology led her to obtaining a degree in Multimedia, Design, and Application at the University North in Croatia. During her college years, she began freelance work and was eventually able to establish her own studio that specializes in illustration, lettering, and surface pattern design. Besides doing her dream job, she loves to take long walks in nature, explore different historical periods, flip through old picture books, listen to online concerts, and spend time with her dog.
Books illustrated by Kaja Kajfež:
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Yong Ling Kang
Yong Ling Kang is an illustrator and avid comic book reader living in Toronto. She is inspired by simple, day-to-day experiences and her nostalgia of childhood. She suspects that her fondness of drawing may be caused by watching too many cartoons. Raised in tropical Singapore, she enjoys slow water sports and spicy food.
Selected books illustrated by Yong Ling Kang:
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Ibi Kaslik
Ibi Kaslik is an internationally published novelist and freelance writer. Her novel The Angel Riots was nominated for Ontario’s Trillium award (2009). Her first novel, Skinny, was a New York Times bestseller. Ibi teaches creative writing at the University of Toronto’s School of Continuing Studies.
Books by Ibi Kaslik:
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Masiana Kelly
Tiffany Kelly is Inuit and Dene from Kugluktuk, Nunavut, and Fort Simpson, NWT. Masiana is her Inuinnaqtun name. She was named after an Elder from Kugluktuk, where she currently lives with her husband and two sons. Masiana has been an educator for over 10 years and has always loved literacy and the art of storytelling, which she studied at the University of Alberta. She has always wanted to write children's stories to share the legends, traditions, and culture that she grew up with.
Books by Masiana Kelly:
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Eric Kim
Eric Kim is an illustrator, comic artist and animator. His illustration work includes Owl Magazine, Sinking Ship Entertainment and Chapterhouse Comics, where he most recently illustrated Northguard. He lives with his wife in Toronto, Canada.
Books illustrated by Eric Kim:
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Kathy Knowles
Kathy Knowles was born in Toronto, Canada and received a Bachelor of Nursing Science degree from Queen’s University. She practiced nursing in various paediatric hospital settings including a year in Moose Factory, a Cree community in northern Ontario. In 1989, Kathy and her husband, John, travelled to Accra, Ghana, West Africa with their four young children. Observing that Ghanaian children in their neighbourhood had no opportunities to read storybooks, Kathy started a weekly reading circle under a tree in their garden. This initiative led to the establishment of the Osu Children’s Library Fund, a non-profit Canadian organization, and the Osu Library Fund, a non-profit Ghanaian charity. Together, these organizations have built eight large community libraries in the Greater Accra region and have helped to create more than 200 libraries in Africa, mainly small-scale initiatives in schools and rural communities. The family returned to Canada in 1993. Since then Kathy has volunteered on a full-time basis from her Winnipeg home with the support of dedicated volunteers. She also works in close partnership with Ghanaian library staff, local government officials and board members, and travels to Ghana twice a year.
Selected books by Kathy Knowles:
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Aija Aiofe Komangapik
Aija Komangapik is a young aspiring artist who hopes to entertain and inspire other Inuit children through her art. Most of her time spent is used to create small crafts, sewing or reading whatever she can get her hands on. She is the illustrator of the book Country Food and hopes to illustrate many more in the future.
Books illustrated by Aija Aiofe Komangapik:
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Anton Kotelenets
Anton Kotelenets is an award-winning illustrator and designer. He carries the passion to capture the true essence of a subject through stylized and modern illustrations into his work for children’s books. Originally from Kiev, Ukraine, Anton is an alumnus of OCAD University and currently resides in the urban jungle that is Toronto.
Selected books illustrated by Anton Kotelenets:
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Christine Kudluk
Christine Kudluk is originally from Cornwall, Ontario, and now lives in Ottawa, Ontario. Her father is Inuk from Coral Harbour, and her mother is Italian and Welsh. She is the mother of a beautiful little girl, with another on the way. Christine has been a part of and working for the Ottawa Inuit community since moving to Ottawa at the age of seven. She loves learning about her culture and teaching children and youth.
Books by Christine Kudluk:
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Jose Amaujaq Kusugak
Jose Amaujaq Kusugak was a teacher, historian, and leader. He was president of Nunavut Tunngavik Incorporated from 1994 to 2000 and was elected president of Inuit Tapiriit Kanatami in 2000. He died in 2011 in Kangiqłiniq (Rankin Inlet).
Books by Jose Amaujaq Kusugak:
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Jordan Kyak
Jordan Kyak was born and raised in Pond Inlet, Nunavut. He attended Nunavut Arctic College and currently lives in Iqaluit with his girlfriend and their two children. He works for the Government of Nunavut.
Books by Jordan Kyak:
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Megan Kyak-Monteith
Megan Kyak-Monteith is an Inuk illustrator and painter born in Pond inlet, Nunavut in 1997. She currently is living in Halifax, Nova Scotia and studying interdisciplinary arts at NSCAD University with a focus on painting. When she is not illustrating she can be found watching movies or working in her studio on large scale oil paintings.
Selected books illustrated by Megan Kyak-Monteith:
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Ryan Lahti
Dr. Ryan Lahti grew up in the small town of Little Britain, Ontario and has worked in K-12 and post-secondary education for over a decade. In Nunavut, Ryan has taught in Naujaat and Iqaluit as a classroom teacher and worked as an instructor for the Nunavut Arctic College, teaching students from most Nunavut communities. Ryan has four degrees and most recently earned is his Doctor of Education from Western University in London, Ontario. Ryan has experience coaching and supervising students at various competitions across Canada and internationally. Ryan currently lives in Toronto and works as a consultant for the University of Toronto, and he is looking forward to travelling back to Nunavut soon.
Books by Ryan Lahti:
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Tooma Laisa
Tooma Laisa was raised in Iqaluit, Nunavut, where she feels at home most with her friends and family. She earned an Advanced Inuit Studies certificate from Nunavut Sivuniksavut in Ottawa. Over the years, Tooma has worked as a performing artist and enjoys educating others about Inuit culture. She also practises visual art such as drawing and painting. Aside from her musical and artistic interests, Tooma is always yearning to learn something new and take on opportunities to build her skills and knowledge for the betterment of herself, the community, and Inuit.
Books by Tooma Laisa:
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Elizabeth LaPensée
Elizabeth LaPensée, Ph.D. is Narrative Director at Twin Suns. She is an award-winning designer, writer, and artist of games and comics who was named a Guggenheim Fellow in 2018 and inducted into the Global Women in Games Hall of Fame in 2020. She is Anishinaabe, Métis, and Irish currently living in Nkwejong, Michigan. She designed When Rivers Were Trails, a 2D adventure game about land allotment in the 1890s which won the Adaptation Award at IndieCade 2019. She also designed and created art for Thunderbird Strike, a lightning-searing side-scroller game which won Best Digital Media at imagineNATIVE Film + Media Arts Festival 2017. Her ongoing contributions were recognized with the Serious Games Community Leadership Award in 2017. Along with creating curriculum for the award-winning Skins Video Game Workshops, she has led game development workshops since 2006 with Indigenous partners such as the The Boys & Girls Club of Bay Mills, Joseph K. Lumsden Bahweting Anishnabe PSA, the Voyageurs Expeditionary School, the Indigenous Youth Empowerment Program, Native Girls Code, and the Aboriginal Youth Science Exchange Camp at Algoma University.
Books by Elizabeth LaPensée:
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Olivia Lasky
Olivia Lasky is an Oslo-based translator who focuses on Norwegian and North Sámi to English literary translations. Originally from Coast Miwok land in the San Francisco Bay Area, she received an M.A. in Scandinavian Studies with a focus on Sámi from the University of Wisconsin-Madison, and B.A.s in Scandinavian Studies and English Literature from the University of California-Berkeley. One of her main goals as a translator is to bring more Sámi voices to a wider English-speaking audience.
Books by Olivia Lasky:
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Haana-SikSik Lavallée
Haana-SikSik Lavallée is originally from Rankin Inlet and Iqaluit, Nunavut. She is a jane-of-all-trades dabbling in various forms of art and expression through sewing, clay-modeling, spoken-word, crochet and illustrating to name a few. She studied fashion design in 2013 and is currently studying filmmaking in New Brunswick. When she is not focusing on her crafts or school, she is busy chasing her toddler.
Books illustrated by Haana-SikSik Lavallée:
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Patricia Ann Lewis-MacDougall
Patricia Ann Lewis-MacDougall was born and raised in the Niagara Peninsula. Her childhood days were spent in the woodsy setting of Ontario’s Bruce Trail. After graduating high school, Patricia Ann enrolled at Sheridan College to study Animation in the 1980s and later illustration. She worked for several years as storyboard artist for Nelvana. She has illustrated several books for children.
Books illustrated by Patricia Ann Lewis-MacDougall:
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Hwei Lim
Hwei Lim draws comics (the Boris & Lalage series; Spera: Volume 1; and Mirror, with Emma Rios) and illustrates books (The Spirit of the Sea, Animals Illustrated: Narwhal, and Dragonhearted). Hwei lives in Malaysia.
Books illustrated by Hwei Lim:
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Paninnguaq Lind Jensen
Paninnguaq Lind Jensen is a traditional practitioner of kakiornerit. She loves reading and learning more about Inuit culture and traditions. Paninnguaq has a daughter and one more baby on the way. She wishes for them and all Inuit children that all kinds of stories, knowledge, and information about Inuit culture and traditions will be easily accessible for them. Paninnguaq wants to tell as many stories as possible and share as much knowledge as she can.
Books by Paninnguaq Lind Jensen:
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Lenny Lishchenko
Lenny Lishchenko is not a boy. She is an illustrator, graphic designer, and comics maker, who will never give up the chance to draw a good birch tree. Ukrainian-born and Canadian-raised, she’s interested in telling stories that people remember years later, in the early mornings, when everything is quiet and still. She’s worked with clients such as Lenny Letter, Power Athletics Ltd., Alberta Venture, and Rubicon Publishing, and is based out of Toronto, Ontario.
Selected books illustrated by Lenny Lishchenko:
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Jesus Lopez
Jesus Lopez was born in Madrid in 1975. From a very young age, he loved drawing by copying superheroes from comics and inventing new characters. Jesus studied cinema at a film academy in Madrid and made several short films. Since 2000 he has worked as a freelance illustrator for several European publishers. He currently lives in a small town outside of Madrid with his wife and daughter. When he's not drawing, he loves going to the cinema, walking in nature, and playing with his daughter.
Books illustrated by Jesus Lopez:
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Udayana Lugo
Udayana Lugo lives in beautiful British Columbia, in the city of Richmond. She studied industrial design in Mexico and Italy. Udayana also worked as a product, interior and graphic designer both in Italy and Mexico. She adores picture books (she has an enormous collection which she passes as her children's personal library). Her preferred media are pen and ink, watercolour and colour pencils, but she also use gouache and pastels.
Books illustrated by Udayana Lugo:
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Caleb MacDonald
Caleb is also an award winning fine arts photographer. He worked as a letter carrier for the U.S.P.S. for 35 years. Caleb is a pastor at a church in Colorado where he resides. Caleb enjoys working out, hiking, and traveling.
Books by Caleb MacDonald:
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Carolyn MacDonald
Carolyn MacDonald grew up in Lachine, Quebec, and was from an early age befriended by Inuit from the Eastern Arctic who were regular visitors to her family home while they waited to return north by ship, following medical treatment in Montreal. These friendships and other Arctic connections were to shape her future teaching career. In the mid-1960s she spent three summers in Arctic Quebec, after which, in 1968, she moved to Kangirsualujjauq, Nunavik, and worked as an early elementary teacher in the community’s two-room school. In 1985, after ten years in Ottawa, she moved to Igloolik with her family, where, for almost twenty-five years, she worked in the Ataguttaaluk School on a half-time basis. There she team-taught Grade 2 and 3, and later she worked closely with Inuit teacher-trainees, special-needs, and program support. She was involved with Igloolik’s community-based Nunavut Teacher Education Program (NTEP). In her spare time she undertook volunteer educational activities in the community. Collaborating with community Elders and a professional archaeologist, she assisted in running a summer field archaeology school for local students, offering Grade 10, 11, and 12 credits. She also helped to establish Igloolik’s Headstart Program, including its curriculum development and programs, its teacher training needs, and its fundraising activities.
Books by Carolyn MacDonald:
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John MacDonald
John MacDonald is the former director of the Igloolik Research Institute and the author of The Arctic Sky: Inuit Astronomy, Star Lore, and Legend.
Books by John MacDonald:
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Tim Mack
Tim Mack is a freelance illustrator living in Vancouver, Canada. He has experience working in illustration, concept art, and character design. When not working on art he can be found swimming in the ocean or hunting for ice cream.
Books illustrated by Tim Mack:
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Heather Main
Heather Main is an elementary teacher who grew up in Arviat, Nunavut and has travelled to many Nunavut communities through work in the territory. Her favourite part of teaching is reading aloud to children. She now lives in Toronto with her husband and son.
Selected books by Heather Main:
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Carolyn Mallory
Carolyn Mallory grew up in northern Ontario, raised her own three children in Nunavut, and has always considered herself a northern girl. She loves snow, animals, the tundra, wildflowers, reading, writing, and painting. She is the co-author of Common Plants of Nunavut and the author of Common Insects of Nunavut. She now lives in Nova Scotia with her dogs, cats, lizard, gerbils, frogs, fish, and a house-pig named Stella.
Books by Carolyn Mallory:
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Kagan McLeod
Kagan McLeod has been illustrating for magazines, newspapers, and design firms since 1999, after graduating from Sheridan College’s illustration program. He began work as a staff artist for the National Post newspaper, and has had illustration work published in Entertainment Weekly, Reader’s Digest, The Walrus, The Wall Street Journal, Toronto Life, The Boston Globe, and Popular Mechanics. His first graphic novel, Infinite Kung Fu, was published in 2012. He lives in Toronto with his wife, two daughters, and a hound dog.
Books illustrated by Kagan McLeod:
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Nadia Mike
Nadia Mike is an Inuit educator who graduated with a Bachelor of Education from the University of Regina. Although Nadia has lived in many communities across the North, she considers Iqaluit, Nunavut, her home. Nadia has two daughters, Leah and Jaime, who constantly teach her to be less serious and enjoy every day. These two girls have also reminded Nadia of the importance of children’s literature, and having stories with settings, characters, and themes that show children that their lives and cultures are important enough to be in books. Nadia loves to travel, cook, sew, and drink strong coffee. In 2014, Nadia published her first book, an Inuktitut-language first-words board book. In 2016, she published Leah’s Mustache Party, her first picture book, followed by Ukaliq and Kalla Go Fishing in 2017.
Selected books by Nadia Mike:
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Jimena Mora
Jimena Mora is an animator, illustrator, and designer. She lives in Vancouver, British Columbia.
Books illustrated by Jimena Mora:
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Alan Neal
Alan Neal is a Canadian journalist and playwright whose first project involving the creatures of Inuit myth was on a film Neil Christopher was making in Iqaluit years ago about the demon Mahaha. Alan’s tasks then included coaching child actors, wrangling dogs, and performing the role of Grip #3. Although the film never did get finished, Alan fell in love with both the stories and the beauty of Iqaluit. He currently hosts the CBC radio program All in a Day in Ottawa, and has also hosted the programs Ontario Today, Bandwidth, and Fuse.
Books by Alan Neal:
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Jim Nelson
Jim Nelson is a freelance artist based in Chicago, Illinois. He has a lifelong interest in myths, legends, and the fantastic.
Selected books illustrated by Jim Nelson:
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Harry Okpik
Harry Okpik was born in the community of Quaqtaq in 1954. Harry owns a dog team and has participated in numerous Ivakkak dog sled races. He is widely recognized as one of the most dedicated and successful dog team owners in Nunavik. Harry has also acted as one of the longest-serving KRG (Kativik Regional Government) nature officers in Nunavik. In 2015, the documentary film Okpik’s Dream was released which documented Harry's life, racing experience, and his passion for his dog team.
Books by Harry Okpik:
Barbara Taptuna Olson
Barbara Taptuna Olson is from Kugluktuk- Nunavut's most westernly community. Her passion for teaching and learning has been central to her career as an educator with the most recent being a Master of Arts degree in Higher Education from Royal Roads University. When Barbara is not teaching or writing, she is sewing traditional and contemporary kalikuit, carving traditional needle cases, berry picking or fishing.
Books by Barbara Taptuna Olson
Lucy Palituq
Lucy Palituq lives in Clyde River with her family Mike, Carlos, Kim, and Ashevak. She attended and completed NTEP in Clyde River. She enjoys being out on the land, fishing, and going out target shooting.
Books by Lucy Palituq:
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Jeela Palluq-Cloutier
Jeela is the Executive Director of Inuit Uqausinginnik Taiguusiliuqtiit, the Inuit Language Authority of Nunavut. The focus of her research in the past five years has been on standardization of Inuktut orthography in Nunavut, as well as at the national level with the Atausiq Inuktut Titirausiq task group with Inuit Tapiriit Kanatami. Jeela’s passion is working with the Inuit language and it’s continued use and survival. She passionately enjoys learning about the language variants from Alaska to Greenland.
Books by Jeela Palluq-Cloutier:
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Thamires Paredes
Thamires Paredes lives and works as a freelance illustrator in Brazil and has a great passion in telling stories through her art. Her main focus is on editorial illustration, books, and advertising. She has a special love and affection for the universe of illustrations aimed at the children and youth.
Books illustrated by Thamires Paredes:
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Emma Pedersen
Emma Pedersen is an illustrator from Toronto working in the publishing and animation industries. She graduated from OCADU majoring in drawing and painting. She is also a graduate of Sheridan's Illustration program. When not working (which is rare!) she enjoys visiting used book stores, planning her next trip abroad, and snuggling her dog when he'll actually sit still.
Selected books illustrated by Emma Pedersen:
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Tindur Peturs
Tindur Peturs is an animator and illustrator, born and raised in Iceland, who moved to Canada to study animation and Canadian culture. They have a love for nature, animals, and the power of storytelling.
Books illustrated by Tindur Peturs:
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Scott Plumbe
As the son of a paper merchant and potter, Scott Plumbe's natural childhood curiosity resulted in endless summer days drawing and building things out of clay. It’s no surprise that even today, he spends most days sketching and giving form to ideas. He is an award-winning artist who has illustrated dozens of stories. When not busy creating art for books, he works hard designing exhibits for museums, science centres and interpretive centres. Scott loves unpacking new stories and sharing each discovery with new audiences.
Books illustrated by Scott Plumbe:
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Shannon Potratz
Shannon Potratz has been working as an illustrator and graphic designer almost from the moment he graduated high-school. For nearly 30 years, he's been working professionally, designing and illustrating just about anything you can think of. It wasn’t glamorous, but it paid the bills. In 2007, Shannon's collaboration with Outland Entertainment began, working on various RPG properties, movie posters, and comic books. His first major comic, written by acclaimed writer Cullen Bunn, launched in 2021.
Books illustrated by Shannon Potratz:
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Kevin Qamaniq-Mason
Kevin Qamaniq-Mason grew up in Iglulik. He currently lives in Ottawa and is a senior policy advisor at Inuit Tapiriit Kanatami.
Books by Kevin Qamaniq-Mason:
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Mary Qamaniq-Mason
Mary Qamaniq-Mason lives in Ottawa and holds a PhD in Education with a special interest in wellbeing and connection. She and her husband, Kevin, have a son and a daughter by custom adoption and are foster parents to more.
Books by Mary Qamaniq-Mason:
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Sakiasi Qaunaq
Sakiasi Qaunaq was born in 1942, at Alangnarjuk, a campsite near Igloolik, but has lived most of his life in the Arctic Bay area. His grandmother told him stories as a child-including The Orphan and the Polar Bear-and fostered in him a love for traditional legends that persists to this day. In his youth the stories were told for entertainment, but today he feels their re-telling is crucial to sustaining Inuit traditions and culture.
Books by Sakiasi Qaunaq:
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Rachel & Sean Qitsualik-Tinsley
RRachel Qitsualik-Tinsley was born at the northernmost edge of Baffin Island, in the Canadian Arctic. She grew up learning traditional survival lore from her father. Sean Qitsualik-Tinsley was born at the southernmost edge of Ontario, learning woodcraft from his father. They were brought together by a love of nature and each other. They write Arctic speculative fiction and nonfiction for various ages.
Books by Rachel & Sean Qitsualik-Tinsley:
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Christina Rooney
Christina Rooney is passionate about books and early childhood learning. She lives and runs a home daycare in Iqaluit and has learned that the best way to teach children is through stories! A mother of two young children, her favourite time of the day is bedtime when her children ask for a story "from your head".
Books by Christina Rooney:
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Lars Rudebjer
Lars Rudebjer has illustrated more than 40 children's books plus board games published in ten countries. Lars and his family live in Norway.
Books illustrated by Lars Rudebjer:
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Rachel Rupke
Rachel Rupke has a Masters of Education degree from OISE and over ten years of experience working in education as a classroom teacher, literacy specialist, curriculum developer, and educational consultant. Rachel has loved to write for as long as she can remember and is passionate about helping children find their writing voice. Rachel lives with her partner Dave in Toronto.
Selected books by Rachel Rupke:
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Elizabeth Ryan
Elizabeth Ryan is an elementary school teacher in Iqaluit, Nunavut. She has two wonderful daughters, Emmeline and Maiya. Elizabeth loves spending time with her daughters and her partner, Joseph. Elizabeth’s favourite thing to do with the family is to go to the cabin in the spring and summer. In her spare time, she enjoys beading, crocheting, and sewing.
Books by Elizabeth Ryan:
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Nadia Sammurtok
Nadia Sammurtok is an Inuit writer and educator originally from Rankin Inlet, Nunavut. Nadia is passionate about preserving the traditional Inuit lifestyle and Inuktitut language so that they may be enjoyed by future generations. Nadia currently lives in Iqaluit, Nunavut, with her family.
Selected books by Nadia Sammurtok:
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Amiel Sandland
Amiel Sandland is an illustrator living in the Toronto area. He studied illustration at Seneca College, eventually specializing in comic arts and character design. When not drawing, he can be found studying, designing characters, creating costumes and replica props, or burying his nose in a comic.
Selected books illustrated by Amiel Sandland:
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Michael Sheyahshe
Michael A. Sheyahshe is a member of the Caddo Nation of Oklahoma. A 2003 graduate of the University of Oklahoma, Sheyahshe served as project coordinator for Oklahoma's Red Earth Film Festival 2000, established the Indigenous Film Series and the Festival of Indigenous Visual Entertainment at the University of Oklahoma, and sits on the board of trustees for the Caddo Nation's Heritage Museum.
Books by Michael Sheyahshe:
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Lea Simma
Lea Simma was born in 1989 and was raised in the Lávnnjitvuopmi Sámi reindeer herding area. She now lives in Dálvvadis/Jokkmokk. She has always advocated for Sámi rights and has been active in Sámi organizations both nationally and internationally. She has translated texts, books, films and television shows. She works at Tjállegoahte - Författarcentrum Sápmi, an organization that promotes Sámi literature.
Books by Lea Simma:
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Michelle Simpson
Michelle Simpson is a professional illustrator & designer based out of the Niagara Region. Michelle graduated with a BAA in Illustration from Sheridan College and now works as a full-time freelance illustrator. She has worked as a concept artist at KeyFrame Animation for kids cartoons such as Ollie: The Boy Who Became What He Ate (season 2) and Tee and Mo (season 1).
Books illustrated by Michelle Simpson:
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Kim Smith
Kim Smith has worked in magazines, advertising, animation, and children’s gaming. She studied illustration at the Alberta College of Art and Design in Calgary, Alberta, where she currently resides.
Books illustrated by Kim Smith:
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Tanya Snow
Tanya Snow is a writer, throat singer and marketing specialist living in Yellowknife, NT with her son, Kaize. As a child, she spent 15 years in the foster care system. As an adult she is reclaiming culture through writing, throat singing and film making.
Books by Tanya Snow:
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Etua Snowball
Etua Snowball is an Inuk author who writes of his traditional and unexpected experiences within a modernizing world. He is also an award-winning musician with lyrics established by his poetry. Actor, sculptor, and artist are just a few accomplishments within his knowledge in many fields. Living in Kuujjuaq, Nunavik, Etua lived on the land with his family during his upbringing between first ice break and the first snowfall. He met tourists from all over the world on a weekly basis while they experienced fishing and hunting on Inuit lands. Befriending and raising wild animals kept his life eventful and closer to nature as he grew into adulthood. In an effort to keep his culture alive in modern times, Etua is also the Director of Education Services for Nunavik with a McGill University honours degree, Prime Minister’s Award for teaching excellence, and a Citizenship Award under his belt.
Books by Etua Snowball:
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Trevor Taylor
Trevor Taylor grew up in Gunner’s Cove, Newfoundland and Labrador, where the outdoors, fishing, birds, and boats were as big a part of growing up as going to school. He cut his high teeth fishing cod in the midship room of a trap skiff before working for the Newfoundland Fishermen’s Union and captaining a 55-foot crab and shrimp fishing vessel. Later on, he was Minister of Fisheries and helped establish one of Canada’s leading ocean conservation organizations. He now lives in Iqaluit, Nunavut with his wife, Udloriak, and dog, Gunner. He loves to snowmobile and boat all over the southern Baffin region and compose silly rhymes and bad dad jokes to amuse his family.
Books by Trevor Taylor:
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Deborah Thomas
Deborah Thomas is a grandmother of three story-hungry little boys who love being read to and hearing tales created by their grandma. She enjoys being pulled into their imaginations and sharing adventures with them. Professionally, Deborah works as an adult educator teaching English as a second language, job-readiness, upgrading, and trades entrance programs at Nunavut Arctic College. She lives in Sanikiluaq, Nunavut with her husband. The Little Hunter is her first book and is a legacy to leave behind for her family to share with future generations.
Books by Deborah Thomas:
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Shawna Thomson
Shawna Thomson grew up in southern Ontario but has called Nunavut home since 2011 when she moved to Taloyoak. She currently works as an educator in Iqaluit, where she lives with her husband and their two dogs. Since moving to Nunavut, she has always been fascinated by stories of the giants and the little people. When she is not writing or teaching, she enjoys running, yoga, going hiking with her dogs, or reading historical fiction.
Books by Shawna Thomson:
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Sigmundur Thorgeirsson
Sigmundur Thorgeirsson is an Icelandic illustrator living in Toronto. He studied drawing at The Reykjavik School of Visual Arts in Iceland and then illustration with an emphasis on entertainment at Laguna College of Art and Design in California, USA. When not Illustrating books he can be found making indie games and picking up his dog's poop.
Selected books illustrated by Sigmundur Thorgeirsson:
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Andrew Trabbold
Andrew Trabbold is an Inhabit Media illustrator.
Books illustrated by Andrew Trabbold:
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Twin Flames (Chelsey June and Jaaji)
Chelsey June, métis (Algonquin Cree heritage) from Ottawa, and Jaaji, Inuk and Mohawk from Nunavik and Kahnawake, are part of an Indigenous renaissance. Together, they are the music duo Twin Flames. Their cultural backgrounds span Canada’s geography and their songs, delivered through a mix of English, French and Inuktitut, have helped them earn a unique place among contemporary music makers from coast to coast. Their humour on stage is often unexpected and a welcome comedic relief when discussing darker issues, combined with impeccable storytelling Twin Flames allows audiences to feel a truly human connection.
Books by Twin Flames:
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Richard Van Camp
Richard Van Camp is an internationally renowned storyteller and bestselling author. He was born in Fort Smith, Northwest Territories, and is a proud member of the Dogrib (Tłı̨chǫ) Dene Nation. He is the author of The Lesser Blessed (Douglas & McIntyre, 1996), a Canadian classic that has been adapted into a feature film with First Generation Films. He lives in Edmonton, AB, with his family.
Books by Richard Van Camp:
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Maren Vsetula
Maren Vsetula is a teacher and educational writer. She loves to spend as much time on the land as she can, hiking, fishing, paddling, and dogsledding. She has lived and worked in Nunavut for over a decade.
Selected books by Maren Vsetula:
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We Are Together
We Are Together was founded in the spirit of independent and collaborative creation and develops and produces animated content for the arts, cultural, and non-profit communities.
Books illustrated by We Are Together:
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Deborah Kigjugalik Webster
Deborah Kigjugalik Webster grew up in Baker Lake, Nunavut, where she loved to learn about her Inuit culture and heritage. She has a degree in Anthropology from Carleton University in Ottawa, Ontario, and works as an Inuit heritage researcher and author. The lack of published children’s literature featuring Inuit content compelled Deborah to write Akilak’s Adventure for her daughters, Sonja Akilak and Nicole Amaruq. Reading and making up stories with her daughters when they were young was a magical time in Deborah’s life, and she took inspiration from their vivid imaginations and sense of wonderment and excitement.
Books by Deborah Kigjugalik Webster:
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Eva Widermann
Eva Widermann is a graduate of the graphic and design program at the Academy of Fine Arts in Munich, Germany. She worked as a graphic designer for many years before she decided to pursue her long-term dream of becoming a freelance illustrator and concept artist. Her art is deeply influenced by an unusual combination of Franco-Belgian comics, manga, and anime.
Books illustrated by Eva Widermann:
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Jennifer Wilman
Jennifer Wilman lives in Iqaluit, Nunavut, with her husband, Luke, daughter, Georgianna, sons, Inuki and Lee, and their tiny dog, Allie. Jennifer has a Bachelor of Education and has worked as a teacher, college instructor, literacy program coordinator, and early learning resource coordinator. Jennifer and her family love to snowmobile, boat, and eat pancakes. Jennifer is also the author of Yes, Let’s Play Outside!
Books by Jennifer Wilman:
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Nellie Winters
Nellie Winters is an Elder from Okak Bay living in Makkovik, Nunatsiavut (Labrador). She is a respected artist whose work is commissioned and exhibited by galleries, museums, and private collections in Canada and around the world. She is widely respected as an Elder, knowledge holder, translator, author, and educator.
Books by Nellie Winters: