2027 Forest of Reading Nominees Spotlight Picture Books and Middle Grade Fiction

The first group of 2027 Forest of Reading® nominees offers young readers three distinct ways into the awards: picture books for early grades, a mix of fiction and nonfiction for middle-grade readers, and fiction for a broader elementary audience. The Ontario Library Association’s awards bring together books from a wide range of publishers and creators, giving families, educators and booksellers a useful starting point for discovering titles across formats and subjects.

This announcement covers the Blue Spruce, Silver Birch Express and Silver Birch Fiction lists. Blue Spruce is for picture books aimed at JK to Grade 2. Silver Birch Express includes fiction and nonfiction for Grades 3 and 4, while Silver Birch Fiction focuses on fiction for Grades 3 to 6. Those age bands make this first set especially practical for libraries and classrooms planning reading choices across several stages.

Picture books for younger readers

The Blue Spruce nominees include stories and subjects that can support many kinds of shared reading. Call Me Gray, written by Andrew Larsen and Bells Larsen and illustrated by Talullah Fontaine, comes from Kids Can Press. Camping Is a Terrible Idea, by Kirsten Pendreigh with illustrations by Tiffany Everett, is published by Sleeping Bear Press. North Winds Press (Scholastic Canada) is represented by Dear Classroom 1B, written by Lynn Leitch and illustrated by Christine Battuz.

The list also includes Fly in the Chai, written by Zenia Wadhwani and illustrated by Chaaya Prabhat, from Tundra Books, and Love, Panda, written by Elaine Su and illustrated by Charlene Chua, from Scholastic Canada. Delano Brown and Briana Mukodiri Uchendu are the writer and illustrator of My Neighborhood, published by Random House Studio.

Other nominees bring together multiple creators. One Can, written by Lana Button and Eric Walters and illustrated by Isabelle Malenfant, is published by Groundwood Books. Kids Can Press also publishes Rez Kid, written by Andrea Landry and illustrated by Isabella Fassler. Tundra Books’ Sarabeth’s Garage pairs Melanie Florence’s writing with illustrations by Nadia Alam.

The remaining titles include This Is How We Talk: A Celebration of Disability and Connection, written by Jessica Slice and Caroline Cupp and illustrated by Kayla Harren, from Dial Books. The list’s range of creators and publishers gives readers several entry points for conversation, from a familiar everyday setting suggested by a title like Dear Classroom 1B to the explicit focus on disability and connection in This Is How We Talk. The announcement also links to reviews of Call Me Gray, Love, Panda, One Can, Rez Kid and Sarabeth’s Garage.

Silver Birch Express: fiction and nonfiction

Silver Birch Express brings together narrative and informational reading for Grades 3 and 4. Its nominees include Bompa’s Intertidal Adventure, written by David Suzuki and Sarika Cullis-Suzuki with Tanya Lloyd Kyi, illustrated by Qin Yeng and published by Greystone Kids. The title signals a coastal and nature-focused subject, adding nonfiction interest to a list that also features imaginative stories and series books.

Science and biography meet in The Curious Life of Cecilia Payne: Discovering the Stuff of Stars, written by Laura Alary, illustrated by Yas Imamura and published by Eerdmans Books for Young Readers. The list also has room for animal stories: Charlie the Matachewan Moose, written by Shawna Lee Corbould and illustrated by Jessica Somers, comes from Strong Nations. Monica Arnaldo writes and illustrates Diary of a Dino Ghost: Unlikely Friends for Scholastic Canada.

Several selections invite readers into illustrated worlds or continuing adventures. Greystone Kids publishes Jana Curll’s written-and-illustrated Fiddlehead Forest. Alina Tysoe writes and illustrates The Great Puptective: The Big Mousetake, Book 3 of The Great Puptective, for Simon and Schuster. Danny Ramadan’s Salma Keeps Her Word, illustrated by Anna Bron, is published by Annick Press.

Wordplay, science and history also feature in the group. Sara Cassidy’s Star Sailor, the Story of Words, illustrated by Julie McLaughlin, is from Orca Book Publishers. The same publisher has This Book Stinks, written by Danielle St. Ong and Jeff Szpirglas and illustrated by Alyssa Waterbury. Jennifer Cooper’s This Skirt Won’t Work! How Women Athletes Changed Their Clothes and Changed the Game, illustrated by Eva Byrne, is published by Sourcebooks Explore. Lorna Schultz Nicholson’s Hitting the Target is published by Scholastic Canada, as is Jay Odjick’s Kaboom!: Blast Off, illustrated by KC Oster. The announcement links to a review of Star Sailor, the Story of Words.

Silver Birch Fiction: a wider range of stories

For Grades 3 to 6, Silver Birch Fiction offers a varied fiction lineup. Beast Ballerz, Book 1 of the Beast Ballerz series, is written by Wesley King, illustrated by Steve Wolfhard and published by Tundra Books. Scholastic Canada’s nominees include Sabina Khan’s The Bloodstone Thief and Lorna Schultz Nicholson’s Hitting the Target.

Fantasy and the uncanny appear in several titles. Natalie Hyde’s Briarwood, from DCB Young Readers, has a linked review. G.P. Putnam's Sons Books for Young Readers publishes Mary Averling’s The Ghosts of Bitterfly Bay. Alina Tysoe writes and illustrates My Sister the Werebeast for First Second Books, while Celia Krampien’s Remember Me, Daphne comes from Atheneum Books for Young Readers.

The final nominees listed are Kevin Sylvester’s Time Surfers, published by HarperCollins, and Touching Grass, written by Kristy Jackson, illustrated by Rhael McGregor and published by HarperCollins Canada. Jay Odjick’s Kaboom!: Blast Off and Briarwood also have review links in the announcement.

Readers can browse the full nominee lists through the linked award pages. The announcement points to additional 2027 programs too: Yellow Cedar, Red Maple and White Pine, along with Le prix Peuplier, Le prix Mézèle and Le prix Tamarac. Together, these first lists give reading groups a broad set of titles to explore, with the age categories helping readers find a comfortable place to begin.