Harvey
- Publisher
- Groundwood Books Ltd
- Initial publish date
- Sep 2010
- Category
- General, Literary, Death & Dying
-
Hardback
- ISBN
- 9781554980758
- Publish Date
- Sep 2010
- List Price
- $19.95
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Where to buy it
Recommended Age, Grade, and Reading Levels
- Age: 0 to 18
- Grade: p to 12
- Reading age: 0
Description
First ever winner of the Governor General's Award for both text and illustration
Harvey and his little brother are playing in the slushy streets of early spring when they learn, out of the blue, that their father has died of a heart attack. Everything changes and Harvey's favorite movie, The Incredible Shrinking Man, suddenly begins to dominate his fantasy life. When relatives try to get him to look at his father in his coffin, Harvey finds himself disappearing.
Brilliantly illustrated, emotionally true and devastatingly sad, this book is a very artful and yet utterly convincing look at the experience of extreme emotional trauma.
About the authors
Herve Bouchard is a professor of literature at the Cegep de Chicoutimi and a novelist. His novel Parents et amis sont invites a y assister won the 2006 Grand prix du livre de Montreal. Harvey, his first children's book, won Governor General's awards for text and illustration. Herve lives in Saguenay, Quebec.
Janice Nadeau studied graphic design at the Université du Québec à Montréal and illustration at the École supérieure des arts décoratifs de Strasbourg (France) before working as an art director for various organizations. Over the years she has illustrated a number of books and is a three-time recipient of the Governor General’s Award for Illustration. Nadeau has an evocative, poetic and sophisticated style, which blends both retro and modern aesthetics. Her fine and intricate line work can be seen through her soft watercolours, whose multitude of details bring a rich touch to her compositions. Nadeau lives in Montréal, Québec, where she teaches illustration at the École de design of Université du Québec à Montréal. For more information, visit www.janicenadeau.com.
Helen Mixter is a writer and the translator of several children's books, including the Governor General's Award-winning Harvey.
Awards
- Commended, CCBC Best Books for Kids & Teens
- Short-listed, IODE Violet Downey Book Award
Editorial Reviews
...emotionally intelligent and aesthetically resonant.
Quill & Quire, STARRED REVIEW
"Highly recommended..."
Star Phoenix
...a hilarious and poignant book...told and illustrated with great authenticity and originality.
Montreal Gazette
A sparse, evocative look at a father's death...Harvey's child's-eye perspective is flawlessly conveyed.
Kirkus Reviews
...a convincing, artistic and beautiful look at the experience of emotional trauma...
Women's Post
Nadeau's charcoally, naïf-style artwork has the loose-figured feel of a child's drawings that belies its sophistication...Although adults may be more attuned to the complex portrayal of being bowled over by catastrophic loss, for children this open-ended book is deserving of discussion, difficult though it may be.
Booklist
Outstanding.
Toronto Star
...a great graphic novel to give to a younger child trying to understand the pain of bereavement.
School Library Journal
...an imaginative work of psychological insight, uncommon beauty, humour and poignancy.
Globe and Mail
