SMALL BUT MIGHTY

This delightful duo of board books teaches toddlers kindness and love, and also introduces them to woodland and water animals in both English and Anishinaabemowin. 

A Little Camper Love
Rayna Meakin 
Heritage House

Boozhoo! Hello!
Mangeshig Pawis-Steckley and Mary Ann Corbiere, trans.
Groundwood Books

DANCE YOUR HEART OUT

South-Asian dance is on full display with these picture books that celebrate the joy of movement.

Music of the Bells
Anitha Rao-Robinson and Chaaya Prabhat, ill. 
Viking Books for Young Readers/Penguin Random House

Bollywood Beat!
Anita Yasuda and Devika Oza, ill. 
Kids Can Press

GETTIN’ SILLY WITH IT

A good laugh is on order with these picture books that don’t take themselves too seriously. 

How to Read a Very Serious Book
Mireille Messier and Kelly Collier, ill. 
Owlkids Books

Billie Builds a RoboCorn
José Avelino Gilles Lourenço and James Braithwaite, ill. 
Tundra Books/Penguin Random House Canada

EXPRESS YOURSELF

Celebrate what makes you unique alongside the exuberant animals in Guinea Pigs Don’t Wear Pants who like breaking an expectation or two.  

Guinea Pigs Don’t Wear Pants
Chris Paul Farias 
Rebel Goose Books 

ACTION-PACKED

These series openers jam-packed with adventure will keep middle-grade readers turning the pages till the very end. 

Kaboom! Volume 1: Blast Off
Jay Odjick and KC Oster, ill. 
Scholastic Canada

The Healer and the Phoenix
Linda Trinh and Quynh Anh Nguyen, ill. 
Annick Press

HEART-STOPPERS

From romance to suspense, these young adult titles will either melt your heart or make it skip a beat.

The Free Verse Society
Delali Adjoa 
Peachtree Teen/Candlewick Press

The Moth Dreamer
Amy Lynn Farrell
HighWater Press/Portage & Main Press