Helaine Becker's Blog

Counting on Katherine Is Soaring!

I've been so busy scribbling I hadn't had a moment to update this blog with news of Counting On Katherine's reception in the kidlit world. To date, the book has been recognized with:

A Junior Library Guild SelectionBank Street -  Cook Prize ShortlistALA Amelia Bloomer List SelectionNSTA Outstanding Science Trade Book for ChildrenCBC Notable Social Studies Trade Books for Young PeopleChicago Public Library Best Books of the YearCCBC Best Books of 2018 - Starred ReviewOLA Best BetsChildren’s Book Review Best Nonfiction Picture Books Vermont Clover Award ShortlistKirkus STARRED REVIEW

Thanks, everyone!

Katherine Johnson has her own Barbie!

The Katherine Johnson doll will be available in May.Mattel is releasing a new collection of dolls featuring inspiring women. You can get your own Katherine Johnson doll beginning in May. Of course you will need  Counting on Katherine .  to go along with it. 




When I first began working on the book, Johnson was relatively unknown. But then came the smash hit movie, Hidden Figures. And now - a Barbie! I'm so excited to see her finally getting the attention she deserves.

Counting on Katherine tells much more of her story than is shown in Hidden Figures. It details her role in saving the doomed and crippled Apollo 13 and bringing the drifting spacecraft safely back to Earth. The illustrations, by the talented Dow Phumiruk, are stunning!

Dow made a trailer.....

Watch the new trailer for Counting on Katherine! Illustrator Dow Phumiruk made it, and it is just as beautiful as the book.  You can preorder the book now from your favorite bookseller - it goes on sale mid-June.

Sloths. Because - Sloths!!!!!!

Coming soon - Sloth at the Zoom!



This sweet picture book is all about the virtues of slowing down and taking the time to enjoy the time you spend with friends.
And true to its theme, this little tale took fourteen years from concept to publication. Talk about slooooowwwwwwww.....
I'm utterly grateful to Karen Li, my editor at Owlkids Books, for hanging in there and making it happen in the end. And thanks too to Orbie for drawing such adorable pictures!

New Cover!

I'm so excited about the revised cover to my upcoming book, Counting On Katherine. The adult Katherine was replaced by this younger version. What do you think about it?

Good news for Counting on Katherine!

Counting on Katherine (Christy Ottaviano Books, June) has been selected by the Junior Library Guild. So pleased!

Updated cover!

Coming in June - but you can preorder now!

Cover Reveal for Nonfiction Monday

I'm so excited to show off this beautiful cover design for Counting on Katherine: How Katherine Johnson Saved Apollo 13.Coming June 2018! 

Silver Birch shortlists announced!

So pleased to have Monster Science nominated for the Silver Birch Award!

Lane Anderson Award for Science Writing Shortlists Announced!

The finalists for the 2016 Lane Anderson Awards, honouring Canada’s best science writing with $10,000 in each of two age categories, have been revealed. And woohoo! Monster Science  is on it!
Congrats to all the nominees. Here's thecomplete list: Young ReadersHelaine Becker and Phil McAndrew, ill., Monster Science: Could Monsters Survive (and Thrive!) in the Real World? (Kids Can Press)Anne Innis Dagg, 5 Giraffes (Fitzhenry & Whiteside)Claire Eamer and Marie-Ève Tremblay, ill., Inside Your Insides: A Guide to the Microbes That Call You Home (Kids Can Press)Adult ReadersCaroline Fox, At Sea With the Marine Birds of the Raincoast (Rocky Mountain Books)Robert William Sandford, North America in the Anthropocene: An RMB Manifesto (RMB)Tim Falconer, Bad Singer: The Surprising Science of Tone Deafness and How We Hear Music (House of Anansi Press)Stephen Le, 100 Million Years of Food: What Our Ancestors Ate and Why It Matters Today (HarperCollins)The winners will be announced at a ceremony in September.