If you’re looking for a dose of inspiration, a bit of historical context, or simply a gift for an animation aficionado in your life, here are a few 2024 titles to consider picking up. 

Animation Nation: How We Built A Cartoon Empire by Michael Hirsh (Sutherland House Books) 

Hirsh, who co-founded Nelvana in 1971, writes about building the company and Canada’s animation industry along with it. He explores the studio’s 53-year history, from landing a gig producing an animated short for a CBS Star Wars TV special, to working on still-relevant franchises including The Magic School Bus and Beetlejuice. Credited as a producer on more than 6,000 episodes of kids TV programming spanning series such as Inspector Gadget, Berenstain Bears and The Adventures of Tintin, Hirsh says he’s keeping his options open for a next big opportunity, including potentially offering to buy Nelvana if Corus puts it up for sale. 

Life Clues: Unlocking the Lessons to an Exceptional Life (4U2B Books and Media) by Angela C. Santomero 

One of the original creators of Blue’s Clues, Santomero (pictured at top) is also behind more recent kids hits such as Super Why! and Daniel Tiger’s Neighborhood. In this book, she shares the 20 biggest lessons she has learned from decades of making kids content with companies such as 9 Story Media Group and Nickelodeon. Santomero takes a lot of cues from researching child development and working with kids, and she provides insights into how to make a series that breaks through in the market, and how to live a happier life away from work. 

Drawing the Line: A personal look at the story of Irish Animation by Steve Woods (self-published) 

Ireland is lauded for its kids animation talent pool and award-winning productions, but it wasn’t always that way. Irish animator, director and lecturer Steve Woods delves into the story of Ireland’s animation industry, from the early 1900s, to the emergence of small studios in the ’70s, to some more recent homegrown successes on the biggest global stages.