Ann Blades (born November 16, 1947) is a Canadian illustrator, writer and educator. She was born in

Vancouver Vancouver is a major city in Western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the cit ...

British Columbia British Columbia is the westernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Situated in the Pacific Northwest between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains, the province has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that ...

. She earned a teaching certificate from the

University of British Columbia The University of British Columbia (UBC) is a Public university, public research university with campuses near University of British Columbia Vancouver, Vancouver and University of British Columbia Okanagan, Kelowna, in British Columbia, Canada ...

in 1970. In 1974, she graduated in nursing from the

British Columbia Institute of Technology The British Columbia Institute of Technology (also referred to as BCIT), is a public polytechnic institute in Burnaby, British Columbia, Canada. The technical institute has five campuses located in the Metro Vancouver region, with its main cam ...

. Blades taught school in a number of isolated communities in

. Her first book ''Mary of Mile 18'', published in 1971, received the

Canadian Library Association Book of the Year for Children Award The Canadian Library Association Book of the Year for Children Award was a literary award given annually to recognize a Canadian children's book. The award was given to a book written in English by a citizen or permanent resident of Canada and pub ...

. It was followed by ''A Boy of Taché'' in 1973. ''Mary of Mile 18'' was made into a film by the

National Film Board of Canada The National Film Board of Canada (NFB; ) is a Canadian public film and digital media producer and distributor. An agency of the Government of Canada, the NFB produces and distributes documentary films, animation, web documentaries, and altern ...

. Her illustrations were included in an exhibition "Canada at Bologna" at the 1990

Bologna Children's Book Fair The Bologna Children's Book Fair or La fiera del libro per ragazzi is the leading professional fair for children's books in the world. Since 1963, it is held yearly for four days in March or April in Bologna, Italy. It is the meeting place for al ...

in Italy.

Selected works

* ''The Cottage at Crescent Beach'' (1977) * ''Jacques the Woodcutter'' (1977) text by Michael Macklem * ''A Salmon for Simon'' (1978) text by Betty Waterton, received the Canada Council Children's Literature Prize * ''Six Darn Cows'' (1980), text by

Margaret Laurence Jean Margaret Laurence (née Wemyss; July 18, 1926 – January 5, 1987) was a Canadian novelist and short story writer, and is one of the major figures in Canadian literature. She was also a founder of the Writers' Trust of Canada, a non-pr ...

* ''Anna's Pet'' (1980) text by

Margaret Atwood Margaret Eleanor Atwood (born November 18, 1939) is a Canadian novelist, poet, literary critic, and an inventor. Since 1961, she has published 18 books of poetry, 18 novels, 11 books of nonfiction, nine collections of short fiction, eight chi ...

and

Joyce Barkhouse Joyce Carman Barkhouse (May 3, 1913 – February 2, 2012) was a Canadian children's writer best known for writing historical fiction. She is the aunt of Margaret Atwood, with whom she co-wrote the children's book ''Anna's Pet''. Barkhouse achiev ...

* ''Pettranella'' (1980) text by Betty Waterton * ''By the Sea: An Alphabet Book'' (1985), won the

Elizabeth Mrazik-Cleaver Canadian Picture Book Award The Elizabeth Mrazik-Cleaver Canadian Picture Book Award is an annual literary award for children's picture illustrators. It was established in 1985 following the death of Elizabeth Mrazik-Cleaver, one of Canada's pre-eminent book illustrators. In ...

* ''Ida and the Wool Smugglers'' (1987) text by

Sue Ann Alderson Sue Ann Alderson (born September 11, 1940 in New York City), is an American children's novelist. She earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in English from Ohio State University in 1962 and a Master of Arts in English literature from the University of C ...

* ''The Singing Basket'' (1990) retold by

Kit Pearson Kathleen Margaret "Kit" Pearson (born April 30, 1947) is a Canadian writer and winner of numerous literature awards. Pearson wrote the linked novels ''The Sky Is Falling (Pearson novel), The Sky Is Falling'' (1989), ''Looking at the Moon'' (1991 ...

* ''A Ride for Martha'' (1993) text by Sue Ann Alderson * ''A Dog Came Too'' (1993) text by Ainslee Martin * ''Back to the Cabin'' (1996) * ''Pond Seasons'' (1997) text by Sue Ann Alderson

References

External links

* * Archives of Ann Blade
(Ann Blades fonds, R11708)
are held at

Library and Archives Canada Library and Archives Canada (LAC; ) is the federal institution tasked with acquiring, preserving, and providing accessibility to the documentary heritage of Canada. The national archive and library is the 16th largest library in the world. T ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:Blades, Ann 1947 births Living people Artists from Vancouver Canadian children's book illustrators Canadian women children's book illustrators Canadian children's writers Canadian women children's writers Writers from Vancouver 20th-century Canadian women writers