I Read Canadian
Some of our favourite books written by Canadian authors for young readers.
Cat's Cradle
- Jo Rioux 
Children's paperback
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Suri the monster tamer is back for the second volume of this thrilling graphic novel trilogy!
Suri has what it takes to be a monster tamer--she just knows it! She's even tamed her first monster...if you count Byron. He's less like a monster, more like a giant dog. He needs a master that's just his size, so Suri, Caglio, and Byron set off for the land of the giants: the Monster's Cradle.
An epic journey like this requires money and provisions, which they don't have. But the treasure at the heart of the mole king's lair might be the solution to their problem!
Pine Island Home
- Polly Horvath
Trade paperback
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Reader Reward Price: $10.79
From Newbery Honor-- and National Book Award--winning author Polly Horvath comes a story of four sisters searching for home.
Fiona, Marlin, Natasha, and Charlie McCready are left on their own when their missionary parents are washed away in a tsunami. Fortunately, their great aunt Martha volunteers to have them live with her on her farm in British Columbia. But while they are traveling there, Martha dies unexpectedly, forcing Fiona, the eldest, to come up with a scheme to keep social services from separating the girls - a scheme that will only work if no one knows they are living on their own.
Fiona approaches their grouchy and indifferent neighbor Al and asks if he will pretend to be their live-in legal guardian should papers need to be signed or if anyone comes snooping around. He reluctantly agrees, under the condition that they bring him dinner every night. As weeks pass, Fiona takes on more and more adult responsibilities, while each of the younger girls finds their own special role in their atypical family. But even if things seem to be falling into place, Fiona can't help but worry that it is only a matter of time before they are caught. What she needs to do is find them a real guardian.
Weird Rules to Follow
- Kim Spencer
Children's paperback
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?"Readers will be left with a rich image of Mia's world and the family and people that surround her as well as a strong sense of how culture and class impact people's experiences. A touching exploration of identity and culture."--Kirkus Reviews Mia knows her family is very different than her best friend's. In the 1980s, the coastal fishing town of Prince Rupert is booming. There is plenty of sockeye salmon in the nearby ocean, which means the fishermen are happy and there is plenty of work at the cannery. Eleven-year-old Mia and her best friend, Lara, have known each other since kindergarten. Like most tweens, they like to hang out and compare notes on their crushes and dream about their futures. But even though they both live in the same cul-de-sac, Mia's life is very different from her non-Indigenous, middle-class neighbor. Lara lives with her mom, her dad and her little brother in a big house, with two cars in the drive and a view of the ocean. Mia lives in a shabby wartime house that is full of relatives--her churchgoing grandmother, binge-drinking mother and a rotating number of aunts, uncles and cousins. Even though their differences never seemed to matter to the two friends, Mia begins to notice how adults treat her differently, just because she is Indigenous. Teachers, shopkeepers, even Lara's parents--they all seem to have decided who Mia is without getting to know her first.
What If I'm Not a Cat?
- Kari-Lynn Winters , Kelly Collier
Children's hardcover
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A sweet, playful story about identity - and what it means to belong. Why, of course Donkey's a cat. He spends all his time with the other cats on the farm. He licks his fur and pounces, just like they do. He even cuddles with them at nap time. Though, he must admit, sometimes he does feel ... a little off. So, when Farmer says to him, "Donkey, you're acting like a cat!" it gets him thinking. What if he's not a cat? And if not, then what is he? Will going off on his own help Donkey figure out what he is and where he belongs? Award-winning author Kari-Lynn Winters's delightful story of self-discovery uses kid-perfect hilarity to deliver the message that every individual has something unique to offer to their community. The contrast between Donkey and his cat friends makes for laugh-out-loud silliness in Kelly Collier's endearing and amusing art (ever seen a Donkey perch on a fence post?). Pages are filled with spot illustrations, speech bubbles and action words that keep the visual appeal high. Sure to be a story-time crowd-pleaser, this picture book could easily spark discussions about identity, fitting in and belonging. It also works well for character education lessons on adaptability, inclusiveness, initiative and caring.
Apartment 713
- Kevin Sylvester
Children's hardcover
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Secret ballrooms, hidden artwork and unlikely friends--welcome to the Regency, where even time moves in surprising ways!
Jake Simmons hates his new home.
The Regency is nothing more than floor after floor of peeling wallpaper and faded glory. Jake misses his old life. He misses the time when his mother was employed. He misses living in a house where the wind doesn't make the windows whistle.
Loneliness (and a trail of kittens) leads Jake to the apartment of an elderly lady, then to the bowels of the building and then to a part-time job assisting Larry the custodian. With each passing day, the building reveals more of its mysteries to Jake. The occupants grow on him too.
Unfortunately, Jake's feeling of belonging is short-lived: the city plans to demolish the Regency. Jake feels powerless. And then fate throws him a curveball. He's summoned to apartment 713. An apartment he's been told is off-limits. But when he opens the door . . . he travels to the past!
Alongside Beth, his new friend and guide, Jake begins searching for any clue that might help him save the Regency. As their friendship blooms, the mystery around the building's makers deepens. The Regency's own storied past will give Jake the key to saving his own future--if only he knows where to look.
The Bellwoods Game
- Celia Krampien
Young adult softcover
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Perfect for fans of Small Spaces and Doll Bones, this spooky, highly illustrated middle grade novel follows a girl who hopes to fix her outcast status through a game in the haunted woods, only to discover that some legends shouldn't be played with.
Everyone knows Fall Hollow is haunted. It has been ever since Abigail Snook went into the woods many years ago, never to be seen again. Since then, it's tradition for the sixth graders at Beckett Elementary to play the Bellwoods Game on Halloween night. Three kids are chosen to go into the woods. Whoever rings the bell there wins the game and saves the town for another year, but if Abigail's ghost captures the players first, the spirit is let loose to wreak havoc on Fall Hollow--or so the story goes.
Now that it's Bailee's year to play, she can finally find out what really happens. And legend has it the game's winner gets a wish. Maybe, just maybe, if Bailee wins, she can go back to the way things used to be before her grandma got sick and everyone at school started hating her. But when the night begins, everything the kids thought they knew about the game--and each other--is challenged. One thing's for sure: something sinister is at play...waiting for them all in the woods.
Forever Our Home
- Tonya Simpson , Carla Joseph
Children's hardcover
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?"This solemn and serene volume should be considered a first purchase. Essential for most collections, and with its wildlife-centric art, it's also a perfect read-aloud for Earth Day."--School Library Journal, starred review A lullaby of reconciliation and reclamation, celebrating the ancestral relationship between Indigenous children and the land that is forever their home. Under glowing morning sun and silvery winter moon, from speckled frogs croaking in spring to summer fields painted with fireweed, this meditative lullaby introduces little ones to the plants and animals of the Prairies and the Plains. Featuring stunning artwork by celebrated artist Carla Joseph, Forever Our Home is a beautiful and gentle song about our spiritual connection to the land.
The Hidden World of Gnomes
- Lauren Soloy
Children's hardcover
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A delightful introduction and collection of facts about the secret lives of gnomes that will charm and fascinate readers of all ages.
This book is an introduction to the hidden folk called gnomes, who live in a happy place they call The Pocket. Where is The Pocket, you ask?
Well, it's all around you, all the time.
Gnomes are curious little creatures, and they're very shy. But after reading this book, you will learn to spot the telltale signs that gnomes are around . . . and maybe even meet one!
Lauren Soloy has been studying gnomes her whole life, and she has created this book to share her knowledge with you. For example, what jobs do gnomes do? Babysitting robin's eggs, squirrel-tail fluffing, storytelling. Where do they live? In gardens, forests and any place with plants, birds and bugs. What are their names? Hotchi-Mossy, Able Potter, Cob Tiggy and Puckle Swift, to name a few.
With charming details and surprising facts, this celebration of all things gnome will enchant readers of all ages.
I Am a Meadow Mermaid
- Kallie George , Elly MacKay
Children's hardcover
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A farm girl with a big imagination turns her landlocked home into an ocean playground in this dreamy picture book for little mermaids everywhere.
A little girl dreams of adventures in the water and feels the spirit of the ocean all around her . . . even though she lives on the prairie, with flat land as far as the eye can see. But she won't let a little detail like that stand in the way of being a meadow mermaid! Frolicking in the "waves" of wheat and "oceans" of grass, spying sea horses and . . . a shipwrecked sailor? Even if that shipwreck is actually an overturned bike and the sailor a new kid from a neighboring field, it's still a chance to make a new friend, one with an imagination as expansive and a love of the ocean as deep as the little girl's own.
This fanciful, whimsical picture book will charm young mermaids and little pirates everywhere, and inspire them to embrace the spirit of the ocean in the things around them, no matter where they live!
Our Pool
- Lucy Ruth Cummins
Children's hardcover
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On a hot day, people come from all over the city to spend the day at the pool in this joyful picture book that's a love song to summer, the city, community, and staying cool!
Today is a pool day in the city! The sun is shining, so what are you waiting for? Friends and family. Kids and grandparents. Big bodies and small bodies. Everybody is welcome at our pool! Get ready for swimming and splashing, zigzagging and dunking, and racing and laughing.
P.S. Tell No One
- Vikki VanSickle
Children's paperback
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Reader Reward Price: $11.69
A funny, frank contemporary story about navigating the physical and emotional realities of growing up.When four friends have their phones confiscated in class, Sunny (not her real name) comes up with the idea of a secret shared journal, where they can communicate, share thoughts and pass them on. The pages of the book they jokingly refer to as the P.A.D. (pass-around diary) become filled with sweet, funny, sharp and important insights that speak to navigating middle grade life--friendships, crushes, consent, bodies, parents, siblings, periods, sports and student life.
What began as a lighthearted way of passing notes becomes a poignant and heartfelt way to explore and share big and small feelings and events--a safe way for Sunny, Twix, Hoops and MP to find themselves, and support one another, through all the transitions of a grade seven year.
In the tradition of Are You There God? It's Me, Margaret, this novel is a fearless exploration of the lives of tween girls, and how they find answers to questions that continue to feel impossible to ask.
Simon Sort of Says
- Erin Bow
Children's hardcover
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Reader Reward Price: $19.79
A powerful new novel by Erin Bow, winner of the Governor General's and TD Children's Literature Awards.Ask Simon O'Keeffe why his family moved to tiny Grin And Bear It, Nebraska, and he'll tell you they were driven out of Omaha by alpacas.
In Simon's version of the story, a blessing of the animals went sideways, his dad got fired from his church job, and the whole family moved to the National Quiet Zone, where the internet and cell phones are banned so astronomers can scan the sky for signs of alien life.
But there's another story too -- a story about a locked classroom, an active shooter, and a media cycle that refuses to let Simon go, even years later.
To everyone who knows what happened, Simon is either a miracle or a sob story. But Simon just wants to be Simon: a twelve-year-old in high tops and a Minecraft hoodie. Moving to the last town in America where no one can Google you is a chance for Simon to start fresh. To rewrite the narrative. And with the help of two new friends, a puppy, and a giant radio telescope, he's determined to say something new.
The Skull (Canadian Edition)
- Jon Klassen
Children's hardcover
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A #1 New York Times bestseller!
Caldecott Medalist and New York Times best-selling author-illustrator Jon Klassen delivers a deliciously macabre treat for folktale fans.
Jon Klassen's signature wry humor takes a turn for the ghostly in this thrilling retelling of a traditional Tyrolean folktale. In a big abandoned house, on a barren hill, lives a skull. A brave girl named Otilla has escaped from terrible danger and run away, and when she finds herself lost in the dark forest, the lonely house beckons. Her host, the skull, is afraid of something too, something that comes every night. Can brave Otilla save them both? Steeped in shadows and threaded with subtle wit--with rich, monochromatic artwork and an illuminating author's note--The Skull is as empowering as it is mysterious and foreboding.
Smile So Big
- Sunshine Quem Tenasco
Children's hardcover
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A magical mirror helps a young girl understand her true beauty in this new picture book from the creators of Nibi's Water Song.When Challa comes home in tears after being teased about her smile, her mom gives her a special gift. It's a magic mirror -- shiny, beaded and beautiful -- passed on from her mom, and from her djo djo before her.
Challa's mom tells her that when anyone looks into the mirror, they will see their true self. There's just one rule: Everyone has to say what they see in the reflection.
At first the mirror seems to work for everyone but her. Challa keeps looking and looking. The more beauty she sees in herself, the happier she feels, and the longer she looks into the mirror, the more beauty she sees, until finally Challa sees so much beauty, she can't contain her smile!
This special story, from award-winning activist Sunshine Quem Tenasco and artist Chief Lady Bird, introduces readers to concepts of self-acceptance, self-empowerment, and recognition of the unique beauty that comes from within.
Sometimes I Feel Like a River
- Danielle Daniel , Jose Bisaillon
Children's hardcover
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Reader Reward Price: $17.09
Following the huge success of Sometimes I Feel Like a Fox, this companion book is a lyrical celebration of our relationship to the natural world.
In each of twelve short poems, a child tells us how or why they feel like the sun, a river, a mountain, a cloud, the rain, a forest and more. Their deeply felt connections and identification with these wonders point to how much we are all part of the natural world. Each poem comes to life through vivid, playful illustrations that show the children immersed in their surroundings. The book serves as a gentle call to action - to notice, appreciate, preserve and protect our environment, while delighting in all its beauty.
A mindfulness activity - A Mindful Walk or Roll - invites young readers to use their senses to experience their surroundings to the fullest. Includes a brief author's note that highlights our connections to the natural world.
Key Text Features
author's note
illustrations
poems
procedural text
Correlates to the Common Core State Standards in English Language Arts:
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.K.5
Recognize common types of texts (e.g., storybooks, poems).
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.1.2
Retell stories, including key details, and demonstrate understanding of their central message or lesson.
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.1.4
Identify words and phrases in stories or poems that suggest feelings or appeal to the senses.
This is a selection of our current I Read Canadian titles. To find other titles or authors, or just to browse, please use the search box.
