Ted Staunton

Last updated

Ted Staunton (born March 29, 1956) [1] is a Canadian author and teacher, best known for his children's books and numerous series. He has published nearly sixty titles. [2]

Contents

Puddleman, his first major work, starting life as an assignment in university, but was later illustrated by internationally recognized artist Brenda Clark. Some of Staunton's titles include the Maggie and Cyril series, What Blows Up, and award-winning Who I'm Not. He also teaches a course, "Writing Children's Fiction", [3] through George Brown College, Toronto.

Staunton lives with his family in Port Hope, Ontario. Many of his stories take place in Port Hope.

Written works

Series

Working across multiple publishers, Staunton has written and developed, and contributed to, several series. He wrote Jump Cut, Coda, and Speed, contributing to the over-arching SEVEN series, published by Orca Books. For Scholastic Canada, Staunton contributed What Blows Up, part of The Almost Epic Squad. In the 1980s, he published several of his own children's picture books, including his first, Puddleman, plus Taking Care of Crumley, Harry and Clare's Amazing Staycation. Other series he has created include Maggie and Cyril for middle-schoolers, and Morgan for young children.[ citation needed ]

Illustrators

Staunton has worked with numerous illustrators. He worked with Britt Wilson, the illustrator for The Almost Epic Squad series. For Puddleman, Staunton worked with local illustrator Brenda Clark, widely known for her work on the Franklin the Turtle series, (which was migrated to several television series). Taking Care of Crumley was illustrated by Tina Holdcroft. Holdcroft has illustrated over thirty children's books, and seventy adult books.[ citation needed ]

Collaborations

Quill & Quire magazine reported on Scholastic Canada bringing together four veterans of children's literature: Ted Staunton, Kevin Sylvester, Richard Scrimger, and Lesley Livingston. [4] They produced a four-book progressing series, The Almost Epic Squad, about different-aged, different-grade school kids who develop strange superpowers. [5] The first in the series was published in Autumn 2018, with Staunton writing the second in the series, What Blows Up, published early 2019. What Blows Up follows Gary, who has developed telekinetic powers. [6]

For Orca Books, Staunton contributed to the SEVEN series, later a series of sequels, still later a series of prequels. With Staunton, contributors to the three SEVEN series include John Wilson, Richard Scrimger, Norah McClintock, Sigmund Brouwer and Shane Peacock. [7]

COVID-19

In March 2020, during the beginning of COVID-19 pandemic, Quill & Quire magazine published an article, "What – and how – to read with your child during a crisis". Within this, author Shanda Deziel recommended 14 books (and an additional free e-book donated by Orca Books) to help parents effectively aid their children during school closures in regions under lockdown. Staunton's book Harry and Clare's Amazing Staycation from 2017 was one of the recommendations. [8]

Awards

In 2013, Staunton wrote Who I'm Not. This follows the story of a teenager who has lost his name, is trained by a con-artist to help run con schemes. [9] It was inspired by the story of Frédéric Bourdin, as reported in The New Yorker. [10]

Book reviewer Cecile Sune notes, "If it wasn't based on a true story, I would have thought that the book was too far-fetched and would have dismissed it as too unbelievable. As it is, it turns out to be a fast-paced and highly entertaining story. However, I thought that Ted Staunton followed Frédéric Bourdin's real life story a little bit too closely, and it somewhat spoiled the book for me." She adds, "The ending is quite different from what happened in real life though, which is good." [11]

In 2014, Quill & Quire magazine announced Who I'm Not as the recipient of The John Spray Mystery Award. [12]

Bibliography

Sources: Goodreads, [2] Ted Staunton Books [13]

Young children

Picture books

  1. Puddleman (1983)
  2. Taking Care of Crumley (1984)
  3. Simon's Surprise (1986)
  4. Miss Fishley Afloat (1990)
  5. Anna Takes Charge (1993)
  6. Harry and Clare's Amazing Staycation (2017)
  7. A Friends for Real (2020)

Morgan series

  1. Morgan Makes Magic (1997)
  2. Morgan and the Money (1998)
  3. Morgan's Secret (2000)
  4. Great Play, Morgan! (2001)
  5. Morgan's Birthday (2002)
  6. Morgan's Pet Plot (2003)
  7. Morgan Makes a Splash (2004)
  8. Morgan Makes a Deal (2005)
  9. Super Move, Morgan! (2006)
  10. Campfire Morgan (2007)
  11. Pucker Up, Morgan (2008)
  12. Daredevil Morgan (2009)
  13. Music by Morgan (2010)
  14. Morgan and the Dune Racer (2011)
  15. Morgan Gets Cracking (2012)
  16. Morgan on Ice (2013)
  17. Morgan's Got Game (2014)
  18. Morgan the Brave (2018)

Middle grades

Monkey Mountain series

  1. Two False Moves (2002)
  2. Monkey Mountain Monster (2002)
  3. Forgive Us Our Travises (2002)
  4. Princess (2002)
  5. Second Banana (2002)
  6. Stinky (2002)
  7. Trouble with Girls (2002)

Almost Epic series

  1. The Almost Epic Squad: What Blows Up (2019)

Mystery

  1. Bounced (2017)

Young Adult

Maggie & Cyril series

  1. Greenapple Street Blues (The Greenapple Street Geniuses, #2) (1987)
  2. Mushmouth and the Marvel (1988)
  3. Great Minds Think Alike (1989)
  4. Maggie And Me (1990)
  5. Taking the Long Way Home (1992)

Hope Springs series

  1. Hope Springs a Leak (2002)
  2. Sounding Off (2004)
  3. Acting Up (2010)

Dreadful Truth series

  1. The Dreadful Truth: Confederation (Dreadful Truth Series) (2004)
  2. The Dreadful Truth: Building The Railway (2005)
  3. The Dreadful Truth: Canadian Crime (2006)
  4. The Dreadful Truth: The Northwest Passage (2007)
  5. The Dreadful Truth: Gold Rush (2008)

Musician series

  1. Power Chord (2011)
  2. Ace's Basement (2013)

SEVEN series

  1. Jump Cut (Spencer #1; Seven #3) (2012)
  2. Coda (Spencer #2) (2014)
  3. Speed (Spencer #0.5) (2019)

Film School series

  1. Scène Finale (2017)
  2. Pov (2017)

Mystery

  1. Who I'm Not (2013)

Sports

  1. Hustle (2014)

History for Kids

  1. It Seemed Like a Good Idea... Canadian Feats, Facts and Flubs (2020)

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Thomas King (novelist)</span> Canadian writer and broadcast presenter (born 1943)

Thomas King is a Canadian writer and broadcast presenter who most often writes about First Nations.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wallace Edwards</span> Canadian children’s author and illustrator

Wallace Edwards was a Canadian children’s author and illustrator whose imagination transformed the world of animals and strange creatures for a generation of children. His illustrations don’t condescend to children, they engage the imagination on multiple levels, blending childhood whimsy with adult sophistication."

Sigmund Brouwer is a prolific Canadian author of children's, young adult, and adult books. He has over 100 titles and four million books in print.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Marie-Louise Gay</span> Canadian illustrator and childrens writer (born 1952)

Marie-Louise Gay is a Canadian children's writer and illustrator. She has received numerous awards for her written and illustrated works in both French and English, including the 2005 Vicky Metcalf Award, multiple Governor General's Awards, and multiple Janet Savage Blachford Prizes, among others.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nikki Tate</span> Canadian writer

Nikki Tate is the pseudonym used by Canadian author, Nicole Tate-Stratton. She lives in Canmore, Alberta and is the founder of creative space Nexus Generation, the home of Writers on Fire, an online writing community where she mentors and supports members in developing their writing skills and how to share their stories and poems on a variety of platforms.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Brian Francis (writer)</span> Canadian writer (born 1971)

Brian Francis is a Canadian writer best known for his 2004 debut novel Fruit.

Norah McClintock was a Canadian writer of young adult fiction who published more than 60 books. She won five Crime Writers of Canada Awards of Excellence.

The Christie Harris Illustrated Children's Literature Prize is awarded annually as the BC Book Prize for Canadian authors and illustrator of picture books, picture story books, and illustrated non-fiction books. The prize is shared by the author and the illustrator, who must be a resident of British Columbia or Yukon. It was announced in 2002 and first awarded in 2003. A handful of finalists are also selected for another award: participation in the expenses-paid BC Book Prizes on Tour, a week-long tour across the province to present their books at schools and libraries each April.

The TD Canadian Children's Literature Award is an annual Canadian literary award, presented to the year's best work of children's literature. Sponsored by TD Bank Financial Group and the Canadian Children's Book Centre, the award carries a monetary prize of $30,000. On September 11, 2018, it was announced that the monetary prize was increased from $30,000 to $50,000.

Richard Van Camp is a Dogrib Tłı̨chǫ writer of the Dene nation from Fort Smith, Northwest Territories, Canada. He is best known for his 1996 novel The Lesser Blessed, which was adapted into a film by director Anita Doron in 2012.

Monique Polak is a writer from Montreal, Quebec. She has won the Janet Savage Blachford Prize, formally known as the Quebec Writer's Foundation Prize for Children's and Young Adult Literature, three times: What World is Left (2009), Hate Mail (2014), and Room for One More (2020).

Carrie Mac is a Canadian author of more than a dozen novels for Young Adults, both contemporary and speculative. Her latest work is the literary novel, LAST WINTER, due out from Random House Canada in early 2023. She also writes literary short fiction, and creative non-fiction. Some of her accolades include a CBC Creative Nonfiction Prize, the Sheila A. Egoff Children's Literature Prize, and the Arthur Ellis Award, as well as various other awards and recognitions.

Cole Pauls is a Canadian comic book author, from Haines Junction, Yukon. He is a member of the Tahltan First Nation, and his Dakwäkãda Warriors series is written in English and Southern Tutchone.

Tasha Spillett-Sumner is a Canadian author and educator. She is best known for her young adult graphic novel series Surviving the City, volume 1 of which won the Best Work in an Alternative Format at the 2019 Indigenous Voices Awards.

<i>The Barren Grounds</i> 2020 book by David A. Robertson

The Barren Grounds is a middle-grade children's book by David A. Robertson, published September 8, 2020 by Puffin Books. The publisher has named it a juxtaposition between traditional Indigenous stories and C.S. Lewis's The Chronicles of Narnia.

Julie Morstad is a Canadian writer and illustrator of children's books.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Orca Book Publishers</span> Canadian book publisher

Orca Book Publishers is a Canadian company that produces books for children.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Greystone Books</span> Canadian book publisher

Greystone Books is a Canadian book publisher. Initially an imprint of Douglas & McIntyre, the Vancouver-based company became its own entity in 2013.

Julie Lawson is a Canadian writer of children's nonfiction books. Her 1993 book, White Jade Tiger, won the Sheila A. Egoff Children's Literature Prize.

The Jean Little First-Novel Award is an annual Canadian literary award, administered by the Canadian Children's Book Centre, to recognize a Canadian author's first middle-grade novel.

References

  1. "Ted Staunton". Gale Literature: Contemporary Authors (Collection). Gale. 2015. ISBN   9780787639952 . Retrieved 27 January 2023.
  2. 1 2 "Books by Ted Staunton (Author of Jump Cut)". Goodreads.
  3. "Writing Children's Fiction 1 | Course | George Brown College Continuing Education". George Brown College.
  4. Deziel, Shanda. "The Almost Epic Squad: Mucus Mayhem". Quill & Quire.
  5. "Scholastic Canada | Almost Epic". Scholastic Canada.
  6. Staunton, Ted (1 January 2019). What Blows Up (PDF). Toronto: Scholastic Canada. ISBN   9781443157827.
  7. "Seven Authors for Seven Novels in New Orca Series". Publishers Weekly. 30 August 2012.
  8. Deziel, Shanda (March 26, 2020). "What – and how – to read with your child during a crisis". Quill and Quire.
  9. O'Connell, Grace. "Who I'm Not". Quill and Quire.
  10. Grann, David (11 August 2008), "The Chameleon: The many lives of Frédéric Bourdin," The New Yorker .
  11. "Who I'm Not by Ted Staunton". CecileSune.com.
  12. "Canadian Childrens Literature Award Winners announced". Quill and Quire.
  13. "Books – Ted Staunton Books". Ted Staunton Books.