Andrew Larsen

Andrew Larsen discusses how the toddler time programme--led by librarian Joanne Schwartz--opened a whole new world of children's books to him and reaffirmed his decision on becoming a children's author.

"I still remember the library that I used to go to in Montreal as being a very special place that I would go to with my mom on Saturdays. And it didn't seem like a chore, it didn't seem like something we had to do, it just seemed kind of exciting."

"It [toddler time] was probably the first thing my son and I had done together outside our circle of friends...But Joanne's toddler time was mind-blowing...but more importantly, Joanne introduced us as new parents, she introduced us to the world of children's books. And not your run-of-the-mill children's books that you'd find on display in the store, but children's literature."

"I started exploring the whole world of children's literature and I think that greatly, greatly, greatly influenced the writer I've since become."