The Sorry Life of Timothy Shmoe

 lllustrated by Zoe Si

2022 BLUE SPRUCE (FOREST OF READING) HONOUR BOOK

2023 FLORIDA LITERACY ASSOCIATION CHILDREN’S BOOK AWARD WINNER (GRADE 3-5 CATEGORY)

A CANADIAN CHILDREN’S BOOK CENTRE BEST BOOK FOR KIDS & TEENS 2021

OLA TOP TEN BEST BET FOR 2022

“Hilarious and heartwarming, The Sorry Life of Timothy Shmoe is a call to empathy for children who struggle with impulse control, and a tribute to unconditional love.”

“Everyone has been Timothy Shmoe at one time or another. He’s not a jerk or even “a bad kid.” He just moves from one catastrophe to another, clueless about consequences but always offering an apology of sorts and slowly figuring out the rules of life. … Kids and adults alike will identify.”

– Kirkus Reviews

Sully, Messed Up

A CANADIAN CHILDREN’S BOOK CENTRE BEST BOOK FOR KIDS & TEENS 2021

“Sully Brewster has the parent of all identity problems in a fast-paced story that touches on issues of sexuality, race, and family dynamics. Being a teen has never been so confusing!”

Richard Scrimger (Author of The Nose From Jupiter series and many other popular books for young people)

“The writing is delightful. The dialogue … is crisp, creative and fun. The pacing is flawless, and the plot is compelling. The bullies are uber-mean and the bullying situations are grave. … Then there’s the touch of magic realism in which the main character’s facial features start churning about when he is stressed.”

– CM Magazine (Recommended)

The Christmas Wind

illustrated by Brooke Kerrigan

“Lovely story … A charming use of a modern setting to convey the familiar theme of the Christmas story.”

— Kirkus (Starred Review)

The Sorry Life of Timothy Shmoe

llustrated by Zoe Si

2022 BLUE SPRUCE (FOREST OF READING) NOMINEE

A CANADIAN CHILDREN’S BOOK CENTRE BEST BOOK FOR KIDS & TEENS 2021

OLA TOP TEN BEST BET FOR 2022

“Hilarious and heartwarming, The Sorry Life of Timothy Shmoe is a call to empathy for children who struggle with impulse control, and a tribute to unconditional love.”

“Everyone has been Timothy Shmoe at one time or another. He’s not a jerk or even “a bad kid.” He just moves from one catastrophe to another, clueless about consequences but always offering an apology of sorts and slowly figuring out the rules of life. … Kids and adults alike will identify.”

– Kirkus Reviews

Sully, Messed Up

A CANADIAN CHILDREN’S BOOK CENTRE BEST BOOK FOR KIDS & TEENS 2021

“Sully Brewster has the parent of all identity problems in a fast-paced story that touches on issues of sexuality, race, and family dynamics. Being a teen has never been so confusing!”

Richard Scrimger (Author of The Nose From Jupiter series and many other popular books for young people)

“The writing is delightful. The dialogue … is crisp, creative and fun. The pacing is flawless, and the plot is compelling. The bullies are uber-mean and the bullying situations are grave. … Then there’s the touch of magic realism in which the main character’s facial features start churning about when he is stressed.”

– CM Magazine (Recommended)

The Christmas Wind

illustrated by Brooke Kerrigan

“Lovely story … A charming use of a modern setting to convey the familiar theme of the Christmas story.”

— Kirkus (Starred Review)

Other Books

The Chicken Cat

Merlin, a kitten, is found abandoned one night in the barn. No one knows who his natural mother is, but Guinevere, the oldest hen in the barn, eagerly takes the frail kitten under her wing. She cares for him as best she can, and shares her dreams of flying with him.

Leon’s Song

Leon is an old and rather homely frog. Other frogs in the pond are more handsome and can swim faster and leap higher, and Leon is all right with that. But when Leon hears the frog Romeo sing, his heart aches – for Romeo is the greatest singer on the pond.

Hoogie in the Middle

Sometimes Hoogie feels like the hole in the middle of a donut. She isn’t big and dependable like her older sister Pumpkin, and she isn’t tiny and adorable like her baby brother Tweezle. She’s just … Hoogie. She’s too big for this and too small for that, but mostly she just feels invisible.

Tweezle Into Everything

Tweezle isn’t a baby anymore—he’s a big boy now!

Pumpkin was the first. Hoogie came next. Tweezle is the baby. But babies grow up, and Tweezle is ready to be a big boy now—and he knows just how to prove it.

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McLellan is a fine storyteller, combining a matter-of-fact narrative style – life’s imperfections are fixed with a clear-eyed gaze – with elegant flourishes in turns of phrase and twists of plot.

— Quill & Quire (Starred Review of The Chicken Cat)

Award Winning Author

Stephanie Simpson McLellan

Welcome! I write books for young people, including the award-winning The Chicken Cat and Leon’s Song. I’ve also written for Children’s Television, I reviewed books by other KidLit authors for 12 years through a monthly column in Today’s Parent Magazine. and I love visiting schools to share my books..

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Surprise Party for Timothy Shmoe & Sully!

Surprise Party for Timothy Shmoe & Sully!

My amazing kids surprised me Wednesday evening with a year-in-the-making book launch party. While The Sorry Life of Timothy Shmoe and Sully, Messed Up were released in April 2021, this was also the month my husband of 40 years, Jeff, died. None of us felt much like...

Timothy Shmoe Selected as 2022 Blue Spruce Honour Book

Timothy Shmoe Selected as 2022 Blue Spruce Honour Book

Congratulations to Peggy Collins (Harley the Hero) for winning this year’s Blue Spruce Forest of Reading award … Happy that Shmoe, alongside No More Plastic by Alma Fullerton, were Honour Books! … Thanks to all the teachers, librarians and students for reading and...