BOURGEOIS Paulette
Franklin in the Dark, 25th Anniversary Edition, dust jacket.
Born 20 July 1951 in Winnipeg Manitoba.
Before this Toronto-based author began writing books for children, She earned a Bachelor of Science at the University of Western Ontario and was an occupational therapist and journalist. According to Diane Turbide, Paulette interested in writing children’s literature had been researching the field but had not been able to come up with an idea. Then one night she was up late feeding her new-born daughter and watching a MASH episode. In it, “Hawkeye” refused to enter a dark cave during an air raid because of claustrophobia. To quote Pauline, “He said something like ‘Look, if I were a turtle I’d be afraid to go into my shell’ and that was the genesis of Franklin in the Dark”. She wrote a story called “A Turtle They Called Chicken” she submitted it to one Canadian and several U.S. publishers, all of whom rejected it. Finally, she submitted it to Kids Can Press who were interested enough to work with Paulette on the manuscript. They partnered her with illustrator Brenda Clark and the “Franklin” series was born. The team has written more than thirty Franklin stories which have been published internationally and made into an animated series by Nelvana.
Paulette also collaborated with Brenda on Big Sarah’s Little Boots. She wrote Oma’s Quilt illustrated by a Stéphane Jorisch for which both won the Ruth Schwartz Children’s Book Award. Oma’s Quilt was animated by the National Film Board as part of their Tailpinners Series. In addition Paulette has written several children’s non-fiction books.
In 2003, she was invested as a Member Of The Order Of Canada.
WORK:
WRITER:
BOOK TEXT & GRAPHIC:
Content story:
Franklin Helps Out. Illus., Brenda Clark. Kids Can Press Ltd., 2000..
Franklin Is Bossy. Illus., Brenda Clark. Kids Can Press Ltd., 1993.
Franklin In The Dark: 25th Anniversary Edition. Illus., Brenda Clark. Kids Can Press Ltd.,2011.
Franklin’s Christmas Gift. Illus., Brenda Clark. Kids Can Press Ltd., 1998.
Franklin’s Halloween. Illus., Brenda Clark. Kids Can Press Ltd., 1997.
Franklin’s School Play. Illus., Brenda Clark. Kids Can Press Ltd., 1996.
Franklin’s Thanksgiving. Illus., Brenda Clark. Kids Can Press Ltd., 2001.
Franklin’s Valentines. Illus., Brenda Clark. Toronto: Kids Can Press Ltd., 1998.
Finders Keepers for Franklin. Illus., Brenda Clark. Toronto: Kids Can Press Ltd., 1997.
SOURCE:
Article book:
Franklin In The Dark: 25th Anniversary Edition. 2011: dust jacket back flap.
Article periodical:
Maclean’s, 11 December 1995: “A million-dollar turtle”. Writ., Diane Turbide: 50-51.