• Age: 5 to 8
• Grade: k to 3

Discover the beauty and excitement of a summer spent on the prairie with the young cousins from the city, as they explore a new and mysterious world. Nancy Hundal's poetic text and Brian Deines' exquisite illustrations perfectly capture the mood of a summer on the prairies and will appeal to readers of all ages.

Nancy Hundal has previously published ten picture books with HarperCollins, Fitzhenry & Whiteside, and Midtown Press. Oolichan Press published her middle-grade novel Kaleidoscopes and Butterfly Dreams , in 2009, and she self-published a YA novel, Song Angel, in 2018. Many of her books have been nominated for the BC Chocolate Lily Award, and the Canadian Library Association Book of the Year. Her first picture book, I Heard My Mother Call My Name, won the BC Book Prize in 1991.

Hundal has recently retired from a thirty-seven year career as a teacher-librarian in Vancouver, BC. This manuscript, which is about diversity, is the result of watching many students try to be the best friend they could be, even in challenging situations.

Hundal identifies as disabled, as she is deaf but able to hear almost normally with the help of a cochlear implant. See her website: nancyhundal.com

Nancy Hundal's profile page

"[Nancy Hundal] scores again with an exceptionally evocative reminisce of trips to the prairie of the not-too-distant past that will thrill kids in the primary grades, and stir fond memories in adults. . .It�s aimed at the kindergarten to Grade 3 crowd, but its reach goes well beyond that in its complexity of language. Hundal�s poetic prose is matched perfectly by prairie illustrator Brian Deines, whose softly focused art adds muchto the book�s dreamy atmospherics. An excellent cuddle-up-with picture book that�ll please kids and kids at heart."
— The Hamilton Spectator"With a spare, sensuous text by Nancy Hundal and exquisite oils by Brian Deines, Prairie Summer is closer to art than kiddie diversion. Deines�s shimmery illustrations are an ideal match for Hundal�s poetic text."— Macleans"As fully illustrated as a picture-book text, this poem tells of childhood visits to the prairie. Hundal appeals to the senses as she calls up vivid memories of summer trips to relatives far from her city home. . . Brian Deines� impressionistic paintings glow with gold tones that suggest an idealized though never sentimental vision of the past."— Booklist