The Canadian children’s book community has lost one of its true heroes. My friend, Amy Mathers, passed away on May 21, 2026. To know Amy was to love her. She was brilliant and kind—a ferocious reader and a passionate supporter of Canadian children’s and teen books. One of my favourite memories of Amy is approaching her at a CCBC Book Awards event and her excitedly showing off the sparkly silver shoes she had bought especially for the occasion. She was so proud of the Amy Mathers Teen Book Award, and her enthusiasm for books was truly infectious.
Amy’s legacy will continue through the award that bears her name, a lasting reflection of her deep commitment to Canadian children’s and teen literature. In her honour, donations will help ensure the award continues for years to come. She will be deeply missed and remembered with great love by the community she supported so wholeheartedly.
Her love of stories is something that continues to echo through our community and in the work we celebrate in these pages.
I have R.L. Stine’s Fear Street series to thank for my love of reading. (I know—not Canadian. Sorry!) While I had always loved books, discovering the Fear Street series as a preteen turned me into an avid reader. I would devour each new release in a day or two, then wait—impatiently—for the next. Even now, I’m drawn to reading series because I enjoy returning to familiar characters and settings and spending more time with the fictional worlds I adore.
Author Linda Trihn has written two book series for middle-grade readers. In her engaging profile, Heather Camlot speaks with Linda about her books, why she enjoys writing series, and how her stories are a love letter to her home country of Vietnam.
Our Keep Your Eye On spotlights Linda Cheng, whose books for teens blend horror, dark fantasy, and queer coming-of-age themes with explorations of beauty, identity, and obsession.
Our May Bookmark list of new releases spans lyrical picture books, heartfelt middle-grade stories, emotionally rich YA fiction, and thought-provoking non-fiction exploring themes of identity, friendship, social justice, disability and belonging.
As always, you’ll also find reviews of new books to discover and enjoy.
Happy reading!
Shannon Barnes