There are plenty of Canadian children’s books to read. But, how do you choose? Here are some tools to help.

Canadian Children’s Book Centre

The Canadian Children’s Book Centre has a number of resources to help you find a book.

• How to Choose a  Book – Get tips on choosing books for children by age and by genre
• Best Books for Kids & Teens – a database of curated books, magazines, audio and video
• Bibliovideo –book readings and added content promoting Canadian children’s books

• Canadian Children’s Book News – a quarterly magazine with book reviews and interviews, back issues free online, current issues by subscription
• History Book Bank – a database of Canadian fiction and non-fiction designed for teachers
• Social Justice & Diversity Book Bank

Canadian Children’s Book Award Nominees and Winners

There are a number of awards for Canadian children’s books, both fiction and non-fiction. The nominees as well as award winners can be good titles to explore.

• Amy Mathers Teen Book Award
• Christie Harris Illustrated Children’s Literature Prize – a BC and Yukon Book Prize
• First Nation Communities Read Awards
• Forest of Reading – readers’ choice awards for children, youth and adults sponsored by the Ontario Library Association; several annual awards

Picture books for ages 4-7

Nonfiction for Grades 5-8

• Geoffrey Bilson Award for Historical Fiction for Young People
• John Spray Mystery Award
• Marilyn Baillie Picture Book Award – a picture book in English, for children 3-8, written and illustrated by Canadians
• Red Cedar Award – BC’s young readers’ choice book awards for fiction and information for Grades 4-7
• Sheila A. Egoff Children’s Literature Prize – a BC and Yukon Book Prize
• Sheila Barry Best Canadian Picturebook of the Year Award – sponsored by Vancouver Children’s Literature Roundtable
• The Children’s Literature Roundtables of Canada Information Book Award

Your Public Library

One of the most accessible resources for finding Canadian children’s books is your public library. Browse the library’s website and catalogue. Get recommendations from the librarian. Borrow books for free.