• Age: 4 to 8
• Grade: p to 3

A charming and funny story about navigating new places and friendships. Perfect for fans of Uni the Unicorn and Sparky.
Colette is exploring her new neighborhood and wants to make friends. But when she encounters someone her age she’s never met before, she doesn’t know what to say—so she hastily invents a lost pet! Things spiral a bit out of control as a neighborhood-wide search party is assembled and Colette makes her pet bird more amazing with each telling. Will the neighborhood kids catch on to her ever-growing fib?

This charming story both clearly identifies the struggle of navigating a different experience and demonstrates to kids a lovely and welcoming way to treat someone new in their community.

Isabelle Arsenault is a very talented Quebec illustrator who has won an impressive number of awards and has achieved international recognition. She has illustrated Migrant by Maxine Trottier, a New York Times Best Illustrated Book and a finalist for the Governor General’s Award; Virginia Wolf by Kyo Maclear, winner of the Governor General’s Award; Le coeur de monsieur Gauguin by Marie-Danielle Croteau, winner of the Governor General’s Award; and My Letter to the World and Other Poems by Emily Dickinson, a finalist for the Governor General’s Award. She has also illustrated Once Upon a Northern Night by Jean Pendziwol and Jane, the Fox and Me by Fanny Britt, forthcoming from Groundwood. Isabelle has won the Grand Prix for illustration (Magazines du Québec) for six years running. She lives with her family in Montreal.

Isabelle Arsenault's profile page

A Quill & Quire Best Kids' Book of the Year (2017)
A New York Public Library Best Book for Kids pick
A Booklist Editor's Choice pick
Starred in CCBC’S Best Books for Kids & Teens (2017)
PRAISE FOR Colette's Lost Pet:

"[M]agical . . . Arsenault continues to teach us about children while advancing the art of books created for them." --The New York Times

"Arsenault crafts a story rooted in themes of understanding, empathy, and the way imagination can be used to silently conspire and inspire." --Starred Review, Quill & Quire
"With a graphic-novel-like format, arresting artwork, and a story that will ring true to many little kids with big imaginations of their own, this warm, funny picture book hits all the right notes." --Starred Review, Booklist

"Arsenault’s story has the feel of a campfire song, increasingly fun and outrageous until the joyful end and its promise of new friendships." --Kirkus Reviews

"The boundary between picture book and comic is delightfully blurred in this sensitive story about a girl with a yellow raincoat and a fictional lost pet." --National Post
"Arsenault’s drawings, in grays, blacks, yellows and a bit of light blue, are sweet but not saccharine, and the hand-lettered text is relaxed and inviting—much like the entire story. Delightful." --BookPage
"Isabelle Arsenault has created a memorable young protagonist who will charm readers with her vivid imagination and dynamic spirit." --Canadian Children’s Book News
PRAISE FOR Cloth Lullaby, by Amy Novesky, illustrated by Isabelle Arsenault:

"With evocative, gorgeous illustrations and an inspirational story of an artist not often covered in children's literature, this arresting volume is an excellent addition to nonfiction picture book collections, particularly those lacking titles about women artists." --Starred Review, Booklist
Splendid visual and verbal introduction to little-known artist Louise Bourgeois." --Starred Review, Kirkus Reviews

PRAISE FOR Jane, The Fox & Me, by Fanny Britt, illustrated by Isabelle Arsenault:

"A sensitive and possibly reassuring take on a psychological vulnerability that is all too common and not easily defended." --Kirkus Reviews
"More than a few readers will recognize themselves in Hélène and find comfort." --Publishers Weekly