SATA
ENTRY TYPE:
WORK TITLE: Seven Grandparents
WORK NOTES:
PSEUDONYM(S):
BIRTHDATE:
WEBSITE:
CITY: West Lethbridge
STATE:
COUNTRY: Canada
NATIONALITY: Canadian
LAST VOLUME: SATA 297
RESEARCHER NOTES:
PERSONAL
Born May 13, 1958, in The Pas, Manitoba, Canada; daughter of William (in sales) and Bertha (a teacher) Dyck; married Bryan Horrocks (a city manager), September 21, 1984; children: (stepchildren) Wade Horrocks, Lindsay Horrocks.
EDUCATION:Northern Alberta Institute of Technology, biological sciences diploma (with honours), 1978; Lethbridge Community College, communication arts diploma (print journalism; with honours), 1986; University of Lethbridge, marketing certificate, 1992, B.A. (English; with distinction), 1997.
ADDRESS
CAREER
Writer. Banff National Park, Banff, Alberta, Canada, park naturalist, 1979; Helen Schuler Coulee Centre, Lethbridge, Alberta, park interpreter, 1981-84; City of Lethbridge, parks information project writer, 1986-87; University of Lethbridge, public relations assistant, 1987, coordinator of communications and public relations, 1988-94; freelance writer, 1994—; also works at Lethbridge Public Library. Presenter at schools and writing conferences.
AVOCATIONS:Fitness, cycling, golf, swimming, hiking, quilting, reading.
MEMBER:Canadian Society of Children’s Authors, Illustrators & Performers, Canadian Children’s Book Centre, Writers’ Union of Canada, Young Alberta Book Society, Lethbridge Children’s Literature Roundtable.
AWARDS:MacDonald Dettwiler Award for Best Science and Technology Article, Western Magazine Awards, 1985; Governor-General’s Silver Academic Medal, 1996; Alberta Book Award’s R. Ross Annett Children’s Literature Award shortlist and Books for the Teen Age selection, New York Public Library, both 1997, both for Breath of a Ghost; R. Ross Annett Children’s Literature Award, 1999, and Books for the Teen Age selection and Red Maple Award, Ontario Library Association (OLA), both 2000, all for What They Don’t Know; R. Ross Annett Children’s Literature Award, 2001, and Golden Eagle Children’s Choice Award runner-up, 2003, both for Topher; OLA Best Bets selection, 2010, and Best Children’s Books selection, Bank Street College of Education, and Best Books for Kids & Teens selection, Canadian Children’s Book Centre, both 2011, all for Silas’ Seven Grandparents.
WRITINGS
SIDELIGHTS
A native of Canada, Anita Horrocks has established a successful career writing for both children and young adults, and her award-winning novels for middle-grade and teen readers include Breath of a Ghost, What They Don’t Know, and Topher. Horrocks is also the author of Silas’s Seven Grandparents, a humorous picture book featuring artwork by Helen Flook.
In Breath of a Ghost twelve-year-old Darien mourns the death of his little brother Jeri, who suffered from leukemia. Although the preteen still senses his brother’s supportive presence, he is haunted by nightmares about a sinister coyote that means him harm. As Halloween approaches and the hauntings accelerate, Darien is prompted to face these dreams. With his dog Ringo, the boy hikes to a remote area near his home, and there he confronts both the creature and the great sadness overwhelming him.
In Almost Eden another twelve-year-old, Elsie, must deal with the mental illness of a parent. Like Darien in Breath of a Ghost, Elsie is isolated with her feelings of guilt and confusion, but her emotionally distant Mennonite community provides her with little guidance. Ultimately, through her faith and her willing to accept the challenges of her changing family, the preteen is able to confront her feelings and understand where her true responsibilities lie. Canadian Review of Materials critic Pam Klassen-Dueck applauded Almost Eden , calling it “a poignant, yet uplifting, glimpse at teenaged life.”
Also for middle graders, Topher focuses on two children who enjoy their time with Grandmother McCrae, a woman whose lakeside cabin is located in a remote part of Saskatchewan. When their father insists that the cabin must be fixed up and sold after the elderly woman’s death, twelve-year-old Chris and seven-year-old Stacie are brokenhearted. Puzzled by their father’s decision and worried about the visions now haunting Stacie, the siblings investigate the history of the cabin and learn about a family tragedy occurring thirty years ago. Praising Topher as a “fast-paced adventure full of intrigue,” a Resource Links contributor suggested that “children who are fond of science fiction and fantasy are sure to enjoy the supernatural elements” in Horrocks’s novel.
A battle with difficult feelings plays out in Horrocks’s award-winning young-adult novel What They Don’t Know. Living in Canada, fourteen-year-old Hannah lashes out at everyone, but mostly at herself. Watching Hannah’s downward spiral into alcohol and drugs and concerned by her friendship with some other troubled teens, seventeen-year-old Kelly is determined to help her sister. The sisters’ parents’ divorce and their father’s current romantic relationship may be part of the problem, Kelly realizes, and as she delves further into her parents’ past, she unearths the family secret troubling her sister. Praising the novel as a “realistic family portrait,” Debbie Carton added in Booklist that What They Don’t Know is a “psychological drama” that is “beautifully portrayed.”
Horrocks’s debut picture book Silas’ Seven Grandparents focuses on a thoughtful young boy facing a delicate issue. An only child from a large blended family, Silas receives an inordinate amount of attention from his loving grandparents and step-grandparents: when the youngster celebrates his birthday, for instance, he receives more cake than he can eat and when his many fans visit after hockey practice, there is no room left for his teammates in the locker room. When Silas’s parents plan an out-of-town business trip, each of his grandparents offers to care for the boy. Unwilling to hurt anyone’s feelings, Silas devises a clever solution that makes everyone in his family happy. Silas’s Seven Grandparents treats readers to “a positive story about love and family,” wrote Roxanne Burg in School Library Journal, and Booklist reviewer Carolyn Phelan described Horrocks’s story as “a refreshing alternative to the many overly sentimental picture books about children and their grandparents.”
BIOCRIT
PERIODICALS
Booklist, November 1, 1999, Debbie Carton, review of What They Don’t Know, p. 515; May 15, 2010, Carolyn Phelan, review of Silas’s Seven Grandparents, p. 44.
Books in Canada, November, 1996, review of Breath of a Ghost, p. 32; summer, 1999, review of What They Don’t Know, p. 45.
Canadian Book Review (annual), 1996, review of Breath of a Ghost, p. 479; 1998, review of What They Don’t Know, p. 507; 2000, review of Topher, p. 480.
Canadian Children’s Literature (annual), 2000, review of What They Don’t Know, pp. 74-76; summer, 2001, review of Topher, p. 90.
Canadian Review of Materials, May 12, 2006, Pam Klassen-Dueck, review of Almost Eden; April 2, 2010, Leanne Ryrie and Gregory Bryan, review of Almost Eden.
Kirkus Reviews, review of Silas Seven Grandparents.
Kliatt, January, 2007, Krista Bush, review of Almost Eden, p. 23.
Quill & Quire, January, 1999, review of What They Don’t Know, p. 46; March, 2000, review of Topher, p. 65; March, 2006, review of Almost Eden, p. 81.
Resource Links, February, 1999, review of What They Don’t Know, p. 25; October, 2000, review of Topher, p. 8; October, 2017, Sadie Tucker, review of Silas’ Seven Grandparents, p. 7.
School Library Journal, August, 1999, Jeanette Larson, review of What They Don’t Know, p. 158; December, 2000, Heather Deiffenbach, review of Topher, p. 145; September, 2010, Roxanne Burg, review of Silas’s Seven Grandparents, p. 126; Octo er, 2017, Sally James, review of Silas’ Seven Grandparents, p. 76.
Voice of Youth Advocates, April, 2001, review of Topher, p. 52.
ONLINE
Canadian Children’s Book Centre website, http://www.bookcentre.ca/ (February 1, 2016), profile of Horrocks.*
49 Shelf, https://49thshelf.com/ (June 16, 2018), brief author profile.
Anita Horrocks
Anita Horrocks has published three previous award-winning novels for young adults, "Topher," "What They Don't Know," and "Breath of a Ghost." Almost Eden is her first novel to draw on her own Mennonite background growing up in southern Manitoba. Anita has two stepchildren and two grandchildren. She and her husband live in Lethbridge, Alberta.
Anita Horrocks has published several award-winning books for young readers. Anita lives in Lethbridge, Alberta, where she divides her time between working part-time at the library, traveling, hiking, cycling, walking, writing, reading, quilting, baking and doing other grandma things.
Anita Horrocks was born in The Pas, Manitoba, and grew up in Winkler, a small Mennonite community on the prairies of southern Manitoba. After high school she moved to Alberta, where she earned diplomas in Ecological Sciences and later, Print Journalism. She worked digging for dinosaur fossils, as a park interpreter and as a freelance writer before becoming public relations co-ordinator for the University of Lethbridge. She lives in Lethbridge with her husband, Bryan.
HORROCKS, Anita Silas' Seven Grandparents
Sadie Tucker
Resource Links. 23.1 (Oct. 2017): p7.
Copyright: COPYRIGHT 2017 Resource Links
http://www.atcl.ca
Full Text:
HORROCKS, Anita
Silas' Seven Grandparents
Orca Book Publishers, 2010/2017. 32p. Illus. Gr. Preschool--1. 978-14598-1640-4. Pbk. $10.95
[G]
A reissue of a charming picture book from 2010. Silas has seven active grandparents who love him very much, but it can be exhausting! When his parents decide to go on a trip, who will he decide to stay with?
As can be expected with a story that has a number in it, this book lends itself to counting. Both the narrative and the illustrations depict seven grandparents doing all sorts of things in a variety of configurations, and many readers will find it hard to resist ensuring that the two match up. This is a great way to subtly support early numeracy.
While the plot itself is not particularly amazing, this book really shines in the depiction of Silas' grandparents. Not only are they active and passionate about life (something that is sadly lacking in many children's books involving grandparents), they are also extremely diverse: Most are in couples, but one is single; they have a wide variety of ethnic and cultural backgrounds; and they range from moderately grey to notably wrinkled.
This is a book with detailed, colourful illustrations and a story that values inclusiveness. Recommended for preschoolers 4+.
Thematic Links: Family; Diversity; Grandparents
[G] Good, even great at times, generally useful!
Source Citation (MLA 8th Edition)
Tucker, Sadie. "HORROCKS, Anita Silas' Seven Grandparents." Resource Links, Oct. 2017, p. 7. General OneFile, http://link.galegroup.com/apps/doc/A514884041/ITOF?u=schlager&sid=ITOF&xid=b63d2084. Accessed 24 Mar. 2018.
Gale Document Number: GALE|A514884041
Horrocks, Anita: SILAS' SEVEN GRANDPARENTS
Kirkus Reviews. (Aug. 15, 2017):
Copyright: COPYRIGHT 2017 Kirkus Media LLC
http://www.kirkusreviews.com/
Full Text:
Horrocks, Anita SILAS' SEVEN GRANDPARENTS Orca (Children's Fiction) $10.95 10, 10 ISBN: 978-1-4598-1640-4
Is there such a thing as too much grandparental love?While the text never explains how Silas, a boy with light skin and brown hair, came to have seven adoring grandparents, have them he does. Nor does the text specify race, but somewhat problematic illustrations indicate that they are a multiracial group of elders. Nana and Oma appear to be white, while Gramma appears black, Opa has light-brown skin (or maybe a tan), Papa's eyes are not dots like the others' but lines, perhaps a stereotypical indication that he is Asian, and Granny and Grandad are visually depicted as Native through what some may regard as stereotypical Western dress embellished with feathers and turquoise and positioning near totem poles. They also gift him a dream catcher and take him "to a pow wow and go fishing and canoeing" while the other grandparents offer gifts and activities absent of such broad cultural significance or stereotype. Although Silas loves them dearly, the seven grandparents' attention can be overwhelming, and when his parents go away he knows he can't take them all up on their offers to stay with them in their respective homes. The solution? They come stay with him at his house and after busy days, he tucks them in to sleep (though why the closing illustration has them sleeping on the porch is a mystery). An intergenerational story with a lot of heart and a few missteps. (Picture book. 3-6)
Source Citation (MLA 8th Edition)
"Horrocks, Anita: SILAS' SEVEN GRANDPARENTS." Kirkus Reviews, 15 Aug. 2017. General OneFile, http://link.galegroup.com/apps/doc/A500364672/ITOF?u=schlager&sid=ITOF&xid=ace96688. Accessed 24 Mar. 2018.
Gale Document Number: GALE|A500364672
Horrocks, Anita. Silas' Seven Grandparents
Sally James
School Library Journal. 63.10 (Oct. 2017): p76.
Copyright: COPYRIGHT 2017 Library Journals, LLC. A wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
http://www.schoollibraryjournal.com/
Full Text:
HORROCKS, Anita. Silas' Seven Grandparents. illus. by Helen Flook. 32p. Orca. Oct. 2017. Tr $19.95. ISBN 9781551435619; pap. $10.95. ISBN 9781459816404.
PreS-Gr 2--This story celebrates the power of intergenerational love, the unique bond between grandparents and their grandchildren, and the many different types of loving families that exist. Silas is an only child who is loved by seven doting grandparents. The elders are ethnically and physically diverse, plus they all have different passions. Most of the time, Silas loves all the attention he gets from his grandparents--including the numerous cakes he receives on his birthdays and the special outings to which he is treated--but sometimes he feels overwhelmed by all that love. When his parents decide to go away for the weekend, Silas is faced with two dilemmas. Which set of grandparents should take care of him during his parents' absence, and how can he avoid hurting the feelings of the ones he does not choose? Luckily, Silas is wise as well as sensitive, and he decides that the best solution is to invite all the grandparents to his home! Silas's plan works perfectly, with the grandparents sharing their skills and interests with Silas and demonstrating flexibility and engagement with one another. Flook's illustrations give wonderful personalities to all of the grandparents and are filled with many interesting details that kids will enjoy spotting and commenting upon. VERDICT A lovely story for grandparents and grandchildren to share. A good choice for most shelves.--Sally James, South Hillsborough Elementary School, Hillsborough, CA
Source Citation (MLA 8th Edition)
James, Sally. "Horrocks, Anita. Silas' Seven Grandparents." School Library Journal, Oct. 2017, p. 76. General OneFile, http://link.galegroup.com/apps/doc/A507950702/ITOF?u=schlager&sid=ITOF&xid=d5c91b08. Accessed 24 Mar. 2018.
Gale Document Number: GALE|A507950702