Book Club 150 Jillian and Mariko Tamaki

About Jillian and Mariko Tamaki

This month our featured storytellers create books primarily for teens.

Jillian is a cartoonist and illustrator. She grew up in Calgary, and currently lives in Toronto, Ontario. She has been a professional illustrator since 2003, when she graduated from the Alberta College of Art and Design. Jillian does lots of different stuff: magazine and newspaper illustration, book covers, posters, packaging, even a few storyboards for the TV show Adventure Time. She’s also taught illustration at the School of Visual Arts and Parsons in New York. Learn more about Jillian on her website.

Mariko is a Canadian writer living in California. She has an avid interest in freaks, weirdos, and other fabulous forms of human behaviour. In the past, Mariko has appeared on stage with a variety of performance troupes, including fat activists Pretty, Porky and Pissed Off. She has recently begun writing for Marvel and DC Comics. Visit Mariko’s blog!

The Tamaki cousins are the co-creators of the graphic novels Skim and This One Summer, which won a Caldecott Honor in 2015.

Our March contest

This month, enter to win a copy of This One Summer, donated by Groundwood Books, and a Freedom to Read Week poster, illustrated by Jillian Tamaki. To enter, tag us on Twitter, Facebook, or Instagram with #BookClub150 and tell us, or show us, your favourite Graphic Novel. You may also enter at your local library. Entries must be received by midnight, March 31, 2017.

Reading list

Click on a link below to visit www.valleylibrary.ca. Sign in with your AVRL library card, place a hold, and have a copy sent to the Valley Library of your choice.

Skim

This One Summer

(You) set me on fire / Mariko Tamaki

Saving Montgomery Sole / Mariko Tamaki

SuperMutant Magic Academy / Jillian Tamaki

Gertie’s leap to greatness / Kate Beasley ; illustrations by Jillian Tamaki.

Watch Mariko Tamaki and Jillian Tamaki discuss This One Summer at the 2015 L.A. Times Festival of Books.

What is Book Club 150?

To celebrate Canada’s 150th birthday, we are highlighting a different Canadian author or illustrator for each month of 2017. To celebrate with us, we encourage you to read the books, join our online conversation, and enter our monthly contests. Our featured books include titles for kids, teens, and adult readers. Pick up a copy at your local library, look for a Book Club in a Bag to share, or find a library Book Club near you. We’ll have special events and contests throughout the year, so be sure to visit our library website at www.valleylibrary.ca, or look for feature posts each month on our new library blog site, RenewYourCuriosity.ca.