Robin Stevenson

April 18 2009  Northern BC tour

I’m in Northern BC this week, on tour with three of the finalists for the BC Book Prizes. Here I am with Katarina Jovanovic (left) and Margaret Horsfield (right). We are in Hazelton, where we visited elementary and secondary schools, and read at the Public Library. What a beautiful town…. 

And here’s the van that is taking us all over the not-so-frozen north…

April 10 2009  Inferno launch

Inferno, my new YA novel, will be launched at Victoria’s Bolen Books on April 20 at 7pm. Authors Mike Deas, James Heneghan, Rachel Dunstan Miller, Andrea Spalding and Nikki Tate will also be launching their new books. If you are in Victoria, come and help us celebrate!

April 9 2009  BC Book Prizes Tour

I will be in Northern BC from April 13-19 as part of the BC Book Prizes tour. Along with three other finalists, I will be visiting schools, libraries and bookstores in Terrace, Smithers, Hazelton, Kitimat, Prince Rupert and Prince George. For more information about where we will be, visit the BC Book Prizes website.You can also follow us through the On Tour authors’ blog.

March 2009  Award Nominations

A month of great news. A Thousand Shades of Blue is a finalist for the Sheila A. Egoff Children’s Literature Prize.  Impossible Things has been nominated for the Diamond Willow Award. And on top of that, I’ve just signed contracts with Orca for two new books! 

December 2008  Book Launches

This fall has been so busy– between teaching and trying to keep up with my speedy four year old, I have barely had time to write, let alone update my website. However… I have had two fabulous book launches for A Thousand Shades of Blue, one in Vancouver and one in Victoria. Here’s a picture of me at Victoria’s Bolen Books, with my wonderful editor, Sarah Harvey, who was wearing two hats that night… she was also launching her own new teen novel, The Lit Report. 

November 10, 2008 Booksplash 2008

Booksplash was great fun, as was the BCTLA conference and Authors’ Day. In all, I spoke at three high school groups, two middle schools, and one elementary school. The students were wonderful– lots of enthusiasm, lots of questions, lots of great ideas..Here is a photo of me with the other BookSplash authors at Volume One Book store in Duncan, BC. From left to right, that’s Don Trembath, Jacquie Pearce, me, Andrea Spalding, and Rachel Dunstan-Muller. 

October 2008 First Review for A Thousand Shades of Blue

Today is my birthday… and how’s this for a nice birthday present? Canadian Materials has just reviewed my new book and given it 4/4 stars… Highly recommended. Click here to read the full review.  

October 2008 A Thousand Shades of Blue has arrived!

I just got my author copies of my new YA novel, A Thousand Shades of Blue and it looks gorgeous… thanks so much to Theresa Bubela for the cover design and Janice Kun for the beautiful art work!The official launches will be November 4, 7pm, at Victoria’s Bolen Books; and November 13, at Vancouver’s Kids Books.

August  2008 Cleavage: Breakaway Fiction for Real Girls.

I have a short story in a new anthology coming out this fall, from Sumach Press, edited by Jocelyn Shipley and Deb Lougheed. It is a collection of short stories centered around the theme of mothers, daughters and body image. It looks great and  I can’t wait to get my copies so that I can read all the other stories in the book. Check it out: Sumach Press. 

July 2008 CCBC Best Books List

The Canadian Children’s Book Centre has just released its list of Best Books for Kids and Teens… and my teen novel Out of Order has been selected as a starred selection in the Best Book for young adults list.

June  2008 Spring Book Hatching!

I’ll be heading to Vancouver in a couple of weeks to take part in CWILL BC’s (Children’s Writers and Illustrators of British Columbia) annual spring book hatching event. It’s at the Vancouver Public Library on Saturday June 14 and it sounds like it should be a lot of fun– there will be some wonderful authors and illustrators attending and I’m very much looking forward to meeting the authors of books I’ve enjoyed.

April 2008 Not one, not two, but THREE new books just launched…

Orca had a fabulous April launch for five Victoria writers of books for kids and teens. We launched my three spring 2008 books– Big Guy, Impossible Things, and Dead In the Water; as well as great new books by Victoria authors Sylvia Olsen, Bev Cooke, Jeff Rud and Chris Tougas. Here’s me signing a book…

 November 2007 Nice article… and my first review!

Fernwood’s Cornerstone Café was an apt setting for the October 18^th launch of Robin Stevenson’s first book, Out of Order, given that Stevenson and the book’s central characters all call Fernwood home. Family, friends, co-workers, and fellow writers crowded into the cozy art-filled café as Stevenson greeted attendees and signed copies of her book. The author described how the novel grew out of a short story (based on memories of her own high school experiences), gradually taking on a richer life as she delved deeper into its characters, and fell in love with Fernwood—her young son in tow.

Stevenson’s engaging writing style quickly draws readers into the world of her book’s characters, particularly its central character, Sophie Keller. Sophie has just moved the province and is anxious to leave her “loser” reputation behind. Her plan to fit in seems straightforward at first, but as she starts to make friends and struggles to maintain a cool facade, Sophie’s life becomes complicated. Her two new friends are strong, influential forces: Zelia is an energetic risk taker, while Max, a fellow horse lover, is more low-key. As these relationships evolve, it becomes clear that all three characters are harbouring secrets, and Sophie comes to realize that her own lack of authenticity—with friends, family, and herself—is costing her more than the past she is trying to leave behind.  

This book has strong and relevant messages for adolescents, particularly teenaged girls, about the power and complexity of friendship and family and, as Stevenson articulates so well, about “how we can both discover ourselves, and lose ourselves, in our relationships with others.” It also explores the often uneasy issues of sexuality, eating disorders, peer pressure, and mental illness with a compassionate, matter-of-fact voice that never lets any one of these themes become the story. Ultimately, Stevenson says, Out of Order is about how we learn what it means to be ourselves; and, by the end of the book, Sophie takes a first step as she considers the idea that every experience—good and bad—has a place in our lives. It’s an idea that can be difficult to embrace at any age, but Stevenson respects her young readers enough to gently extend the challenge.

When asked what she would ideally like to hear back from her readers, Stevenson said she would love to hear that readers related to and cared about the characters…”that readers saw some of their own feelings or struggles reflected in the lives and stories of the girls in the book.” Her readers will have further opportunities to care about the characters she creates, given that four more Robin Stevenson books are due out in 2008. With her writing career now gathering momentum, it seems that Stevenson, like her character Sophie and the neighbourhood the author has grown to love, has found a way to both honour the past and create a new beginning. (Maureen Foxgord, The Village Vibe, November 2007)

October 2007 Launching my first teen novel!

The book launch for Out of Order was held at the Cornerstone Cafe, in Victoria BC– right in the heart of the fabulous neighborhood of Fernwood, where the story takes place. It was great fun– over 75 people came, chatted, enjoyed snacks and drinks, and listened to a reading from the book. Here I am signing a copy of Out of Order.