These new Canadian books encourage young readers to learn the history and appreciate the diversity of Canada's Jewish communities.
Kai and the Golem
Written by Carol Matas
Illustrated by Elisa Vavouri
Lerner Publishing Group, 2025
IL: Ages 4-9 RL: Grades p-1
Rain in the morning makes Kai say, "That's not what I want!" After school, he wants to read stories with Bubbe, but she isn't there. "That's not what I want!" says Kai. Maybe, he thinks, there's a creature that makes bad things happen. Could it be a Golem, big and scary? But maybe things aren't so bad if you look at them in a different way...
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Dancing on Memories
Written by Freda Lewkowicz
Illustrated by Sally Anne Garland
Behrman House, 2025
IL: Ages 6-8 RL: Grades 1-3
Sarah and her Nana used to spend their days baking challah together for Shabbat and dancing like the flames of Hanukkah candles. But now Nana is sick; she mostly talks about the past, has trouble remembering the right words, and hardly smiles.
Sarah wants to help her Nana. She listens to the stories and helps when Nana forgets words. But there must be something else she can do to make Nana happy again. That's when Sarah gets the idea to play the music of Swan Lake that Nana used to hear when she was a ballerina. Listening to it again makes Nana light up, and she remembers how to dance again with Sarah.
Backmatter includes a glossary for Jewish and ballet vocabulary and a note discussing the author's own experiences with loved ones diagnosed with Alzheimer's, as well as the true story of Marta Cinta González, a ballerina who remembered the dances she used to do despite her disease.
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The Remembering Candle
Written by Alison Goldberg
Illustrated by Selina Alko
Barefoot Books, 2025
IL: Ages 6-8 RL: Grades 1-3
Grandpa died last November. Now, one year later on the anniversary of his death, a boy and his family light a special candle. It’s not a birthday, Hanukkah, or Shabbat candle. It’s a yahrzeit candle in remembrance of him, and it will burn all night and all day tomorrow until sunset. But why does it burn for so long?
The boy and his family spend the next night and day remembering Grandpa and sharing stories with each other. From his stylish hats, to piano duets, and apple squares for dessert, warm memories of Grandpa shine like stars with them while the yahrzeit candle burns – and continue to shine when it goes out.
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Memory Stones
Written by Kathy Kacer
Illustrated by Hayley Lowe
Second Story Press, 2025
IL: Ages 6-8 RL: Grades 1-3
IL: Ages 6-8 RL: Grades 1-3
Sophie loves her granny more than she loves stars or books or her hamster. And when Granny passes away, Sophie misses her more than she can say. The flowers Sophie brings to Granny’s grave always fade too soon. When Sophie learns that some people place stones on loved ones’ graves, because stones last forever, she has an idea for a special way to remember Granny and the times they shared.
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Looking at the Sky: How Dr. Janusz Korczak Fought for Children’s Rights
Written by Amanda West Lewis
Illustrated by Abigail Rajunov
Kids Can Press, 2026
IL: Ages 8-12 RL: Grades 3-7
A poignant graphic novel inspired by the pre-World War II Warsaw orphanage run by children's rights advocate Dr. Janusz Korczak.
It's 1923 in Warsaw. Seven-year-old Izaak's parents have died, and his older sisters can't care for him. So, Izaak goes to live in a Jewish orphanage run by Janusz Korczak, a prominent doctor and writer. Izaak is unhappy about leaving home, and he misses his sisters. But now he has enough to eat. He goes to school for the first time. And Dr. Korczak's unconventional ideas about children's rights slowly open his eyes to his own worth and his life's future possibilities.
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All the Things We Found
Written by Joanne Levy
Orca Book Publishing, 2025
IL: Ages 9-12 RL: Grades 4-7
Ruthie is finally getting used to the new normal: her parents' divorce, having a stepdad and (annoying) stepbrothers and trying not to think too much about before.
When her mom starts feeling sick, Ruthie’s relieved it’s nothing serious…until her mom tells her she’s pregnant again. Their family suffered a loss three years ago and it was devastating. How could her mom risk that again?
At least Ruthie has her best friend and her dog to help comfort her, as well as her favorite book series that always cheers her up: The Unicorns of Faravelle Forest. When Ruthie unexpectedly meets Ally, an older woman in the park where she takes her dog to play, she learns Ally is grieving a loss too, and the two develop an unlikely friendship. Though the journey is never smooth, Ruthie eventually realizes there’s comfort to be found in expressing your feelings and cherishing the memory of those you've loved.
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Last Known Address: The Stumbling Stones of Europe
Written by Kathy Kacer
Second Story Press, 2026
IL: Ages 9-12 RL: Grades 4-7
Embedded into the cobblestones of Europe are Stolpersteine—stumbling stones. Carefully hand-chiseled with names and dates, these small, brass plaques make up the largest monument to the Holocaust in the world. Today, you can find over 100,000 stones across Europe.
The Stumbling Stones Project was begun by artist Gunter Demnig as a way to remember that each victim of the Holocaust had a life that was terribly and tragically stolen. Each memorial plaque is placed outside the last voluntary address of the person—the homes from which they were arrested and often taken to concentration camps. Not all were Jewish, some were persecuted for being Romani, disabled, or queer, and not all shared the same fate. These stories include that of a resistance fighter, an art conservator, an Olympian, and the young Anne Frank. Take a journey around Europe to learn their stories.
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Honor
Written by Susan McClelland, Nataliia Mariichyn & Leon Buchwald
Astra Publishing House, 2026
IL: Ages 12-18 RL: Grades 7-12
Told from dual perspectives, this remarkable true story for YA readers recounts the tale of two individuals—a Ukrainian teen in the early 2010s and a Jewish boy in hiding during WWII—whose lives are entwined through a box of letters.
When Nataliia, a teenager in Ukraine, uncovers a mysterious box of letters written during the Holocaust, she is drawn into the story of Eliezer, a Jewish boy in hiding during World War II. As Nataliia reads, past and present begin to echo each other in unexpected ways. The letters raise questions her family has never fully answered and point toward a history that feels strangely close to home.
Told through dual perspectives, Honor is a true story of resilience, moral courage, and the quiet choices that shape generations. As the world once again faces conflict, Nataliia’s search for understanding reveals how the past can resurface when we least expect it and why remembering matters.
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The Rebel Girls of Rome
Written by Jordyn Taylor
HarperCollins, 2025
IL: Ages 13-18 RL: Grades 8-12
Part historical mystery, part sweeping romance, The Rebel Girls of Rome brings the stories of two young women to brilliant life: Lilah, a college student looking to understand her grandfather’s mysterious past, and Bruna, a queer Jewish woman who joins the resistance during World War II.
From Jordyn Taylor, author of The Paper Girl of Paris, this dual-contemporary and historical tale—where heartbreak, hope, and finding light in times of darkness are inevitably intertwined—is perfect for readers of Ruta Sepetys and Monica Hesse.