Sydney lives with his family in Halifax, Nova Scotia.By Joanne Schwartz, illustrated by Sydney Smith He is also the illustrator of I Talk Like a River by Jordan Scott, which received the Schneider Family Book Award and the Boston Globe–Horn Book Award, and My Baba’s Garden, also written by Jordan Scott.

His other accolades include two Governor General’s Awards and four New York Times Best Illustrated Book of the Year citations. Other books he has illustrated include The White Cat and the Monk by Jo Ellen Bogart Sidewalk Flowers by JonArno Lawson and Town Is by the Sea by Joanne Schwartz, which received the Kate Greenaway Medal. SYDNEY SMITH is the creator of Small in the City, which received the Kate Greenaway Medal and the Ezra Jack Keats Award.

Joanne has been a children’s librarian for more than twenty-five years. She has written several other highly acclaimed picture books, including Pinny in Summer and Pinny in Fall, both illustrated by Isabelle Malenfant. Her first picture book, Our Corner Grocery Store, illustrated by Laura Beingessner, was nominated for the Marilyn Baillie Picture Book Award. She is the author of Town Is by the Sea, illustrated by Sydney Smith, winner of the TD Canadian Children’s Literature Award and the CILIP Kate Greenaway Medal, among many other honors. JOANNE SCHWARTZ was born in Cape Breton, Nova Scotia. Refer to details and examples in a text when explaining what the text says explicitly and when drawing inferences from the text. Use information gained from the illustrations and words in a print or digital text to demonstrate understanding of its characters, setting, or plot.Įxplain how specific aspects of a text's illustrations contribute to what is conveyed by the words in a story (e.g., create mood, emphasize aspects of a character or setting) The ever-present ocean and inevitable pattern of life in a Cape Breton mining town will enthrall children and move adult readers.Ĭorrelates to the Common Core State Standards in English Language Arts: With curriculum connections to communities and the history of mining, this beautifully understated and haunting story brings a piece of Canadian history to life. Stunning illustrations by Sydney Smith, the award-winning illustrator of Sidewalk Flowers, show the striking contrast between a sparkling seaside day and the darkness underground where the miners dig. Winner of the TD Canadian Children’s Literature AwardĪ young boy wakes up to the sound of the sea, visits his grandfather’s grave after lunch and comes home to a simple family dinner with his family, but all the while his mind strays to his father digging for coal deep down under the sea.