To mark the end of Indigenous History Month, the Canadian Children’s Book Centre announced that this year’s selected title for the TD Grade One Book Giveaway is My Heart Fills With Happiness/sâkaskinêw nitêh miywêyihtamowin ohci by Monique Gray Smith, illustrated by Julie Flett and published by Orca Book Publishers.
This year has been declared the International Year of Indigenous Languages by the United Nations, and this special edition includes the text in Plains Cree, as well as English or French.
About the book: The sun on your face. The smell of warm bannock baking in the oven. Holding the hand of someone you love. What fills your heart with happiness? This beautiful board book, with illustrations from celebrated artist Julie Flett, serves as a reminder for little ones and adults alike to reflect on and cherish the moments in life that bring us joy.
About the program: The TD Grade One Book Giveaway program is funded by the TD Bank Group and has occurred annually since 2000. The chosen book is distributed to over 550,000 children all across Canada. For some kids, this will be the first book they own. And, this year CNIB is partnering with the organization to offer a braille version too.