AKLAVIK - Tom McLeod likes going to school knowing his book is sitting on a shelf in the library, especially since it has now been nominated for two literary awards.

Tom McLeod, a 14-year-old Grade 10 student from Aklavik, says "it's cool" that a children's book he co-authored about life in the Mackenzie Delta has been nominated for two literary awards. - photo courtesy of Tom McLeod

The 14-year-old Grade 10 student at Aklavik's Moose Kerr School jokes that he points out the children's book he helped write, called The Delta Is My Home, to new teachers when they join the staff.

He co-wrote the book three years ago with Mindy Willett, who worked with local writers across the territory on a series of 10 books.

In the book, Tom shares his stories about living in Aklavik, trapping and making bannock.

It was nominated for the Vancouver Children's Literature Roundtable Information Book award along with five other books and for the Ontario Library Association's Silver Birch award along with nine other books.

"It's cool to see my book getting all these nominations for awards - it's rather exciting," said McLeod, adding he was "like a little mini famous person" for a while but the book got "mixed reception from friends" who were disappointed they weren't around to tell their stories when McLeod signed on to co-write the book.

While he likes to write, he does it "as much as an average 14-year-old would."

He said he doesn't have any plans to write another book just yet, but he wants to continue writing along with his other hobbies, beaver-trapping, snowmobiling and playing video games.

McLeod, a middle child between two older brothers and a younger sister, was born in Inuvik but has lived most of his life in Aklavik, which he loves.

"It's fun. You have all the freedom in the world," he said. "Once the river freezes you can practically go anywhere and you can do basically anything you want here."

He's developing a keen interest in science, having already taken Grade 11 and 12 courses in the subject, and he wants to go to university but he's not sure yet what he'll study.

"There's a few more years (until) that," he said.

But he knows he's going places. "I'm one of those guys that likes to travel around," McLeod said, explaining the farthest south he's been so far is Calgary, where he went with Willett on a book tour when The Delta is My Home was published last year.

McLeod is looking forward to going on a student exchange to Ottawa this April, but he has dreams of becoming a transcontinental traveller.

"I really like the sound of Australia, go somewhere warm for a change for a while," he laughed.