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Children's Fiction General

Round-up at the Palace

by (author) Kathleen Cook Waldron

illustrated by Alan Daniel & Lea Daniel

Publisher
Fitzhenry and Whiteside
Initial publish date
Jul 2007
Category
General, Post-Confederation (1867-), Westerns
  • Paperback / softback

    ISBN
    9780889954083
    Publish Date
    Jul 2007
    List Price
    $9.95

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Where to buy it

Recommended Age, Grade, and Reading Levels

  • Age: 6 to 10
  • Grade: 1 to 5

Description

 

Zack is looking forward to taking Buster the bull to the National Western Stock Show in Denver. As Zack and his dad sing their way down the road, Buster the bull doesn't find his first trip away from the ranch much fun. When the snow turns into a blinding blizzard and Zack's dad must detour through downtown, Buster sees his chance to make his own hay. Thundering out of the truck, Buster gallops straight through the doors of the Brown Palace Hotel where, he confronts Alice, who works with her mother in the hotel gift shop. Zack must act quickly to save his new friend Alice and Buster from disaster.

Kathleen Cook Waldron's lively story of a boy and his bull is complemented by the rich and vibrant painting by Alan and Lea Daniel, who capture the drama and triumph of the roundup at the Palace.

About the authors

Born and raised in Denver, Colorado, Kathleen's primary rural experiences in her childhood were family fishing trips and long evening walks with her dad and their dog on the golf course. After graduating from high school, she completed three years of university, including one year in Madrid, Spain.

Her first full-time rural experience came after she married Mark Waldron. They spent their first year together working for VISTA (Volunteers in Service to America) in the Napa Valley in California helping a group of eighteen families get set up to build their own homes. She and Mark then moved back to Colorado to complete their degrees (BA for Mark, MA for Kathleen) and begin their family.

In the spring of 1975, they set off with their one-year-old son Levi to begin building their own log home off the grid in central British Columbia. They immigrated to Canada the following year, welcomed their daughter Rosy the year after that, and have lived in the Cariboo ever since. They still make frequent city trips where Kathleen enjoys visits to concerts, plays, museums, professional sporting events, and her otherwise all-urban family. Her rural pleasures include swimming in mountain lakes, canoeing, cycling, cross-country skiing, and hiking. The Waldrons became dual Canadian/US citizens in 1991.

Kathleen's work experience includes being a swimming instructor, playground supervisor, lifeguard, waitress, chambermaid, tree planter, house painter, teacher (kindergarten-adult), and of course, writer.

Kathleen Cook Waldron's profile page

Alan Daniel is a painter and illustrator whose work is characterized by its energy and fine draftsmanship. His skills were honed in the studio of J. Merle Smith who, along with master watercolorist Kalman Banitz, provided a rigorous art education. A Kitchener resident for many years, Alan draws inspiration from the city, from the colours and contours of the landscape surrounding it and from rocky Muskoka where he summers. Well-known for his paintings of water, ranging from a springtime river to fierce ocean storms, he was commissioned to create several paintings for The Sea is At Our Gates, a movie created to celebrate the Canadian Navy. The human face and figure as well as birds and animals are also frequent subjects. Alan's work has been exhibited at the National Library of Canada; the Gallery/Stratford; York University, Toronto; Mable's Fables, Toronto; Homer Watson Gallery; Kitchener Public Art Gallery; Kitchener Public Library; Aaron Gallery, Waterloo; Hunsberger Gallery, St. Jacobs; Staircase Gallery, New York City; KOR Gallery, Kitchener; Canada at Bologna exhibit; in Paris at an exhibit to celebrate Quebec City's designation as a World Heritage Site. Alan's work space is located in Globe Studios Artists Co-op where he paints and teaches. He is an award-winning illustrator of many books for children.

Alan Daniel's profile page

Lea Daniel has collaborated with her partner Alan Daniel on 23 books in the Songbox Series as well as My Home Bay, The Best Figure Skater in the Whole World and Sody Salleratus, which earned them the MR. CHRISTIE BOOK AWARD. Lea is the author of Drummer and Finnger's War and has two short plays produced.

Lea Daniel's profile page

Editorial Reviews

"An altogether delectable picture book, in which Alan and Lea Daniel outdo themselves, driving the story forward through the great good humour and the sheer energy of its illustrations."
The Globe & Mail

"The colorful pen-and-ink-on-gouache artwork sets the mood and atmosphere for this adventure. The snowy scenes are so realistic that readers will want to pull their sweaters a little closer, and the pictures of young Alice calming the huge beast are totally satisfying. Varied perspectives add to the movement, energy, and excitement of the story."
School Library Journal Reviews

"Roundup at the Palace is unique and entertaining, with special appeal for young boys who fancy themselves cowpokes, even if all they own is a big, goofy dog."
Curled Up With a Good Kid's Book

"The winning combination, of exciting text and electrifying illustrations, makes this a great book for individual or group reading."
Resource Links

"The book's supersized illustrations are by Alan and Lea Daniel of Kitchener, whose name on the cover are a leading indicator of the quality work inside."
The Guelph Mercury

"The illustrations are big, bold and humorous."
Highly Recommended"
CM Magazine

"This story is that rare thing - a plausible, realistic tale in which the child protagonists solve the problem themselves. The action is beautifully shaped, with the two stories coming together, linked by music. The pace moves smoothly between motion and rest, and the tone, a delicate balance of almost-slapstick and genuine danger, is pitch-perfect. Waldron has fashioned a heart-stopping, funny, moving gem of a story. The author-illustrator collaboration here is also brilliant. The Daniels create a piece of genuine theatre. . . . The characters became so real to me that I caught myself hoping that Alice's mother and Zack's father might get together."
Quill and Quire

"Alan and Lea Daniel have filled the pages with colour and motion. The illustrations are lively and leavened with humour. Buster bursts through the pages as he thunders down the street into the hotel. He is larger-than-life. . . Roundup at the Palace is an original, entertaining and wholly satisfying story."
Canadian Children's Book News magazine

"Kathleen Cook Waldron spins a delightful tale. . . Roundup at the Palace is a classic urban and cowboy legend, beautifully illustrated and well written. This is a children's book, with a combination of drama, humour and wonderful images."
Mike Puhallo, president of the BC Cowboy Heritage Society (BCCHS)

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