Barbara Reid

Barbara Reid (born November 16, 1957)^[1] is a Canadian illustrator and author of children's books. She has been called "one of Canada's major literary figures".^[2] In 2012, she received the Vicky Metcalf Award for Literature for Young People,^[3][4] an honour presented annually to a writer or illustrator whose body of work has been "inspirational to Canadian youth".^[2]

Barbara Reid
Born	(1957-11-16) November 16, 1957 (age 67) Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Occupation	Illustrator and author
Alma mater	Ontario College of Art
Notable awards	Vicky Metcalf Award

Biography

Reid was born in Toronto, Ontario, on November 16, 1957, and studied at the Ontario College of Art.^[1]

After graduation, she began her career creating illustrations for textbooks, after which she began illustrating children's books.^[5] She is known for her unique, sculpted-clay imagery, which was established with her illustrations for Elizabeth Clark's The New Baby Calf (1984).^[1] She creates her illustrations by starting with a pencil drawing, then builds up the image using coloured modelling clay to give it a three-dimensional effect.^[1] The result is then photographed and used as an illustration.^[1][5] The resulting illustrations are "detail rich" and often "invoke laughter and wonder."^[1]

Reid's work has been published in over 21 countries, including Canada, the United States, Great Britain, Australia, New Zealand, Finland, Norway, China, Germany, Brazil and Thailand.

Awards and honours

In 2006, Reid won the Canadian Library Association's Children's Illustrator of the Year award.^[6] The following year, she won the organization's award for Children's Author of the Year.^[6] In 2012, she won the organization's Libris Award for Picture Book.^[6]

In 2012, she received the Vicky Metcalf Award for Literature for Young People,^[3][4] an honour presented annually to a writer or illustrator whose body of work has been "inspirational to Canadian youth".^[2]

In 2017, the York Region District School Board honoured Barbara Reid by naming a new school in Stouffville, Ontario - Barbara Reid Public School. The elementary school serves students from Kindergarten to Grade in a new subdivision in Stouffville.

Awards for Reid's work

Year	Title	Award	Result	Ref.
1986	Have You Seen Birds?	Canada Council Children's Literature Prize	Winner	[1][7]
		IODE Book Award	Winner	[8]
1987		Elizabeth Mrazik-Cleaver Canadian Picture Book Award	Winner	[9][10]
1992	Zoe series	Mr. Christie's Book Award for English - Illustration	Winner	[1][11]
1993	Two By Two	Elizabeth Mrazik-Cleaver Canadian Picture Book Award	Winner	[9][12]
1995	Gifts	Amelia Frances Howard-Gibbon Illustrator's Award	Winner	[13]
1996		International Board on Books for Young People	Honour	[14]
1997	The Party	Governor General's Award for English-language children's illustration	Winner	[1]
		Amelia Frances Howard-Gibbon Illustrator's Award	Winner	[13]
2003	The Subway Mouse	Governor General's Award for English-language children's illustration	Finalist
2004		Ruth and Sylvia Schwartz Children’s Book Award	Winner	[1]
	Peg and the Yeti	Governor General's Award for English-language children's illustration	Finalist
2009	Fox Walked Alone	International Board on Books for Young People	Honour
2010	Perfect Snow	Amelia Frances Howard-Gibbon Illustrator's Award	Winner	[13][15]
2012	Picture a Tree	Governor General's Award for English-language children's illustration	Finalist
2014	The Night Before Christmas	Libris Award for Picture Book	Winner	[6][16]

Selected works

As author

• Sing a Song of Mother Goose (1987)
• Playing with Plasticine (1988), non-fiction
• Two By Two (1992)
• Zoe's Year (1992)
• The Party (1997)
• Fun with Modeling Clay (1998), non-fiction
• The Golden Goose (2000)
• Read Me a Book (2004)
• The Subway Mouse (2004)
• Fox Walked Alone (2009)
• Perfect Snow (2009)
• Picture a Tree (2011)
• Welcome Baby (2013)
• The Night Before Christmas (2013)

As illustrator

• The New Baby Calf by Edith Newlin Chase (1984)
• Have You Seen Birds? by Joanne Oppenheim (1986)
• Effie by Bev Allinson (1990)
• Gifts by Jo Ellen Bogart (1994)