Back when my first picture book, Wild One, was released, I did a series of posts highlighting some of the amazing communities whose public libraries had so kindly and generously added the book to their collections. Being a public librarian myself, I know all too well how remarkable it is for any book to make it into a library’s collection (especially when working with a small publishing house) – hundreds of amazing books are released every year, and a purchasing budget can only be stretched so far. So when a librarian decides to spend part of that limited budget on little old me, I can’t help but want to shout out my thanks for all the world to hear.
While I knew that Wild One had found good homes in American and Canadian libraries, imagine my surprise and delight to discover that my darling book had arrived down under!
It saddens me to admit that I have yet to make it to Australia (I have been to NZ four times, but I am part Kiwi, so that explains that) – it is on the bucket list (though not during the summer – I think I’d spontaneously combust upon stepping out of the airport). I do have a close family friend who lives in Canberra, but alas that’s my closest personal Aussie connection (though I do urge you to check out my online Aussie friend, kidlit author Melanie Schubert!
So let’s put a shrimp on the barbie, grab a can of Fosters, and see where in Aussieland Wild One has wound up!
Darebin Library – The Darebin library system has locations in the communities of Fairfield, Northcote, Preston and Reservoir, all in the Australian state of Victoria, in the northern suburbs of Melbourne. What really intrigued me was that each location has materials in English, Arabic, Italian, Chinese, Greek and Vietnamese, so it’s really interesting to think of how vibrantly multicultural and diverse these communities must be. My own library has materials in English, Chinese and French, though our main library does offer more languages.
Boroondara Libraries – This library system’s extensive collection of materials is second only in size in Victoria to the State Library, which is pretty impressive. Boroondara is another city on the edge of Melbourne, this time on the Eastern outskirts of the city. I swear I don’t have connections in the greater Melbourne area involved in library collections development! Oh, and look at that “Similar Searches” list in the sidebar – Aaron Blabey? Eric Carle? Julia Donaldson? GRAEME BASE?!?! Excuse me while I swoon at being associated with such talent (the reference to Daisy Meadows does make me giggle).
Moonee Valley Libraries – Alright, that’s it, I’m moving to the greater Melbourne area, since they seem to love me so much there (well, their library systems have purchased copies of my book, which is really the same thing). I’m assuming they have some sort of centralized purchasing agreement throughout the Melbourne suburbs, which is why my book has appeared in so many libraries in the area but whatever the reason, I’m right chuffed! Another linguistic note – the Moonee Valley Library website can be translated into Croatian, which I found interesting, since it’s not a language you see too often (my father in law is Croatian).
Whitehorse Manningham Libraries – Now, we have a Whitehorse here in Canada, though I imagine the climate between the two cities is significantly different, since our Whitehorse is the capital of one of our northern territories, the Yukon. I can only assume that Whitehorse, Australia, receives considerably less snow each year! We’re still in Victoria, in the neighbouring cities of Whitehorse and Manningham, which are once again on the Eastern outskirts of Melbourne. While writing this post I’ve been repeatedly reminded of my own location – I live in a small suburban city that butts up against a much larger (by Canadian standards….) city that’s world famous. I feel such kinship with the good folks of Whitehorse and Manningham!
State Library of Western Australia – We’ve made it out of Melbourne and all the way to Perth! We’re even in a new Australian state – goodbye Victoria, hello Western Australia! Our virtual road trip is really getting going now. Perth is the fourth most populous city in Australia, with a population of over 2 million….which really helps put into perspective how small the population of Canada is. Our fourth most populous city (which Wikipedia tells me is Ottawa), has less than a million people, and even our most populous city (no points for guessing that it’s Toronto) has 2.7 million, not that much more than Perth. Anyway, enough about Canada! Again according to Wikipedia, Perth is divided into 30 local government areas and 250 suburbs, statistics which make my eyes water, given how small my own city is. That does make for a lot of potential Wild One readers, though!
Cambridge Library – And for our final stop on this Australia tour, we’re visiting Cambridge! No, not that Cambridge – Cambridge, Western Australia! Australia, like Canada, is filled with re-purposed British location names, which can make for some travel confusion (London, Ontario, anyone?). Cambridge is a coastal town on the western suburbs of Perth, which itself has suburbs (again, according to Wikipedia) – Australia, your community planning fascinates me, I don’t think I’ve ever encountered so many suburbs in my life.
And that’s it for Australia (at least that I could find using Worldcat), and now it’s off to a country I know more personally – New Zealand! Kia Ora! My father actually grew up in NZ, my parents lived there for a while before I was born, and I still have some family scattered across the North Island, so I have a strong attachment to this tiny country (which actually manages to make Canada feel populous). I am also forever in love with Peter Jackson’s LOTR films, so there’s that connection, too.
Wild One has found homes in two New Zealand library systems, which delights and thrills me to no end.
Porirua City Libraries – This library system has a program that sounds right up my alley – Baby Band! The program description says: “A warm, friendly, tuneful social opportunity for babies and caregivers alike. Come and make a joyful sound at City Centre Library”, which is pretty much my dream babytime. Porirua is one of four cities that make up the Wellington metropolitan area, which is hands down my favourite part of New Zealand – Wellington is one of my favourite cities in the world (it’s a million times cooler than Auckland, sorry Aucklanders), and one of the few cities I could happily relocate to. So, I was pretty thrilled to see that a library in one of my favourite places had ordered my book. Thank you, Porirua!
Christchurch City Libraries – So here’s a funny fact – in my four visits to NZ, I’ve never made it to the South Island. Not once. The reason for that has always been that my visits have been largely family oriented, and my family all lives in the North Island. Which is a real shame, as Christchurch looks and sounds like an amazing city to visit (my parents visited several times), and local residents have rebounded with great ingenuity and courage from some pretty devastating earthquakes in the past. It’s another city on my bucket list, for sure!
And there you have it, a quick jaunt down to the Southern Hemisphere to visit Wild One in some of her more far-flung homes. Will Queenie Quail have a similar international presence? Only time will tell!
Don’t see any of my books (Wild One, A Good Day for Ducks, Queenie Quail Can’t Keep Up) in your local libraries? Let you library know you’d like them to order a copy! Requests for purchase really help authors and illustrators out, so thank you in advance for your incredible support, friends!