Appeared on Best of 2018 lists from Quill & Quire and the Globe and Mail!
“Although the fungi are anthropomorphized with cartoon eyes and goofy grins, the research behind the book is real.”—The Globe & Mail 100 Best Books of 2018
“Gravel turns adventures in mushroom hunting into scintillating reading material.”—Quill & Quire Best Kids’ Books of 2018
Elise Gravel is back with a whimsical look at one of her family’s most beloved pastimes: mushroom hunting! Combining her love of exploring nature with her talent for anthropomorphizing everything, she takes us on a magical tour of the forest floor and examines a handful of her favorite alien specimens up close. While the beautiful coral mushroom looks like it belongs under the sea, the peculiar Lactarius indigo may be better suited for outer space. From the fun-to-stomp puffballs to the prince of the stinkers—the stinkhorn mushroom—and the musically inclined chanterelles, Gravel shares her knowledge of this fascinating kingdom by bringing each species to life in full felt-tip-marker glory.
The Governor General Award–winning author Gravel’s first book with Drawn & Quarterly, If Found . . . Please Return to Elise Gravel, was a Junior Library Guild selection and an instant hit among librarians, parents, and kids alike. Fostering the same spirit of creativity and curiosity, The Mushroom Fan Club promises to inspire kids to look more closely at the world around them and to seek out all of life’s little treasures, stinky or not!

ELISE GRAVEL a écrit et illustré une trentaine d’albums jeunesse. L’auteure use d’un humour mordant pour exprimer ses vues et éveiller le sens critique de ses jeunes lecteurs. En 2022, Elise a remporté le prix Vicky Metclaf, qui souligne le travail d’un auteur ou d’une auteure jeunesse. Elle a également reçu le prix du Gouverneur général en 2012 dans la catégorie illustrations pour son livre La clé à molette, de même que le prix Droits et Libertés et des droits de la jeunesse.

ELISE GRAVEL has won a Governor General's Award for illustration, the Vicky Metcalf Award for Literature for Young People, the Rights and Freedoms Award from the Quebec Commission des droits de la personne et des droits de la jeunesse, two Applied Arts Awards and a Grafika Award. She also was short-listed for Mr. Christie's Book Award. She has written and illustrated over 30 books for children in both French and English including Not Me (Pas moi), Everybody! (Tout le monde! and It's My Body! (C'est mon corps!). Elise lives in Montreal, Quebec.

Elise Gravel's profile page

I've always been entranced at the huge variety of mushrooms I see on my walks and this book makes me want to jump up and go look for them. . . Do NOT miss this book." - Youth Services Book Review

"It's amazing what a pair of googly eyes and a smile can do. . . There's a welcoming simplicity to [Gravel's] work, but images like that first illustration of the forest also showcase her skill with denser, more immersive visuals." - The AV Club
"An introduction to mushrooms may sound dull, but Gravel can make anything exciting and weird. Searching for mushrooms is 'like a treasure hunt that nature organized just for us!' she enthuses, but it's really her descriptive take on her subject that will have kids heading for the woods." - The Toronto Star
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