The Governor General's Award for English-language children's illustration is a Canadian literary award that annually recognizes one Canadian illustrator for a children's book written in English. It is one of four children's book awards among the Governor General's Awards for Literary Merit, one each for writers and illustrators of English- and French-language books. The Governor General's Awards program is administered by the Canada Council.
In name, this award is part of the Governor General's Award program only from 1987 but the four children's literature awards were established in 1975 under a Canada Council name. In the event, the "Canada Council" and "Governor General's" awards have recognized children's book illustration in an English-language children's book every year from 1978.
Canada Council Children's Literature Prize
In 1975 the Canada Council established four annual prizes of $5000 for the year's best English- and French-language children's books by Canadian writers and illustrators. Those "Canada Council Children's Literature Prizes" were continued under the "Governor General's Awards" rubric from 1987, and continue today. Among them the English-language illustration prize was awarded every year from 1978.
1978: Ann Blades, A Salmon for Simon, written by Betty Waterton 1979: László Gál, The Twelve Dancing Princesses, retold by Janet Lunn 1980: Elizabeth Cleaver, Petrouchka: adapted from Igor Stravinsky and Alexandre Benois, Petrushka retold by Cleaver 1981: Heather Woodall, Ytek and the Arctic Orchid: an Inuit legend, by Garnet Hewitt 1982: Vlasta van Kampen, ABC/123: The Canadian Alphabet and Counting Book 1983: László Gál, The Little Mermaid, retold by Margaret Crawford Maloney 1984: Marie-Louise Gay, Lizzy's Lion, by Dennis Lee 1985: Terry Gallagher, Murdo's Story, by Murdo Scribe 1986: Barbara Reid, Have You Seen Birds?, by Joanne Oppenheim
Three of these winning English-language illustrators also won the annual Canadian Library Association award for children's book illustration, recognizing the same books. Their CLA Amelia Frances Howard-Gibbon Illustrator's Awards are dated one year later: Blades 1979, Gál 1980, and Woodall 1982. The Howard-Gibbon award was inaugurated in 1971 for 1970 publications."Amelia Frances Howard-Gibbon Illustrator's Award" [winners]. Book Awards. Canadian Library Association (cla.org). Retrieved 2015-08-06.
Six illustrators listed below, winners of the English-language illustration award under the "Governor General's" name, also won the CLA award for the same book: Gay 1988, LaFave 1989, Morin 1991, Lightburn 1992, Reid 1998, and Denton 1999.
Children's literature (illustration)
1980s +Award winners and finalists, 1987-1989YearIllustratorAuthorTitleResult 1987 Rainy Day MagicWinner Exploring the Night Sky Finalist Finalist Flights of MagicFinalist 1988 Amos's SweaterWinner Angel and the Polar Bear Finalist How the Devil Got His Cat Finalist Sleepers Finalist Finalist 1989 Winner Finalist Finalist
1990s +Award winners and finalists, 1990-1999YearIllustratorAuthorTitleResult 1990 Winner Seasons Finalist Finalist 1991 Doctor Kiss Says YesWinner Finalist Peter and the Wolf Finalist Finalist Coyote WinterFinalist 1992 Waiting for the WhalesWinner Zoom Upstream Finalist Hickory, Dickory, Dock Finalist Finalist When Jeremiah Found Mrs. MingFinalist 1993 Sleep Tight, Mrs. MingWinner Beethoven Lives Upstairs Finalist There Were Monkeys in My Kitchen! Finalist Brewster Rooster Finalist Last Leaf First Snowflake to FallFinalist 1994 Josepha: A Prairie Boy's StoryWinner Finalist There Was An Old Man...: A Collection of LimericksFinalist Polar, the Titanic BearFinalist WhoFinalist 1995 Winner Aska's Sea Creatures Finalist Finalist Just Stay Put Finalist Woodland ChristmasFinalist 1996 Winner Sody SalleratusFinalist Finalist Gruntle Piggle Takes OffFinalist Whatever You Do, Don't Go Near That Canoe!Finalist 1997 Winner Flying DimitriFinalist RumpelstiltskinFinalist Finalist Finalist 1998 Winner Finalist Music for the Tsar of the SeaFinalist Finalist Finalist 1999 Winner I Know an Old LaddieFinalist Dragon New YearFinalist Sindbad: from the Tales of the Thousand and One NightsFinalist Brave Highland HeartFinalist
2000s +Award winners and finalists, 2000-2009YearIllustratorAuthorTitleResult 2000 Yuck, A Love StoryWinner Finalist Hannah's CollectionsFinalist Finalist Pa's HarvestFinalist 2001 Winner Wild Bog TeaFinalist Finalist We'll All Go SailingFinalist Mallory and the Power BoyFinalist 2002 AlphabeastsWinner Dragonfly Kites / KíweegínapíseekFinalist Stella, Fairy of the ForestFinalistRogé When Pigs FlyFinalist Finalist 2003 Winner Four Pictures by Emily CarrFinalist Imagine a NightFinalist Finalist Sindbad's Secret: From the Tales of the Thousand and One NightsFinalist 2004 JabberwockyWinner Dawn WatchFinalist Stella, Princess of the SkyFinalist Finalist Peg and the YetiFinalist 2005 Imagine a DayWinner City AngelFinalist Mixed BeastsFinalist Finalist Maria ChapdelaineFinalist 2006 Ancient ThunderWinner Earth MagicFinalist and Stéphan Daigle Finalist Casey at the BatFinalist Let's Go for a RideFinalist 2007 Winner Finalist Finalist Marja's SkisFinalist My New ShirtFinalist 2008 Winner My Letter to the World and Other PoemsFinalist Finalist Yellow Moon, Apple MoonFinalist Shin-chi's CanoeFinalist 2009 Bella's TreeWinner Bradley McGogg, the Very Fine FrogFinalist Finalist My Great Big MammaFinalist AlegoFinalist
2010s +Award winners and finalists, 2010-2019YearIllustratorAuthorTitleResult 2010 Cats' Night OutWinner UirapuruFinalist Owls See Clearly at NightFinalist I Know HereFinalist Finalist 2011 Ten BirdsWinner MigrantFinalist Fishing with GubbyFinalist Red WagonFinalist Along a Long RoadFinalist 2012 Virginia WolfWinner Big City BeesFinalist House Held Up by TreesFinalist In the Bag! Margaret Knight Wraps It UpFinalist Picture a TreeFinalist 2013 Northwest PassageWinner Miss Mousie's Blind DateFinalist "Post cartoonist Clement finalist for Canadian literary award". National Post, October 3, 2013. Oy, Feh, So?Finalist Finalist How ToFinalist 2014 This One SummerWinner Any Questions?Finalist Hana Hashimoto, Sixth ViolinFinalist Once Upon a MemoryFinalist Julia, ChildFinalist 2015 Sidewalk FlowersWinner Jack, the King of AshesFinalist Finalist Finalist Bug in a VacuumFinalist 2016 Tokyo Digs a GardenWinnerFinalist Finalist Finalist OokoFinalist 2017 When We Were AloneWinner Short Stories for Little MonstersFinalist When the Moon ComesFinalist Town Is By the SeaFinalist Finalist 2018 They Say BlueWinner Ocean Meets SkyFinalist AfricvilleFinalist Go Show the World: A Celebration of Indigenous HeroesFinalist At the PondFinalist 2019 Small in the CityWinner Albert's Quiet QuestFinalist King MouseFinalist BirdsongFinalist How to Give Your Cat a Bath in Five Easy StepsFinalist
2020s +Award winners and finalists, 2020-presentYearIllustratorAuthorTitleResult 2020 Winner "Michelle Good says celebrating fiction win feels 'petty and selfish' after residential school discovery". CTV News, June 1, 2021. Weekend DadFinalist "Francesca Ekwuyasi, Billy-Ray Belcourt & Anne Carson among 2020 Governor General's Literary Awards finalists". CBC Books, May 4, 2021. I Talk Like a RiverFinalist Our Little KitchenFinalist Swift Fox All AlongFinalist 2021 On the TraplineWinner "Inuk author Norma Dunning wins $25K Governor General's fiction prize" . Coast Reporter, November 17, 2021. Out Into the Big Wide LakeFinalist "Ivan Coyote, David A. Robertson & Julie Flett among finalists for $25K Governor General's Literary Awards". CBC Books, October 14, 2021. Mii maanda ezhi-gkendmaanh / This Is How I KnowFinalist Finalist Finalist 2022 The Sour Cherry TreeWinner Deborah Dundas, "Sheila Heti, Eli Baxter win 2022 Governor General's Literary Awards for fiction and non-fiction". Toronto Star, November 16, 2022. MinaFinalist "The finalists for the 2022 Governor General's Literary Award for young people's literature — illustrated books". CBC Books, October 12, 2022. and Don K. Philpot kā-āciwīkicik / The MoveFinalist Finalist Time Is a FlowerFinalist 2023 When You Can SwimWinner "Anuja Varghese wins Governor General's literary award for fiction". Toronto Star, November 8, 2023. Mr. SFinalist Finalist Still This Love Goes OnFinalist BoobiesFinalist 2024 Skating Wild on an Inland SeaWinner Cassandra Drudi, "Jordan Abel, Niigaan Sinclair among 2024 Governor General's award winners". Quill & Quire, November 13, 2024. I'm Afraid, Said the LeafFinalist Cassandra Drudi, "Canisia Lubrin, Danny Ramadan among 2024 Governor General's Literary Award finalists". Quill & Quire, October 8, 2024. Finalist One Giant LeapFinalist Do You Remember?Finalist 2025 This Land Is a LullabyWinner Guojing OasisFinalist "Governor General's Literary Awards shortlists announced". Quill & Quire, October 21, 2025. Bog MyrtleFinalist Finalist It Bears RepeatingFinalist
See also
Governor General's Award for English-language children's literature Governor General's Award for French-language children's illustration Governor General's Award for French-language children's literature
References