
YOUNG ECOLOGIST CLUB
Younger generations’ environmental consciousness is sharper than ever.
Four charming stories for young people show it off.
IN COLLABORATION WITH




ROULABOULE THE EXPLORER
An original text written and narrated by Elise Moser
Podcast and text available on April 17th, 2023
In collaboration with The Quebec Writers’ Federation (QWF)
Roulaboule was shooting through space in their tiny ship, watching stars fly past. So exciting! Space was even more beautiful than how it looked from the surface of their home planet, Lumaca.
Roulaboule’s heart was beating inside their shell.

Jackie’s Window
An original text written and narrated by Andrew Katz
Jackie is drawing at her window, just as she did yesterday, and the day before that and the day before that.
She doesn’t know how many days have passed since the whole world stopped.

Escargot des villes, escargots des bois
An original text written and narrated by Sylvain Rivard
Je sais que dans un pays pas loin de chez toi, au fond du fond de ta cour, au bout du bout de la ruelle, il y a une terre qu’on appelle la Gas-té-ro-po-die. Une terre plate comme une assiette recouverte d’asphalte, de briques et de ciment.
(Only available in French)

S.O.S Litière
An original text written and narrated by Mireille Messier
Depuis cet été, ma famille a cinq chats. Ce n’était vraiment pas prévu. Un ? Oui. Deux ? Pourquoi pas. Trois ? Ça commence à être limite. Mais cinq ? CINQ ! Ça frise le ridicule.
(Only available in French)
DISCOVER THE BOOKS OF OUR AUTHORS
ELISE MOSER
ANDREW KATZ
SYLVAIN RIVARD
MIREILLE MESSIER
DISCOVER THE AUTHORS OF THE PROJECT

ELISE MOSER
Elise Moser was born in Brooklyn and spent her childhood in small-town New Jersey. She moved to Montreal and did an English degree at McGill University, then worked at Paragraphe Bookstore for many years. She went on to become a long-time sales rep for American university presses. Elise’s short stories have been published in Canada and the US, and her adult novel, Because I Have Loved and Hidden It, was praised by the National Post as “[an] ambitious and artfully woven debut novel.” Her young adult novel, Lily and Taylor, received a starred review from Kirkus. Her children book, What Millie Did: The Remarkable Pioneer of Plastics Recycling, is about the real-life woman who invented plastics recycling. Elise was president of the Quebec Writers’ Federation (2009–2012) and is also an editor.

SYLVAIN RIVARD
Sylvain Rivard alias Vainvard est l’auteur et illustrateur de plusieurs albums jeunesse. Il a également fait paraître des essais ethnographiques, des recueils de poésie et contes. Il travaille également comme consultant auprès d’institutions muséales, ainsi que pour des maisons d’édition et des productions télévisuelles et cinématographiques en plus de poursuivre une pratique en arts visuels. Homme aux multiples talents, il œuvre aussi comme animateur, conteur et performer.

ANDREW KATZ
Andrew Katz grew up in Montreal and has been teaching English at Dawson College since 2006. His areas of specialization include Creative Writing and Children’s Literature, and in 2013 he won the Dawson College Director General’s Award for Teaching Excellence. His first picture book, How to Catch a Bear Who Loves to Read (2018), co-written with Juliana Léveillé-Trudel, illustrated by Joseph Sherman and published simultaneously in French as Comment attraper un ours qui aime lire, was nominated for the 2020 Forest of Reading’s Prix Peuplier. His second picture book, I Just Want To Be Super!, illustrated by Tony Luzano, was published in both English and French (Je suis Super Nino!) in June 2020. For his next picture book, Andrew has once again teamed up with Juliana Léveillé-Trudel to write A Starlit Trip to the Library, the sequel to their first collaboration. Their newest work will be released along with the French version, Voyage de nuit à la bibli, in Spring 2022.

MIREILLE MESSIER
Petite, Mireille Messier rêvait d’être clown. Ensuite, elle a voulu être comédienne. Lorsqu’elle a découvert qu’elle était beaucoup plus drôle sur papier que sur scène, elle a décidé de se lancer dans l’écriture. Depuis, elle jongle avec les mots. Mireille Messier habite à Toronto.

LEARN WHILE HAVING FUN WITH OUR NUMBERS SPELLED OUT SERIES!
Failure in math often starts with trouble reading. According to the Canadian Council on Learning, 40% of children lack the reading skills needed to succeed in the workplace. As adults, they’re more likely to end up in low-paying jobs and to experience financial hardship.
Our platform Numbers Spelled Out offers free podcasts. These podcasts deal with math, money, saving, spending, and the value of things. Content is tailored to different age groups. There are original texts, podcasts, reading suggestions, and a quiz, all designed to promote play with numbers.

THE MARITIME SERIES
Since 2018, the TD-Blue Metropolis Children’s Festival has presented a series of youth workshops at the libraries of riverside communities on the South Shore of Montreal. Within this context, storytellers well as children’s authors have facilitated creative workshops that mix writing and drawing in order to instill in children an awareness of the world of the Saint-Lawrence in particular and of the nature of Quebec more generally.
In 2022-23, the series was enriched by a special visit. Nicolas Bérubé, a biologist associated with the Port of Montreal, employed visual and other support materials to illustrate the steps taken to protect the swallow and bat populations that frequent the shores of the river.

VEGGIE PATCH AVENTURERS
Combining literature, music and ecology, Veggie Patch Adventurers proposes a unique second-language learning experience for grade-school children.
With creative writing workshops created by bilingual authors (French and English) and visits from gardening and cooking specialists who cater to children, two language immersion classes will explore themes related to good life habits and will familiarize themselves with the vegetables of the garden. Their “adventure” in the veggie patch will lead them to compose (lyrics and music) a bilingual song.

DISCOVER OUR PODCASTS FOR THE WHOLE FAMILY!
Universes, voices, atmospheres, discoveries, walks, knowledge: the Blue Metropolis podcasts are an invitation to dream and knowledge. Here the time obeys others laws. It slows down, and is ready to branch out wherever he wants.
Click on the sections of your choice. Discover worlds.
YOUR OPINION IS IMPORTANT FOR US!
THANKS TO THE PRINCIPAL PARTNERS OF OUR YOUTH SECTOR AND 2022-2023 EDUCATIONAL AND SOCIAL PROGRAMS
MERCI AUX PARTENAIRES MAJEURS DE LA PROGRAMMATION POUR ENFANTS ET À CEUX DE NOS PROGRAMMES ÉDUCATIFS 2022-2023
