McDonald’s Happy Meal Books – Canada in Words

Another in the successful Canadian-themed series by author-illustrator Per-Henrik Gürth, this playful wordbook celebrates the fun cultural and natural phenomena that make the country unique. Thirty words or phrases are included that cover a range of quintessentially Canadian icons and representative symbols of the country, from ice fishing to Stanley Cup, sugar shack to Mounties, and loon to northern lights. Each entry gets its own page, with the word or phrase clearly written in large type in the upper left or right corner, and a corresponding illustration of bright, colorful artwork featuring an adorable cast of forest animal characters is positioned below. The drawings are fun and lively, and offer a perfectly child-friendly interpretation of the entry — the maple syrup page, for example, shows a smiling moose with his fork at the ready, a stack of pancakes doused with syrup in front of him.
This is a book for small children to pore over and explore: pre-readers will be able to use the illustrations for guidance as they work to sound out the entry words, while beginning readers will surely recognize some of the simpler words on their own. This book would also work beautifully for classes in the early grades comparing countries and cultures, including discussions about the novel concept that even though people in the United States and Canada speak the same language, there are some words that they don’t share.