Canada 2026

I first visited Canada in 1994 and then again in 2012 and 2019. I have now returned from my fourth trip to this huge, and varied country. My visit this time allowed me, and another children's literature aficionado, to attend the 40th IBBY World Congress hosted by IBBY Canada in Ottawa.

Back in 1994 I set myself the target of collecting a picture book from every Province and territory. One of the books I picked up back then was O'Canada. The lyrics of this song, the Canadian nation anthem hummed along in the background all through my most recent trip.

Here are a few observations about Canada some linked with a picture book (although not all of the books are Canadian).

Bookshops 

Kidsbooks Vancouver; Munro's Books (Vancouver Island); Tanners Books (Sidney Vancouver Island); Kaboodles Toy store (Vancouver Island); Upstart & Crow (Granville Island Vancouver); Nooroongji Books (Granville Island Vancouver); Indigo (Montreal); Octopus Books (Ottawa); and one with books all in French which was so much fun Librairie du soleil d'Ottawa. (I will post pictures of some of the book treasures we found in these shops later). 

One of the most moving books I read in a library - we visited four or five - was this one:

Beavers, capybaras, sea otters and groundhogs (and squirrels too)

We didn't actually see a beaver or a capybara or a sea otter in the wild but we did see them in a 'zoo' called The Montreal Biodome and we watched a wonderful film about a sea otter mum and her baby. Groundhogs on the other hand were everywhere on the campus at Carleton University - I didn't know groundhogs were even real. Oddly we did have to navigate lots of misinformation about them - at first I wondered if these little brown guys were chipmunks but then we discovered chipmunks are tiny. Then someone told us they were muskrats or perhaps woodchucks. Anyway, we did some research, asked more questions and yes they were groundhogs (woodchuck is another name for a groundhog). On campus they are affectionately known as 'chonkers'.

We didn't see a beaver except on a live cam screen at the Biodome

I found this close up photo on the internet of a Groundhog- 

my photos are too far away - these guys are quite shy

Capybara image source: Montreal Biodome.

Watch the trailer

At the Malahat Skywalk we also saw a young girl handing a red-tailed hawk - one of those moments to treasure. It made me feel very emotional being so close to such a majestic bird.

Art galleries

We were so lucky to find fantastic exhibitions that coincided with our visit for example at the Ottawa Art Gallery near our hotel we learnt about the life and work of Faith Fyles (1875–1961), the first woman to be appointed as a botanist with Canada’s Department of Agriculture.

The National Gallery of Canada in Ottawa had a very special exhibition by the Canadian impressionist artist Helen McNicoll.

Image source: National Gallery "In the shadow of the tree".

In Montreal there is a children's bookshop called Livres Babar

Sadly it was too far away for a visit this time.

At the Montreal Museum and Fine Art Gallery, we chanced upon an exhibition entitled 'From the functional to the Fabulous: 600 years of decorative arts and design'. They had chairs, computers through the ages, jewelry, and silver tea sets.

And in Vancouver we spent time at the Bill Reid gallery in preparation for our IBBY Congress which explored Canadian and other indigenous books for children and their creators. 

Suffragettes

The Famous Five statue in Ottawa

Read more here

Canada granted women the right to vote in 1917. Only women who were war widows or had husbands or sons at war were able to vote. Considerations for extending this right were linked to the desire of the nation to remain a “White Settler” land. In May 1918, women citizens (this did not include Indigenous women) were given the right to vote.

Check out my blog post about this book.

Maple trees and maple syrup

We did a fabulous tree walk in Stanley Park and saw some very, very old and very, very tall trees. Our guide was a young tree enthusiast and expert. We saw animal bones dropped by an eagle from a high tree nest, a woodpecker, and a robin feeding her babies in a tiny but precarious nest. Near the end of our walk Colin our guide pointed out a little berry on a plant (you can eat them) with the delightful name: Thimbleberry.

Lakes, rivers, canals and waterfalls

Canada has an abundance of freshwater, with about 20% of the world’s total freshwater resources and roughly 7% of global renewable freshwater supply. Freshwater shapes Canada’s geography, with over 2 million lakes, countless rivers and creeks, and nearly 9% of the country’s surface area covered by water. We walked along canals and beside lakes and saw several waterfalls including the famous Montmorency Falls in Quebec. We took a boat trip on the St. Lawrence River which is the second longest river in Canada.

Montmorency Falls Quebec

Residential schools

In 2019 I read this book and then at our conference David A Robertson talked about his book and sitting in a museum (I think it was in Vancouver at The Bill Reid Gallery) I read Shi-shi-etko and The Secret Pocket. 

Eagles

On a boat trip from Granville Island (Vancouver BC) we saw several of the famous bald eagles - they were actually very close.

Flower baskets and displays

Summer time in Canada and every city had the most gorgeous street planter boxes and hanging baskets. 

More to come - conference highlights - I will talk about the richness of the 40th IBBY Congress in a few days including Michael Rosen; Sidney Smith and Jon Klassen! And we met Kathy Stinson, Margriet Ruuers, and saw Barbara Reid in the crowd. 

One more thing - I need to mention the BEST sandwich of the whole trip which we ate on the last day in Ottawa: Chicken avocado club: Brined Roasted Chicken + Cranberry Loaf + Avocado + Chipotle Aioli + Bacon + Smoked Cheddar + Lettuce + Tomatoes Served with choice of House Fries or Salad. YUM!

Essential Fairy Tales: Sleeping Beauty

Trina Schart Hyman

The folktale begins with a princess whose parents are told by a wicked fairy that their daughter will die when she pricks her finger on a particular item. In one version, the princess pricks her finger on a piece of flax. In Perrault's and the Grimm Brothers' versions, the item is a spindle. The parents rid the kingdom of these items in the hopes of protecting their daughter, but the prophecy is fulfilled regardless. Instead of dying, as was foretold, the princess falls into a deep sleep. After some time, she is found by a prince and is awakened. You probably remember the scene - the Christening of the new baby, the fairies who come with gifts (six of them) and the fairy who felt scorned or left out (fairy number seven) who bestows her gift which luckily another fairy is able to modify from death to sleep. 

Maja Dusikova

Margaret Early (Australian illustrator - take a look at her other titles)

Ruth Sanderson

Christian Birmingham

Paola Escobar

An illustration by Roger Duvoisin (Favourite Fairy Tales Told in France)

And then for some fun try to find these (or take a look here):

by Mary Pope Osborne illustrated by Giselle Potter

Essential Fairy Tales: The Elves and the Shoemaker

 

Here is a retelling of the story

The original Elves and the Shoemaker was actually a set of three stories with the delightful sounding German title: Die Wichtelmänner. Here is a very academic and detailed analysis of this fairy tale. As a child I loved this story because the little elves were so kind to the old shoemaker and his wife and I especially appreciated the way they then made tiny clothes and shoes to thank their tiny helpers. 

Child's Play

Bernadette Watts

Ian Beck

Paul Galdone

Jim LaMarche

Rachel Swirles 

Kirill Chelushkin

Hopscotch Fairy Tale series

This is not directly related but I remember I loved the illustrations. You might still have this book in your school library - it was a past CBCA title:

Essential Fairy Tales: Rumpelstiltskin

Mac Barnett and Carson Ellis

In some ways this series of posts I am compiling over these few weeks came about because of the Mac Barnett and Carson Ellis version of Rumpelstiltskin and also when Colby Sharp said his Grade Five class were unfamiliar with the fairy tale. That got me thinking about which fairy tales I would read to my senior primary groups - the Essential Fairy Tales.

Bernadette Watts

Paul O Zelinsky (you will also find this version with a different cover)

Paul Galdone

Martin Hargreaves

Jane Ray

Jonathan Langley

Here is a new Young Adult Australian novel that heavily relies on your knowledge of the fairy tale Rumpelstiltskin:

Once upon tomorrow

You might find this fracture version in a library:

From the series Hopscotch Twisty Tales