• Age: 10 to 13
• Grade: 3
• Reading age: 7 to 8

Highlighting girls' volleyball, a sport that has overtaken girls' basketball in popularity, Volleyball Vibe shows how engagement in sports can boost self-esteem, confidence, and foster responsibility and teamwork. The main character, Ria, is a teen girl living in Edmonton, Alberta, whose obsession with beauty and fashion leads her mother to insist that she either get a job or join a team sport. At an age when too many girls stop competing athletically, Ria discovers her own capabilities as well as the rewards of challenging herself and connecting with others on a team.

Karen Spafford-Fitz grew up in an old limestone farmhouse near Kingston, Ontario where her early training as a writer involved reading thousands of books. In fact, it was impossible to walk across her bedroom without stubbing a toe on Anne of Green Gables, Little House on the Prairie, Nancy Drew, The Hardy Boys, Trixie Belden, and her father's old Lone Ranger books.

Eager to read more, Karen studied English Language and Literature at Queen's University. She followed that up with a degree in Education and went on to teach elementary and junior high students for eight years. Two daughters and a move across the country later, Karen began creating her own stories for children and teenagers. Dog Walker is her first middle-grade novel.

When Karen is not writing in her Edmonton studio, she is often running with her rambunctious German shepherd, who helps Karen train for her next half marathon. Karen also enjoys speaking to students about the inspiration for her stories, the creative process and the writing life.

Karen Spafford-Fitz's profile page

• Commended, Best Books for Kids & Teens - Canadian Children's Book Centre

"An excellent choice for reluctant readers."

CM: Canadian Review of Materials

"An excellent story about growing up and the sport of volleyball."

CM: Canadian Review of Materials