Philippa Dowding

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Philippa Dowding

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Philippa Dowding is an author, poet, musician, and copywriter based in Toronto. She is the winner of the Governor General's Literary Award 2021, Young People's Literature, Text, and the Ruth & Sylvia Schwartz Children's Book Award 2022, for FIREFLY.

Philippa was a writer early in life, and began writing poetry and short stories at age nine. She studied English Language & Literature at Western University in London, Ontario, and completed an M.A. in English at The University of Toronto. Soon after graduating, she began her professional writing life as a copywriter in the magazine and newspaper industry, where she won many industry awards.

When she had a family, she began telling bedtime stories to her children. One story, about a lost gargoyle
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Philippa Dowding Hi Brayden! Thanks for asking that great question, no one has ever asked that before so I'll have to think about my answer. I guess in terms of nomina…moreHi Brayden! Thanks for asking that great question, no one has ever asked that before so I'll have to think about my answer. I guess in terms of nominations and awards, The Gargoyle at the Gates (my third book), was probably the most popular. But my fourth book, The Strange Gift of Gwendolyn Golden, has the most reviews and want-to-read or currently-reading interest on Goodreads, so it seems to be pretty popular too. So they are pretty closely tied, I think. Hope this answers your question! Philippa(less)
Philippa Dowding Hi Bobbi! Thanks for asking my first question on here. I love gargoyles, too, but the idea for the stories came from a visit to an antique store here …moreHi Bobbi! Thanks for asking my first question on here. I love gargoyles, too, but the idea for the stories came from a visit to an antique store here in Toronto. One night I was visiting a relative on Queen St east, and my children and I walked into an antique store. The back stairs were glowing, and when I walked over to look, I saw a gargoyle with a candle on each step. I looked away, when I looked back it really looked like each gargoyle had moved, just a little. That night I told my children a bedtime story about a gargoyle that had followed us home. After several weeks of telling more and more bedtime stories about the gargoyle, my daughter (who was 9 at the time), said, "that's good Mum, you should write that down." I realized, hey, she's right! It's a good character. So that's how I started writing about gargoyles, and I love them more every time I write a new book about them. Thanks for asking! Philippa(less)
Average rating: 3.96 · 1,104 ratings · 294 reviews · 23 distinct worksSimilar authors
Firefly

4.05 avg rating — 230 ratings — published 2021 — 3 editions
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The Strange Gift of Gwendol...

3.64 avg rating — 244 ratings — published 2014 — 7 editions
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Oculum (The Children of Ocu...

3.91 avg rating — 155 ratings2 editions
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The Gargoyle at the Gates

4.20 avg rating — 75 ratings — published 2012 — 6 editions
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Myles and the Monster Outsi...

4.08 avg rating — 62 ratings — published 2015 — 5 editions
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The Gargoyle Overhead

3.95 avg rating — 58 ratings — published 2010 — 7 editions
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Carter and the Curious Maze...

3.89 avg rating — 53 ratings — published 2016 — 5 editions
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The Gargoyle in My Yard (Lo...

4.06 avg rating — 50 ratings — published 2009 — 10 editions
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Jake and the Giant Hand (We...

4.11 avg rating — 47 ratings — published 2014 — 8 editions
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Alex and The Other: Weird S...

3.94 avg rating — 35 ratings4 editions
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FIREFLY is Shortlisted for the SYRCA Snow Willow Award 2023-2024!

Firefly by Philippa Dowding
Thank you to the Saskatchewan Young Readers Choice Awards (SYRCA) for nominating FIREFLY to their wonderful Snow Willow award 2023-2024!

This means that young readers in Saskatchewan, grades 6-8, will be reading FIREFLY as part of a fabulous curated list of ten grade-appropriate books written by talented Canadian authors, and choosing their favourite for the award ceremony next spring, 2024. Th Read more of this blog post »
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Published on April 24, 2023 09:11 Tags: award-winning-books-for-kids, dcb, firefly, syrca-snow-willow-2023
Jake and the Giant Hand Myles and the Monster Outside Carter and the Curious Maze Alex and The Other: Weird S...
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4.05 avg rating — 206 ratings

Philippa’s Recent Updates

Oculum Echo by Philippa Dowding
"This narrative begins with the awakening of a robot called Echo 1 and learns that it’s assignment is to check on humanity, the earth and the children of the four great domes of Oculum. Despite all the technology that built it, compassion, forgiveness" Read more of this review »
Oculum Echo by Philippa Dowding
"An excellent sequel which stands on it's own. Sometimes the best part of a sequel is the familiarity you have with the characters while adding new ones. (Echo) The part Echo plays is unique and makes the story work so well, while the other characters" Read more of this review »
Oculum Echo by Philippa Dowding
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Firefly by Philippa Dowding
"Absolutely fabulous. Who do you choose to be? I cried. I’ve recommended it to everybody. "
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Carter and the Curious Maze by Philippa Dowding
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Drawdown by Paul Hawken
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The Night Flyer's Handbook 2-Book Bundle by Philippa Dowding
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Weird Stories Gone Wrong 2-Book Bundle by Philippa Dowding
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Topics Mentioning This Author

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Crazy Challenge C...: A-Z Characters Male - 2015 119 99 Nov 12, 2016 07:41PM  
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“If I had my life to live over again, I would focus on the getting and eating of ice cream.”
Bob Odenkirk, A Load of Hooey

“I have spent a good many years since―too many, I think―being ashamed about what I write. I think I was forty before I realized that almost every writer of fiction or poetry who has ever published a line has been accused by someone of wasting his or her God-given talent. If you write (or paint or dance or sculpt or sing, I suppose), someone will try to make you feel lousy about it, that's all.”
Stephen King, On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft

“I've been all over the world and I've never seen a statue of a critic.”
Leonard Bernstein

“Genius is more often found in a cracked pot than in a whole one.”
E.B. White




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Kristin Butcher Hi Philippa,
Hope all is well in your world. I haven't fallen off the face of the earth; just left the social network. (It's been a year and a half already.) It wasn't a a healthy fit for me. New book coming out next spring. In the meantime, I'm honing my painting skills. Who knows? Perhaps I can become an illustrator. To catch up on my activity or to get in touch, please visit me at my website: www.kristinbutcher.com


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