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Children's Fiction Emotions & Feelings

Hans Christian Andersen Lives Next Door

by (author) Cary Fagan

illustrated by Chelsea O'Byrne

Publisher
Tundra
Initial publish date
Sep 2023
Category
Emotions & Feelings, Poetry (see also Stories in Verse), Humorous Stories
  • Hardback

    ISBN
    9781774880159
    Publish Date
    Sep 2023
    List Price
    $22.99

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Where to buy it

Recommended Age, Grade, and Reading Levels

  • Age: 9 to 12
  • Grade: 4 to 7

Description

The arrival of a mysterious new neighbor inspires a kid to write her own poetry in this humorous and unforgettable new middle-grade novel by award-winning author Cary Fagan.

Andie Gladman is your typical kid — she lives in a small town, doesn't have many friends and quietly puts up with taunts from the school bully, Myrtle Klinghoffer. But one day, a new neighbor moves into the house next to Andie's family . . . and he looks awfully familiar. Could he be famous author Hans Christian Andersen? Andie sure thinks so, and the arrival of this well-known writer inspires Andie to write her own poems (with a feminist twist) based on his classic fairy tales. Her newfound hobby leads her to make a friend and finally feel some excitement about her previously quiet life . . . but will a shocking revelation change everything for Andie?

About the authors

Cary Fagan is the author of eight previous novels and five books of short stories, including The Student, Great Adventures for the Faint of Heart, and A Bird's Eye. He has been nominated for the Scotiabank Giller Prize, the Writers' Trust Fiction Award, the Governor General's Literary Award for Fiction, and has won the Toronto Book Award and the Canadian Jewish Book Award for Fiction. He is also an acclaimed writer of books for children, having won the Marilyn Baillie Picture Book Award, the IODE Jean Throop Book Award, a Mr. Christie Silver Medal, the Joan Betty Stuchner—Oy Vey!—Funniest Children's Book Award, and the Vicky Metcalf Award for Literature for Young People. Fagan's work has been translated into French, Italian, German, Dutch, Spanish, Catalan, Turkish, Russian, Polish, Chinese, Korean and Persian. He still lives in his hometown of Toronto.

Cary Fagan's profile page

CHELSEA O’BYRNE is a freelance illustrator and art instructor based in Vancouver, BC. She graduated from Emily Carr University with a BFA in illustration. She has also illustrated Hello, Crow! written by Candace Savage, and Marisa and the Mountains, written by George M. Johnson.

 

Chelsea O'Byrne's profile page

Editorial Reviews

"Andie [is] a born storyteller. . . . Chelsea O’Byrne’s drawings, delicate and folksy, help bring the characters out of the narrative shadows." —New York Times

"[A] funny and thought-provoking middle-grade novel about the power of stories — especially the ones we tell ourselves." —Quill & Quire
"Hans Christian Andersen Lives Next Door makes a good choice for newly independent readers and fairy tale aficionados." —CM: Canadian Review of Materials

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