Winter in Canada is a cold, dark season. But that doesn't stop Canadians from gathering together with friends, family and community. Canadians from coast to coast to coast celebrate various holidays including Hannukah, Christmas, Kwanzaa, New Years, and others!
However you celebrate, we hope you'll make reading part of the fun with these books from Canadian creators.
Picture Books
Amy Wu and the Lantern Festival
Written by Kat Zhang
Illustrated by Charlene Chua
Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers 2024
IL: Ages 4-8 RL: Grades p-3
IL: Ages 4-8 RL: Grades p-3
Lunar New Year is Amy’s favourite holiday! Her family celebrates for two whole weeks, and she loves everything about it—the food, the decorations, and, most of all, the traditions! Amy’s favorite tradition is carrying her family’s lantern on Lantern Festival Day. Their lantern is special because every time Amy’s dad lights it, he’s reminded of his mother. But when Amy accidentally crushes their family lantern, is her favorite tradition ruined for good?
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Baseball Bats for Christmas
Written by Michael Arvaarluk Kusugak
Illustrated by Coco Lynge
Annick Press, 2024
IL: Ages 5-8 RL: Grades k-2
IL: Ages 5-8 RL: Grades k-2
Celebrate the 35th anniversary of this beloved holiday classic with a fresh edition that preserves the magic of the original story and brings it to life with stunning new illustrations.
The year is 1955. Arvaarluk and his friends watch Rocky Parsons land his plane on the ice in Repulse Bay, a tiny community “smack dab on the Arctic Circle.” Having never seen trees before, the children try to guess what the six green spindly things are that Rocky delivers. One of the boys has a brilliant idea: why not use them as baseball bats?
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A Dragon for Hanukkah
Written by Sarah Mlynowski
Illustrated by Ariel Landy
Scholastic, 2024
IL: Ages 3-8 RL: Grades p-3
IL: Ages 3-8 RL: Grades p-3
On the first night of Hanukkah, my parents gave me a dragon...
So begins Hannah's holiday adventure, as she receives eight magical presents -- one for each night. There's a playful dragon, a gleaming treasure chest, a time travel machine, some rowdy unicorns... and much more. But are the gifts what they seem to be? When Hannah gathers with family and friends to light the menorah, play dreidel, and eat delicious latkes, she'll discover the true magic of the Festival of Lights.
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The First Christmas Tree: An Innu Tale
Written by Ovila Fontaine
Illustrated by Charlotte Parent
Translated by Ann Marie Boulanger
Orca Book Publishers, 2025
IL: Ages 6-8 RL: Grades 1-3
IL: Ages 6-8 RL: Grades 1-3
The Great Manitou knows that winter is the harshest season for the Innu, and he decides to find a way to make their winters a little brighter. He searches through the trees in the forest to find one who will bring joy, beauty and warmth to all. Could it be the larch, the tree that the Innu use to make sleds, bows or ointments? The birch, malleable and robust? Or the magnificent black spruce? “Do you want to become the Christmas tree?” he asks each one. But one after the other, the trees decline his offer. All except one, the little fir tree, whom the Great Manitou had initially overlooked.
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The House Without Lights: A glowing celebration of joy, warmth, and home
Written by Reem Faruqi
Illustrated by Nadia Alam
Henry Holt and Co., 2024
IL: Ages 4-8 RL: Grades p-3
IL: Ages 4-8 RL: Grades p-3
In this heartwarming holiday picture book, House misses being decorated for the winter holidays . . . but is delighted to be lit up for Eid instead.
After seeing all of its neighbours' twinkling lights for the winter holidays, House hopes to shine too. When Huda and her family move in, House thinks its time to sparkle has finally come. But, Diwali, Hanukkah, and Christmas come and go without a shimmer. Quickly, House learns that every family celebrates joy and togetherness in their own way, no matter the season. And a few months later House will see that this new family has its own holiday to shine for.
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The Light from My Menorah: Celebrating Holidays around the World
Written by Robin Heald
Illustrated by Andrea Blinick
Pajama Press, 2024
IL: Ages 4-8 RL: Grades k-2
IL: Ages 4-8 RL: Grades k-2
Nothing brings communities together like the warm glow of a lamp or candle flame, illuminating people and the stories they tell. In The Light from My Menorah, a young boy celebrating Hannukah follows his menorah’s light as it twists and turns in the night sky, carrying him to mountains, deserts, and even into space. On his journey he sees families from around the world sharing food and togetherness as they celebrate their own special holidays, lighting diya for Diwali, kinara for Kwanzaa, crowns of candles for St. Lucia Day, krathongs for Loy Krathong, and strings of lights for Christmas.
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The Little Ghost Quilt’s Winter Surprise
Written by Riel Nason
Illustrated by Byron Eggenschwiler
Tundra Books, 2025
IL: Ages 3-7 RL: Grades p-2
IL: Ages 3-7 RL: Grades p-2
On one frosty night, the little ghost quilt sees something happening in the town. People are putting up warm, twinkling lights, and there's a fun festive feeling everywhere — like Halloween, his favourite season, but with snowmen and wreaths and candles in windows instead of pumpkins. He is filled with excitement and happiness looking at all the beautiful decorations and joyous people, yet he can't help but feel sad that his friends can't be there.
But then, after almost getting caught in a blizzard, the little ghost quilt is struck by inspiration...
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A Mouse Family Christmas
Written by Deborah Underwood
Illustrated by Leah Hong
Little, Brown Books for Young Readers, 2024
IL: Ages 4-8 RL: Grades 2-3
IL: Ages 4-8 RL: Grades 2-3
It’s Christmas Eve, and the air is tingling with excitement. Hugo the mouse and his family are busy decorating their attic home for the most magical night of the year. But this season, the downstairs is quiet—without an ounce of yuletide cheer. Just a bare tree, with no garland, no bows, and no big sparkly star. Can Hugo hatch a plan to bring some of the joy from upstairs to the lonely man downstairs, who’s spending this holiday without his loved ones?
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My Kwanzaa Wish
Written by Yolanda T. Marshall
Illustrated by Jamie Ellis Pasquale
Chalkboard Publishing, 2024
IL: Ages 4-12 RL: Grades 1-6
IL: Ages 4-12 RL: Grades 1-6
My Kwanzaa Wish is an artistically crafted children's book that poetically captures the essence of the holiday. It embraces its core principles with warmth, positivity, and inspiration. Additionally, it provides educational insights into the significance of Kwanzaa.
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Santa Canuck
Written by Katherine Joy Sowden
Illustrated by Kelsey Marshalsey
Brown Paper Fox, 2025
IL: Ages 3-7 RL: Grades p-2
IL: Ages 3-7 RL: Grades p-2
Santa Canuck delivers holiday cheer to children across Canada, with help from his beaver toy-making crew, cookie-baking polar bears, and a magical moose team led by Bruce the goose to guide his red truck. Packed with festive fun and true Canadian charm, this rhyming tale is the perfect addition to every family's holiday bookshelf. Maple donuts encouraged.
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Sounds Like Christmas
Written by Robert Munsch
Illustrated by Michael Martchenko
Scholastic Canada, 2024
IL: Ages 3-8 RL: Grades p-3
IL: Ages 3-8 RL: Grades p-3
Grandma is baking Christmas cookies, so she asks Lincoln and Georgia to decorate the tree. They put on the lights, and the garlands, and the balls, and the candy canes. In no time they create a cacophony, with the neighbour’s dog and eventually both Grandma and Grandpa yelling on top of the tree. Eventually Grandpa points out that no adults means no Christmas presents — but the kids point out that Santa is sure to come through for them, and they head off to go to finish off the Christmas cookies and to go bed to wait for Christmas morning.
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They Come Off the Ice
Written by Andrea Andersen
Illustrated by Coco Apunnguaq Lynge & Emma Pedersen
Inhabit Media, 2025
IL: Ages 5-7 RL: Grades 1-3
IL: Ages 5-7 RL: Grades 1-3
In They Come Off the Ice, debut Inuit author Andrea Andersen introduces young readers to a unique celebration that takes place in Inuit communities across Labrador: Nalujuit night!
Each January 6th, also known as Old Christmas night, something comes lurking off the ice and into town. With their faces hidden, long sticks in their hands, and carrying bags full of . . . candy? The beings approach in the snowy darkness. What do they want? Knock, Knock, Knock Open the door if you dare!
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We Are Lion Dancers
Written & illustrated by Benson Shum
Penguin Young Readers Group, 2024
IL: Ages 5-7 RL: Grades k-2
IL: Ages 5-7 RL: Grades k-2
As Lunar New Year approaches, a colourful costume catches the eye of siblings Lily and Noah—the lion dancers are practicing for the parade! As they learn what the lion dance means, the duo dives into helping prepare, even making their own lion costume for fun.
Complete with even more facts about the legend of the lion dance in the back of the book, young readers will want to revisit this story again and again.
For middle readers
Let It GlowWritten by Joanne Levy and Marissa Meyer
Feiwel & Friends, 2024
IL: Ages 9-12 RL: Grades 4-7
IL: Ages 9-12 RL: Grades 4-7
When Aviva Davis and Holly Martin meet at the holiday pageant tryouts for their local senior’s center, they think they must be seeing double. While they both knew they were adopted, they had no idea they had a biological sibling, let alone an identical twin!
One thing the girls have in common is their curiosity about how the other celebrates the holidays. What better way to discover the magic of the holidays than to experience them firsthand? The girls secretly trade lives, planning to stage a dramatic reveal to their families. Two virtual strangers swapping homes, holidays, and age-old traditions–what could possibly go wrong?
One thing the girls have in common is their curiosity about how the other celebrates the holidays. What better way to discover the magic of the holidays than to experience them firsthand? The girls secretly trade lives, planning to stage a dramatic reveal to their families. Two virtual strangers swapping homes, holidays, and age-old traditions–what could possibly go wrong?
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Christmas WeekendWritten by Monique Polak
Penguin Young Readers Group, 2024
IL: Ages 10-14 RL: Grades 5-9
IL: Ages 10-14 RL: Grades 5-9
Geoffrey isn't too thrilled about having to spend Christmas weekend at his dad's cottage in the Laurentians. The Internet is so lousy Geoffrey can't play computer games. Even worse, there's Rebekah, his dad's latest girlfriend. Rebekah is unbearably cheerful and for someone Jewish, she's way too into Christmas. It doesn't help that Geoffrey's kid sister Angela and the family dog, Paprika, give Rebekah a chance. A freak storm traps the family in the cottage. When a late-night cooking experiment goes terribly wrong, Geoffrey and his sister get to know Rebekah in ways they could never have expected.
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Book list curated by Spencer Miller