Let’s go! Experience the magic of skating on wild ice.
Two children wake up to hear the lake singing, then the wind begins wailing … or is it a wolf? They bundle up and venture out into the cold, carrying their skates. On the snow-covered shore, they spot tracks made by fox, deer, hare, mink, otter … and the wolf! In the bay, the ice is thick and smooth. They lace up their skates, step onto the ice, stroking and gliding, and the great lake sings again.
In her signature poetic style, Jean E. Pendziwol describes the exhilarating experience of skating on the wild ice of Lake Superior, including the haunting singing that occurs as the ice expands and contracts. Accompanied by Todd Stewart’s breathtaking illustrations, this book will make us all long to skate wild!
Key Text Features
illustrations
Correlates to the Common Core State Standards in English Language Arts:
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.1.3
Describe characters, settings, and major events in a story, using key details.
Let’s go! Experience the magic of skating on wild ice.
Two children wake up to hear the lake singing, then the wind begins wailing … or is it a wolf? They bundle up and venture out into the cold, carrying their skates. On the snow-covered shore, they spot tracks made by fox, deer, hare, mink, otter … and the wolf! In the bay, the ice is thick and smooth. They lace up their skates, step onto the ice, stroking and gliding, and the great lake sings again.
In her signature poetic style, Jean E. Pendziwol describes the exhilarating experience of skating on the wild ice of Lake Superior, including the haunting singing that occurs as the ice expands and contracts. Accompanied by Todd Stewart’s breathtaking illustrations, this book will make us all long to skate wild!
Key Text Features
illustrations
Correlates to the Common Core State Standards in English Language Arts:
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.1.3
Describe characters, settings, and major events in a story, using key details.
| Published By | Groundwood Books Ltd — Oct 3, 2023 |
| Specifications | 32 pages | 9.5 in x 11.5 in |
| Keywords | outdoor adventure; playing outdoors; |
| Written By |
JEAN E. PENDZIWOL is the author of Skating Wild on an Inland Sea, illustrated by Todd Stewart (Governor General’s Literary Award, the TD Canadian Children’s Literature Award and the Elizabeth Mrazik-Cleaver Canadian Picture Book Award). She has also written When I Listen to Silence, illustrated by Carmen Mok; I Found Hope in a Cherry Tree, illustrated by Nathalie Dion; and Me and You and the Red Canoe, illustrated by Phil. She lives in Northwestern Ontario, on the shores of Lake Superior. |
| Illustrated by |
TODD STEWART is an illustrator and printmaker. His debut picture book, The Wind in the Trees (Quand le vent souffle), was a finalist for the TD Canadian Children’s Literature Award and the Governor General’s Literary Award. He has also illustrated Flow, Spin, Grow by Patchen Barss and See You Next Year by Andrew Larsen, among other titles. Todd’s screen-printed art has been shown in public and private exhibitions across Canada. He lives in Montreal, Quebec. |
| Written By |
|
JEAN E. PENDZIWOL is the author of Skating Wild on an Inland Sea, illustrated by Todd Stewart (Governor General’s Literary Award, the TD Canadian Children’s Literature Award and the Elizabeth Mrazik-Cleaver Canadian Picture Book Award). She has also written When I Listen to Silence, illustrated by Carmen Mok; I Found Hope in a Cherry Tree, illustrated by Nathalie Dion; and Me and You and the Red Canoe, illustrated by Phil. She lives in Northwestern Ontario, on the shores of Lake Superior. |
| Illustrated by |
|
TODD STEWART is an illustrator and printmaker. His debut picture book, The Wind in the Trees (Quand le vent souffle), was a finalist for the TD Canadian Children’s Literature Award and the Governor General’s Literary Award. He has also illustrated Flow, Spin, Grow by Patchen Barss and See You Next Year by Andrew Larsen, among other titles. Todd’s screen-printed art has been shown in public and private exhibitions across Canada. He lives in Montreal, Quebec. |
| Audience | ages 3 to 6 / grades P to 1 |
| Key Text Features | Illustrations |
| Common Core | CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.1.3 |
Winner, TD Canadian Children's Literature Award, 2024
Winner, Governor General's Literary Award, Young People's Literature — Illustrated Books, 2024
Winner, Elizabeth Mrazik-Cleaver Canadian Picture Book Award, 2023
Short-listed, Marilyn Baillie Picture Book Award, 2024
Commended, Bank Street College of Education Best Children's Books of the Year, 2024
Commended, Cooperative Children's Book Center, CCBC Choices, 2024
Short-listed, Ruth and Sylvia Schwartz Children's Book Awards, 2024
Runner-up, Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators, Crystal Kite Awards, 2024
Striking, light- and shadow-filled winter landscapes by Stewart accompany evocative prose poetry by Pendziwol in this engrossing picture book. STARRED REVIEW
” —Publishers WeeklyPendziwol writes evocatively about the immense and imposing lake and the sounds the ice makes vibrating under the children's feet as they skate ... [Stewart's] technique of drawing digitally, editing in Photoshop, and adding textures with scanned screens gives the book a vibrant and often majestic feel.
” —Horn BookPendziwol's lyrical prose hums harmoniously with Stewart's textured landscape screen printing, immersing readers into a wintry wonderland of a reading experience ... This breathtaking picture book will capture the beating hearts of explorers and ice skaters with a wondrous surprise at the end.
” —Bulletin of the Center for Children's BooksA beautiful winter adventure ... The illustrations in the book are different and simple yet radiant.
” —Children's Literature Comprehensive DatabaseA lovely ode to nature for young skaters to read.
” —Book RiotAn astonishing, poetic picture book ... Inspiring shivers from the splendour of the cold, the book shines a light on the wonders of winter.
” —Quill & QuireSkating Wild on an Inland Sea reminds readers to see the extraordinary in a simple, everyday event. Nature, its beauty, and its creatures are all around us.
” —CM: Canadian Review of MaterialsA poetical celebration of skating on Lake Superior.
” —Globe and MailA visually and verbally transporting evocation of the deep green ice and winter light of northern Lake Superior.
” —Toronto StarA wonderful wintery story that will make readers of all ages want to experience the outdoors.
” —Calgary HeraldOne of the most beautiful books of this year, both in the quality of the storytelling and its illustrations.
” —Chronicle JournalCaptures the joys of the winter season.
” —Montreal GazetteIt's rare to find a children’s book in prose as captivating as this … The illustrations are as attractive as the writing style. Stewart's hand captures the stark beauty of a winter’s morning and the hushed majesty of rising light. To look at this book is to feel the sting of winter in your lungs and the wet kiss of condensation collecting in a scarf.
” —Montreal Review of Books