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Mexique: A Refugee Story from the Spanish Civil War by María José Ferrada; illus. by Ana Penyas; trans. from Spanish by Elisa Amado Primary, Intermediate Eerdmans 40 pp. g 10/20 978-0-8028-5545-9 $17.99 In the spring of 1937, the ship Mexique sailed from France to Mexico with 456 Spanish refugees, all...
Return of the Thief [Queen’s Thief] by Megan Whalen Turner Middle School, High School Greenwillow 480 pp. g 10/20 978-0-06287-447-4 $18.99 e-book ed. 978-0-06287-448-1 $12.99 Pheris, the heretofore-unknown heir of the traitorous Baron Erondites, is sent to be raised in the Attolian court. Possessing a keen intellect, Pheris has nevertheless...
Sato the Rabbit by Yuki Ainoya; illus. by the author; trans. from Japanese by Michael Blaskowsky Primary Enchanted Lion 64 pp. g 2/21 978-1-59270-296-1 $16.95 Sato is a little boy in a rabbit costume, a kind of Japanese second cousin to Max in his wolf suit. In a set of...
Everything Comes Next: Collected & New Poems by Naomi Shihab Nye; illus. by Rafael López Intermediate, Middle School Greenwillow 256 pp. g 9/20 978-0-06-301345-2 $17.99 e-book ed. 978-0-06-301347-6 $9.99 A substantial volume of poems by Nye, the Palestinian American poet and current Young People’s Poet Laureate, is a pleasure on...
The Cat I Never Named: A True Story of Love, War, and Survival by Amra Sabic-El-Rayess with Laura L. Sullivan High School Bloomsbury 384 pp. g 9/20 978-1-5476-0453-1 $19.99 e-book ed. 978-1-5476-0455-5 $13.99 This suspenseful memoir, set between 1992 and 1998, opens just before the author’s northwestern Bosnian town of...
Pity Party by Kathleen Lane Middle School Little, Brown 208 pp. g 1/21 978-0-316-41736-5 $16.99 e-book ed. 978-0-316-41735-8 $9.99 Katya is a nervous middle schooler whose fertile imagination defaults to disaster. The voice in her head warns of poisoned Halloween candy, looming social ostracism, imminent acne, and rabid raccoons. In...
Cave Paintings by Jairo Buitrago; illus. by Rafael Yockteng; trans. from Spanish by Elisa Amado Primary Groundwood 48 pp. g 10/20 978-1-773-06172-6 $19.95 e-book ed. 978-1-773-06173-3 $16.95 Buitrago and Yockteng (Walk with Me, rev. 5/17; On the Other Side of the Garden, rev. 7/18) turn to full-blown science fiction in...
A Place Inside of Me: A Poem to Heal the Heart by Zetta Elliott; illus. by Noa Denmon Primary, Intermediate Farrar 32 pp. g 7/20 978-0-374-30741-7 $17.99 e-book ed. 978-0-374-38863-8 $9.99 In this powerfully lyrical poem, Elliott articulates what resides “deep down inside” of the African American, skateboard-loving, first-person protagonist:...
My Bed: Enchanting Ways to Fall Asleep Around the World by Rebecca Bond; illus. by Salley Mavor Preschool Houghton 40 pp. g 9/20 978-0-544-94906-5 $18.99 e-book ed. 978-0-358-35905-0 $13.99 “My bed rocks on the water. / My bed sways in the breeze. / My bed’s beneath a curtain. / My...
Class Act by Jerry Craft; illus. by the author Intermediate, Middle School HarperAlley/Quill Tree/HarperCollins 256 pp. g 10/20 978-0-06-288551-7 $22.99 Paper ed. 978-0-06-288550-0 $12.99 e-book ed. 978-0-06-288552-4 $10.99 Puberty is on the horizon for thirteen-year-old Jordan Banks, who returns in this hilarious and heartfelt companion to New Kid (rev. 1/19),...
Circle! Sphere! [Storytelling Math] by Grace Lin; illus. by the author Preschool Charlesbridge 16 pp. g 10/20 978-1-62354-124-8 $6.99 The Last Marshmallow [Storytelling Math] by Grace Lin; illus. by the author Preschool Charlesbridge 16 pp. g 10/20 978-1-62354-126-2 $6.99 Up to My Knees! [Storytelling Math] by Grace Lin; illus. by...
Rise of the Halfling King [Tales of the Feathered Serpent] by David Bowles; illus. by Charlene Bowles Intermediate, Middle School Cinco Puntos 64 pp. g 10/20 Paper ed. 978-1-947627-37-6 $12.95 e-book ed. 978-1-947627-38-3 $12.95 In this series starter, David Bowles, author of 2018’s Feathered Serpent, Dark Heart of Sky: Myths...
Chance: Escape from the Holocaust by Uri Shulevitz; illus. by the author Intermediate, Middle School Farrar 336 pp. g 10/20 978-0-374-31371-5 $19.99 e-book ed. 978-0-374-31370-8 $9.99 Shulevitz was just four when the Nazis invaded Poland in September of 1939, forcing his family members to flee their homeland. Thus began nearly...
Becoming Muhammad Ali: Based on the Story of Young Cassius Clay by James Patterson and Kwame Alexander; illus. by Dawud Anyabwile Intermediate, Middle School Patterson/Little, Brown/Houghton 320 pp. g 10/20 978-0-316-49816-6 $16.99 e-book ed. 978-0-316-49818-0 $9.99 Patterson and Alexander, two heavyweights in the world of books (and their respective publishing...
Once upon a Winter Day by Liza Woodruff; illus. by the author Preschool, Primary Ferguson/Holiday 40 pp. g 11/20 978-0-8234-4099-3 $18.99 e-book ed. 978-0-8234-4404-5 $10.99 Milo’s mother is too busy to read him a story, so the boy reluctantly heads out to play in the snow. Under the bird feeder...
Nine: A Book of Nonet Poems by Irene Latham; illus. by Amy Huntington Primary, Intermediate Charlesbridge 32 pp. g 4/20 978-1-62354-116-3 $16.99 e-book ed. 978-1-63289-881-4 $9.99 A nonet, as the first poem explains, is a “Grand / poem / with nine lines / one-syllable / first line builds toward /...
Above the Rim: How Elgin Baylor Changed Basketball by Jen Bryant; illus. by Frank Morrison Primary, Intermediate Abrams 40 pp. g 10/20 978-1-4197-4108-1 $18.99 e-book ed. 978-1-64700-161-2 $15.54 “Things can change in time.” For NBA great Elgin Baylor, named for his father’s favorite wristwatch, the segregated parks, playgrounds, schools, and...
Flamer by Mike Curato; illus. by the author Middle School, High School Godwin/Holt 368 pp. g 9/20 978-1-62779-641-5 $25.99 Paper ed. 978-1-250-75614-5 $17.99 Aiden is not looking forward to starting public high school in the fall; his Catholic schooling heretofore has had its challenges — “jerks” — but at least...
All Because You Matter by Tami Charles; illus. by Bryan Collier Preschool, Primary Orchard/Scholastic 40 pp. g 10/20 978-1-338-57485-2 $17.99 e-book ed. 978-1-338-67474-3 $10.99 A richly illustrated affirmation for Black children — especially boys. An African American expectant mother and father eagerly await the arrival of their child, embracing him...
Feathered Serpent and the Five Suns: A Mesoamerican Creation Myth by Duncan Tonatiuh; illus. by the author Primary, Intermediate Abrams 40 pp. g 9/20 978-1-4197-4677-2 $16.99 e-book ed. 978-1-64700-154-4 $15.29 The Feathered Serpent, known as Quetzalcóatl among Nahuatl-speaking peoples, is a principal figure in Mesoamerican cosmology and often features in...
How We Got to the Moon: The People, Technology, and Daring Feats of Science Behind Humanity’s Greatest Adventure by John Rocco; illus. by the author Intermediate, Middle School Crown 264 pp. g 10/20 978-0-525-64741-6 $29.99 Library ed. 978-0-525-64742-3 $32.99 e-book ed. 978-0-525-64743-0 $17.99 In seven parts arranged chronologically, Rocco delivers...
The Snow Fell Three Graves Deep: Voices from the Donner Party by Allan Wolf Middle School, High School Candlewick 416 pp. g 9/20 978-0-7636-6324-7 $21.99 As in his previous works of historical fiction, including The Watch That Ends the Night (rev. 9/11), Wolf here deploys a cast of characters (a...
I Talk like a River by Jordan Scott; illus. by Sydney Smith Primary Porter/Holiday 40 pp. 9/20 978-0-8234-4559-2 $18.99 In this lyrical and empowering picture book, Canadian poet Scott tells a story based on his own experiences as a boy who stuttered. In simple, evocative language, he captures the isolation,...
Night Wishes selected by Lee Bennett Hopkins; illus. by Jen Corace Preschool, Primary Eerdmans 40 pp. g 9/20 978-0-8028-5496-4 $18.99 The late Lee Bennett Hopkins gathered these fourteen poems, written by such prominent children’s poets as Joyce Sidman, Nikki Grimes, and Eileen Spinelli, for this picture book of dreamy, comforting...
Your Place in the Universe by Jason Chin; illus. by the author Primary, Intermediate Porter/Holiday 40 pp. g 9/20 978-0-8234-4623-0 $18.99 e-book ed. 978-0-8234-4878-4 $11.99 The relative sizes of objects can be endlessly fascinating to curious young minds. How many books tall is an eight-year-old? How many eight-year-olds standing on...
Twins by Varian Johnson; illus. by Shannon Wright Intermediate, Middle School Graphix/Scholastic 256 pp. g 10/20 978-1-338-23617-0 $24.99 Paper ed. 978-1-338-23613-2 $12.99 e-book ed. 978-1-338-23619-4 $7.99 It’s the first day of sixth grade for the identical Carter twins, and while Maureen is more than content to face the year with...
The Bear and the Moon by Matthew Burgess; illus. by Cátia Chien Preschool, Primary Chronicle 48 pp. g 9/20 978-1-4521-7191-3 $18.99 e-book ed. 978-1-4521-8125-7 $11.99 A wide-eyed bear — a furry stand-in for toddlers learning to manage strong emotions, as well as readers of all ages dealing with sorrow —...
Quill Soup: A Stone Soup Story by Alan Durant; illus. by Dale Blankenaar Primary Charlesbridge 40 pp. g 9/20 978-1-62354-147-7 $16.99 This retelling of the traditional “Stone Soup” tale stars a porcupine named Noko, hungry, tired, and seeking hospitality in a small village; and features animals of South Africa —...
Apple: Skin to the Core by Eric Gansworth; illus. by the author Middle School, High School Levine Querido 352 pp. g 10/20 978-1-64614-013-8 $18.99 e-book ed. 978-1-64614-004-6 $18.99 Gansworth, an enrolled member of the Onondaga Nation, grew up on the Tuscarora reservation, making him always “the outsider inside.” The theme...
Loretta Little Looks Back: Three Voices Go Tell It by Andrea Davis Pinkney; illus. by Brian Pinkney Intermediate, Middle School Little, Brown 224 pp. g 9/20 978-0-316-53677-6 $17.99 e-book ed. 978-0-316-53676-9 $9.99 Spanning roughly three generations, covering the years 1927 to 1968, this lyrical oral history of the fictional Little...
Our Little Kitchen by Jillian Tamaki; illus. by the author Primary Abrams 48 pp. g 9/20 978-1-4197-4655-0 $17.99 Our narrator explains, with great enthusiasm and gusto, how “every Wednesday, we come together in this little kitchen” to prepare a communal meal for all who are hungry. Meal prep begins with...
I Heard a Sound by David J. Ward; illus. by Eric Comstock Primary Holiday 40 pp. g 7/20 978-0-8234-3704-7 $18.99 Bright, eye-catching digital illustrations provide the first signs of a stimulating adventure. Ward delivers on this promise but also offers a solid and informative introduction to one of the five...
Trowbridge Road by Marcella Pixley Middle School Candlewick 310 pp. g 10/20 978-1-5362-0750-7 $17.99 Narrator June Bug Jordan watches “beanpole” Ziggy Karlo, with his “unruly mop of red hair,” arrive at his grandmother’s house on idyllic Trowbridge Road in the summer of 1983. The two loners quickly become friends, finding...
Sun Flower Lion by Kevin Henkes; illus. by the author Preschool, Primary Greenwillow 40 pp. g 9/20 978-0-06-286610-3 $18.99 Library ed. 978-0-06-286611-0 $19.89 Meet the sun, “as bright as a flower”; a flower that looks like a lion; and a lion, who sees the flower and dreams about a field...
Marie’s Ocean: Marie Tharp Maps the Mountains Under the Sea by Josie James; illus. by the author Primary, Intermediate Ottaviano/Holt 48 pp. g 9/20 978-1-250-21473-7 $19.99 e-book ed. 978-1-250-80619-2 $9.99 This picture-book biography of geologist and oceanographic cartographer Marie Tharp (1920–2006), who revolutionized the world’s understanding of the ocean’s floor,...
Show Me a Sign by Ann Clare LeZotte Intermediate, Middle School Scholastic 288 pp. g 3/20 978-1-338-25581-2 $18.00 e-book ed. 978-1-338-25583-6 $11.99 In 1805 Chilmark, on Martha’s Vineyard, eleven-year-old Mary Lambert’s family is grieving the death of her brother George in a horse-cart accident. In the larger picture, English-settler residents...
Robobaby by David Wiesner; illus. by the author Primary Clarion 32 pp. g 9/20 978-0-544-98731-9 $17.99 e-book ed. 978-0-358-41605-0 $12.99 In his latest picture book told with comics panels, Wiesner (Mr. Wuffles!, rev. 9/13) presents a new-baby story; the twist here is that the family in question are robots. The...
All Thirteen: The Incredible Cave Rescue of the Thai Boys’ Soccer Team by Christina Soontornvat Intermediate, Middle School Candlewick 288 pp. g 10/20 978-1-5362-0945-7 $24.99 An author of picture books, easy readers, and middle-grade novels, Soontornvat (A Wish in the Dark, rev. 5/20) here presents a compelling work of nonfiction....
This Is My America by Kim Johnson High School Random 416 pp. g 7/20 978-0-593-11876-4 $17.99 Library ed. 978-0-593-11877-1 $20.00 e-book ed. 978-0-593-11878-8 $10.99 Tracy is running out of time. It’s been seven years since her father was wrongly convicted of a double murder. Every week, Tracy writes to Innocence...
In the City by Chris Raschka; illus. by the author Preschool, Primary Jackson/Atheneum 40 pp. g 9/20 978-1-4814-8627-9 $17.99 e-book ed. 978-1-4814-8628-6 $10.99 In this inquisitive and celebratory story, Raschka explores the enigmatic nature of fledgling friendships, reflecting on how friends find each other. In separate spaces in a bustling...
How Women Won the Vote: Alice Paul, Lucy Burns, and Their Big Idea by Susan Campbell Bartoletti; illus. by Ziyue Chen Primary, Intermediate Harper/HarperCollins 80 pp. g 5/20 978-0-06-284130-8 $18.99 This well-sourced account of the fight for American women’s suffrage begins in 1909 at a protest march in London. It...
Fighting Words by Kimberly Brubaker Bradley Intermediate, Middle School Dial 269 pp. g 8/20 978-1-9848-1568-2 $17.99 Ten-year-old Delicious Nevaeh Roberts, a.k.a. Della, doesn’t take “snow” from anyone (“Suki says whenever I want to use a bad word, I can say snow”). She’s learned to be tough from her fiercely protective...
Evelyn Del Rey Is Moving Away by Meg Medina; illus. by Sonia Sánchez Preschool, Primary Candlewick 32 pp. g 9/20 978-1-5362-0704-0 $17.99 Spanish ed. 978-1-5362-1334-8 $17.99 Daniela knows she’s going to have to say goodbye to Evelyn, her next-door neighbor and “número uno best friend.” But first, the two girls...
Democracy for Dinosaurs: A Guide for Young Citizens by Laurie Krasny Brown; illus. by Marc Brown Primary Little, Brown 32 pp. g 9/20 978-0-316-53452-9 $17.99 Sharing, fairness, choice, respect, truthfulness — most young people are well acquainted with these concepts; the Browns (Dinosaurs Divorce; Dinosaurs Go Green!; and many others)...
The Time of Green Magic by Hilary McKay Intermediate, Middle School McElderry 225 pp. g 7/20 978-1-5344-6276-2 $17.99 Everything changes for eleven-year-old North Londoner Abigail when her widower father marries Polly, mother of Max and Louis, and her beloved Granny Grace returns to Jamaica. Feeling both isolated and crowded at...
I Am Every Good Thing by Derrick Barnes; illus. by Gordon C. James Preschool, Primary Paulsen/Penguin 32 pp. g 9/20 978-0-525-51877-8 $17.99 e-book ed. 978-0-525-51878-5 $10.99 Barnes and James reunite, after the multi-award-winning success of Crown (rev. 11/17), for this beautiful and necessary book that affirms Black boys and their...
Finish the Fight!: The Brave and Revolutionary Women Who Fought for the Right to Vote by Veronica Chambers and members of the staff of the New York Times; illus. by various artists Intermediate, Middle School Versify/Houghton 144 pp. g 8/20 978-0-358-40830-7 $18.99 e-book ed....
Before the Ever After by Jacqueline Woodson Intermediate Paulsen/Penguin 176 pp. g 9/20 978-0-399-54543-6 $17.99 In her latest novel in verse, Woodson (Locomotion, rev. 3/03; Brown Girl Dreaming, rev. 9/14) explores the impact of chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE) on football players and their families from the perspective of ZJ, son...
Julián at the Wedding by Jessica Love; illus. by the author Preschool, Primary Candlewick 40 pp. g 10/20 978-1-5362-1238-9 $16.99 Love’s follow-up to Julián Is a Mermaid (rev. 5/18) features characters both familiar and new. At the start of the story, Julián and Abuela are strolling down the sidewalk, arm-in-arm...
Cubs in the Tub: The True Story of the Bronx Zoo’s First Woman Zookeeper by Candace Fleming; illus. by Julie Downing Primary, Intermediate Porter/Holiday 48 pp. g 8/20 978-0-8234-4318-5 $18.99 “Helen and Fred Martini longed for a baby,” begins this engaging picture-book biography. Fred spends his days working at the...
Darius the Great Deserves Better by Adib Khorram High School Dial 352 pp. g 8/20 978-0-59310-823-9 $17.99 Since we last saw “Fractional Persian” Darius in 2019 Boston Globe–Horn Book honor book Darius the Great Is Not Okay (rev. 9/18), he’s come out as gay, and has a boyfriend. Now back...
If You Come to Earth by Sophie Blackall; illus. by the author Primary Chronicle 80 pp. g 9/20 978-1-4521-3779-7 $18.99 Quinn, a small child in a red gnome hat, writes a letter to potential visitors to our planet to explain to them what we’re about: our location in the universe,...
Stay Curious!: A Brief History of Stephen Hawking by Kathleen Krull and Paul Brewer; illus. by Boris Kulikov Primary, Intermediate Crown 40 pp. g 9/20 978-0-399-55028-7 $17.99 Library ed. 978-0-399-55029-4 $20.99 e-book ed. 978-0-399-55030-0 $10.99 Physicist Stephen Hawking (1942–2018) was brilliant and iconoclastic from the get-go: as a child, he...
Displacement by Kiku Hughes; illus. by the author Middle School, High School First Second/Roaring Brook 288 pp. g 8/20 978-1-250-19354-4 $24.99 Paper ed. 978-1-250-19353-7 $17.99 This graphic novel blends historical fact and science fiction into an enthralling time-travel tale. An imagined version of debut author Hughes’s teenage self is suddenly...
In the Half Room by Carson Ellis; illus. by the author Primary Candlewick 32 pp. g 10/20 978-1-5362-1456-7 $16.99 In a series of images that depict halves, Ellis ushers readers into a delightfully surreal setting. With pleasing rhymes (“Half a window / Half a door / Half a rug on...
The House by the Lake by Thomas Harding; illus. by Britta Teckentrup Primary, Intermediate Candlewick Studio 48 pp. g 9/20 978-1-53621-274-7 $17.99 The titular dwelling was the weekend home of Harding’s great-grandparents in Germany, built by his great-grandfather nearly a century ago. Readers experience the peace and idyll of the...
Punching the Air by Ibi Zoboi with Yusef Salaam; illus. by Omar T. Pasha High School Balzer + Bray/HarperCollins 400 pp. g 9/20 978-0-06-299648-0 $19.99 e-book ed. 978-0-06-299650-3 $10.99 Sixteen-year-old Amal Dawud Shahid (who is African American) knows he didn’t throw the punch that left Jeremy Mathis (who is white)...
Outside In by Deborah Underwood; illus. by Cindy Derby Primary Houghton 40 pp. g 4/20 978-1-328-86682-0 $17.99 The intersection of outside and inside is creatively explored in this reflection on nature and its gentle persistence and ever-presence. The story begins in nature, as a young girl explores an impressionistic forest....
Chicken Little: The Real and Totally True Tale by Sam Wedelich; illus. by the author Primary Scholastic 40 pp. g 6/20 978-1-338-35901-5 $17.99 In this clever spin on the classic tale, Chicken Little makes it clear — right from the get-go — that she’s got plenty of pluck. “Who are...
Lifting as We Climb: Black Women’s Battle for the Ballot Box by Evette Dionne Middle School, High School Viking 176 pp. g 4/20 978-0-45148-154-2 $19.99 In her preface, “Not the History You Learned in School,” Dionne sets the historical scene with the 2016 presidential campaign. Having...
Willa the Wisp [The Fabled Stables] by Jonathan Auxier; illus. by Olga Demidova Primary Amulet/Abrams 96 pp. g 10/20 978-1-4197-4269-9 $12.99 “At the top of the world sat an island. And at the heart of that island lived a boy named Auggie.” So begins this early chapter book full of...
You Matter by Christian Robinson; illus. by the author Preschool, Primary Atheneum 40 pp. g 6/20 978-1-5344-2169-1 $17.99 e-book ed. 978-1-5344-2170-7 $10.99 No saccharine self-esteem book, this is a powerful affirmation of each reader’s worth. Robinson’s text is loaded with child appeal (“When everyone thinks you’re a pest. / When...
The Complete and Original Norwegian Folktales of Asbjørnsen and Moe by Peter Christen Asbjørnsen and Jørgen Moe; trans. from Norwegian by Tiina Nunnally Intermediate University of Minnesota 320 pp. g 9/19 978-1-5179-0568-2 $34.95 Asbjørnsen and Moe first published their Norske folkeeventyr (“Norwegian folktales”) as a pamphlet in 1841; through the...
Exquisite: The Poetry and Life of Gwendolyn Brooks by Suzanne Slade; illus. by Cozbi A. Cabrera Primary, Intermediate Abrams 48 pp. g 4/20 978-1-4197-3411-3 $17.99 Gwendolyn Brooks (1917–2000) grew up on the South Side of Chicago “with little money to spare,” but her childhood home was rich in volumes of...
Baloney and Friends by Greg Pizzoli; illus. by the author Primary Disney-Hyperion 87 pp. g 4/20 978-1-368-05454-6 $12.99 In this energetic and amusing comics-styled easy reader, Baloney — an amiable orange pig — interacts with his friends Bizz (a bumblebee), Peanut (a blue horse), and Krabbit (an often crabby and...
One Golden Rule at School: A Counting Book by Selina Alko; illus. by the author Preschool, Primary Ottaviano/Holt 40 pp. g 6/20 978-1-250-16381-3 $17.99 Within the familiar rhythms and routines of a school day, viewers count from one (“One backpack”) to ten (“Ten chickpeas lined up for lunch”) and back...
Frog and Toad Are Friends [I Can Read Book] by Arnold Lobel; illus. by the author Primary Harper/HarperCollins 72 pp. g 9/20 978-0-06-298343-5 $18.99 Here is a welcome new edition of this iconic, Caldecott Honor–winning easy reader, reissued with a section at the end of seven pages of background material....
How to Solve a Problem: The Rise (and Falls) of a Rock-Climbing Champion by Ashima Shiraishi; illus. by Yao Xiao Primary Make Me a World/Random 40 pp. g 4/20 978-1-5247-7327-4 $17.99 Library ed. 978-1-5247-7328-1 $20.99 e-book ed. 978-1-5247-7329-8 $10.99 With a voice that’s distinctive, lyrical, and inspiring, teenage rock-climber Shiraishi...
Eight Princesses and a Magic Mirror by Natasha Farrant; illus. by Lydia Corry Intermediate Norton 217 pp. g 5/20 978-1-324-01556-7 $19.95 The framing structure for this collection of princess stories is elaborate. When an enchantress is invited to be the godmother to a princess, she realizes that she doesn’t know...
13 Stories About Harris by Amy Schwartz; illus. by the author Preschool Holiday 40 pp. g 7/20 978-0-8234-4249-2 $18.99 Thirteen short stories follow city dweller Harris on preschooler-sized adventures. A very few seem geared toward adult sensibilities; most tap directly into authentic early-childhood behaviors and experiences. Harris, completely absorbed in...
One Year at Ellsmere by Faith Erin Hicks; illus. by the author Intermediate, Middle School First Second/Roaring Brook 172 pp. g 7/20 978-1-250-21909-1 $22.99 Paper ed. 978-1-250-21910-7 $14.99 Originally published as The War at Ellsmere in 2008 (by SLG Publishing) and now back in print with revamped art, this graphic...
A Sporting Chance: How Ludwig Guttmann Created the Paralympic Games by Lori Alexander; illus. by Allan Drummond Intermediate, Middle School Houghton 128 pp. g 4/20 978-1-328-58079-5 $17.99 Before Dr. Ludwig Guttmann (1899–1980), there was no treatment for a broken spine; paraplegics were deemed incurable and usually died in a matter...
The One and Only Bob by Katherine Applegate; illus. by Patricia Castelao Intermediate Harper/HarperCollins 338 pp. g 5/20 978-0-06-299131-7 $18.99 Applegate revisits the beloved cast of characters from her Newbery Medal–winning The One and Only Ivan (rev. 1/12), but this time from a different viewpoint. Bob, the tenacious mutt (“some...
Sun and Moon Have a Tea Party by Yumi Heo; illus. by Naoko Stoop Primary Schwartz & Wade/Random 40 pp. g 7/20 978-0-385-39033-0 $17.99 Library ed. 978-0-385-39034-7 $20.99 e-book ed. 978-0-385-39035-4 $10.99 Sun and Moon meet for a late-afternoon tea party and discover the disparities between their worldviews. As they...
Winter in Wartime by Jan Terlouw; trans. from Dutch by Laura Watkinson Intermediate NYRB 220 pp. g Paper ed. 978-1-68137-426-0 $12.99 e-book ed. 978-1-68137-427-7 $9.99 In a village in the Netherlands, in the winter of 1944–45, teen Michiel van Beusekom becomes involved in anti-Nazi resistance activities — hiding and feeding...
The Fabled Life of Aesop by Ian Lendler; illus. by Pamela Zagarenski Primary Houghton 64 pp. g 3/20 978-1-328-58552-3 $18.99 Lendler gives depth to a collection of Aesop’s fables by incorporating them into the story of their teller’s life. Working off what few facts scholars have pieced together from historical...
I Am Here Now by Barbara Bottner High School Imprint/Macmillan 347 pp. g 8/20 978-1-250-20769-2 $17.99 e-book ed. 978-1-250-20770-8 $9.99 Fourteen-year-old Maisie characterizes her 1960s coming-of-age in the Bronx as “one of those fairy tales / where the witch eats the child.” And for good reason. Her perfume mogul dad...
The Ocean Calls: A Haenyeo Mermaid Story by Tina Cho; illus. by Jess X. Snow Primary Kokila/Penguin 48 pp. g 8/20 978-1-9848-1486-9 $17.99 Young Korean girl Dayeon admires her diver grandmother (“You are like a treasure-hunting mermaid”) and wants to be like her. Grandma is a haenyeo, one of many...
Race Through the Skies: The Week the World Learned to Fly by Martin W. Sandler Middle School Bloomsbury 185 pp. g 7/20 978-1-5476-0344-2 $24.99 The rate of innovation during the first decade of flight is as astounding now as it must have been at the time. Sandler’s compelling look at...
Clap When You Land by Elizabeth Acevedo High School Quill Tree/HarperCollins 422 pp. g 5/20 978-0-06-288276-9 $18.99 e-book ed. 978-0-06-288278-3 $11.99 In this sharp and compelling verse novel (a 2020 Boston Globe–Horn Book honoree), sixteen-year-old Camino Rios lives in the Dominican Republic and dreams of medical school. Sixteen-year-old Yahaira Rios...
We Will Rock Our Classmates by Ryan T. Higgins; illus. by the author Primary Disney-Hyperion 48 pp. g 7/20 978-1-368-05959-6 $17.99 This second installment about T. rex Penelope (We Don’t Eat Our Classmates, rev. 9/18) centers on the school talent show. Penelope loves to rock and roll, and using her...
A Bowl Full of Peace: A True Story by Caren Stelson; illus. by Akira Kusaka Intermediate, Middle School Carolrhoda 40 pp. g 8/20 978-1-5415-2148-3 $17.99 e-book ed. 978-1-5415-8219-4 $18.95 Each evening Sachiko’s family gathers around their table in Nagasaki, Japan. Before the Second World War, Grandmother’s bowl is the centerpiece...
War at the Snow White Motel and Other Stories by Tim Wynne-Jones Intermediate, Middle School Groundwood 245 pp. g 5/20 978-1-77306-047-7 $16.95 e-book ed. 978-1-77306-048-4 $11.99 Most of the protagonists in these nine short stories are twelve years old and bumping into the realities of human nature — their own...
Good Guys, Bad Guys by Joanne Rocklin; illus. by Nancy Carpenter Preschool, Primary Abrams 32 pp. g 5/20 978-1-4197-3417-5 $16.99 Rocklin and Carpenter present a rollicking homage to neighborhood kid–summertime play. The story begins on the title-page spread as two children get ready to greet the morning. On the left-hand...
On the Horizon by Lois Lowry; illus. by Kenard Pak Middle School, High School Houghton 80 pp. g 4/20 978-0-358-12940-0 $16.99 e-book ed. 978-0-358-12938-7 $9.99 In a poetry collection that’s as much structure as style and theme, Lowry considers two events: the bombings of Pearl Harbor and Hiroshima. In the...
You’re Invited to a Moth Ball: A Nighttime Insect Celebration by Loree Griffin Burns; photos by Ellen Harasimowicz Primary Charlesbridge 40 pp. g 4/20 978-1-58089-686-3 $16.99 e-book ed. 978-1-63289-834-0 $9.99 With her latest book, Burns (Tracking Trash, rev. 3/07; The Hive Detectives, rev. 5/10) has earned the right to add...
Echo Mountain by Lauren Wolk Intermediate, Middle School Dutton 359 pp. g 4/20 978-0-525-55556-8 $17.99 Since the Great Depression forced twelve-year-old Ellie’s family to move from town up to Echo Mountain, she hasn’t known how to interact with her mother and older sister; they miss their former life and blame...
Bo the Brave by Bethan Woollvin; illus. by the author Primary Peachtree 32 pp. g 4/20 978-1-68263-182-9 $17.99 When Bo’s two older brothers, Erik and Ivan, set off from the castle on a quest to hunt a monster, they refuse to allow her to join, sneering that she’s too little....
Ms. Gloria Steinem: A Life by Winifred Conkling Middle School, High School Feiwel 305 pp. g 6/20 978-1-250-24457-4 $19.99 Conkling (Radioactive!, rev. 3/16; Votes for Women!, rev. 3/18) opens this insightful biography of the feminist icon with a close call. In 1956, when she was twenty-two, Steinem called off wedding...
Felix Ever After by Kacen Callender High School Balzer + Bray/HarperCollins 357 pp. g 5/20 978-0-06-282025-9 $18.99 e-book ed. 978-0-06-282027-3 $10.99 At seventeen, Felix Love feels marginalized as a Black teen, an aspiring artist, and a trans male. His mom left the family when he was ten, and although his...
The Blue House by Phoebe Wahl; illus. by the author Primary Knopf 40 pp. g 8/20 978-1-9848-9336-9 $17.99 Library ed. 978-1-9848-9337-6 $20.99 e-book ed. 978-1-9848-9338-3 $10.99 Wahl’s picture book tells an affecting story about loss and starting over. In it, interdependent text and art channel a Molly Bang–like artistic style...
How to Find a Bird by Jennifer Ward; illus. by Diana Sudyka Preschool, Primary Beach Lane/Simon 48 pp. g 8/20 978-1-4814-6705-6 $17.99 e-book ed. 978-1-4814-6706-3 $10.99 “There are a lot of ways to find a bird.” The two children in this enticing and beautiful picture book demonstrate how. After doing...
Daring Darleen, Queen of the Screen by Anne Nesbet Intermediate, Middle School Candlewick 357 pp. g 4/20 978-1-5362-0619-7 $18.99 “Sometimes the real danger is not what you thought it would be at all.” So begins the story of Darleen, young (fictional) star of silent movie serials. It is 1914, and...
We Are Water Protectors by Carole Lindstrom; illus. by Michaela Goade Primary Roaring Brook 40 pp. g 3/20 978-1-250-20355-7 $17.99 The book opens with a young Indigenous girl collecting water with her grandmother, who tells her that “water is the first medicine.” Vibrant blues, greens, and purples depict the river...
Sharuko: El arqueólogo Peruano Julio C. Tello / Peruvian Archaeologist Julio C. Tello by Monica Brown; illus. by Elisa Chavarri; trans. into Spanish by Adriana Domínguez Primary, Intermediate Children’s/Lee & Low 40 pp. g 8/20 978-0-89239-423-4 $19.95 This picture-book biography of Peruvian archaeologist and educator Julio C. Tello (1880–1947) forefronts...
Again Again by E. Lockhart High School Delacorte 293 pp. g 6/20 978-0-385-74479-9 $18.99 Library ed. 978-0-375-99185-1 $21.99 e-book ed. 978-0-385-39139-9 $10.99 In this novel set in the same world as The Disreputable History of Frankie Landau-Banks (rev. 5/08), Lockhart explores the intersection between love and the multiverse. The summer...
Whoo-Ku Haiku: A Great Horned Owl Story by Maria Gianferrari; illus. by Jonathan Voss Primary Putnam 32 pp. g 3/20 978-0-399-54842-0 $16.99 e-book ed. 978-0-399-54843-7 $9.99 Readers follow a pair of great horned owls and their owlets from winter into the next autumn in this life-cycle narrative told in haiku....
Most Wanted: The Revolutionary Partnership of John Hancock & Samuel Adams by Sarah Jane Marsh; illus. by Edwin Fotheringham Intermediate Little, Brown 80 pp. g 3/20 978-1-368-02683-3 $19.99 e-book ed. 978-1-368-06129-2 $12.99 Here readers meet the original American political odd couple: Samuel Adams, the serious and staunch patriot, and John...
Red Hood by Elana K. Arnold High School Balzer + Bray/HarperCollins 357 pp. 2/20 978-0-06-274253-3 $18.99 After a consensual (and vividly described) sexual encounter with her boyfriend that, to her surprise, ends in her beginning to menstruate for the first time, sixteen-year-old Bisou is attacked by a wolf on her...
Everyone’s Awake by Colin Meloy; illus. by Shawn Harris Primary Chronicle 48 pp. 3/20 978-1-4521-7805-9 $17.99 Meloy and Harris depict one family’s anarchical bedtime routine within their ramshackle lighthouse-esque domicile. Rollicking rhymes, narrated by a young family member, set the scene: “We all got / tucked in early. / A...
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