Back to School Book List

With the ads starting for back-to-school sales and everyone starting to think about the beginning of the school year, consider some of these 87 (!) books–picture books, novels, young adult and non-fiction– as read-alouds.  Whether dealing with bullies, or undertaking research projects, looking back at schools of the past, these reads have got it all.

Picture Books

A+ for Big Ben

by Sarah Ellis

Illustrated by Kim La Fave

Pajama Press

24 pp.

Ages 2-5

2015

The Best Thing about Kindergarten

by Jennifer Lloyd

Illustrated by Qin Leng

Simply Read Books

36 pp.

2013

Community Soup

by Alma Fullerton

Pajama Press

32 pp.

Ages 4-7

2013

The Day My Mom Came to Kindergarten

by Maureen Fergus

Illustrated by Mike Lowery

Kids Can Press

32 pp.

Ages 3-7

2013

Franklin Goes to School

by Paulette Bourgeois

Illustrated by Brenda Clark

Kids Can Press

32 pp.

Ages 3-6

1995

Get Out of Bed!

by Robert Munsch

Illustrated by Alan and Lea Daniel

Scholastic Canada

32 pp.

Ages 3-7

1998

Gift Days

by Kari-Lynn Winters

Illustrated by Stephen Taylor

Fitzhenry & Whiteside

32 pp.

Ages 7+

2012

Morris Micklewhite and the Tangerine Dress

by Christine Baldacchino

Illustrated by Isabelle Malenfant
Groundwood Books
32 pp.
Ages 4-7
2014

Noni is Nervous

by Heather Hartt-Sussman

Illustrated by Geneviève Côté

Tundra

24 pp.

Ages 2-6

2013

Oddrey and the New Kid

by Dave Whamond

Owlkids

32 pp.

Ages 4-7

2013

An Ordinary School Day

by C. J. Hamilton

Illustrated by Cindy Revell

Annick Press

24 pp.

Ages 5-9

2004

The Pocket Mommy

by Rachel Eugster

Illustrated by Tom Goldsmith

Tundra Books

32 Pages

Ages 4-6

2013

Suki's Kimono

by Chieri Uegaki

Illustrated by Stephane Jorisch

Kids Can Press

32 pp.

Ages 3-7

2005

Tilt Your Head, Rosie the Red

by Rosemary McCarney

Illustrated by Yvonne Cathcart

Second Story Press

24 pp.

Ages 4-7

2015

Willow Finds a Way

by Lana Button

Illustrated by Tania Howells

Kids Can Press

32 pp.

Ages 5-7

2013

Violet

by Tania Duprey Stehlik

Illustrated by Vanja Vuleta Jovanic

Second Story Press

24 pp.

Ages 5-8

2009

Fiction

4 Kids in 5E and 1 Crazy Year

by Virginia Frances Schwartz

Scholastic Canada

244 pp.

Ages 10-13

2007

26 Tips for Surviving Grade 6

by Catherine Austen

James Lorimer

168 pp.

Ages 8-12

2011

28 Tricks for a Fearless Grade 6

by Catherine Austen

James Lorimer

189 pp.

Ages 9-12

2014

Athlete vs. Mathlete

by W. C. Mack

Scholastic Canada

172 pp.

Ages 9-12

2013

The BEDMAS Conspiracy

by Deborah Sherman

Fitzhenry & Whiteside

172 pp.

Ages 8-11

20011

Bernadette and the Lunch Bunch

by Suzanne Glickman

Illustrated by Mélanie Allard

Second Story Press

123 pp.

Ages 7-9

2008

Dunces Anonymous

by Kate Jaimet

Orca Book Publishers

157 pp.

Ages 8-12

2009

Dunces Rock

by Kate Jaimet

Orca Book Publishers

215 pp.

Ages 8-11

2014

Egghead

by Caroline Pignat

Red Deer Press

173 pp.

Ages 11-14

2008

Ghost Most Foul

by Patti Grayson

Coteau Books

192 pp.

Ages 10-13

2015

The Glory Wind

by Valerie Sherrard
Fitzhenry & Whiteside

222 pp.

Ages 11+

2010

How to Tame a Bully

by Nancy Wilcox Richards

Illustrated by Drazen Kozjan

Scholastic Canada

80 pp.

Ages 7-10

2006

Invasion of the IQ Snatchers

by Arthur Slade

Coteau Books

115 pp.

Ages 8-12

2007

Jolted: Newton Starker’s Rules for Survival

by Arthur Slade

HarperCollins Canada

203 pp.

Ages 11-14

2008

Late for School (Haley and Bix)

by Scott Higgs

Scholastic Canada

30 pp.

Ages 6-7

2007

The Mealworm Diaries

by Anna Kerz   

Orca Book Publishers

176 pp.

Ages 9+

2009

Milo: Sticky Notes and Brain Freeze

by Alan Silberberg

Aladdin

288 pp.

Ages 8-13

2011

The Missing Dog is Spotted

by Jessica Scott Kerrin

Groundwood Books

204 pp.

Ages 8-12

March, 2015

Monsters in the School
by Martyn Godfrey
Scholastic Canada
86 pp.
Ages 7-9
1991

No More Dead Dogs

by Gordon Korman

Scholastic Canada

192 pp.

Ages 8-12

2002

Not Fair, Clare
by Yvonne Prinz
Raincoast Books
197 pp.
Ages 11-13
2008

Overtime

by David Skuy

Scholastic Canada

216 pp.

Ages 11-14

2011

Pigboy

by Vicki Grant

Orca Book Publishers

101 pp.

Ages 9-13

2006

Rain Shadow

by Valerie Sherrard

Fitzhenry & Whiteside

150 pp.

Ages 10+

2014

Revenge on the Fly

by Sylvia McNicoll

Pajama Press

224 pp.

Ages 8+

2014

Rex Zero: The Great Pretender

by Tim Wynne-Jones

Groundwood Books

224 pp.

Ages 10-14

2009

Running Scared

by Beverley Terrell-Deutsch

Red Deer Press

176 pp.

Ages 9-12

2013

Schooled

by Gordon Korman

Scholastic Canada

208 pp.

Ages 8-12

2007

The Secret of Grim Hill

by Linda DeMeulemeester

Lobster Press

187 pp.

Ages 8-12

2007

The Sixth Grade Nickname Game

by Gordon Korman

Scholastic Canada

160 pp.

Ages 8-12

2004

Speechless

by Jennifer Mook-Sang

Scholastic Canada

184 pp.

Ages 8-12

September, 2015

The Spotted Dog Last Seen

by Jessica Scott Kerrin

Groundwood Books

196 pp.

Ages 8-11

2013

The Strictest School in the World: Being the Tale of a Clever Girl, a Rubber Boy and a Collection of Flying Machines, Mostly Broken

by Howard Whitehouse

Illustrated by Bill Slavin

Kids Can Press

252 pp.

Ages 11-14

2006

This Can’t Be Happening at Macdonald Hall

by Gordon Korman

Scholastic Canada

116 pp.

Ages 8-12

1978/2011

The Time Time Stopped

by Don Gilmour

Scholastic Canada

151 pp.

Ages 8-11

2011

Ungifted

by Gordon Korman

Scholastic Canada

260 pp.

Ages 8-12

2012

Young Adult

Alice, I Think
by Susan Juby
HarperCollins Canada
244 pp.
Ages 12+
2003

The Baby Project

by Sarah Ellis

Groundwood Books

144 pp.

Ages 12+

1986

Bifocal

by Deborah Ellis and Eric Walters

Fitzhenry & Whiteside

280 pp.

Ages 12-15

2007

Branded

by Eric Walters

Orca Book Publishers

136 pp.

Ages 10-14

2010

Cape Town

by Brenda Hammond

Great Plains Teen Fiction

326 pp.

Ages 14+

2012 

Chance to Dance for You

by Gail Sidonie Sobat

Great Plains Teen Fiction

172 pp.
Ages 14+
2011

Creeps

by Darren Hynes

Razorbill/Penguin Canada

309 pp.

Age 13 +

2013

Cut the Lights

by Karen Krossing

Orca Book Publishers

129 pp.

Ages 11-14

2013

Depth of Field
by Chantel Guertin
ECW Press
208 pp.
Ages 13+
2014

The Dewpoint Show

by Barb Howard

Fitzhenry & Whiteside

231 pp.

Ages 11-14

2010

Drummer Girl

by Karen Bass

Coteau Books

192 pp.

Ages 14+

2011

Fragile Bones: Harrison & Anna

by Lorna Schultz Nicholson

Clockwise Press

217 pp.

Ages 13+

March 2015

Game Plan

by Natalie Corbett Sampson

Fierce Ink Press

351 pp.

Ages 12+

2013

Kissing Frogs

by Alisha Sevigny

Fierce Ink Press

231 pp.

Ages 12+

2014

My Parents Are Sex Maniacs: A High School Horror Story
by Robyn Harding
Annick Press
235 pp.
Ages 14-16
2009

The New Normal

by Ashley Little

Orca Book Publishers

222 pp.

Ages 12+

2013

The Reluctant Journal of Henry K. Larsen

by Susin Nielsen

Tundra Books

243 pp.

Ages 11-14

2012

Straight Punch
by Monique Polak
Orca Book Publishers
249 pp.
Ages 13-16
2014

The Taming

by Eric Walters and Teresa Toten

Doubleday Canada

229 pp.

Ages 13-17

2012

The Throne

by Beth Goobie

Red Deer Press

281 pp.

Ages 14+

2013

Tribes

by Arthur Slade

HarperTrophy Canada

166 pp.

Ages 12+

2004

The Truth Commission
by Susan Juby
Razorbill Canada
272 pp.
Ages 14+
April 2015

We Are All Made of Molecules

by Susin Nielsen

Tundra Books

246 pp.

Ages 12+

May 2015

What We Hide

by Marthe Jocelyn

Tundra Books

275 pp.

Ages 14+

2014

When Kacey Left

by Dawn Green

Red Deer Press

228 pp.

Ages 12+

April 2015

Non-Fiction

The Delta is My Home

by Tom McLeod and Mindy Willett

Fifth House

26 pp.

Ages 7-10

2008

Fatty Legs: A True Story

by Christy Jordan-Fenton and Margaret Pokiak-Fenton

Illustrated by Liz Amini-Holmes

Annick Press

104 pp.

Ages 7-11

2010 

Goodbye Buffalo Bay

by Larry Loyie

Theytus Books

142 pp.

Ages 10-14

2008

Off to Class: Incredible and Unusual Schools Around the World

by Susan Hughes

Owlkids Books

64 pp.

Ages 8-13

2011

Razia’s Ray of Hope: One Girl’s Dream of an Education
by Elizabeth Suneby
Illustrated by Suana Verelst
Kids Can Press
36 pp.
Ages 8-10
2013

Reptile Flu: A story about communication

by Kathryn Cole

Illustrated by Qin Leng

Second Story Press

24 pp.

Ages 5-8

April 2015

School Days Around the World
by Margriet Ruurs
Illustrated by Alice Feagan
Kids Can Press
40 pp.
Ages 4-7
2015

Shannen and the Dream for a School

by Janet Wilson

Second Story Press

206 pp.

Ages 8+

2011 

The Way to School

by Rosemary McCarney and Plan International

Second Story Press

32 pp.

Ages 7-12

September 2015

When I Was Eight

by Christy Jordan-Fenton and Margaret Pokiak-Fenton

Illustrated by Gabrielle Grimard

Annick Press

32 pp.

Ages 6-9

2013

That Squeak

by Carolyn Beck

Illustrated by François Thisdale

Fitzhenry & Whiteside

978-1-55455-293-1

40 pp.

Ages 6-10

September 2015

With Once Upon a Line (Wallace Edwards, Pajama Press, 2015) and Some Things I've Lost (Cybèle Young, Groundwood Books, 2015), That Squeak makes a trifecta of outstanding youngCanLit picture books being released within the month, truly supportive of the idea that we've entered a new golden age of illustrated books (see an upcoming Quill & Quire examining this issue).

There is no trivial writing or illustration here.  There is a subtle darkness behind That Squeak which draws the reader in from page one.  Two boys, Jay and Joe, on their bikes–Jay's with "that squeak"–spend considerable time exploring and delving in the places beyond town and the farmlands, to the woods and the pond therein. "Our place."  But there comes a time when Jay is gone, killed, and his bike remains abandoned and locked up to a school fence, decaying in the elements of the seasons.  But the new boy, Carlos, doesn't know the bike's history or Joe's friendship with Jay or what happened to Jay and his questions and interest in the bike have Joe erupting.

Everything explodes at once.  I hear the sound of your name bounce off the brick wall of the school  Inside my ribs, big and aching sobs suck and heave like tidal waves.  There's snot everywhere.  And so many tears that I can't see anymore. (pg. 22)

It's not until Joe can see beyond his anger and his grief that he opens himself up to learning of Carlos' own story and the two can deal with their hurts together, recognizing the importance of cherishing some things, even a squeak.

Wow.  That Squeak is not a trivial story or a childish read.  It covers important issues of friendship and death, grief and anger, and acceptance and memory.  And Carolyn Beck writes it with the gravity it deserves.  Readers, younger and older, will recognize the solemnity of the story, and François Thisdale's deep illustrations reflect that weightiness.  Just as he capably conveyed the power of words from a cell-bound writer in the award-winning The Stamp Collector (Jennifer Lanthier, Fitzhenry & Whiteside, 2012), François Thisdale effectively uses painting with digital drawing to deliver colour and line blended just as a friendship can be with sorrows and secrets.  And that's what Carolyn Beck and François Thisdale have done in That Squeak: melded depth and lightness together, in words and images.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Carolyn Beck will also be attending the Eden Mills Writers' Festival on Sunday, September 13, 2015.  It's definitely becoming a go-to event for lovers of youngCanLit!

Once Upon a Line

by Wallace Edwards

Pajama Press

978-1-927485-78-1

32 pp.

Ages 6-9

On sale September 16, 2015

With Once Upon a Line, Wallace Edwards has catapulted himself and his books to the status of must-haves for any home, school or public library.  The USA may have Chris Van Allsburg and most notably The Mysteries of Harris Burdick, but teachers will now be scrambling to use Once Upon a Line instead as the go-to book for story-starters and creative writing projects based on intriguingly unique illustrations that get the creative juices flowing.  And it all starts with one simple and ordinary line.  This line by this pen:

In the introduction to the book, Wallace Edwards recounts the history of Great-Uncle George’s enchanted pen and a line–the line seen above and on the endpapers and in every illustration within–that was the basis for his many paintings, only a handful which exist today and are reproduced within the book.  And, as the reader is told, “Each painting is the beginning of a story, and every story begins with “Once upon a line.” Where each painting’s story goes is up to the reader’s imagination.

From the elaborate entranceway of a mouse to her home that helps her remember…something, someone, somewhere… to the race between the chicken and the egg “until the fluffy one began to…” and an equine-allergic knight who finds a solution, and a rain that brings joy to an elephant and a story from a seagull, Once Upon a Line is resplendent in its fantastical graphic details.   There’s a pajamaed kitten, birds and alligators, a dragon, lush greenery, royalty, a fish or two, several aliens, a compendium of zoological creatures and a variety of candy-kissed vehicles.  And of course, there’s handlebar-moustached and chin-goateed Great-Uncle George, a dashing magician who bears a striking ressemblance to a swashbuckling Musketeer.  And for those who must know where "the" line is in each illustration, Wallace Edwards has kindly appended the book with a cheat sheet to help locate it.

Once Upon a Line is so rich in its visual effects and textual texture that it deserves all the golden stars on its cover (as well as the golden cover font that I reproduced so poorly here) and more. I predict even more shining accolades in Once Upon a Line's future for Wallace Edwards.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Don't miss a chance at meeting Wallace Edwards who is one of the invited writers attending the Eden Mills Writers' Festival on Sunday, September 13, 2015.  Who knows?  There may even be early release copies of Once Upon a Line on sale there.

Book Launch: 250 Hours (Winnipeg)

Author of

Tori by Design

Great Plains Books, 2011

and

The Fall

Great Plains Teen Fiction, 2013

Reviewed here

Colleen Nelson

and

Coteau Books

launch her newest book

250 Hours

250 Hours

by Colleen Nelson

Coteau Books

978-1-55050-641-9

200 pp.

Ages 12+

For release September 2015

on 

September 19, 2015

at
7 p.m.

at McNally Robinson Books
Grant Park in the Atrium
Winnipeg, MB

Here's the blurb from the McNally Robinson website:

Jess and Sara Jean couldn’t be more different. He’s a loner with a criminal record; a Metis raised on the Reserve; the son of a residential school survivor. She’s from nearby Edelburg, a conservative small town. Abandoned by her mother, Sara Jean cares for her obese grandmother and writes to escape.

When Jess is found guilty of arson, he’s ordered to complete 250 hours of community service, starting with Sara Jean’s neglected garage. Sorting through boxes left by her grandfather, they discover that the secrets keeping their communities apart are the very things that will bring them together.

Looking forward to reading this one!