Jennifer Maruno – författare

After being outcast to a small community, 10-year-old Michiko’s life gets better when a former baseball star becomes her teacher. Second book in the Cherry Blossom Books series. Ten-year-old Michiko wants to be proud of her Japanese heritage but can’t be. After the bombing of Pearl Harbor, her family’s possessions are confiscated and they are forced into deprivation in a small, insular community. The men are sent to work on the railway, so the women and children are left to make the trip on their own.After a former Asahi baseball star becomes her new teacher, life gets better. Baseball fever hits town, and when Michiko challenges the adults to a game with her class, the whole town turns out.Then the government announces that they must move once again. But they can’t think of relocating with a new baby coming, even with the offer of free passage to Japan. Michiko pretends to be her mother and writes to get a job for her father on a farm in Ontario. When he is accepted, they again pack their belongings and head to a new life in Ontario.

2015 Rocky Mountain Book Award — ShortlistedA boy is thrown into the middle of history’s biggest war.Fatherless and penniless, fifteen-year-old Richard Fuller wants a bike, so Mr. Black, the baker hires him to help with deliveries. Mr. Black entertains him with army stories and teaches him Morse code. He invites Richard to attend the opening ceremonies of the local 1939 military camp. Infatuated with army life, Richard takes part in Army training camp under an assumed name. When war looms, he makes the most impulsive decision in his life and enlists.He travels to England, witnesses the terror of the Battle of Britain, the horrible death of a German pilot, is caught in the London Blitzkrieg, and is wounded himself. When his true age is discovered, Richard faces a possible court-martial.Will Richard’s desire for adventure lead to disaster so early in his life?

Jonny must travel to the distant past to understand the present.As an orphaned white boy in a school full of Native students, fourteen-year-old Jonny Joe isn’t like any of the others at the island Redemption Residential School off the west coast. When the advances of Father Gregory disturb Jonny, he joins another boy in an escape to a mountain cave. But when they leave the cave, the world as they knew it no longer exists.The boys travel to a native village in a sheltered bay, where Jonny becomes skilled in the art of carving. When a steamship enters the cove, the party of sightseers brings a disease that annihilates most of the people in the village. Meanwhile, Jonny has learned the secret of his past and when he returns to the present, Jonny carves a totem pole to honour the members of the village.

CCBC’s Best Books for Kids & Teens (Spring 2016) — CommendedIs pretending to be someone else the only way Michiko can fit in?Michiko Minigawa’s life is nothing but a bad game of baseball. The Canadian government swung the bat once, knocking her family away from a Vancouver home base to an old farmhouse in the Kootenay Mountains. But when they move into town, the government swings the bat again, announcing that all Japanese must now move east of the Rockies or else go to Japan.Now in Ontario, Michiko once again has to adjust to a whole new kind of life. She is the only Japanese student in her school, and making friends is harder than it was before. When Michiko surprises an older student with her baseball skills and he encourages her to try out for the local team, she gives it a shot. But everyone thinks this new baseball star is a boy. Michiko has to make a decision: quit playing ball (and being harassed), or pitch like she’s never pitched before.

Finalist, Hamilton Literary AwardIs friendship supposed to feel like walking over the falls?Brenda is afraid of heights, being in the dark, and dog poop. Then she meets daring, rule-breaking Maureen and realizes their friendship is a bit like walking a tightrope — exciting but dangerous. Maureen encourages Brenda to use fire escapes, sleep outside in a tent, and walk through strange backyards.Their friendship strains when Maureen makes fun of Harvey, Brenda's special needs neighbour. It strains even further when Maureen borrows Gran's bracelet and lies about returning it. Suddenly, Brenda realizes she has to be as brave as The Great Blondin, the man who walked across the falls, to get it back.

Breathtaking collage art and exquisite rhyming couplets showcase fantastical dreams as the natural world is prepared for a new day in this gentle bedtime book.As the day ends and a little girl is put to sleep by her mother, night-helper bunnies work their magic to tidy and polish the world. These helpers paint flowers, dust butterflies, and charge rainbows to make the world a beautiful place to wake up to.Miki Sato’s collage art, which combines paper, textiles, and embroidery silk, creates a three-dimensional dream world that is rich in detail and texture. Jennifer Maruno uses soothing rhyming couplets that celebrate the beauty of nature, creating a uniquely magical world.

Breathtaking collage art and exquisite rhyming couplets showcase fantastical dreams as the natural world is prepared for a new day in this gentle bedtime book.As the day ends and a little girl is put to sleep by her mother, night-helper bunnies work their magic to tidy and polish the world. These helpers paint flowers, dust butterflies, and charge rainbows to make the world a beautiful place to wake up to. Miki Sato’s collage art, which combines paper, textiles, and embroidery silk, creates a three-dimensional dream world that is rich in detail and texture. Jennifer Maruno uses soothing rhyming couplets that celebrate the beauty of nature, creating a uniquely magical world.★“A peek into the busy Land of Nod….Maruno narrates in flawless and immersive rhyming verse….Readers will linger over each tiny, essential detail—nothing is extraneous….the text and art are expertly stitched together, each visible and impactful on their own and interwoven into a bewitching whole. A perfect bedtime selection for eye-catching, vibrantly colorful dreams.”—Kirkus ★ Starred Review★“[I]nspired and original….”—Quill & Quire ★ Starred Review“It’s a cozy, positive bedtime story sure to please parents and children alike.”—School Library Journal“There’s much to engage and charm in this whimsical, sweet, and reassuring bedtime read.”—Booklist“Rhyming couplets create a whimsical melody while the collage art illustrations will captivate children with their colorful layers and textures….”—Foreword Reviews

Hana is at school when the devastating tsunami sweeps over Japan. But when the dark wave finally returns to the ocean, it has taken more than Hana could have ever imagined.Hana’s school sits on the side of a hill with a view of the ocean. One day, while in class, a tsunami drags the ocean across her village. Hana watches in horror as the dark water crashes into trees and tosses cars and boats around. When she is finally reunited with her family, she learns that the wave has taken more than she could have ever imagined. To cope with her grief, Hana begins to paint chidori (a thousand birds).Miki Sato’s collage art, which combines paper, textiles, and watercolor, creates a three-dimensional world that is rich in emotion, detail, and texture.Jennifer Maruno writes with compassion and heart, bringing life to this story inspired by true events.

Friendship and empathy charm as a little witch learns to fly on a not-so-perfect broom.While practicing for her flying test, Little Witch sometimes forgets her broom in places she shouldn’t. By the time she finds her broom in the woods by Ramshackle Rat’s house, the broom has been chewed and bent. When Little Witch tries to fly home, the broom is sinking, spinning, and bumping along. Unable to fix her broom, Little Witch must find a way to pass her test despite her setbacks. With help from an unlikely friend, Little Witch may find a way to soar again.Illustrations showcase a whimsical duo, while utilizing a rich seasonal color palette, bringing this magical world to life as a little witch zooms across the sky.In Broom for Two, celebrated author of While You Sleep, Jennifer Maruno, enchants readers with her expressive and rhythmic text. Award-winning illustrator Scot Ritchie brings humor, charm, and a touch of magic to little witch’s adventure.

Through poetic text and tender images, What A Baby Can Do celebrates the wonder of early discovery as baby begins to explore their five senses and discover all the things they can do. From noticing light and shadow to grasping tiny fingers and finding their voice, a baby is constantly learning, growing, and discovering something new. Perfect for reading aloud, this story invites parents and little ones to share in the magic of those first remarkable milestones.

We’re going to a peaceful protest because … Momma’s going to march!Momma’s Going to March follows several children over time as they accompany their mothers to different peaceful protest marches, where they advocate for the environment, freedom, equality, peace and clean water. They help make signs and banners, decorate wagons, carry flags and beat drums. Momma shows them that advocacy can be fun … and that they can do it, too!With accessible text and engaging artwork, Momma’s Going to March will empower a generation of young activists. Includes an author’s note, brief descriptions of a select number of historical marches, and further information on the use of signs, flags, banners, drums and more in peaceful protests.Key Text Featuresillustrationsauthor's notehistorical notehistorical context