Most Popular Books by Marie-Louise Gay

Where does the story start? Marie-Louise Gay explains the creative process with typical fun and whimsy. Many children want to know where stories come from and how a book is made. Marie-Louise Gay’s new picture book provides them with some delightfully inspiring answers in a fictional encounter between an author and some very curious children, who collaborate on writing and illustrating a story. Marie-Louise has scribbled, sketched, scrawled, doodled, penciled, collaged and painted the words and pictures of a story-within-a-story that show how brilliant ideas creep up on you when you least expect it and how words sometimes float out of nowhere asking to be written. Any Questions? presents a world inhabited by lost polar bears, soaring pterodactyls, talking trees and spotted snails, with cameo appearances by some of Marie-Louise’s favorite characters — a world where kids can become part of the story and let their imaginations run wild... and just maybe they will be inspired to create stories of their own. At the end of the book, Marie-Louise provides answers to many of the questions children have asked her over the years, such as “Are you Stella?” “How did you learn to draw?” “Can your cat fly?” “How many books do you make in one day?” Correlates to the Common Core State Standards in English Language Arts: CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.2.6 Acknowledge differences in the points of view of characters, including by speaking in a different voice for each character when reading dialogue aloud. CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.3.1 Ask and answer questions to demonstrate understanding of a text, referring explicitly to the text as the basis for the answers.

Marie-Louise Gay and David Homel combine their writing and illustrating talents with their own family memories to produce a very unique travelogue. Family vacations are supposed to be something to look forward to. Unless, that is, your parents have a habit of turning every outing into a risky proposition -- by accident, of course. So instead of dream vacations to Disney World and motels with swimming pools, these parents are always looking for that out-of-the-way destination where other tourists don''t go. Their adventures involve eating grasshoppers in Mexico, forgetting the tide schedule while collecting sand dollars off the coast of Georgia, and mistaking alligators for logs in the middle of Okefenokee Swamp. Travels with My Family is told from the point of view of a long-suffering big brother who must fulfill many roles in this eccentric family: keep little brother out of trouble, humor artist Mom, and discourage Dad from pulling out the road map to search for yet another off-the-beaten-track destination. Husband-and-wife team Marie-Louise Gay and David Homel and have combined their prodigious writing and illustrating talents with their own family memories to produce a very different travelogue. Correlates to the Common Core State Standards in English Language Arts: CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.2.1 Ask and answer such questions as who, what, where, when, why, and how to demonstrate understanding of key details in a text. CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.4.3 Describe in depth a character, setting, or event in a story or drama, drawing on specific details in the text (e.g., a character''s thoughts, words, or actions).

Stella and her little brother are spending the day at the sea. Stella has been to the sea before and knows all its secrets, but Sam has many questions: "Does a catfish purr? Does a seahorse gallop?" Stella has an answer for them all. The only thing she isn''t sure of, and neither are we, is whether Sam will ever come into the water. Exquisite, evocative watercolors bring a diaphanous day at the beach alive in this perfect summer story. Gently humorous, Stella, Star of the Sea also captures the relationship between an older sister and her baby brother — a responsibility that can be both lots of fun and very trying.

Marie-Louise Gay’s beloved books about Stella’s little brother, Sam, are all here in this vibrant and humorous collection. Children all around the world have read about Stella and Sam, and their gently funny, nurturing relationship. Stella has a creative and whimsical answer for all of Sam’s many questions, and their explorations of the world are sweet, silly and often poignant. This book brings together all three books about Stella’s little brother — Good Morning, Sam; Good Night, Sam and What Are You Doing, Sam? — for the first time. It also features an illustrated introduction from Stella herself and new endpaper art.

Winner of the Elizabeth Mrazik-Cleaver Award Stella and her little brother, Sam, are spending the day playing in the snow. The forest, snowballs, snow angels and the mysterious white stuff itself provide fuel for Sam''s questions and Stella''s answers as they discover the world of winter together. Exquisite, evocative watercolors bring a snowy day alive and make this a wonderful winter story. Gently humorous, the book also captures the relationship between an older sister and her little brother -- a fun yet sometimes trying responsibility. Stella and Sam explore the wonders of snow with the same magic that they bring to all their adventures.

In this book in the Stella and Sam series, Marie-Louise Gay has gone back in time to answer the questions often asked by the children who read and love the books. Where does Stella get her wild ideas? How big is Stella''s imagination? What did Stella look like when she was small? How did Stella come to be the big sister to Sam that we all know and love? Although Marie-Louise Gay didn''t know what she would find when she started to explore Stella''s childhood, she soon realized that when Stella was very small, she saw the world in her own unique way -- with wonder, curiosity and the sense that everything is possible. And when Sam came along, what could be more natural than to pass this sense of wonder on to him? A story of a lovely, tiny Stella, whose world is full of small adventures and slivers of magic.

Stella''s little brother Sam wonders whether fairies are invisible. Stella assures him that she has seen hundreds of them and that if she and Sam venture across the meadow and into the forest, they are likely to find some. So begins another adventure in the Stella and Sam series about the irrepressible red-head, and her slightly apprehensive little brother.

"I''ll help you get dressed," said Stella. "No," said Sam. "I can do it by myself." But Sam takes a roundabout route to getting dressed and, as usual, his big sister Stella is there to help ... but this time Sam has the last laugh. Vibrant and humorous, Marie-Louise Gay''s stories and pictures explore the endearing, intimate scenes of young childhood.

"Stella," whispered Sam, "are you sleeping?" "Yes," answered Stella. "Aren''t you?" Sam can''t sleep without his beloved dog, Fred. But where could he be? Sam knows that Fred is afraid of the dark, of the monster that lives in the closet and of the giant toad that lurks downstairs. Luckily, Stella is there to reassure Sam as they search everywhere.

"It has always been one of my favorite fairy tales. It is a joyful, heart-thrilling story in which children can easily recognize their emotions. They see their own doubt, insecurity, fear, and courage in every one of the little pigs and in the big bad wolf himself, which makes the story an empowering tale about growing up and acquiring intelligence and cleverness." - Marie-Louise Gay

Another adventure begins in this book in the Stella and Sam series as the pair explores the wonders of the natural world. A vast luminous sky, the sun, the stars and the rising moon form the backdrop for their nocturnal expedition. As they encounter raccoons, fireflies, tree frogs and bats, Sam wonders if the moon can swim, if the sun wears pajamas or if he can catch shooting stars with his butterfly net. Stella, as always, has an answer for every question. Marie-Louise Gay''s whimsical prose and enchanting illustrations capture the joys of young children making their first discoveries of the world around them.

Finalist, CCBC Marilyn Baillie Picture Book Award Finalist, Quebec Writers'' Federation Janet Savage Blachford Prize for Children''s and Young Adult Literature Sydney and his friends gather outside to play, transforming one by one to climb, leap, lumber and soar into a shared jungle of their imagination. Hanging upside down in a tree, Sydney imagines he is a sleepy, sun-bathing sloth. And that''s where Sami finds him. Sami thinks sloths are too slow, so she scampers up the tree and becomes a spider monkey. “Fast is fun!” she chatters. “Fast is best!” And that’s where Edward finds them... One after another, the neighborhood kids wander by and slip into a shared imaginative world where leaves and giant flowers unfurl, playing, laughing, teasing and bickering, until Edward the elephant fills up his trunk and—WHOOSH!—sends the children “galloping home like a herd of small wet animals.” As always, Marie-Louise Gay’s writing and artwork are wonderfully pitched to young readers, capturing the effortless way that children travel back and forth between the worlds of real life and make believe. With its sun-dappled watercolors, depiction of time spent outdoors with friends, and quiet, wistful ending, I’m Not Sydney perfectly illustrates the slow-moving magic of a childhood summer. Key Text Features illustrations Correlates to the Common Core State Standards in English Language Arts: CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.1.4 Identify words and phrases in stories or poems that suggest feelings or appeal to the senses. CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.1.7 Use illustrations and details in a story to describe its characters, setting, or events.

Marie-Louise Gay published Stella, Star of the Sea more than ten years ago. It was an immediate hit, and since then she has written and illustrated four more books featuring the engaging, red-headed heroine, Stella, and her little brother, Sam — Stella, Queen of the Snow; Stella, Fairy of the Forest; Stella, Princess of the Sky and, most recently, When Stella Was Very, Very Small. With gentle humor, freshness, a sense of whimsy and exquisite watercolors, Marie-Louise Gay gives us stories about two young siblings discovering their world. Here at last are all five books bound into one delightful volume. The treasury contains new art for the cover and opening page as well as new decorative line art. When Stella Was Very, Very Small "When Stella was very, very small, she thought she was a turtle. She also thought that trees could talk and that words were like ants running off the pages of her books." This is the story of a lovely tiny Stella, whose world is full of small adventures and slivers of magic. And she delights in sharing it all with Sam when he comes along. Stella, Star of the Sea Stella and Sam are spending the day at the sea. Stella has been to the sea before and knows all its secrets, but Sam has many questions...and Stella has an answer for them all. The only thing she isn’t sure of, and neither are we, is whether Sam will ever come into the water. Stella, Queen of the Snow Winter was never so magical as in this marvelous book about Stella and Sam discovering a familiar landscape transformed by a heavy snowfall. Stella delights in showing Sam the many pleasures of a beautiful winter’s day, from skating and sledding to making snow angels in a fluffy, white magical world. Stella, Fairy of the Forest Little brother Sam wonders whether fairies are invisible. Stella assures him that she has seen hundreds of them and says that if she and Sam venture across the meadow and into the forest, they are likely to find some. But Sam surprises Stella and himself by having a few ideas of his own — ideas that ensure a wonderful end to a perfect day in the woods. Stella, Princess of the Sky Stella and Sam explore the wonders of the natural world. A vast luminous sky, the sun, the stars and the rising moon form the backdrop for their nocturnal expedition. As they encounter raccoons, fireflies, tree frogs and bats, Sam wonders if the moon can swim, if the sun wears pajamas or if he can catch shooting stars with his butterfly net. Stella, as always, has an answer for every question.

The internationally acclaimed author of the Stella and Sam series has created a collection of short, funny illustrated stories. This hilarious collection of illustrated stories gives us a glimpse into the things children wonder about every day. What do cats really see? What do trees talk about? Should you make funny faces on a windy day? Do worms rule the world? Do mothers always tell the truth? Do snails have nightmares? These short stories are illustrated in vibrant watercolor and collage in cartoon style. They are rich in detail and tiny humorous subplots that will delight all little sharp-eyed monsters. Key Text Features humour speech bubbles panels Correlates to the Common Core State Standards in English Language Arts: CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.K.5 Recognize common types of texts (e.g., storybooks, poems). CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.K.7 With prompting and support, describe the relationship between illustrations and the story in which they appear (e.g., what moment in a story an illustration depicts). CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.1.7 Compare and contrast two or more characters, settings, or events in a story or drama, drawing on specific details in the text (e.g., how characters interact). CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.2.7 Use information gained from the illustrations and words in a print or digital text to demonstrate understanding of its characters, setting, or plot. CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.3.7 Explain 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)

Pistachio is worried about her dog. All he does is sleep . . . and eat . . . and sleep. What a boring life! An audition call for a theater production seems like the perfect answer. When Dog is chosen for the role, his life is abruptly transformed with a new job and a new name: Maurice the Magnificent, star of Sleeping Beauty! Unfortunately, Maurice is not the only one being swept up in the excitement. Pistachio can talk about nothing else, until her best friend Madeline is completely fed up. Then disaster strikes: Maurice is dog-napped! Pistachio is distraught, and Madeline will not even lift a finger to help. Can Pistachio save both her dog and her friendship? An exuberant new installment for the popular Princess Pistachio from beloved author-illustrator Marie-Louise Gay.

A strange little man helps the miller''s daughter spin straw into gold for the king on the condition that she will give him her first-born child.

In the sequel to Travels With My Family, the family is on the road again -- this time to spend a year in a tiny village in southern France. They experiences the spring migration of sheep up to the mountain pastures, the annual running of the bulls (in which Charlie''s father is trapped in a phone booth by a raging bull), and other adventures large and small. Most of all, though, Charlie and his little brother, Max, grow fond of their new neighbors -- the man who steals ducks from the local river, the neighbor''s dog who sleeps right in the middle of the street and their new friends Rachid and Ahmed, who teach them how to play soccer in the village square.

"What are you doing, Sam?" calls Stella. Sam and his dog, Fred, are creating joyful havoc throughout the house. Be it snorkeling in the bathtub, teaching Fred to read or roll over, or cooking up a pancake feast, they are having a marvelous time. Of course, Stella joins in the fun as she observes the inventive antics of Sam and his beloved companion. In this wonderful addition to the Stella and Sam series, Marie-Louise Gay has created another charming picture book. Delicate watercolors, full of expression and humor, bring her delightful story to life.

Fat Charlie''s boasting gets him into a predicament in a tall tree, but his grandmother saves him in a way that leaves his pride intact.