CANSCAIP Members
Kenneth Oppel
Author
c/o HarperCollins Canada, 2 Bloor Street East, 20th Floor
Toronto, ON
M4W 1A8
Email: kenneth.oppel@sympatico.ca
Web: www.kennethoppel.ca
Born: August 31, 1967. Port Alberni, BC
Biography
I was born in 1967 in Port Alberni, a mill town on Vancouver Island, British Columbia but spent the bulk of my childhood in Victoria, B.C. and on the opposite coast, in Halifax, Nova Scotia...At around twelve I decided I wanted to be a writer (this came after deciding I wanted to be a scientist, and then an architect). I started out writing sci-fi epics (my Star Wars phase) then went on to swords and sorcery tales (my Dungeons and Dragons phase) and then, during the summer holiday when I was fourteen, started on a humorous story about a boy addicted to video games (written, of course, during my video game phase). It turned out to be quite a long story, really a short novel, and I rewrote it the next summer. We had a family friend who knew Roald Dahl - one of my favourite authors - and this friend offered to show Dahl my story. I was paralysed with excitement. I never heard back from Roald Dahl directly, but he read my story, and liked it enough to pass on to his own literary agent. I got a letter from them, saying they wanted to take me on, and try to sell my story. And they did.
Colin's Fantastic Video Adventure was published in 1985, in Britain and the U.S, and later in France. It was easily the most exciting thing that had ever happened to me -- and it gave me the confidence to think I could make writing my career.
I did my BA at the University of Toronto (a double major in cinema studies and English) and wrote my second children's novel The Live-Forever Machine in my final year, for a creative writing course. I married the year after graduation and spent the next three years in Oxford, where my wife was doing doctoral studies in Shakespeare. Since then we've lived in Newfoundland, Dublin, and Toronto, where we now live with our two children.
Published Works
Selected Bibliography
Starclimber, HarperCollins, 2008
Darkwing, HarperCollins, 2007
Skybreaker, HarperCollins 2005
Peg and the Yeti, HarperCollins 2004
Airborn, HarperCollins 2004
Firewing, HarperCollins 2002
Peg and the Whale, HarperCollins 2000
Sunwing, 1999, HarperCollins
Silverwing, 1997, HarperCollins
Dead Water Zone, 1992, Kids Can Press
The Live-Forever Machine, 1990, Kids Can Press; HarperCollins Canada, 2001
The Barnes & The Brains series, Scholastic
Awards
Darkwing
Ruth and Sylvia Schwartz Children's Book Award
OLA Red Maple Honour Book
A Quill & Quire Best Book for Children
A Globe and Mail Top Ten Children's Book
Shortlisted for:
TD Canadian Children's Literature Award
CLA (Canadian Library Association) Children's Book Award
IODE Violet Downey Award
Los Angeles Times Book Award
Sunburst Award
Skybreaker
Ruth and Sylvia Schwartz Award
Red Maple Award
The (London) Times Children's Novel of the Year
Canadian Booksellers Association Children's Author of the Year
An American Library Association Best Book for Young Adults
A Kirkus Editors' Choice (for best fantasy sequel)
Shortlisted for:
Canadian Library Association Young Adult Book Award
Airborn
2004 Governor General's Award for Children's Literature
IBBY Honour Book
2005 Red Maple Award (OLA)
Michael L Printz Honor Book (ALA)
An ALA Notable Book for Children
A BBYA Top Ten book
A YALSA Quick Pick for Reluctant Readers
An SLJ Best Book
A BCCB Blue Ribbon Book
Amazon.Ca #1 Editor's Pick for Children 2004
A Quill & Quire Best Children's Book
Shortlisted for:
Manitoba Young Readers' Choice Award
Snow Willow Award (Saskatchewan Young Reader's Choice Award)
Canadian Library Association Young Adult Book Award
Canadian Library Association Book of the Year for Children Award
Ruth and Sylvia Schwartz Award for Children's Literature
Peg and the Yeti
2004 Jean Throop Book Award, Municipal Chapter of Toronto IODE
2005 White Ravens Choice (International Youth Library)
Shortlisted for:
Governor General's Award for Illustration
CLA Amelia Frances Howard-Gibbon Award for Illustration
Snow Willow Award (Saskatchewan Young Reader's Choice Award)
Ruth and Sylvia Schwartz Award for Children's Literature
Firewing
Mr Christie's Book Award for 12-16 years, Silver Seal
Manitoba Young Readers' Choice Award
Red Maple Award Honour Book
IRA Children's Choice for 2004
Shortlisted for:
Canadian Library Association's Book of the Year for Children
Hackmatack Atlantic Readers' Choice Award
Sunwing
Mr Christie's Book Award for 8-11 yr. olds
Canadian Library Association's Book of the Year for Children
Ruth Schwartz Award for Excellence in Children's Literature
CBA Libris Award for Best Specialty Book of 2000
Manitoba Young Readers' Choice Award
CNIB Talking Book Award
Red Cedar Award (B.C.)
Rocky Mountain Book Award (Alberta)
Silverwing
Mr Christie's Book Award for 12 and Up
Canadian Library Association Book of the Year for Children
Silver Birch Award, Ontario Library Association
Blue Heron Award
CNIB Talking Book Award
Manitoba Young Readers' Choice Award
Red Cedar Book Award (B.C.)
Hackmatack Atlantic Readers' Choice Award
Maud Hart Lovelace Readers' Choice Award (Minnesota)
SNCF Prix 2002 du livre de Jeunesse (Roman enfants category)
Banco del Libro Award (IBBY South America)
Shortlisted for:
Ruth Schwartz Award
Pennsylvania Readers' Choice Award
Rebecaa Caudill Readers' Choice Award (Illinois)
Black-Eyed Susan Book Award (Maryland)
Peg and the Whale
An ABA/Booklist Editors' Choice for 2000
A Los Angeles Best Book: 2000
Other Awards
2006 Vicky Metcalf Award for Children's Literature
Nominated: Astrid Lindgren Award for Body of Work
2002 Toronto Public Library Celebrates Reading Award
1995 Air Canada Literary Award (for a writer under 30)
1993 Shortlisted, Manitoba Young Reader's Choice Awards (Dead Water Zone)
1992 Finalist, City of Toronto Book Awards (Cosimo Cat)
Available For
Schools, libraries, conferences.
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