Small Press Saturday: Orca Book Publishers
Random Orca Books from Stacey’s home library.
Welcome to Week Six of Small Press Saturday! We’ve introduced you to four wonderful presses so far that focus on adult works. Today, we get to embrace our inner child and talk about a small Canadian children’s publisher. Say “Hello” to Orca Book Publishers!
Orca has been around since 1984 and are located in Victoria, British Columbia. They specialize in children’s books and their goal is to provide reading material that represents the diversity of human experience to readers of all ages. Their books are inclusive and span a variety of topics. They publish both fiction and nonfiction for babies through to teenagers. They have books that are perfect for the education market and are embraced by educators across the country, and they have books that are recreational and perfect for young readers looking to escape or be entertained.
Orca’s board books are particularly lovely and fun. There are baby board books featuring other babies, introducing babies to many ethnicities, introducing babies to animals and nature, and some that are just goofy fun for baby. I find them delightful and their picture books are equally all encompassing and kid-centric. My favourites tend to be the ones with a nature focus.
Orca board books: A Potato on a Bike by Elise Gravel, Little Squirrel by Britta Teckentrup, and So Many Babies written by Lorna Crozier and illustrated by Laura Watson (book models courtesy Owl’s Nest Books).
Orca picture books: In the Red Canoe written by Leslie A. Davidson and illustrated by Laura Bifano, and Lucy Tries Luge written by Lisa Bowes and illustrated by James Hearne (book models courtesy Owl’s Nest Books).
A niche that Orca does incredibly well are their Orca Currents and Orca Soundings series for emerging and reluctant readers that are reading below grade level. These novels for middle graders and young adults are short, snappy page turners that often address issues that kids face as they navigate their adolescence. They don’t steer away from tough topics and don’t talk down to kids while providing the stories with vocabulary that won’t be too daunting for these emerging readers.
Haunted Hospital by Marty Chan, Mr. Universe by Arthur Slade, and Pia’s Plans by Alice Kuipers (book models courtesy Owl’s Nest Books).
Another niche that Orca occupies very well is nonfiction for kids. They have books that look at all sorts of topics like science, nature, social issues, environmentalism, and culture. Their Orca Footprints series is a stellar series designed to get kids asking hard questions about social and environmental issues in their communities and around the world.
If a Tree Falls: The Global Impact of Deforestation by Nikki Tate, from the Orca Footprints series (book model courtesy Owl’s Nest Books).
It would take me pages and pages to talk about all the great series and types of books that Orca offers, so I won’t carry on any further, but one last great thing about Orca is that they are environmentally conscious and print virtually all their books in Canada on Forest Stewardship Certified paper and make every effort to reduce, reuse and recycle.
So, if you have young people in your life, Orca Book Publishers are worth checking out.
Happy Reading!
– Stacey