2025 Governor General's Literary Awards: Finalists announced

Yesterday, the Canada Council for the Arts announced the finalists for the highly prestigious Governor General's Literary Awards.

The seven categories of books, both in French and English, for which awards are given are the following:

• Fiction
• Non-Fiction
• Poetry
• Young People's Literature (Text)
• Young People's Literature (Illustration)
• Drama
• Translation

Congratulations to the finalists 

of all the awards.
 

I present here those finalists of

works for young people.

English-language: Young People's Literature (Text) 

A Drop in the Ocean

Written by Léa Taranto

Arsenal Pulp Press 

 

Beast

Written by Richard Van Camp

Douglas & McIntyre 

 

Best of All Worlds

Written by Kenneth Oppel

Tundra Books 

 

The Outsmarters 

Written by Deborah Ellis

Groundwood Books 

Reviewed here 

 

Tig

Written by Heather Smith

Tundra Books

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

English-language: Young People's Literature (Illustration) 

Bog Myrtle
Written and illustrated by Sid Sharp

Annick Press 

 

It Bears Repeating

Written by Tanya Tagaq

Illustrated by Cee Pootoogook

Tundra Books 

 

Oasis

Written and illustrated by Guojing

Henry Holt & Co.

 

The Rock and the Butterfly

Written by Kathy Stinson

Illustrated by Brooke Kerrigan

Orca Book Publishers

Reviewed here

 

This Land is a Lullaby

Written by Tonya Simpson

Illustrated by Delreé Dumont

Orca Book Publishers 

 

 

 

 

French-language: Young People's Literature (Text) 

 

Cheer
Écrit par Laura Doyle Péan
Les Éditions de la Bagnole  

 

Coup bas

Écrit par Laurie Léveillé

la courte échelle 

 

Fatigué mort
Écrit par Marc-André Dufour-Labbé
Leméac Jeunesse 

 

Tête boule disco
Écrit par Noémie Pomerleau-Cloutier
Éditions du Boréal  

 

Vieille Branche
Écrit par Catherine Fouron
Les Éditions de la Bagnole 

 

 

 

 

 

 

French-language: Young People's Literature (Illustration) 

 

En crise
Écrit par Annick Lefebvre

Illustré par Vincent Partel-Valette
Les Éditions de la Bagnole 

La tasse de Gilles

Écrit par Catherine Trudeau

Illustré par Qin Leng

La Pastèque 

 

Le livre aspirateur
Écrit par Jocelyn Boisvert

Illustré par Enzo
Éditions Michel Quintin 

 

Murielle et le mystère
Écrit et illustré par Charlotte Parent
comme des géants  

 

Un cadeau de Noël en novembre

Écrit par Stéphane Laporte
Illustré par Jacques Goldstyn
Les Éditions de la Bagnole  

 

Winning titles will be announced
on November 6, 2025.

 

The Gift of Words

Written and illustrated by Peter H. Reynolds

Orchard Books (Scholastic)

978-1-339-00034-3 

40 pp.

Ages 4–8

October 2025 

 

While most of Canada still hasn't seen snow since last winter, and many are still ramping up their decorations and party plans for Halloween, there will be some who are starting to think about the winter holiday season. Jerome, Peter H. Reynolds's lexicographer from The Word Collector (2018), is inspired to collect some holiday words, sure that he will find words of hope and of joy that he might share with those he loves. What he finds is surprising.

From The Gift of Words, written and illustrated by Peter H. Reynolds

With his bright yellow notebook and accompanied by his dog Ekko, Jerome checks out words posted throughout his town. Words like "Buy" and "Sale" and "Low Low Prices" do not inspire the good feelings he'd hoped to find. 

These words left Jerome feeling cold.

From The Gift of Words, written and illustrated by Peter H. Reynolds

When he looks beyond the shops, he finds even more distressing words. There's the newsstand where headlines scream about war, poverty, and disasters. And the people he encounters are demanding and hating on the weather and frustrated with others.

 

Jerome's solution is to share inspiring words rather than find new ones. After all, he is a curator of words. So, finding a joyful assortment, he packs up several large bags and pulls them on his sled to the downtown park. There he invites others to join him in decorating a tree with positive words and messages.

 

A word collector's tree.

A tree of hope.

A tree of dreams. A tree of wishes. 

 

From The Gift of Words, written and illustrated by Peter H. Reynolds

Soon the tree is festooned with words of positive actions like "Smile" and "Listen," and of feelings like "Joy," as well as messages like "We can make more light together" and "Together we can." With that tree, with those words, and with his community, Jerome is able to share and help others participate in the gift of words.

 

Peter H. Reynolds has always be a fabulous patron of goodness, inspiring young readers with his picture books that promote self-expression (Happy Dreamer, 2017), love (All We Need Is Love and a Really Soft Pillow!, 2023), empowerment and activism (Say Something!, 2019), creativity (The Dot, 2023), and so much more. With The Gift of Words, Peter H. Reynolds not only promotes a lexicon of heartfelt words and messages, but he also makes us stop and think about the unpleasant communications with which children are bombarded daily. Sadly, there is much of this troubling content, especially during the holidays when commercialism and selfishness abound. Thankfully, Peter H. Reynolds addresses it with a lover of words and that child's pursuit of finding joy in the season. 

From The Gift of Words, written and illustrated by Peter H. Reynolds

Still, the overall feeling of The Gift of Words is one that uplifts. It's one of community and positivity. And Peter H. Reynolds gives us all the children and community participating in making things right. Everyone has the opportunity to be included and to contribute. And all you see is joy in their faces and in their activity. Peter H. Reynolds gives us colour and kinship through his characters and his whimsical tree of hope, dreams, and wishes.

 

Get your students and children in the right holiday spirit with a reading of The Gift of Words and thinking about their own inspiring holiday words—Scholastic has a couple of activity sheets here to help—before the holiday season starts, and the toy and tech commercials begin to bombard them. Help them find the goodness within their community and their place in contributing to it. Help them make this holiday season one of heartfelt sentiment that might sustain them throughout the year.

Activity sheets available for The Gift of Words at Scholastic (https://www.scholastic.com/site/peter-reynolds.html)

2026 Forest of Reading® nominees: Le prix Peuplier, Le prix Mélèze, Le prix Tamarac

This is the final listing of nominees for the 2026 Forest of Reading® book award programs of the Ontario Library Association. 

 

Listed below are the nominees for the French-language reading programs:

• Le prix Peuplier: French-language picture books, less text, simpler subject matters, perfect for read-alouds
• Le prix Mélèze: shorter French-language chapter books with maximum 100 pages or more mature picture books, larger text with pictures, simpler vocabulary and verb tenses
• Le prix Tamarac:  French-language chapter books from 100 to 250 pages, smaller text with little or no illustrations, more complicated verb tenses and vocabulary
  

Links for the other six reading programs follow.

LE PRIX PEUPLIER

Alexis trouve sa voix
Écrit par Anne Renaud

Illustré par François Thisdale

Bouton d’Or d’Acadie

 

Comme toi et moi
Écrit par Priska Poirier

Illustré par Sabrina Gendron

Druide 

 

Les drôles de passe-temps de Nathan
Écrit par Geneviève Simard

Illustré par Élodie Duhameau

Gründ Québec 

 

La grenouille qui rêve les yeux ouverts
Écrit par Chloé Varin

Illustré par Laia Roca Trullols

Éditions Michel Quintin 

 

Le gros méchant Mwa-Mwa-Mwa
Écrit par Geneviève Janelle

Illustré par Jasmine Mirra Turcotte

Québec Amérique 

 

Les mal-aimés
Écrit et illustré par Magalie Élément 

Éditions Alaska 

 

Mon papa punk
Écrit par Iris Boudreau

Illustré par Pascal Grant

Fonfon 

 

Mon pire cauchemar, c’est lui, c’est elle
Écrit par Émilie Ouellette

Illustré par Mika

Éditions Alaska 

 

Nora, et Luce, les supers mamans de Marcus
Écrit par Renée Wilkin

Illustré par Catherine Petit

Boomerang Éditeur Jeunesse 

 

Un monstre vit dans ma tête
Écrit par Émilie Côté-Roy

Illustré par Zoë Robertson

Gründ Québec 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

LE PRIX MÉLÈZE

La bibliothèque enchantée 1: Le livre aspirateur

Écrit par Jocelyn Boisvert 

Illustré par Enzo

Éditions Michel Quintin

 

Le champion du cimetière: Ma vie de zombie
Écrit et illustré par Éric Péladeau 

Bayard Jeunesse Canada 

 

Chasse aux indices 

Écrit par Martine Latulippe

Illustré par François Samson-Dunlop

Éditions Michel Quintin 

 

Comment sauver des chevaux sauvages
Écrit par Andrée Poulin

Illustré par Caroline Lavergne

Bayard Jeunesse Canada 

 

Croki
Écrit et illustré par Jacques Goldstyn 

La Pastèque 

 

Ma langue fleurie
Écrit par Simon Boulerice 

Illustré par Marianne Ferrer

Fonfon 

 

Oui, non, peut-être
Écrit par Lou Beauchesne

Illustré par Agathe Bray-Bournet

La courte échelle 

 

Prisonnier d’une nuit 

Écrit par Amy Lachapelle

Les Éditions Z’ailées 

 

La revanche du moisiar 

Écrit par Karine Gottot 

Illustré par Marina Léon

Bayard Jeunesse Canada 

 

Rose de Noël

Écrit par Marie Potvin

Les Éditions les Malins

LE PRIX TAMARAC

L’affaire Buddy Bussières
Écrit par François-Martine Bergeron-Mercier (François Gravel, Martine Latulippe, Alain Bergeron, Johanne Mercier)

Illustré par Mathilde Filippi

La courte échelle

 

Camp de jour 1 : L’éveil du kraken
Écrit par Annie Bacon 

Illustré par Camille Maestracci

Les Éditions de la Bagnole

 

Ce que j’aimerais trouver sur la plage
Écrit par Rhéa Dufresne 

Bayard Jeunesse Canada 

La chose: Pied-de-poule mouillée
Écrit par Elizabeth Baril-Lessard

Les Éditions les Malins

 

GO Gadget 1: Norbert contre la factrice timbrée
Écrit par Mélodie Heuser

Les Éditions les Malins 

 

Mlle Bottine
Écrit par Sonia Sarfati

Québec Amérique 

 

L’Oracle

Écrit par Julie Champagne 

La courte échelle 

 

Quand ils sont venus
Écrit par Andrée Poulin

Illustré par Sophie Casson

Les Éditions de l'Isatis 

 

#Skate
Écrit par Caroline Auger

Illustré par Audrey Jadaud

Bayard Jeunesse Canada 

Sur le spectre 1: Agathe et Victor
Écrit par Catherine Bourgault

Les Éditions les Malins

••••••••••••••••••••••••

Nominees for the other programs can be linked to from below:

Blue Spruce

Silver Birch Express

Silver Birch Fiction

Yellow Cedar

Red Maple

White Pine