Lynne Kositsky

Authors’ Booking Service is pleased to announce that Children’s and YA author Lynne Kositsky and her musician husband Michael, who live in Vineland Ontario, are scheduling visits to Southern Ontario schools and libraries from September 2009.

Teachers and Librarians get two for the price of one! Lynne’s per session rate, when accompanied by Michael, is $300.00, plus transportation from Vineland, Ontario.

Their half day rate is $575 (two sessions). The 3 session rate is $850 and a full day (4 sessions) is $1100. Lynne is a member of the Writers' Union of Canada, and so schools wishing to invite her may be eligible for a travel and fee subsidy to off-set the cost of the visit. For details of this program, please contact us.

Lynne is a bestselling author whose publications have earned her numerous honours, including the Canadian Jewish Book Award for Youth (The Thought of High Windows, 2004), and the White Raven Award, given by the International Youth Library in Munich to books which "contribute to an international understanding of a culture and people." (Rachel, A Very Big Imagining, 2001). A former teacher, Lynne loves writing children’s and young adult novels and talking to and working with students, and can’t imagine doing anything else.

The adoptive mother of two African Canadian children, she takes a special interest in black issues.

Lynne’s husband Michael received his Baccalaureate en Musique and Diploma in Choral Conducting from the University of Montreal. For the last nine years he has been teaching grade 1 at Seneca Hill Public School in Toronto, but he has been a music teacher most of his life. Over many years of teaching music in both England and Canada, to children of all ages (J.K. – Gr. 13), he has composed and arranged a great number of instrumental and vocal pieces for children and adults. Many of these works have been performed in both countries. He has also written music for theatre and film including So Many Miracles, a documentary shown at the Toronto Film Festival and TVO, and Requiem for Cecilia, performed by the Toronto Philharmonia Orchestra.

Published Works for children and Young Adults:

Minerva’s Voyage, Dundurn Press, 2009

Rachel, (four book set) Penguin, 2009

Claire by Moonlight, Tundra (McClelland and Stewart), 2005

Rachel: An Elephant Tree Christmas, Penguin, 2004

The Thought of High Windows, Kids Can, 2004

Rachel: Certificate of Freedom, Penguin, 2003

Rachel: The Maybe House, Penguin, 2002

Rachel: A Mighty Big Imagining, Penguin, 2001

A Question of Will, Roussan, 2000

Rebecca’s Flame, Roussan, 1999

Candles. Roussan, 1998

Awards and Nominations:

For prose:

The Thought of High Windows (2004)

• Kirkus, starred review, 2004

• Honorable mention, Foreword magazine (US), Young Adult Novel of the Year, 2005

• Canadian Jewish Book Award for Youth, 2006

• “Our Choice” selection, Canadian Children’s Book Center, 2005

• Shortlisted, White Pine Award, 2005

• US Society of School Librarians International Honor Book, 2004

• Pennsylvania School Librarians Association, best Holocaust novel, 2004

• Pennsylvania School Librarians Association, top ten and top forty, 2004

• Tonawanda New York, Young Adult Top Fiction, 2004

Rachel: An Elephant Tree Christmas (2004)

• Finalist, Hackmatack Children’s Choice Book Award, 2006

• “Our Choice” selection, Canadian Children’s Book Centre, 2005

Rachel: The Maybe House (2002)

• Finalist, Golden Oak Adult Literacy Award, 2006

• “Our Choice” selection, Canadian Children’s Book Centre, 2003

Rachel: A Mighty Big Imagining (2001)

• White Raven Award from the International Youth Library in Munich, 2002

• “Our Choice” selection, Canadian Children’s Book Centre, 2002

• Shortlisted, Hackmatack Reader’s Choice Award, 2003

Candles (1999)

• Highly Recommended, Canadian Book Review Annual, 1999

• “Our Choice” selection, Canadian Children’s Book Centre, 1999

• Short-listed for Geoffrey Bilson Historical Award, 1999

For poetry:

• 1992 Second in E.J. Pratt award for Poetry, University of Toronto

• 1984 Canadian Author and Bookman Award for Poetry

• 1980 Second in Norma Epstein National Creative Writing Competition

• 1979 E. J. Pratt Gold Medal and Award for Poetry, University of Toronto

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