I Will Not Walk to School

Written by Naseem Hrab
Illustrated by Kelly Collier

Kids Can Press

978-1-5253-1439-1
40 pages
Ages 3–7

May, 2026

 

School will be starting again soon and undoubtedly there are parents and guardians wondering how challenging it will be to get little ones to school. (Maybe not so little ones too.) Perhaps children are nervous about starting a new school or a new class, or maybe school has always been a challenge for them, whether academically or socially. But what if they like school?

Monster does not want to get out of bed in this illustration by Kelly Collier from I Will Not Walk to School, written by Naseem Hrab

We’ve seen collaborations between Governor General Award-winning writer Naseem Hrab and illustrator Kelly Collier (e.g., Otis & Peanut series, Snail and Stump series), but now we’ve got Monster, a little one, who doesn’t like going to school. It’s not school he hates—he actually loves school— but it’s the getting there that is the problem. But today is Pancake Breakfast Day and, with pepperoni pineapple pizza pancakes on offer, it may be enough to get him going. But Monster is a pro at delaying. Even prodded by Bird, it is unclear whether he will get to school to enjoy those tasty treats.

Monster tries delaying his walk to school in this illustration by Kelly Collier from I Will Not Walk to School, written by Naseem Hrab

With characters unlike any Naseem Hrab and Kelly Collier have created, I Will Not Walk to School understands every parent who has to get a child ready to go to school, to go to bed, or to do anything they don’t want to do. It’s about perseverance, patience, and prodding. Young readers will laugh at Monster’s antics, from not wanting to leave his stuffie Captain Donutface behind to the need for repeated potty breaks. Perhaps they’ll even be familiar with his strategies for avoidance or for delay. I Will Not Walk to School may not change their own behaviours, but they’ll get a chuckle, as will their parents, about how exasperating they can be, and how creative too, when attempts are made to coax a child, or monster, to do which they are reluctant to undertake.