Browse Books for Kids

The Big Tease is a timeless story because we’ve all been involved in teasing to some degree, and often it has involved family. Time with family has always been important to Métis families. Like most families, there is usually at least one person who likes to tease others. In this story, it is Eliza, grandmother to author Wilfred Burton, and cousin to Édouard Beaupré. The Big Tease provides a lovely human touch to Édouard Beaupré’s life before his fame as the “Willow Bunch Giant” and his early tragic death took him from his beloved family.

Wilfred Burton’s imaginative narrative passes his grandmother’s story to today’s generation of story lovers. Illustrator George Gingras brings this true but somewhat embellished story to life with colourful images reflective of the Métis lifestyle at the time.

Educator Information
Grade Level: Primary (recommended by Gabriel Dumont Institute).

Dual-language: English & Michif 

Additional Information
Michif translation by Normal Fleury.

A blizzard warning has been issued in Mona’s community!

Mona is happy to stay home from school and spend time with Aunt Anita, but she's worried about her friend Justin. Justin is out on a hunting trip with some of his family members. See how Mona and Justin both prepare for the blizzard and help their community members after the storm.

Educator & Series Information 
This book is part of the Nunavummi Reading Series, a Nunavut-developed series that supports literacy learning while teaching readers about the people, traditions, and environment of the Canadian Arctic. It is a Level 14 book in the series. 

Nunavummi Reading Series books have also been officially levelled using the Fountas & Pinnell Text Level Gradient™ Levelling System. F&P Level of this book: P.

Curriculum Connections: Language and Literacy; Environmental Awareness; Community Engagement; Roles and Responsbilities.

Recommended for ages 7 to 9.

Additional Information 
42 pages | 5.80" x 7.90"

The Mighty Muskrats won’t let a mystery go unsolved!

Sam, Otter, Atim, and Chickadee are four inseparable cousins growing up on the Windy Lake First Nation. Nicknamed the Mighty Muskrats for their habit of laughing, fighting, and exploring together, the cousins find that each new adventure adds to their reputation. When a visiting archeologist goes missing, the cousins decide to solve the mystery of his disappearance. In the midst of community conflict, family concerns, and environmental protests, the four get busy following every lead. From their base of operations in a fort made out of an old school bus, the Mighty Muskrats won’t let anything stop them from solving their case!

Awards

- The Case of Windy Lake was the co-winner in Second Story Press’ 2018 Indigenous Writing Contest!

Reviews
"Chickadee's rez-tech savvy pairs well with her cousin Otter's bushcraft skills, and, along with Atim's brawn and brother Samuel's leadership, the four make a fine team. From Cree author Hutchinson, an Indigenous version of the Hardy Boys full of rez humor." — Kirkus, December 2018

"The Case of Windy Lake is a smart and thought-provoking mystery for middle-grade readers." — Foreword Reviews

Educator & Series Information
This fun and adventurous series, A Mighty Muskrat Mystery Series, puts an Indigenous spin on the classic Hardy Boys and Three Investigators books. 

Recommended for ages 9-12.

Subjects & Themes: Environment (Protection, Protest); Civil Rights; Indigenous (Rights to Land, Rights to Natural Resources, Knowledge, Protection of Cultural Ceremonies).

Recommended in the Canadian Indigenous Books for Schools 2019-2020 resource list as being useful for grades 6-9 in the following subject areas: English Language Arts and Social Studies.

This book is available in French: Le Disparu de Lac-aux-Vents: Une enquête des rats musclés

Additional Information
134 pages | 5.25" x 7.50"

When two foxes, who are best friends, have a fight it upsets the whole community of animals. Kokom the Owl knows just what to do and brings together all the animals and holds a Sharing Circle.

Educator Information
This book is an adaptation of the book The Sharing Circle for a younger audience (ages 4-6). Explores topics of respect, communication, relationships.  Useful social-emotional learning resource.

Includes a page of Plains Cree animals and their phonetic pronunciations at the end of the book.

Recommended in the Canadian Indigenous Books for Schools 2020/2021 resource list as being useful for grades K-3 in these areas: English Language Arts.

This book is available in French: Le cercle d'aide et de partage 

Additional Information
32 pages | 9.00" x 8.00"

When we look up to the sky and see a beautiful eagle soaring by, we may stop to appreciate its graceful sight, but, as Kevin Locke explains, eagles also have powerful teachings to offer. In this book, Kevin shares with us that each feather on the eagle's wing represents a virtue that we can all learn from. 

Educator Information
This book is an adaptation of the book Dawn Flight for a younger audience (ages 4-6). Explores Indigenous ways of knowing and being.

A page at the back of the book includes a few words in Lakota.

Suggested for Ages 4-6.

Recommended in the Canadian Indigenous Books for Schools 2020/2021 resource list as being useful for grades K-2 in this area: Social Studies.

This book is available in French: La plume d'aigle

Additional Information
26 pages | 9.00" x 8.00"

The Eagle Feather Story is a beautiful and ancient Dakelh (Carrier Peoples) story about learning to respect people who live their lives with integrity. The story features both the Dakelh and English languages. There is also sections that provide readers with an overview of the Dakelh culture, history and territory. For all ages.

The Eagle Feather Story utilizes concepts from the Dakelh culture to teach about respecting each other and our Mother Earth. The story is beautifully illustrated and features creatures from the Dakelh territory as characters who struggle, but eventually, learn to embody the characteristics and principles that we all strive to live by. The Eagle Feather Story is a tale that encourages people, young and older too, to try to be the best they can be. 

Educator Information
This a picture book that is recommended for all ages by its publisher.

Dual-language in Dakelh and English languages.

Storyteller: Francois Prince

Dakelh Language & Translations: Francois Prince and Aggie Anderson 

Cultural Advisors: Leona Prince, Mark Barfoot, Kelly Brownbill 

Includes a page of questions at the end of the book, entitled "Thoughts For Inquisitive Minds", for children to answer.  These questions and discussion prompts relate to the book's content and prompt further conversation, learning, and inquiry.

Additional Information
Approx. 25 pages 

A timeless tale about difference, belonging, and courage that will inspire children to have faith in their inner strength.

The smallest bird at school, Jimmy feels certain he will never fit in. But Eagle reminds him that being small isn’t necessarily a weakness, and that being different can also be a strength. This book is loosely based on the author’s university experience of feeling he would never fit in, yet being mentored by a teacher who encouraged him to focus on his inner strength, rather than race or class.

This book is a landmark collaboration between two powerhouses of the Indigenous community of Sydney -- artist, activist, and illustrator Bronwyn Bancroft and her son Jack Manning Bancroft, who is CEO of Australian Indigenous Mentoring Experience (AIME) and has been listed among Sydney's Top 100 Most Influential People.

Educator Information
The publisher recommends this title for ages 3 and under, but it would work better with older children.

Additonal Information
32 pages | 8.75" x 10.75"

Ghosts aren’t meant to stick around forever… 

Shelly and her grandmother catch ghosts. In their hair. 

Just like all the women in their family, they can see souls who haven’t transitioned yet; it’s their job to help the ghosts along their journey. When Shelly’s mom dies suddenly, Shelly’s relationship to ghosts—and death—changes. Instead of helping spirits move on, Shelly starts hoarding them. But no matter how many ghost cats, dogs, or people she hides in her room, Shelly can’t ignore the one ghost that’s missing. Why hasn’t her mom’s ghost come home yet? 

Rooted in a Cree worldview and inspired by stories about the author’s great-grandmother’s life, The Ghost Collector delves into questions of grief and loss, and introduces an exciting new voice in tween fiction that will appeal to fans of Kate DiCamillo’s Louisiana’s Way Home and Patrick Ness’s A Monster Calls.

Reviews
“Allison Mills’ The Ghost Collector is both delightful and haunting. A delicious blend of the supernatural and the very real. Mills has great respect for her audience. Taking great care to keep the narrative moving while never simplifying the novel’s ideas and themes of loss. The result is a nuanced study in empathy for both the characters and the readers.”  — Sunburst Award Jury, 08/20

“Simple language makes The Ghost Collector accessible to its tween audience while introducing sophisticated concepts. In Shelly, Mills has created a believable, likeable character who learns important life lessons about the future in the rich context of her cultural past.”  —CM Reviews, 09/20/19

Educator Information
Recommended for ages 10+

Recommended in the Canadian Indigenous Books for Schools 2020/2021 resource list for grades 6 to 8 for English Language Arts.

Additional Information
192 pages | 5.50" x 7.50"

What if age wasn’t something to fear? What if we just grew better with age? Granny Bari is just that kind of lady. Part of the Awkward+Awesome children’s book series celebrating unlikely heroes and inner weirdos, The Granny That Never Got Old urges us to reconsider what aging and growing old looks like. Sure, her body looks like it’s 95, but her mind never aged a day past 20.

This is a wonderfully playful book that helps children, and adults alike, recreate what it means to grow older. Getting old doesn’t have to mean life is over; instead, it has just begun.

The Granny That Never Got Old will have children looking at their grandparents with a bit more wonder and childlike fun, because aging with style could be for everyone – especially those who are almost one hundred and one.

Bold and bright and sure to entertain this is a story about one Granny that wants to jump from a plane. But that’s not all, she’d do more than just fall. Find out what Granny gets up to in this fun tale that pushes ideas about what getting old looks like.

Have you ever seen a skateboarding granny? That is a story about a granny kicking butt at getting old. A powerful book that helps connect generations, this book helps to show “aging” and “getting old” in a different light. Teaching children that learning and trying new thing shouldn’t be dictated by our age. Age is just a number. 

Educator & Series Information
Recommended for grades K to 4.

Part of the Awkward+Awesome children’s book series.

Based on true events.

Additional Information
32 Pages | 8" x 8"

An engaging look at how the animals, people, and seasons within an ecosystem are intertwined.

To the Gitxsan people of Northwestern British Columbia, the grizzly is an integral part of the natural landscape. Together, they share the land and forests that the Skeena River runs through, as well as the sockeye salmon within it. Follow mother bear as she teaches her cubs what they need in order to survive on their own.

The Mothers of Xsan series uses striking illustration and lyrical language to bring the poetry of the Xsan ecosystem to life.

Awards

• Animal Behavior Society's Outstanding Children's Book Award
• 2020 Manuela Dias Design and Illustration Awards, Children's Illustration winner 

Educator & Series Information
Recommended for ages 9 - 12.

This is the second book in the Mother of Xsan series, which uses striking illustration and lyrical language to bring the poetry of the Xsan ecosystem to life. 

Additional Information
32 pages | 6.50" x 10.00"

This spine-tingling middle-grade collection brings together Skeleton Man and The Return of Skeleton Man—two modern classics that will chill you to the bone.

Molly’s father grew up on the Mohawk Reserve of Akwesasne, where he learned the best scary stories. One of her favorites was the legend of Skeleton Man, a gruesome tale about a man with a deadly, insatiable hunger. But ever since her parents mysteriously vanished, those spooky tales have started to feel all too real.

And things go from bad to worse for Molly when a stranger shows up one day and claims to be her great-uncle. A ghostly thin man she’s never seen before. A man who reminds her an awful lot of the Skeleton Man. But he couldn’t possibly be the same person from her father’s tale . . . could he? It’s up to Molly to uncover the truth about this fearsome figure and rescue her parents before it’s too late.

This 2-in-1 collection is perfect for fans of R.L. Stine, Ellen Oh’s Spirit Hunters series, Holly Black’s Doll Bones, and any young reader who loves a good thrill.

Educator Information
Recommended for ages 8 - 12.

Additional Information
288 pages | 5.12" x 7.62"

Learn about a celebrated Inuit artist! Ningiukulu Teevee is a talented artist from Kinngait, Nunavut. Find out about her incredible body of work, her inspiration, techniques, and what it was like growing up in Kinngait surrounded by other amazing artists.

Educator & Series Information 
Recommended for ages 7 to 9.

This book is part of the Nunavummi Reading Series, a Nunavut-developed series that supports literacy learning while teaching readers about the people, traditions, and environment of the Canadian Arctic.  It is a Level 12 book in the series. 

Nunavummi Reading Series books have also been officially levelled using the Fountas & Pinnell Text Level Gradient™ Levelling System. This book's F&P Level is S.

The Life and Art of Ningiukulu Teevee teaches children about a successful Inuit artist.

Additional Information 
32 pages | 7.00" x 10.00" | Hardcover

A young child skates, bakes, and milks the cow while the moon wondrously transforms above. When they walk through the woods with their skates, the moon is a frozen pond. When they tend the cow, the moon is the milk at the bottom of the pail.

Stunning illustrations by Josée Bisaillon capture how imagination shapes the environment around us. This simple board book shows children that the way they see the world—by heart, mind and imagination—is just right. Reveling in metaphor, The Moon Is a Silver Pond encourages that magical leap of imagination and asks the reader to look at everyday objects from a different perspective.

Educator Information
Themes: metaphor, figurative language, observation, point of view, child's perspective

This book is available in French as a hardcover book: La lune est un etang d'argent

Additional Information
24 pages | 7.00" x 7.00"

From one of China’s most beloved, bestselling children’s authors comes this touching story of friendship and empathy, which celebrates the traditional way of life for the Indigenous Ewenki peoples of Mongolia. 

When a Mongolian elder named Gree Shrek hunts a female moose by mistake, her young calf is left behind. Saddened by her loss, Gree Shrek names the calf Xiao Han (“Little Moose”) and the moose and man form an authentic attachment. Xiao Han accompanies Gree Shrek as the hunter-gatherer herds reindeer, sets up camp, forages for food in the forest, and visits his peoples’ village, where many fun adventures happen. But as the little moose grows bigger, Gree Shrek knows he must return his companion to the forest. 

Richly detailed, painterly illustrations by Chinese fine artist Jiu’er bring authenticity and beauty to this thoughtful book, which illuminates the traditional and vanishing way of life for the Ewenki peoples of Inner Mongolia.

Reviews
"A surprising bond between an elder hunter and a moose sheds light on the lives of an Inner Mongolian people.... Plodding, endearing, and humorous—not unlike a baby moose." - Kirkus Reviews

Educator Information
Recommended Ages: 5 to 9.

Recommended Grande Range: K to Grade 4.

Curriculum Connections: Fairy Tales and Folklore, Nature and Environment, People and Places, Global Studies

Additional Information
68 pages | 10.00" x 9.50"