# Sarah Ellis (author)

Sarah Ellis (born 19 May 1952 in Vancouver) is a Canadian children's writer and librarian. She has been a librarian in Toronto and Vancouver. She has also written reviews for Quill and Quire. She taught writing at the Vermont College of Fine Arts and is a masthead reviewer for The Horn Book.
Ellis has said that she gets her ideas from "memories, anecdotes people tell me, radio interviews, dreams, newspaper articles, family stories, being curious, observing the world, paying attention." She is a strong advocate for children's literature and she belongs to many different clubs and unions such as the Writers' Union of Canada, the Vancouver Children's Literature Roundtable, Children's Writers and Illustrators and many more.

## Biography

Ellis was born 19 May 1952 in Vancouver, British Columbia to Joseph Walter and Ruth Elizabeth Ellis and has two older brothers.
She attended the University of British Columbia where she received her Bachelor of Arts honours in 1973 and a Master of Library Science (MLS) in 1975. After receiving her MLS, Ellis began working as a librarian in Vancouver before attending Simmons College, where she graduated with a Master of Arts degree in children's literature in 1980.
Ellis published her first book, The Baby Project, in 1986.
In 1999, she was a writer-in-residence at Massey College at the University of Toronto.
Ellis retired from library work in 2007 but shortly after began teaching at the Vermont College of Fine Arts. She has also written reviews for Quill and Quire and is a masthead reviewer for The Horn Book.
She is an out lesbian.

## Awards and honours

In 1995, Ellis won the Vicky Metcalf Award for Literature for Young People, and in 2013, she received the Lieutenant Governor's Award for Literary Excellence. She has also been nominated for the Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award four times.
In 2012, Ellis was chair of the judges for the Boston Globe–Horn Book Award.
Awards for Ellis's writing :
| Year | Title | Award | Result |
| 1987 | The Baby Project | Sheila A. Egoff Children's Literature Prize | Winner |
| 1990 | Next Door Neighbours | Sheila A. Egoff Children's Literature Prize | Finalist |
| 1991 | Pick-Up Sticks | Governor General's Award for English-Language Children's Literature | Winner |
| 1992 | Next Door Neighbours | Manitoba Young Readers' Choice Award | Nominee |
| 1992 | Pick Up Sticks | Sheila A. Egoff Children's Literature Prize | Finalist |
| 1994 | Out of the Blue | Governor General's Award for English-Language Children's Literature | Finalist |
| 1994 | Pick Up Sticks | Manitoba Young Readers' Choice Award | Nominee |
| 1995 | Out of the Blue | Mr. Christie's Book Award: English, Ages 12 and up | Winner |
| 1995 | Out of the Blue | National Chapter of Canada IODE Violet Downey Book Award | Winner |
| 1997 | Back of Beyond | Sheila A. Egoff Children's Literature Prize | Winner |
| 1997 | Out of the Blue | Manitoba Young Readers' Choice Award | Nominee |
| 2000 | The Young Writer's Companion | Norma Fleck Award for Canadian Children's Non-Fiction | Finalist |
| 2002 | Dear Canada: A Prairie as Wide as the Sea | Sheila A. Egoff Children's Literature Prize | Finalist |
| 2003 | Salmon Forest | Science in Society Book Award | Winner |
| 2003 | The Several Lives of Orphan Jack | Governor General's Award for English-Language Children's Literature | Finalist |
| 2004 | The Several Lives of Orphan Jack | Canadian Library Association Book of the Year | Shortlist |
| 2004 | The Several Lives of Orphan Jack | Mr. Christie's Book Award: English, Ages 8–11 | Winner |
| 2004 | The Several Lives of Orphan Jack | National Chapter of Canada IODE Violet Downey Book Award | Winner |
| 2004 | The Several Lives of Orphan Jack | Sheila A. Egoff Children's Literature Prize | Finalist |
| 2007 | The Queen's Feet | Christie Harris Illustrated Children's Literature Prize | Finalist |
| 2007 | Odd Man Out | Canadian Library Association Book of the Year | Shortlist |
| 2007 | Odd Man Out | Sheila A. Egoff Children's Literature Prize | Winner |
| 2007 | Odd Man Out | TD Canadian Children's Literature Award | Winner |
| 2008 | Odd Man Out | Manitoba Young Readers' Choice Award | Nominee |
| 2016 | Outside In | Manitoba Young Readers' Choice Award | Nominee |

## Publications
### Middle grade and young adult fiction

* The Baby Project (1986)
* Next Door Neighbours (1990)
* Pick Up Sticks (1991)
* Out of the Blue (1994)
* The Several Lives of Orphan Jack, illustrated by Bruno St-Aubin (2003)
* Odd Man Out (2006)
* Outside In (2014)
* Dodger Boy (2018)

### Picture books

* Next Stop!, illustrated by Ruth Ohi (2000)
* The Queen's Feet, illustrated by Dušan Petričić (2006)
* Salmon Forest, with David Suzuki, illustrated by Sheena Lott (2003)
* Waiting for Sophie, illustrated by Carmen Mok (2017)
* As Glenn as Can Be, illustrated by Nancy Vo (2022)

#### Ben series

The Ben books are illustrated by Kim LaFave.
* Ben Over Night (2001)
* Big Ben (2001)
* A+ for Big Ben (2015)
* Ben Says Goodbye (2015)
* Ben and the Scaredy-Dog (2018)

### Short story collections

* Back of Beyond: Stories of the Supernatural (1997)

### Dear Canada Diary books

* A Prairie as Wide as the Sea: The Immigrant Diary of Ivy Weatherall (2002)
* A Season for Miracles: Twelve Tales of Christmas (2006)
* Days of Toil and Tears: The Child Labour Diary of Flora Rutherford (2008)
* A Christmas to Remember: Tales of Comfort and Joy (2009)
* That Fatal Night: The Titanic Diary of Dorothy Wilton (2011)

### Nonfiction books

* The Young Writer's Companion, illustrated by Juan Fitzherbert (1999)
* From Reader to Writer: Teaching Writing Through Classic Children's Books (2000)

### Anthologies edited

* Girls' Own: An Anthology of Canadian Fiction for Young Readers (2001)