Saunders Book Company has been in the educational book distribution game for 54 years, and it’s that “market research,” that led them to start a publishing company that does textbooks differently.
Saunders launched a publishing company called Beech Street Books three years ago, named after the street where the Saunders boys grandparents owned a home. This year, the publishing company released 43 new English books and 24 French translations as part of six new Canadian series and as an addition to an existing series launched previously.
All the books are educational, Canadian content, and they include authentic voices. Where the author writes about Indigenous groups, there are voices from Indigenous people.
James Saunders, VP of direct sales for Saunders Book Co. said the company branched out into publishing after seeing gaps in Canadian content offerings.
“We try to get just a little more in-depth than other publishers … We wanted to do it our way,” said Saunders. “It’s been an enlightening process. It’s helped us learn as we go.”
One of the series launched this year is called Canadian Celebrations. Each book focuses on a Canadian celebration such as fall fairs, Pride festivals, Family Day, or Thanksgiving. The book includes the history of the celebration, details on how it is celebrated in the different provinces, information about who participates, and lots of photos. In fact, the book on fall fairs features a photo from the Great Northern Exhibition on the cover.
“We couldn’t find any books out there on fall fairs,” said Saunders. “And there was very little for young readers on Pride festivals.”
The Canadian Celebrations books are written for a Grade 1 to 2 reading level and include bright and beautiful photos.
“We wanted to make sure there was lots of information and we wanted to cover the country and all aspects of the festivals,” said Saunders.
There isn’t a book on Christmas and New Years. The Beech Street Books team decided to cover festivals that were more uniquely Canadian, or done differently in Canada.
The other series include:
The Great Canadian Road Trip - There are 13 books in this series, each dedicated to a Canadian province or territory. These bright and colourful books are laid out similar to a video game or computer screen with information presented in a non-linear fashion. The books contain information on the people, environment, food, culture and history of each region. There are jokes throughout as well as trivia and recipes.
Indigenous Peoples’ Contributions to Canada – This series was written in consultation with Indigenous people and each book looks at a specific area of contribution. For instance, one book dives into the contribution of sports, what modern day sports come from Indigenous heritage, and some highly-successful Indigenous athletes.
Settler Life in Canada - This series looks at how the early settlers to Canada coped, with each of the four books focusing on a different area of survival. One book on Homes looks at early construction, Indigenous influence on shelter-style and structure, and includes inquiry questions meant to encourage critical thinking for the reader. In the back of the book is a hands-on activity related to the book’s content for the reader to try.
Canadian Science: Technology and Sustainability - This series looks at various technologies invented by Canadians and the sustainability of each of those technologies.
Immigration to Canada: Then and Now - This is a collection of information and stories from different people who have immigrated to Canada. In the Japanese Immigrants in Canada book, there’s a story about Frank and Susan Maikawa, now Collingwood residents, whose families were put into internment camps in British Columbia.
“We put a little bit of home in everything we produce,” said Saunders.
Beech Street Books also added four new books to continue their series on Indigenous Communities in Canada, which are written in consultation with the Indigenous groups represented in the book. The new titles include Algonquin Nation, Dene First Nations, Haida Nation, and Siksika Nation.
“We make sure we get an authentic voice,” said Saunders. “If we couldn’t find a consultant, we wouldn’t do the book.”
In some cases, the book is written by an Indigenous author.
“The change in textbooks in the last five years is massive,” said Saunders. “But there’s no written rules, so we decided to go with the best of the best … it’s got to be correct for schools and for all of us.”
As for Beech Street Books and the Saunders’ journey into publishing, there’s already work beginning on the 2019 book launches.
“We’re pleased, and we hope to continue to grow it,” said Saunders. “It’s gone from nothing to a big part of what we do.”
Saunders Book Company is the exclusive distributor for 18 publishers in Canada, selling books directly to schools, school libraries, and bookstores.
Beech Street Books can be purchased at bookstores and online.
