Nominated for the Blue Spruce Award from Forest of Reading

Nalvana feels like all of her friends have some type of superpower. She has friends with super speed (who always beat her in races), friends with super strength (who can dangle from the monkey bars for hours), and friends who are better than her at a million other things.

Nalvana thinks she must be the only kid in town without a superpower.

But then her mom shows Nalvana that she is unique and special—and that her superpower was right in front of her all along.

"Nalvana is a bundle of creativity, spunk, and determination—readers will be happy to know her." - Kirkus

". . . [A] book kids will clamor to read, even as they learn terms like ‘anaana’, ‘inuksuk’, and ‘panik’. That’s its superpower." - School Library Journal

Aviaq Johnston is a young Inuk author from Igloolik, Nunavut. Her debut novel Those Who Run in the Sky was shortlisted for the 2017 Governor General's Literary Award for Young People's Literature, was a finalist for the Foreword INDIES Award for Young Adult Fiction, and a 2017 Honour Book for the Burt Award for First Nations, Inuit and Métis Young Adult Literature. In 2018 she won the inaugural Indigenous Voices Award for Most Significant Work of Prose in English by an Emerging Indigenous Writer. She is also the author of the bestselling picture book, What's My Superpower? Aviaq loves to travel and has lived in Australia and Vietnam. She spends most of her time reading, writing, studying, and procrastinating. She divides her time between Iqaluit, Nunavut, and Ottawa, Ontario.

Aviaq Johnston's profile page

Tim Mack cannot fly, run super fast, or swim like a fish, so instead he draws those things. Tim is a Canadian-born illustrator living in Vancouver, British Columbia. He enjoys playing with colours and shapes and never misses an opportunity to swim in the ocean, though he still wishes he could swim as well as a fish.

Tim Mack's profile page

• Short-listed, Blue Spruce Award
• Short-listed, Canadian Children's Book Centre Best Books for Kids and Teens

“. . . [W]ell-written, [and] heart-warming . . .”

“. . . [A] fine story of self-inspection.”

“. . . Nalvana’s superpower is not one of the athletic or other overt skills that are normally so admired in our current society . . ., Aviaq Johnston has made her story one of inclusivity, not exclusivity.”

“Nalvana is a bundle of creativity, spunk, and determination—readers will be happy to know her.”

“. . . [A] very sweet story that encourages children to rethink how they evaluate success . . .”

“Overall, what a lovely, heart-warming picture book! Nalvana’s story is one of sharing kindness, holding onto one’s own kernels of hopefulness and determination, and the excitement in finding your own happy and cool discovery along the way.”

“. . . [A] book kids will clamor to read, even as they learn terms like ‘anaana’, ‘inuksuk’, and ‘panik’. That’s its superpower.”