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In Plaisirs d'hiver, Roger Paré's illustrations capture the energy and enthusiasm of a wild and furry crew of animated animal friends who frolic in the snow together. The soft watercolour illustrations, which are detailed and funny, dictate the text and set the tone and atmosphere of the book. Two comical cats brave the cold to go ice-fishing; an owl and a squirrel take up skiing; an elephant on snowshoes miraculously stays atop a snowdrift; and a group of monkeys engage in a frenzied snowball fight. These fuzzy animals, bundled up in woolly scarves and hats, don't seem to mind the cold; but when they have tired of the day's activities, they are happy to retreat indoors to the warmth of a crackling fire. Four-line nonsense rhymes accompany each illustration.
This is the story of a 13-year-old boy who plays first base for the local peewee team and dreams of becoming a professional baseball player. Mathieu's idol is Claude Raymond, a former Montreal Expo, who now works as a sports commentator - a job Mathieu would like to have once he retires from the big leagues! The presence of teammate Natalie, on third base, makes him think of things other than baseball. Told in the first person, the story invites the reader into the world of Mathieu, a Korean-born Québécois and sensitive dreamer, whose summer is turned upside down by a bad play and a broken collar bone.
Arialde Henke, a determined young woman who tends to meddle in other people's business, is exiled to one of Saturn's moons. She lives with a couple whose son's hockey career was cut short by a suspicious accident. Arialde sets out to discover the truth about the events that left this young man on life support. This novel is an interesting and captivating mix of mystery and science fiction. The style is reflective and the text is well-written and focused; the novel's pace is as spirited as the main character. The science-fiction setting is well-conceived; in particular, the author handles the challenges of describing a hockey game in zero gravity convincingly.
For readers who would like to know how a nine-year-old girl turns her dream of tending goal for a hockey team into reality, this second book in the "Sophie" series fits the bill. Sophie's cunning, philosophical and lively character is sure to charm young readers. The author's dynamic style and the charming illustrations will entice youngsters to read the book from cover to cover, as will the language, which is perfectly suited to them. In this book, text and illustrations are perfectly complementary.
Le Sport et toi helps children discover the scientific side of sports through articles about real events and through experiments requiring easily obtained materials. It also provides practical advice for avoiding injuries, suggests ways of improving performance in a particular sport and explains how to take care of equipment. Children will search for answers to questions such as: what are sepak takraw, underwater hockey and kite-fighting? Where are these sports played? What were the first sports? The black and white illustrations are humorous, expressive, and add immensely to an understanding of the text. The book contains a table of contents, a list of activities and an index.
Achille has big dreams. More than anything in the world, he wants to be a hockey player. His parents agree to let him play in the fall, as long as he does the gardening during the summer, keeps his room tidy and cleans his kitten's litter box. Unfortunately, everything goes awry: his parents start to act strangely, a squirrel plays havoc with the garden and Sophie, his mischievous neighbour, makes his life miserable. Will Achille's dream come true when the summer is over? Discover this hilarious, easy-to-read and splendidly illustrated story.
Baseball brings Jeffrey, a young boy with a disability and a weight problem, and Louis, a near delinquent, together. Jeffrey's left leg was damaged when he was four and Louis's baseball team invites him to play, partly out of pity. Louis, a tough kid with a foul mouth, wants his young friend to feel welcome. A bond forms between the two boys as they struggle with typical teenage problems of teachers, girls, parents, and after-school jobs. This story's sensitivity and humanity will appeal to both boys and girls.
A nine-year-old goalie loses his taste for hockey while trying to fulfil his father's expectations. To try and solve both his on- and off-ice problems, he sneaks into the belly of a Zamboni with the help of a friend. The Zamboni contains a dream machine that lets him distinguish between his dreams and those of his father. The book's illustrations reflect the child's point of view; fans of Pierre Pratt will recognize his inimitable broad brush strokes.
Zigzag just doesn't feel like himself. He feels rejected. He wants to play football but always ends up as the referee. He decides to roam the plains in search of an ideal animal to trade places with. No one he encounters seems right. He keeps his zebra coat and his own qualities, and realises his dream by forming his own football team. This book is a modern-day fable about rejection, self-acceptance and dreams that come true. The black and white illustrations recall the zebra's coat, and several pages of information and quizzes on football and reading add to the reader's knowledge.
Zunik, a very young goalie, is so excited about today's championship game that he can't sleep. His father, however, cannot pull himself out of bed. When Zunik finally gets him up, they have to rush, and still they are late getting to the arena. Zunik hardly has time to get into his uniform; there is no time to sharpen his skates. In the dying moments of the game, he slips and, to his horror, the opposing team shoots the puck past him into the net to score the winning goal. What a disappointment! Zunik's father, a single parent, comforts him. The comic-strip style of the illustrations fits in well with the contemporary atmosphere of the story and adds life to the text.
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