• Age: 5 to 7
• Grade: k to 3
• Reading age: 6 to 8

Violet is happy that her father has come to pick her up after her first day at a new school. But as she races over to meet him, one of the other kids asks, “How come your Dad is blue and you’re not?” Violet has never even thought about this before. Her mother is red, and her father is blue – so why isn’t she red or blue? Why is she violet? Upset and confused, Violet goes to her mother. Using paints, her mother shows her that when you combine red and blue, you get violet! Like many people in the world, Violet is a beautiful mix of colors.

Tania Duprey Stehlik is an elementary school teacher with the Toronto District School Board. She was born and raised in Montreal, but currently lives in Toronto with her husband Rob. She is of Indian and French Canadian descent and takes great pride in her mixed heritage from which the story of Violet is inspired. This is her first book.

Tania Duprey Stehlik's profile page

Vanja Vuleta Jovanovic is a multimedia artist and a free-lance graphic designer who has had her work displayed in several shows. She was born in former Yugoslavia and presently resides in Toronto. This is her first time illustrating a children's book.

Vanja Vuleta Jovanovic's profile page

• Runner-up, Ontario Library Association's Blue Spruce Award

"This is a visually interesting way to teach children about how people come in all sorts of different races."

Suddenly Books

"Of course, this story lends itself to all sorts of activities with color mixing or elementary genetics, as well as serving as a good conversation starter."

Three Turtles and Their Pet Librarian blog

"Violet, anticipating the first day of school, is nervous about making friends and fitting in. And while her fears are partially founded when students are surprised to discover the color of her parents, Stehlik’s message remains upbeat...Although the setting is clearly the lower grades of elementary school, long-limbed Violet and her peers look like middle schoolers, and the hand-drawn feel of the pictures brings to mind the anime-influenced journal marginalia of an intensely emotional adolescent. If the message is less than subtle, it should still be a comfort to readers, particularly those of mixed heritage, who struggle with belonging."

Publisher's Weekly

"Violet is a sensitive and memorable story… The celebration of differences message is very clear in Violet, which is additionally enriched by a plethora of spicy, imaginative, full page color illustrations."

Midwest Book Review

"I can see this book being a real asset for discussions and themes on differences and diversity."

Teach with Picture Books Blog

"Tania Stehlik’s tale is simple yet effective, and illustrator Vanja Vuleta Jovanovic keeps things interesting by creating a world that is part Dr. Seuss, part The Little Prince, and part something else quite unique...while the message will have a special resonance for mixed-race families, any kid who has ever felt “different” will feel right at home."

Quill & Quire

"This is a wonderful story about self-acceptance and individuality. The illustrations are great. As one would expect from a book about colours, it’s bright and vibrant and eye catching."

Toronto Star

"This is a wonderful story about self acceptance and individuality... It has been an eye opener for my kids, as I’m sure it will be for yours."

Wordsbymom.com

"Violet is violet. Artist Jovanovic has painted a colourful, topsy-turvy world for her heroine to inhabit, and Violet is a stick-figure girl with a mop of black, spiky hair and pale purple skin."

The Globe and Mail