Illustration from Piece by Piece by Erin Frankel; illus. by Stacy Innerst.

The following books will receive starred reviews in the March/April 2026 Horn Book Magazine:

102 by Matthew Cordell (Little, Brown)

My Subway Runs by James Gladstone; illus. by Pierre Pratt (Groundwood)

Navigating Night by Julie Leung; illus. by Angie Kang (Schwartz/Random)

The Great Escape by Deborah Marcero (Putnam)

Bartleby by Matt Phelan (Farrar)

When the Sun Goes Down: A Bedtime Book by Greg Pizzoli (Knopf)

Hold by Randy Ribay; illus. by Zeke Peña (Kokila/Penguin)

Leo and Ralph by Peter Carnavas (Groundwood)

Saber-Tooth by Robin Gow (Amulet/Abrams)

When Tomorrow Burns by Tae Keller (Random)

The Children of the Sun: An Inca Legend by Micaela Chirif; illus. by Juan Palomino; trans. from Spanish by Lawrence Schimel (Eerdmans)

Goldfinches by Mary Oliver; illus. by Melissa Sweet (Viking)

Piece by Piece: How Stephen Sondheim Made Musical Puzzles Come Alive by Erin Frankel; illus. by Stacy Innerst (Calkins/Astra)

Just One Oak: What a Single Tree Can Be by Maria Gianferrari; illus. by Diana Sudyka (Beach Lane/Simon)

Puffins! by Maria Gianferrari; illus. by Maris Wicks (Roaring Brook)

Serious Fun!: Work & Play with Charles & Ray Eames by Christy Hale (Porter/Holiday)

Hairstory by Sope Martins; illus. by Briana Mukodiri Uchendu (Dlouhy/Atheneum)

How a Bear Became a Book: The Collaboration That Created Winnie-the-Pooh by Annette Bay Pimentel; illus. by Faith Pray (Holt)