• Age: 4 to 8
• Grade: p to 3

"Sophia’s Secrets is an interesting and unique title addressing children’s inner worlds." - Roxy Garstad

Sophia has all kinds of secrets. Some she shares with her dog. Some with the breeze. Some with the sandbox or stars in the night sky. But the best secret of all is shared with her brother, Ben, in their tree fort. A poetic story about a girl who shares different secrets in different ways.

For readers ages 4 years and up. Do you have any secrets? Do you keep them all to yourself? Secrets can be a window to our souls, and, sometimes, sharing them, can help us bond with others.

George M. Johnson's profile page

Sara Casilda's profile page

George M. Johnson grew up in Waterdown, Ontario, and in 1991 moved to Kamloops, B.C., where he enjoys canoeing, camping, and cross-country skiing. He has written award-winning plays and screenplays, as well as critically-acclaimed books. His picture book Sophia’s Secrets won the Pacific Northwest Writers’ Association Children’s Story competition. George teaches creative writing and modern literature at Thompson Rivers University, as does his wife and collaborator, Nina. He tests all of his stories on their two kids, who somehow have become teenagers. Most of George’s work reflects his long-time advocacy of social justice, for which he received the YMCA Peace Medal in 2019.

Sara Casilda is an artist from Madrid, Spain. She has worked in various disciplines, including illustration, graphic design, murals, and photography. In addition, she’s interested in painting, writing, and animation. Her love of the arts led her to picture books. Sara’s first book, To Bed, to Bed, was a finalist in Clavis Publishing’s Key Colors competition. Her mixed media drawings begin with charcoal and graphite, are colored with watercolors or colored pencils, and are finished with digital touches. She loves nature and is deeply committed to the care of our planet.

"In this delightfully compelling picture book, a young girl named Sophia provides great insight into her thoughts and dreams expressed as “tiny kid secret[s]”, many of which she keeps to herself or shares with special friends, living or imagined. For instance, her secret system of wearing certain colours on specific days is told only to Poppy Parrot who may or may not share it with her other stuffies. Sometimes, a thought or feeling is more complex, like a “grumpy secret” or a “deep secret”, in which case Sophia will keep it private, sometimes engaging in ritualistic behaviour to manage her feelings. But when she exchanges secrets with her brother Ben, Sophia discovers the pleasure and wonder of hearing someone else’s hidden thoughts.

Written in a rhythmic, poetic manner, Sophia’s Secrets presents an astounding array of potential secrets children can carry with them. Young readers will find the book’s contents to be incredibly relatable. The illustrations are exquisite, done in mixed media (charcoal, coloured pencils, and digital), in an especially detailed fashion, including subtle shading and interesting facial expressions or features (e.g. the teacher’s “caterpillar eyebrows”). The elaborate and accurate depictions of nature are noted, such as the varied colours of leaves. Sophia’s Secrets is an interesting and unique title addressing children’s inner worlds." - Roxy Garstad